Aurora Simionescu Discovers a Piece of Our Universe

Ms Aurora Simionescu, a PhD student and NASA scholar, together with a team of astrophysicists, has revealed and studied a gas bridge that connects two clusters of galaxies in the known cosmic matter, as opposed to the dark one. She continues her studies and research as an international astrophysicist and has yet more to reveal to the world.

Rukmini Callimachi: Pulitzer Finalist 2009

Ms. Rukmini Callimachi was among the Finalists for the Pulitzer Prize for International Reporting "for her in-depth investigation of the exploitation of impoverished children in West and Central Africa".
Working at first as a freelancer, she made her mark in international journalism writing articles for "Time" Magazine, "Daily Herald” Chicago and now for Associated Press.

Rukmini left Romania during the communist regime with her mother, father and grandmother, for Switzerland and then the United States where she got a degree in English. Her first name shows her grandparents' love of Indian culture, while her family name goes back centuries deep into the Romanian history. She is a direct descendant of one of the oldest Romanian families (Moldavian Phanariotes).

During the Resurrection night she went to St Pantelimon Church to take holy light and then she went home to eat traditional food.

Ioana Barsan: Dior Manager

Ms. Ioana Barsan is Christian Dior Top Manager for Northern Italy and is a young woman with a lot of charm, determination to overcome life difficulties and also a passionate professional.
In love with Dior since her childhood, she turned her affective memory into a life profession: "I grew up with a very stylish grandfather and father who used Dior perfumes. I remember that gentleman smell, fresh and strong - a smell that has stayed with me." Her first salary that she earned at 18 in Brasov, her native city, was spent on a Dior perfume...In Italy, after just 8 months she became in charge with the biggest perfume store in Italy.

Ms. Ioana Barsan has also great plans to encourage women to educate their style and tastes and there simply seems to be no better height-of-fashion adviser!

"One Man Show" International Festival in Bacau

Mid-April coincided this year with the 4th edition of "One Man Show" which drove eclectic energies onto one stage in a clear and neat manner. Great performances by master artists like Razvan Mazilu and his contemp dance style (have you seen him dance traditional music or Richard III yet?) along with big names in Romanian theatre industry, like Mrs. Tamara Buciuceanu Botez, whose humane warmth and vitality I personally miss in postmodern actors.
Also, international artists revealed their creative energies, like Mr. Kazama Morio and his fascinating "KaraokeMan".
The festival is a beautiful event every year, whose management is getting better.

"The Reader": " How far would you go to protect a secret?"

This is the question raised by "The Reader", directed by Stephen Daldry and with the excellent performance by Kate Winslet - an enchanting film about feeling and justice. Yet again we can see, in fact, the impossibility of doing justice in a 'complicated' history and how the less guilty take the responsibility of carrying the burden of the others...

When I left the movie theatre I felt the subject drifted the focus away and, at the same time, I could not forget the image that struck me most which was an image taken in Auschwitz: the thousands of worn out shoes piling up forming walls of shame and death.

"The Meaning of Life" - Andrei Plesu

Mr. Andrei Plesu published an article in Dilema Vechemagazine about the meaning of life. It's never too late to ask ourselves: What's the meaning of my life?

1. "Life tends to have meaning as soon as you ask yourself about its meaning", but without making it the content of our lives;

2. "There is no collective life meaning"; otherwise, we would all go, "in flocks towards a common meaning, without mystery and without face";

3. "The meaning must be found, not manufactured"; we should not mix up the two: meaning and program. A life program is based on objectives (like getting on top in our profession, doing one's duty for the community, etc) but the accomplishment of these leave the meaning of life unsolved, or they might dramatically intensify it;

Have you found your own personal life meaning?

"How about JUST a million?" David Heinemeier Hansson on Startups

My top-talent-IT-specialist sister-in-law sent me a link with David Heinemeier Hansson from Ruby on Rails, talking about how to tackle online business. In a time when we are concerned about how to make much more money and profit, David HH's speech is interesting for each one of us for his simply good-sense ideas:

1. the theory "get a billion or die trying" is fundamentally wrong - why should we waste our lives under this pressure when profit can come more naturally?

2. think more about small problems that people have around you - thousands of people may have the same problem worldwide

3. spend less but more productive time at work - no need to work 12+ hours a day

4. online business is not movie industry - the online field is generous and open to many winners

5. "call your own shots and run at your own pace" - what can be more motivating?

6. the simplest ideas run with professionalism bring you happiness and profit

7. Enjoy "Fortune 5,000,000" - be happy to be part of the low end where people provide solutions to many other people who pay little contributions rather than one huge organization that pays a huge sum of money - why carry the pressure?