Physiology Professor Alfred Fleisch (1892–1973) and His Legacy at the University of Tartu

Author(s): Leili Kriis / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2016

Alfred Fleisch’s period as Professor of Physiology and Chemistry at the University of Tartu (1926–1932) was highlighted by outstanding achievements—here he constructed various original devices for studying respiration and blood circulation, published his research results in specialised key magazines together with his Estonian assistant and wrote concise literature reviews for the world’s most authoritative manuals. Fleisch’s research legacy had an important influence on the directions of post-World War II physiological research at the University of Tartu. World War II shaped the history of continents and the fate of many researchers but did not sever the connection between generations of scholars, as the example of Fleisch’s research legacy demonstrates. The University of Tartu Museum’s collection includes both a device constructed by Fleisch as well as locally made modifications based on his instruments that were constructed later. Both the objects and archive material found in the museum collection allow us to study the less examined aspects of this topic more thoroughly.

The Restless Clock: A History of the Centuries-Long Argument over What Makes Living Things Tick. Jessica Riskin

Author(s): Romén Reyes-Peschl / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2018

A book review of The Restless Clock, by Jessica Riskin, Chicago; London: University of Chicago Press, 2016.

A material culture perspective on the capitalization of Roşia Montană architectural heritage (Romania) by the Roşia Montană Gold Corporation

Author(s): Radu-Alexandru Dragoman / Language(s): English Issue: 4/2013

By taking as an example an abandoned house from Roşia Montană (Alba County, Romania), this photographic essay is a critique of the capitalization of the village architectural heritage by the Roşia Montană Gold Corporation (RMGC) – a private mining company interested in the resources of the region. I sustain that RMGC promotes and implements a desembodied perspective on the houses, people and landscape, thus erasing the memory of those who once lived at Roşia Montană.

Clouds and Fronts. Onto-meteorology and Philosophical Fantastic

Author(s): Boyan Manchev / Language(s): English Issue: 1-2/2018

The revolutionary movement of 1821 in Andrei Oţetea’s historiographical conception

Author(s): Marian Hariuc / Language(s): English Issue: 01+02/2017

The revolutionary movement from 1821-1822 has been a subject of interest for the historians since the beginning of Romanian Modern historiography. During the communist period, Andrei Oţetea was the main historian who devoted his scientific activity to the knowledge of the outstanding event carried out in a wider context of the national movement in Southeast Europe. Stalinist historians have treated Oţetea’s research from an ideological perspective dominated by criticism of no scientific basis. The temporary exclusion in the first half of the 1950s also meant the minimization of the historiographical contributions brought especially by his book published in 1945. The period of ideological detention allowed Andrei Oţetea to resume his concerns, and the most relevant elements in support of the interpretation of Tudor Vladimirescu’s revolt were the access to foreign archives. The missions to Moscova and Budapest empowered the historian to initiate a large-scale research project that evolved in relation to the major achievement of historiography during the communist regime.

TOLERANŢA CONFESIONALĂ ÎN TRANSILVANIA SEC. XVI-XVII

Author(s): Botond Kund Gudor / Language(s): Romanian Issue: 1/2018

The idea of religious tolerance represents a widely debated subject in Romanian and Hungarian historiography, especially in the Transylvanian history schools. It is a luxurious term for those who claim the exclusive paternity of the birth of the idea of tolerance. It is an ambiguous term, a real form without content for historiography which considers a discriminatory application of the idea. The genesis and development of Transylvanian tolerance have crossed a difficult historical path. It was created in the 16th century in order to realize a socio-political status quo and mainly a religious one to define the distinct political identity between Muslims and Counter-Reformation. The religious tolerance was built up slowly, influenced by the need of conciliating Transylvanian Catholicism and the Protestant religious fractions, this latter being in the process of building an identity. All this happened with the intention of achieving pacification and internal equilibrium during the period of religious Reformation, with the help of which internal and foreign politics from the Principality could manifest themselves without much turmoil. The study tries to record the political, ethical and socio-religious side of the evolution of tolerance until the end of the 17th century, approaching the genesis of the term from the perspective of the tumultuous history of Transylvanian Reformation. Its moment of highest glory was fulfilled at the Diet of Turda from 1568, that is, the establishment of religious tolerance which remains tributary in the duality of intolerance-tolerance. In accordance with this, the nobiliary religious trends allowed the development of a distinct state identity in the shadow of Islam. However, the confession which was politically dominant did not subordinate itself to the absolutism and autocracy, thus religious intolerance and social afflictions became visible.

LIBERTATEA RELIGIOASĂ ÎN ROMÂNIA MARE. PREVEDERI CONSTITUŢIONALE ŞI LEGISLATIVE

Author(s): Bogdan Emanuel Răduț / Language(s): Romanian Issue: 1/2018

The Great Union has formed Greater Romania, but provoked new analysis and debates regarding freedom of religion, in the context of different legislation of the geographical areas joined with the Kingdom of Romania. Therefore, after a brief presentation of the way Greater Romania was established, the author emphasizes the religious freedom regulations in the 1923 Constitution of Romania and the 1928 Law of Cults.

LIBERTATE ȘI NAȚIUNE: CONTEXT ȘI REPERE ALE MARII UNIRI

Author(s): Delia Drăghici / Language(s): Romanian Issue: 1/2018

The Great Union from December 1st, 1918, is justly considered to be one of the historic moments in the history of the Romanian people, having important consequences both politically and socially. This event is an authentic historical process in which all provinces where Romanians lived were united in the same national state, Romania. Three main factors led to the articulation and realization of the idea of the unitary Romanian space: the ideological, political and military conjuncture at the European level, the existence of the intense national feeling among the Romanian population, as well as the determined political action of the elites in Wallachia, Moldova and the Austro-Hungary empire. The present paper is a modest attempt to review the main landmarks that have given way to the colossal national effort of 1918 which has succeeded in crystallizing the Romanians’ energies at a time of reference in their history.

BAPTIȘTII DIN ROMÂNIA, VICTIME ALE DISCURSULUI NAȚIONALIST DUPĂ MAREA UNIRE DE LA 1918 ȘI SUSȚ INĂ TORII DISCURSULUI NAȚ IONALIST UN SECOL MAI TÂRZIU

Author(s): Teodor Ioan Colda / Language(s): Romanian Issue: 1/2018

This paper1 briefly explores the conditions of Romanian Baptist believers after the Great Unification of 1918. The main focus in the first part of the paper is on the persecution suffered by the Baptist community due to the actions undertaken by the State in Collaboration with the Orthodox Church in the ‘20s, based on a profound nationalist discourse. In the second part of the paper the author brings into discussion an unexpected shift regarding the nationalist discourse on behalf of the Baptist community in present day Romania. If one century ago baptist believers were victims of the nationalist discourse, now it seems that they are among the adherents – at least this seems to be the case for some of their leaders. In the section reserved for the conclusions the author tries to provide a pragmatic reasoning why this phenomenon occurred.

Зоран Лакић, Историја и историчари Црне Горе , Црногорска академија наука и умјетности, Подгорица 2017

Author(s): Radenko Šćekić / Language(s): Serbian Issue: 3-4/2015

LIBERTATEA PERSONALĂ ȘI ARGUMENTELE PRUDENŢIALE SAU PRAGMATICE

Author(s): Virgil Peicu / Language(s): Romanian Issue: 2/2018

The study introduces a category of arguments about God’s existence and the belief in Him which is different from the ontological, cosmological and teleological arguments. Called prudential or pragmatic arguments, they may provide powerful reasons for personal faith and freedom. The most well- known pragmatic arguments were developed by Blaise Pascal (1623-1662) and William James (1842-1910).The arguments developed by Blaise Pascal and William James are prudential or pragmatic because they seek to make a rational decision (primarily praxis, prudence) about the existence or non-existence of God. When they are internalized and believed, they lead to personal freedom (of conscience).

Victories vs. Defeats: The Unreliability of Memory

Author(s): Dubravka Stojanović / Language(s): English Issue: 3/2017

History is not written by victors. History is written by the present. If it were written by victors their interpretation would remain “nailed down” and unchangeable for all future generations. Their “victory” would never be allowed or able to turn into a “defeat”. Numerous historical examples demonstrate the inaccuracy of this hypothesis. It is today’s value systems that determine historical events, and victories and defeats can switch places many times: heroes can become victims, and victims can become victors. These constructions are where historiography, history teaching and other memory agents intertwine. This lecture will show some 20th century examples which reveal the dynamics in the altering meanings of certain “victories” and “defeats” and their transnational consequences.

Obiectul, decorul, povestirea. Literatura autobiografică românească — o sursă a studiilor patrimoniale?

Author(s): Andi Mihalache / Language(s): Romanian Issue: 03/2012

Susan Stewart’s book, On Loging, explains how our memories authenticate our experiences and how they are a survival sign of events that exist only through the invention of narrative. Old people summon the aid of objects believed to represent their lives. Just like Julio Cortazar’s characters, these people feel very lonely in their own story, confirming Maurice Halbwachs’ theory, according to which we never recollect by ourselves. Therefore, the present study shifted the focus from the sociology of nostalgia and generational memory to what we call the densely coded cultural objects. Starting with post-communism period, the “unhealthy” social origin relatives are re-assumed, to metaphorically complete the lives of those who were persecuted because of them. Thus, the grandparents’ bibelots are mentioned, as if inheriting them were one of the grandchildren’s merits. As they experience a deficit of biographical elements, the successors vindicate successful ancestors, from whom they extract a social prestige they could not acquire by themselves, during those “democrat-popular” times. The bibelots allow us to reinvent a new recent history, somehow ignoring the shortages of the communist period. Those little objects help people create a new temporal and biographical continuity between nowadays and the interwar age, between us and our grandparents. Many people prefer to believe that their nostalgic self-narration can make the postcommunist present a direct descendant of the interwar period. They try to forget the realities of the Romanian society, using those little things to cosmeticize the latest present, rather than their past.

Historycy polscy na emigracji wobec koncepcji Europy Środkowo -Wschodniej po 1945 roku

Author(s): Rafał Stobiecki / Language(s): Polish Issue: 8/2016

Since the beginning of the twentieth century, historians have been increasingly interested in East-Central Europe. The purpose of the article is to analyse different ways of understanding the concept of East-Central Europe by Polish historians in exile after the Second World War. The author focuses attention mainly on the interpretations advanced by Oskar Halecki and Piotr S. Wandycz and, to a lesser degree, by Anna Cienciała and Marian K. Dziewanowski. All of these historians have been instrumental in making American historiographers see the history of the lands between Russia and Germany as distinct from Russian studies. Developed by P. S. Wandycz, the metaphor of a “laboratory where one tests different political systems” can be regarded as a fair representation of these historians’ understanding of the concept of East-Central Europe.

Sprawozdanie z interdyscyplinarnej ogólnopolskiej konferencji studencko-doktoranckiej pt. „A więc wojna!” – działania militarne i ich kontekst polityczno-prawny, gospodarczy i społeczno-kulturowy na przestrzeni dziejów, Łódź 17–19 listopada 2016 r.

Author(s): Urszula Klemba / Language(s): Polish Issue: 16/2016

Spór o Wilno: wielość obrazów

Author(s): Agata Chutnik / Language(s): Polish Issue: 18/2017

Vilnius plays an important role both for Lithuanian Poles and Lithuanians. By Lithuanians, it is understood as the historical capital of the state, the beginnings of the Lithuanian state. For Lithuanian Poles, in turn, Vilnius it is often a place of identification and a private homeland, a place of residence their ancestors. This article relates to the images of Vilnius presented by narrators during the interviews. I will try to illustrate the multiplicity of approaches using quotes from narrators. These images will show how important history is, especially in contemporary public debate and interpersonal relations, despite frequent declarations that it is currently not playing a role in everyday life.

Nowoczesny endek w cieniu Marszałka. Na marginesie najnowszej książki Rafała Ziemkiewicza

Author(s): Przemysław Waingertner / Language(s): Polish Issue: 18/2017

Prezydentowi Prof. Ignacemu Mościckiemu – w 150. rocznicę urodzin – sprawozdanie z konferencji naukowej (Ciechanów, 1 grudnia 2017 r.)

Author(s): Bogumiła Umińska / Language(s): Polish Issue: 18/2017

Parrot’s Laboratory in the Borderland

Author(s): Lea Leppik / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2018

Georg Friedrich Parrot, professor of physics at the University of Tartu/Dorpat from 1802 until 1826, founded the best physics laboratory in the Russian Empire, containing ca. 450 experimental devices of which more than 60 had been invented by Parrot himself. Of the total number of instruments approximately 50 are still preserved in the University of Tartu Museum collections. The article is the first attempt to give a historical background of the laboratory, using Parrot’s own writings, archival sources and the extant devices. Parrot’s youth was shaped by the ideas of the French Enlightenment. According to his worldview, education had to be practical, utilitarian, and based on natural sciences. A well-equipped laboratory was ineluctable for that. Lavoisier’s chemistry was taught at the University of Tartu since the very beginning. Parrot emerged as one of the first French mathematical physics in a German-speaking world and introduced a new branch of physics—the physics of the Earth. His pioneering chemical theory of galvanic electricity failed to gain him recognition in his lifetime, but it shaped the worldview of later students. Parrot’s organisational talent took both the laboratory and the teaching in Tartu to the highest level of the time. His textbooks helped to introduce the physics worldview to the next generation both on the secondary school and university level.

Parrot’s Projects of Rotating the Staff of Russian Universities, Sergey Uvarov’s Reform and Its Short- and Long-Term Consequences

Author(s): Tatjana Vladimirovna Kostina / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2018

The present paper focuses on the views of Georg Friedrich Parrot in relation to the renewal of the professorial staff of the internal Russian universities, reflected in his notes ‘Thoughts of universities in inner Russia’ (Mémoire sur les Universités de l’intérieur de la Russie, 1827) and ‘Note on the plan to train teachers at national Russian universities’ (Memoire concernant le plan pour former des professeurs aux universités russes nationales, end of 1832). Parrot’s position was radical. He advised the government to prepare young scientists and teachers and replace all professors in inner Russian universities, which should have led to the establishment of a ‘new spirit of teaching’ and the transformation of universities into national ones. The Parrot’s project was implemented only partially, but implementation of this policy led to drastic changes in the age structure of the Russian professors. All the professors and adjuncts, trained at the Professors’ Institute in Dorpat and the Second Section of His Imperial Majesty’s Own Chancellery by mid-1830s represented approximately one generation. Twenty to thirty years later, by the time when this generation reached retirement, a new crisis arose. Even in the 1880s universities continued to experience the effects of the reform of the 1830s. At the same time, the practical implementation of Parrot’s project led to the flourishing of inner universities in Russia in the 1840s.