Joe Biden announced on Thursday that his new vaccine mandate for companies with over 100 workers will be place starting on January 4, 2022.
The mandate, which Biden first announced in September, will affect over 100 million workers in the United States.
Greece has been accused of limiting the freedom of the press freedom after the government earlier in the week brought before Parliament changes to the penal law that foresees heavy penalties for media that are deemed to spread fake news.
Greek cuisine was recently introduced as a standalone program at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) which announced the establishment of the National Hellenic Society Culinary Legacy Fund to promote Hellenic heritage, culture, and cuisine to culinary arts students.
The initiative for the program belongs to The National Hellenic Society (NHS), a non-profit organization dedicated to perpetuating, celebrating, and passing on Hellenic heritage.
The program will run as part of the Food and Beverage Program within the UNLV’s world-renowned William F. Harrah College of Hospitality.
Stowe Shoemaker, dean of the College, and his team hosted a reception for NHS members and guests attending the annual NHS Heritage Weekend event in celebration of the launch of the Fund.
NHS Guests included Her Excellency, Ambassador Alexandra Papadopoulou, Greece’s Ambassador to the U.S., David Horner, President of the American College of Greece, Alexander Zagoreos, Chair of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens, Nancy Papaioannou, President of Atlantic Bank, George Marcus, John Calamos, and Drake Behrakis, NHS Co-Founders, and NHS members from all over the U.S.
The Fund’s initial program is the NEWS Program (NHS Epicurean Workshop Series) with Master Chef Diane Kochilas, star of My Greek Table, to kick off the NEWS Program. Chef Kochilas was thrilled to have the opportunity to teach the College’s hospitality students about wellness and other benefits associated with the Greek Mediterranean diet in several classes held over two days at the College.
The NHS will help bring other chefs, culinarians, and experts that will impart their insights into the Greek Mediterranean diet, culture, traditions, and lifestyle to students.
NHS Chair, Drake Behrakis emphasized NHS focus on its effort to pass on this important aspect of our Hellenic heritage and culinary legacy with students enrolled in the nation’s leading academic centers of hospitality.
“The kouzina plays an important role in our lives, where family, friends, and colleagues gather to engage in dialogue, reflect, laugh, and enjoy a wonderful meal in the spirit of parea/kinship. We look forward to collaborating to promote wellness and all the benefits of the Greek Mediterranean diet and to share Hellenic philoxenia/hospitality with the College’s students in hopes they will bring that spirit to others as they advance in their career paths throughout the U.S. and beyond,” Behrakis said.
“We are grateful to be working on such a unique project with such amazing partners,” Dean Shoemaker noted..
“Collaborating with the NHS means we’re able to give students a rich understanding of Greek culture and cuisine—exposure that helps these young people not only grow as hospitality professionals but also citizens of the world.”
Greece’s Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis launched on Friday the GR-eco project on the island of Halki, scheduled to turn the island “green”.
A Greek-American, Dr. Nick Kartsonis is the Senior Vice President in charge of global clinical trials at Merck Research Laboratories, the company that has developed the first pill authorized to combat the coronavirus.
Merck pharmaceuticals developed the first antiviral pill against the coronavirus, approved on Thursday in the UK.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced on Friday that the Biden Administration has appointed two officials to direct the State Department’s investigation into cases of Havana Syndrome.
The “Greek Philosopher” app gathers more than six hundred of the most profound words of wisdom from the major schools of ancient Greek thought — and delivers them straight to you on your mobile device.
Based on original sources, this work is a compilation of carefully-selected quotes of ancient Greek philosophy spanning from the sixth century BC to the first
Thinkers from the Greek schools of Stoicism, Cynicism and Epicureanism are among the thirty-six Greek philosophers featured in the app.
Stoicism is a school of Hellenistic philosophy founded by Zeno of Citium in Athens in the early third century BC, who was greatly inspired by the teachings of Socrates. Stoicism is a philosophy of ethics, with or without a belief in God.
According to its teachings, the path to Eudaimonia (i.e. happiness, fulfillment, flourishing) for humans is found in fully accepting the moment as it presents itself; by not allowing oneself to be controlled by the desire for pleasure or fear of pain, by using reason to understand the world, and by treating others fairly.
According to Cynicism, social values, material goods and luxuries kept man away from true happiness — which can only be found by living in the simplicity of nature.
Epicureanism refers to a way of life that encourages its adherents to seek modest, sustainable pleasure in the form of a state of ataraxia (tranquility and freedom from fear) through knowledge of the workings of the world, and limiting their desires.
The heatwave recorded this summer between July 28 and August 5 was a record-breaker in terms of duration and temperatures, according to a study by the National Meteorological Service.
The study divides the nine-day heatwave into two phases, the first from July 28-31 and the second from August 1-5. Very high temperatures were recorded during the first phase, but the maximums remained below the July records.
As the days went by the temperatures rose, with the result that in the first five days of August the maximum temperatures exceeded or approached the absolute maximum temperatures for August in several areas.
Record highs of August were recorded mainly in Serres (43.4C vs a previous 43.3C), Thessaloniki (40.5C vs 40.4C), Astros (45C vs 42.2C), Lamia (45.4C vs 43.8C), Elliniko (43C vs 41.8C), Elefsina (44.8C vs 43.5C), Argos (46.3C vs 43.2C), Kalamata (43.2C vs 41.4C) and Nea Philadelphia (45.3C vs 43.6C).
The educational system has never faced the kind of operational uncertainty it has faced in the last 20 months. A few weeks from the beginning of the scholastic year, heads of schools, parents, and teachers are baffled by the educational authorities’ lack of clear guidelines.
Admittedly the development of COVID-19 remains unpredictable with the consequence that the health authorities often have to reverse decisions aimed at accelerating the return to normality. No one can seriously challenge the concept that the government should give safety the highest consideration when issuing public health directives.
However, the long-term effects of preventing students from returning to the classroom after almost two years of disrupted teaching methods must never be underestimated. Students benefit from in-person learning, and safely returning to in-person instruction in autumn is also a priority.
The scant information coming from the education authorities indicates that post-secondary students will return to in-person learning in September. The majority of these students have been vaccinated, and as such, they present a lower risk of getting seriously ill if they contract COVID-19.
However, primary and secondary schools are likely to operate similarly to last year. This means mandatory indoor mask-wearing for all students, staff, teachers and visitors to primary and secondary schools regardless of vaccination status. It also means that the concept of the bubble will still be observed to prevent unnecessary contact.
