f ir st Issu e

CONTENTEditorial - 2

How To Deliver The Perfect Speech - 3

Upholding European Values - 4-5

EU's Anatomy - 6-7

The Lisbon Treaty For Dummies - 10-11

A Trial Article About a Third World Country, That Does Not Concern You 12-13

The Three Musketeers - 14-15

City of Dreams - Barcelona - 16-17

The Sixth Sense - 18-19

Internships In The European Union - 8-9

Do's and Don'ts of the General Assembly - 20 1

O

EDITORIAL

In 1967 French radical theoretician, Regis Debray, proposed three temporal strata of transmission technologies: the

logosphere (the age of writing), the graphosphere (the age of print) and the videospehere (the age of multimedia

broadcasting). Even though Debray?s theory was not widely accepted, it stil l outlines significance of the media that has been

shaping public opinion for centuries.

Indeed, in modern-day society media?s power is truly vertiginous as it has become as necessary as food and clothing. Media,

whether print or social, gets credit not only for the information we consume but the way we perceive and digest reality. Thus, its

role in nation building, connected with an inherent ability to reach large number of public, cannot be neglected.

Similarly, the main goal of the Media Team of the GRSC?15 is to assist, inform, educate, and develop you, young adults taking up

different positions during the session, through depicting, reflecting and capturing those precise moments that will make you see this organisation from diverse angles and perspectives.

Though, we are called The Pillars not only because we aim to contribute to the academic quality of the session, but capture

EYP spirit by supporting connections stretched beyond a shared sense of identity. While wandering through the pages of the

issue, we do hope that you will embrace those connections and

make them even stronger!

Love,

The Pillars Media Team

"Pillar - a tall vertical structure of stone, wood, or metal, used as a

support for a building, or as an

ornament or monument."

2

How To Deliver a Perfect Speech

by Iva Kurua

The late Steve Jobs 2005 commencement address at Stanford University has been viewed close to 8 mill ion times on YouTube. Eight years after he delivered it, a text version stil l fl ies around the Web. Future public speakers of the world, take note! However, the aforementioned information does not mean that you have to be a Silicon Valley bill ionaire to deliver a great speech. The best speeches include a clear, relevant message with a few great stories which support the main point. If you have ever attended an EYP session, then you should definitely know that speeches at the General Assembly are very important. When you feel that your resolution can actually fail, a strong speech will definitely save your day. So, how can you deliver a perfect speech? Here are some tips which will help you make a good

oral presentation::

Practice beforehand. Speeches with words like ?um? and ?oh? makes look unprepared. Thus, practicing beforehand is essential. It would be better if you practice while taking a shower than in front of a mirror as it is distracting.

Relaxation techniques. If you are nervous before approaching stage, take a deep breath. Picture yourself delivering a successful speech. Even experienced people, l ike Barrack Obama, are nervous for the f irst few seconds. Turn adrenaline into positive energy.

Make sure that you are well presented. You will never have a second chance to make positive f irst impression so try your best to look good.

Keep it simple. People do not remember much of what they hear, so focus and keep it simple. The best speeches include clear and relevant message.

Keep it short. Remember you have time limit at GA and your speech should last for around two minutes.

Speak clearly, so that everyone can hear you. It is obvious that if you speak too fast or in a low voice, no one will be able to hear you and your speech will probably be disastrous.

Do not shout for the sake of being loud. Speaking in a very loud voice is sometimes hilarious and the audience cannot help but laughing.

Use short, pithy quotes. Over centuries, clever people have said wise words that can be used in your speeches if it is relevant to the topic.

Use body language that makes you look comfortable. You have to pretend that you are having a good time and are open to the audience.

Make eye contact with your audience. Delegates respond to eye-contacts. Everyone enjoys attention, even if it lasts just for a second. 3

EUROPEANVALUES

UPHOLDING

Relations between Georgia and The European Union date back to 1991, shortly after Georgia declared its sovereignty following the break-up of the Soviet Union. Since then the country strives to work in close cooperation with the Union by: implementing core values and principles of the EU such as -democracy, human rights and the rule of law, deepening polit ical and economic ties, encouraging the effective work of pro-European organisations and a lot more.

The bilateral relations have further intensif ied in June 2014, when the EU and Georgia signed an unprecedented Association Agreement, which includes a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area.

Similarly, the desire of becoming a member of the European Union is immense in Georgian youth. This fact itself explains EYP Georgia assembles numerous socially active youngsters under the theme of: ?Upholding European Values? and helps them to define country?s cultural and polit ical orientation. However, there is one question that appears when discussing this particular topic: Are we, Georgians, ready to except European fundamental principles and values without losing our own identity?

It is a well-known fact that Europe has historically had a high level of prosperity, social cohesion, environmental protection, and quality of l ife based on the common values of justice and solidarity. But how inf luential can they be in today?s reality? Do Europeans maintain them?

by Tamuna Chipashvili

4

The situation is worsened by EU citizans? negative attitude towards

immigrants, who are often thought to be taking job opportunities away from

the native locals. Moreover, people react dif ferently to the cultural

assmilation. For instance, those who live in Western Europe and Scandinavia

generally feel that immigrants should adopt customs of their host countries.

In contrast, in South-Eastern European states people totally

disagree with this idea. As a result, we face the

evident lack of common understanding among

the Member States of the European Union

that can cause more serious social

problems in the future. This fact

explains the position of José Manuel

Durão Barroso, the President of the

European Commission, who says: "While

Europe must uphold its values, it must also

change its habits. A Union like ours can only operate if all

Member States honour their commitments. If the Member States do not in

practice abide by the fundamental principles they have all agreed, then we are

faced by a crisis of credibility."

Within the current stress and the crisis that, as mentioned, is caused by

the ineffective cooperation between the Member States, it is essential to

know, how Georgia sees itself in the European Union and how Georgian

people will be accepted in the European society.

To conclude, the path we want to take is not simple at all. It is important to

realise that the country will be facing various obstacles while joining the EU.

However, it should also be noted that both historically and culturally Georgia

has always been close to Europe and the truthfulness of this fact cannot be

questioned. As famous Georgian polit ician, Zurab Zhvania, once said: ?We are

Georgians, therefore we are Europeans! ?

WE ARE GEORGIANS,THEREFORE,WE AREEUROPEANS!"

"

5

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT (EP)

Shares legislative and budgetary power with the Council. In consists of 751 members (MEPs), who are elected in every f ive years by universal suffrage and sit according to the polit ical allegiance. These members represent 500 bill ion Union?s cit izens, second largest electorate in the world.

Defines general polit ical guidelines of the EI/ Ot does not exercise any legislative functions, but can be consulted on criminal or social security matters, when stet opposes legislative proposal. The European Council includes Heads of Governments of the Members States and the President of the European Commission as a full member.

is a bank for Euro zone, controll ing monetary policy in the area. In additions, it follows an agenda in order to maintain price stability. The ECB compromises all EU national banks and is governed by a President and board of national bank governors.

is composed with 28 national ministers (one per state). It is separate from the European Council, which consists national leaders. Council meets in 10 dif ferent configurations, bringing together the competent Member State ministers. The presidency rotates between states every six months. The Council with the European Parliament, acts in a legislative and budgetary capacity. It is also the lead institution for decision-making on the common foreign and security policy (CFSP), and on the coordination of economic policies (intergovernmental approach), as well as being the holder of executive power.

THE EUROPEAN COUNCIL

THE EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANKTHE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION THE COUNCIL OF MINISTER

OF THE COUNCIL

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION (EC)

Each commissioner is chosen by a member state and is in charge of EU policy. They serve for 5 years. It is executive body of the Union. Propose legislation to the Parliament and the Council. Administers and implements EU policies. Provides enforcement of EU laws. Manages EU budget and represents EU at international negotiations.

THE COURT OF JUSTICE OF

THE EU

includes the whole judiciary and consists of two main and one specialized court: The Court of Justice (highest court in EU), The General Court (EGC, also known as the Court of First Instance) and The Civil Service Tribunal. One judge from each member state for six years. It settles disputes between Member States, EU institutions, EU and between individuals.

THE COURT OF AUDITORS

composed of one member from each state named by the Council every six year. Every three

year one of them is elected as a President. It has no juridical powers. Court provides audit report each year to the council and the parliament. Also gives opinions and proposals on f inancial

legislation.

6

EU'S ANATOMYby Tato Garuchava

Arms / European Commission

It proposes legislation to the parliament and the council, administers and implements EU policies as hands of human body make

actions completed.

Lungs / The Council of The European Union

it is similar to human breathing element, because of its meaningful role in EU, acts in legislative and budgetary capacity along with the EP.

Lungs / The European Parliament

The Council and the Parliament shares legislative and budgetary power with the council, as the breathing system behaves in order to have peaceful settlement of EU problems

Eyes / The Court of Justice

Settles disputes between Member States, EU institutions, and individuals.

Brain / The European Council

Defines general polit ical guidelines of the EU as brain guides human body.

7

aining experience is a crucial factor for a person

to enter a labourmarket. Students and graduates are recommended to use internship programs. So what is an internship, it is a temporary work experience offered by an employer to provide students and graduates with the opportunity to adjust to the working environment, often within a specific industry, which relates to their field of study. Interns work for a fixed period of time. M ost internships last between one week and twelve months.

An internship provides a great opportunity for prospective employees to gain experience in a particular field or industry, determine if they have an interest in a particular career, create a network of contacts, or gain university module credits. Interns may also have a possibility of putting themselves forward to the potential

opportunities for paid work, during their internship.

An internship can give you a an objective insight into the working world, allowing you to build on top of the theory you learned at a university and helping you gain practical skills that will strengthen your Curricular Vitae and boost your employment potential. Internships offer you the chance to test your skills in real- life situations, explore your career options and gain an insight into an organisation or a chosen career path.

Internships may have both long and short term benefits. The obvious advantage of a short-term internship is quite self-explanatory ? it is short. N ot everyone has time as long as six months or even a year to get the work experience, required to obtain a job after college, thus gaining absolutely essential knowledge and filling up

the blank space of your resume in less time can be just the right opportunity. Apart from time, it is also more cost-effective since the whole process requires less expenses.

Going abroad will still cost you a plane ticket, but it takes less preparation from the supporting company - like ImmerQi, reducing the program cost dramatically. Because of the short time frame, the internship will most likely be intense, leaving little to no room for boredom from too much free time. Concerning long term benefits, there are some characteristics that cannot be discovered within a shorted period of time. For instance, some employers might see an individual with a six month or a year internship experience to be of bigger commitment than interns with short-term experience.

Internships in Europe - Beneficial Programmes or

"Modern Slavery"?

by Iva Kurua

G

8

Taking the time to gain valuable and in-depth experience can give your resume the push it needs to make its way straight to the top of the pile. The type of undertaken tasks will also have the potential of standing out. Being outside of your comfort zone and away from all familiarity, will give you a glimpse of what it is be like to juggle work and life in the real world. It does change one?s perspective when the harsh reality of life is brought forward; experience that can only be gained through time. Lastly, if you paid to go all the way to China, a long-term internship will provide more time you could spend on travelling and merging into the local culture. Undertaking the challenges of an internship for a few weeks or a year will undoubtedly provide an experience you can reap the benefits of for the rest of your life.

An unpaid internship of poor quality is a big issue across our continent. ?It is a modern day slave labour in all too many cases, rather than a valuable learning experience and a stepping stone in one?s career? - writes Giuseppe Porcaro, the secretary general of the European Youth Forum.

Because of non-flexible legislation, firms and companies are able to use their trainees as a cheap or even free labour force. Interns are given tasks which have nothing in common with their future career. Surveys conducted last year have shown that 59% of interns questioned in the survey are not paid for their work. Over half of the 40% that are paid, said the refund was not sufficient to cover their living costs. 40% of interns also work without any written contract to guarantee their social rights. Before some steps are taken by European Union and Quality Framework is implemented in M ember states, the future looks dark for interns in Europe. As for now, Internship programmes supply companies with free labour to use them for menial tasks. It has to be changed fast, otherwise the rise of youth unemployment might not stop.

?It is a modern day slave labour in all too many cases, r ather than a valuable learning exper ience and a stepping stone in one?s career?

Giuseppe Porcaro

9

The Treaty of Lisbon is an international agreement that was signed in 2007 and went into action in 2009. Its main aim was to supplement the previously exiting EU treaties and create one unifying and comprehensive legal framework. There was a clear need for this, since for years EU had been operating all its twenty-seven member states (now twenty-eight) with a system designed for just f if teen. The aim of the treaty was to modernise and reform and help EU realise its full potential. As such, many changes were put in place, and here we will try to highlight the most important amendments.

Lisbon Treaty For Dummies

NEW AREAS OF COMPETENCES

NEW TERMS AND NUMBERS

Before the implementation of the Lisbon Treat, the presidency of the European Council rotated between Member States every six months. Currently, however, one polit ician is chosen to preside over the Council for two and a half years, which greatly increased the council?s inf luence. The Lisbon Treaty also saw the increase in competence of the European Parliament, while it previously shared power with the Council over only seventy-f ive percent of legislative areas, with the new treaty the co-decision was extended to all areas of EU policy. However, the Parliament also saw a decrease in numbers, with a permanent reduction from 785 MEPs to 751.

Though there were no new areas created in the Lisbon treaty over which EU has exclusive competence, new shared competences are established in the f ields of space an energy, as a part of its environmental policy, and several more areas of supportive competencies concerning with health, education and tourism.

LEGAL ACTS

The Lisbon Treaty made several changes to types of legal acts with which EU executes its decisions. Firstly, it reduced the number on legal acts from fourteen types to f ive and introduced a new classif ication. This new classif ication comprises mainly of binding acts, including directives, regulation and decisions, and non-binding acts, such as recommendations.

by Nia Chigogidze

10

VOTINGHUMAN RIGHTS

One of the most important changes had to do with the voting system. The Lisbon treaty saw a large increase in the number of policy areas that from now on would be decided by majority vote rather than unanimity, which aimed to make the legislative process more eff icient. However, notable exceptions that require unanimity, such as taxation and defence, stil l remain. Another amendment that went into effect in 2014 decreased the necessary amount of support from Member States order for a law to be passed from seventy-two percent to f if ty-f ive percent in cases where the Member States comprising this f if ty-f ive percent represent at least sixty-f ive percent of EU?s entire population. This change made it not only easier to pass legislation but also decreased the power of smaller MSs.

With the goal of insuring better protection of its cit izens, the Lisbon Treaty gave the Fundamental Charter of Human Rights legally binding status. The Charter is a document that brings together all the rights and freedoms of every individual in the EU. The Lisbon Treaty also created what is known as the ?Citizens Init iative?. This is an act that obliges the European Commission to consider a new init iative if it has been proposed and supported by at least one mill ion cit izens from across Member States.

NEW POSITIONS

A new post to be created was the EU High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy, which combined the already existing positions of EU freight policy chef and external affair commissioner. The role of the representative is wide-ranging and involves everything from building consensus among twenty-eight Member States to stirring foreign policy on behalf of the EU.

It is dif f icult to talk about the exact impact the Lisbon treaty had. Overall, the biggest winners are clearly the Parliament, with its dramatic increase in power and the Council that saw an unarguable shif t in inf luence from the Commission. Even though there is some controversy around the treaty not being fully implemented the way it was originally drafted to, the overall consensus stil l remains that it did indeed manage to give Europe more democracy, more capacity to act and more international prominence, just the way it had set out to do. 11

" IF THERE IS ANY SILVER LINING TO BE FOUND, IT IS THE WORLDWIDE RESPONSE

AND ATTENTION"

A TRIVIAL ARTICLE ABOUT A THIRD WORLD

PROBLEM, THAT DOESN'T CONCERN YOU!

by Nia Chigogidze

For a brief moment the world was outraged, but then the story quickly became just another fading headline, to only get lost in the sea of similar news. And sadly for all of us, Farkhunda?s story was exceptional only due to the fact that it was the most vivid example of the brutality Afghan women face on a daily bases. For those of you who are not familiar with the story. On March 19, twenty seven year old Farkhunda Naderi, (who in most sources is simply mentioned as ?a woman?), was viscously beaten to death by a mob following an alleged and false accusation of burning the pages of the Quran. According to the reports she had been overheard crit icizing a mullah for selling good luck amulets , a practice that is un-Islamic. As a result, an enraged crowd of mostly young men set upon her, beating her, stoning her and in the end setting her body on f ire.

What is even more alarming is that police were there to witness it. Footage of the incident, that went viral on the social media, shows police off icers standing by and calmly observing this atrocity. For the past few years both United States and NATO have continuously been aiding Afghanistan in its development, with one of the main aims being the defense of womens' rights. Many legislative acts, promising important reforms in this f ield were adopted. But low levels of law enforcement and slow pace in the change of public perception have been greatly hindering this progress. This incident is just another example among many that shows that even thirteen years after the Taliban?s loss of power the country stil l faces fundamental issues, the inability to protect its cit izens lives.

"This incident is just another example among many that shows that even

thirteen years after the Taliban?s loss of power the country

stil l faces fundamental issues,

the inability to protect its citizens

lives. "

12

STORY

If there is any silver l ining to be found, it is that the world wide response and attention the story got forced the state to take action. After several state off icials openly condemned the kil l ing a formal investigation was launched with nine suspects already arrested and most importantly twenty police off icers sacked for professional misconduct. The crackdown went to the extent of dismissing Culture Minister Simeen Hasanzada for endorsing the murder. Something that was unlikely to happen in a dif ferent scenario, as Afghanistan has a long history of

overlooking police quality.

These events were followed by an overwhelming social response, with hundreds of Afghan women marching to the nation's Supreme Court demanding justice for not only Farkhunda but all Afghan women. The protest culminated as a group of activist women, all ceremoniously dressed in black, carrying Farkhunda?s coff in, as the whole city gathered for her funeral. This act is what may give us hope, that though progress is slow, women are defiantly regaining their footing in the society. Women are breaking out of their boundaries of their traditionally set roles. Stil l too many questions remain lingering. Would the social response have been the same, if Farkhunda had indeed burned the pages of the Quran? Would the state have reacted as actively if the incident had not taken place in the capital, during broad daylight and had not been so well documented? Or will this incident do anything to facil itate any long term change in the police system and help the eight f ive present of Afghan women that experience violence on regular bases? Nobody has the answers to these questions yet, so all that we can do is hope that Afghanistan will continue to steadily walk the path towards gender equality, otherwise we are going to continue having many more reasons to be outraged.

"Will this incident do anything to facilitate any long term change in the police system and help the eight

five present of Afghan women that experience violence on regular bases?"

13

TITLE

Th e Th r ee Mus k et eer s

?It is only the dead who do not return.?

?I do not cling to life sufficiently to fear death.?

?Never fear quarrels, but seek hazardous adventures.?

Koka KapanadzeVice-President

What is it like to be a president of EYP Georgia?

I would consider that as one of the biggest achievements in my life, so far. This is an amazing leadership experience for me and the fact that have been in this organisation for more than three and a half years makes me more and more dedicated to the development of EYP Georgia. Of course there are times when I feel a bit tense, but the whole process is very enjoyable, especially because of the board members, without their effort we would not be this strong and I?m so grateful to have such a team.

In what ways did EYP change your personality?

Throughout my EYP career, I think I have become more self-confident and more sociable in regards of personality, but it is also important to mention that I have become more competent in European politics and discovered that the eagerness to learn more and more has definitely been in me all this time.

Can you describe EYP in just three words?

A life-changing and thought-provoking opportunity, technically it is three words (laughs)

What is the piece of advice you would give to the future officials at the Gori regional session?

To absorb as much as they can from this session, always be open and ready for the challenges and not to forget to enjoy the entire process.

"always be open and ready for the challenges "

by Elene Ambidze

14

How Does it feel to preside Gori Regional Session?

This is my first experience being a president and after you have been a chairperson and vice president so many times you start to think how you would proceed a session and you establish your standards, you have specific requirements for the chairs and for yourself. So when I

started chairing at the same time I started thinking what kind of president I would like to be. Right now I feel l ike I had a lot time to

analyse, I think I am experienced enough, I have mastered creating individual approaches to people which is very important for a president. The most important part is that I have a desire and motivation to do it, because if you want it, you can do it.

Mariam ChaduneliPresident

I keep saying this: ?Find what you love and let it kil l you?, at some points I feel l ike EYP killed me, you have to sacrifice so much for it and my family sometimes goes nuts (laughs) because I travel so much. It takes a lot from me and I am always both mentally and physically prepared for it. As I say I love EYP

and I would not mind if it kil led me. What would you do if there was no

EYP?

My life would have included just doing things that are not as valuable as the things I am doing right now.

Can you describe EYP in just three words?

Happiness, opportunity, diversity.Giorgi Gugenishvili

Vice-President

The weirdest question of all: what does your family think of

EYP?

Oh, yeah that is hilarious. I actually told my mom that the resolutions we come up with are actually sent to the European Parliament (laughs) and they play a major role in the legislative decision making. And now she really thinks that we potentially have an impact on the world (laughs) and our reslolutions are accepted and voted on in the European Parliament. I had to do that, otherwise I do not think she would understand why we bother so much.

What is the motto of your EYP life?

Find your comfort zone and then completely clash it!

What is the best quality or habit that you acquired in EYP?

I am an introvert and I always will be. Sometimes being around the

people constantly is very exhausting for me. But obviously that is exactly what

EYP and especially chairing requires ? to be with the same group of people all day long. That is the habit EYP helped me to gain. I am stil l an introvert and it is stil l tiring for me to always be around the people. Never getting any sleep and spending the entire session just being around them is a challenge for me

and I think that is where EYP helped me the most.

What is your EYP life motto?   

"Find what you love and let it kill you."

15

City of Dreams- Barcelona

by Iva Kurua

Do you like traveling? Do you like places with magnif icent sightseeing and splendid beaches? Then this article is for you. I am going to talk about one of the most fascinating cit ies the world ? Barcelona ? Spain?s second largest and most cosmopolitan city. Barcelona is the capital of Catalonia, which is a region of Spain that has its own language ? Catalan, its own culture and character. Barcelona offers the best of both worlds, situated on the Costa Brava by the Spanish Mediterranean coast, the city gently rises up from the coastline through the valley and up into a range of wooded hills. Famous for breaking ground art, architecture and avant-garde chefs, the city eclipses many others for its creativity and forward thinking.

So what makes this city so special? As already mentioned, Barcelona has fascinating beaches and a range of wooden hills. Unlike many other European cit ies, it also has a quite unique way of l ife. In my opinion the city is the best destination for both

experienced tourists and ordinary teenagers, who seeks entertainment and unforgettable nightlife. It would be appropriate to state that Barcelona offers much more to the eye of the tourist than one could possibly imagine, it nearly feels surreal. No wonder Salvador Dali discovered a lot of inspiration for his work in this city while passing the building designed by the famous Spanish Catalan architect - Antoni Gaudí. Stepping into Gaudí?s Basilica of the Sacred Family is a bit l ike fall ing through the looking glass - a journey that you can continue with a visit to Park Güell. Sip sangria (typical beverage from Spain) at a sidewalk café in Las Ramblas while watching f lamboyant street performers, and then create your own moveable feast by f loating from tapas bar (wide variety of appetizers, or snacks, in Spanish cuisine) to tapas bar.

Any visitor of Barcelona cannot miss the spectacular work and inf luence of the architect Antoni Gaudi. With its bright

colors, t iled mosaic patterns, and nature-inspired forms, Gaudi?s architecture was dramatically dif ferent than that of his contemporaries. Gaudi not only designed breathtaking work, but also the pioneer of Modernism as we know it now, he is a true founder of the Catalan modernism movement in Barcelona. This movement sought to elevate the status of Catalan thought, art, l iterature and philosophy to the same level of European ideas and art. In Gaudi?s work, this meant predominance of curves over straight l ines, heavy decoration and detail, shapes and asymmetry, and experimentation with new materials l ike iron, stained glass, and stone.

16

La Sagrada Familia

La Sagrada Familia is one of Gaudí's most famous works in Barcelona. It is a giant Basilica that has been under construction since 1882 and it is not expected to be completed for some time yet. When you visit the building you will see the contrast in the stone colour between the front and the back of the building. Also the actual style of construction appears somewhat dif ferent between the new and old parts of the building. Gaudí played an active role in directing the construction of the Sagrada Familia until his death in 1926. He would often request that work was modif ied and adjusted until it was exactly what he had in mind. However today, because of the nature of the existing designs, his work is only partly open to interpretation. Interpretation of the ordinary designs by present day architects is particularly challenging because the actual construction stones are irregularly shaped. The building is stil l under construction, so be prepared to see a lot of ongoing work upon your visit. However even this fact is found appealing by the majority of the visitors, especially if you visit the museum inside the building. Sagrada Familia is a truly magnif icent building and an absolute must-see when you visit Barcelona.

Park Güell The park contains amazing stone structures, stunning til ing and fascinating buildings. At the entrance there is Gaudi dragon fountain. This dragon is adorned in beautiful coloured til ing and there is something rather hypnotic and magical about it. Here you can see a walkway supported by twisting rock pil lars that seem to be growing out of the ground like tree trunks. Although these structures are rather irregular in shape they do feel strangely natural too. Gaudí was strongly inf luenced by natural shapes and used them in his work. At the top of Güell park there is a terraced area where you get a wonderful view of the park and Barcelona City. Here you will f ind multi-coloured tiled mosaic seats, as shown in this picture. The vibrant colours of the tiles are truly breathtaking. Park Güell also has a small house in the park which Gaudí lived in at a certain stage of his l ife. The house has now been converted into a museum and contains interesting furniture also designed by Gaudí.

To be honest, I got interested in the city of Barcelona after I started supporting its local team. There is no point in starting a whole new article dedicated to football, which I could do with ease, thus I just want to explain how important this club is for Catalan people. FC Barcelona is more than a club for Catalans. After General Francisco Franco invaded Catalonia, the f irst thing he did was prohibit the Catalan language. The only place people could speak Catalan was Camp Nou (Barcelona - the biggest one in entire Europe) and the only way to avenge Franco was beating his favorite team Real Madrid during the matches. Barcelona fans or more commonly, Cules, stil l celebrate every victory over Real Madrid in El Classico on Plaza Catalonia. FC Barcelona or Barca is the true pride for native people. The club also adds up to the enormous list of national attractions.

F .C. Barcelona

17

The SixthSense

by Elene Ambidze

The sixth sense If only it were that simple - simply defining what we mean by ?sense? leads us further into the fields of philosophy. As we know Aristotle classified only five sense organs: sight, smell, taste, touch and hearing. The definition of human sense in modern world is simply a unique way for the brain to receive information about the world and surrounding in general. Well, if that is the case, we can claim with confidence that there are certainly more than five basic human senses.

What would our lives be like if we were never able to see what is surrounding us?

The eye is the organ of vision. It is connected to the brain with optic nerve. The brain combines the input of our two eyes into a single three-dimensional image.This is technically two senses given the two distinct types of receptors, one for distinguishing colours (cones) and one for brightness (rods). The human eye can distinguish about 10 mill ion dif ferent colors. That is a lot, is it not? If it was a digital camera it would have 576 megapixels. Our eyes constantly need to blink, eyes blink 12 times in one minute and if you do the math we spend about 10% of our walking hours with our eyes closed.

Gossips are the best! XO XO

The ear is the organ of hearing.The brain combines the input of our two ears to determine the direction and distance of sounds. Hearing is all about the vibration. The sound we hear itself is a vibration which is detected by our ears. The sound mediums like air and water, which actually carry the vibration is in contact with our ear drums. Our ears continue to hear sounds, even while we sleep, but our brain just shuts them off. Possibly that is why we at t imes unexpectedly wake up when we hear something optimistic, but without processing the reasoning behind this.

What is better than a chocolate ice-cream with cherry topping?

Taste refers to the human?s capability to detect the taste of substances such as food, certain minerals, and poisons. The sense of taste is often confused with the "sense" of f lavor, which is a combination of taste and smell perception. Flavor depends on odor, texture, and temperature as much as it depends on taste. The receptors for taste, called taste buds, are situated chief ly in the tongue, but they are also located in the roof of the mouth and near the pharynx. They are able to detect four basic tastes: salty, sweet, bitter, and sour.

The smell of a new leather jacket or pair of shoes makes everyone happy. But a new car smells the best of all. Inability to smell is called anosmia. The smell receptors are sensitive to seven types of sensations that can be characterized as camphor, musk, f lower, mint, ether, acrid, or putrid. The sense of smell combines with taste to produce f lavors. Did you know that one of the most evocative smells from childhood is the smell of crayons? The sense of smell gets bored easily. When entering a bakery or f lorist you are very aware of the aroma but by the time you reach the check-out you will no longer be able to smell the dif ferent aromas around you.

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If you closed your eyes and I surprised you with an ice cube down your back, you would experience a shock of cold, wouldn?t you not?

The sense of touch is distributed throughout the body. Nerve endings in the skin and other parts of the body transmit sensations to the brain. One can identify four dif ferent kinds of touch sensations: cold, heat, contact and pain. The loss or impairment of the ability to feel anything touched is called tactile anesthesia. It seems as though we all lose touch receptors over the course of our l ives. It is not that we have them until a certain age and then they suddenly disappear ? we lose them very, very slowly. They reach their peak around age 16 or 18, then start slowly fading away. We also lose pain and temperature receptors ? which might actually be a good thing.

Then there is the emotional touch system. It is mediated by special sensors called C tactile f ibers. It identif ies where the touch is happening but at the same time it sends information to a part of the brain called the posterior insula which is essential for socially-bonding touch. This includes things like a hug from a friend, a caring touch you got from your mother as a child. It turns out, the hormones that are released during kissing change over the course of your relationship. Kissing a new partner stimulates the release of dopamine, which creates that ?new love? sense of excitement and desire (ignorance to outer inf luences, at t imes). On the other hand, your brain releases oxytocin when you have been kissing the same partner over a period of t ime, and this encourages attachment and bonding in long-term relationships.

at each another more often and hold that gaze for longer periods of t ime.

We avoid eye contact in elevators, subways, crowded buses or trains ? in elevators we face the door, in the rest of the cases we stare at our Smartphones ? because it helps us manage the insecurit ies of having our personal space invaded. Employees often keep their eyes down when the boss comes up with a tricky question or looks like he is going to ask for volunteers for some tough job. The body of human being is a mysterious substance, where every nerve and every cell is responsible for building up a huge organism which experiences life through the f ive senses .The senses which give us the ability to perceive our surroundings on f ive dif ferent levels and beyond is unfortunately something that people tend to take for granted.

The odd thing about human senses is that by using a certain sense we develop certain skil ls. And that is what I would call the sixth sense. For example through the sense of touch we have discovered a lot of things about our body language. We have learned how to interact with people through our experiences and feelings. Now we know that too much eye contact is instinctively perceived to be rude ,too litt le eye contact, on the other hand, can make you appear uneasy, unprepared, and insincere. Scientif ically there are some facts on eye contact when the humans are the victims of their own body language:

We reduce eye contact when we are talking about something shameful or embarrassing, when we are sad or depressed, and when we are accessing internal thoughts or emotions. We increase eye contact when dealing with people we like, admire, or who have power over us. In more intense or intimate conversations we naturally look

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Do's and Don'ts of The General Assembly

After endless hours of dil igent work and sleepless nights full of dizzy anticipation, the General

Assembly finally arrives. Media team encourages you to keep in mind following advices:

Do not start your attack speech with ?I really l iked\enjoyed your resolution, but? ? ;

Do stil l be respectful;

Do not be startled and lose your composure when you hear an indication that t ime is running out;

Do try to wrap up as adequately and punctually as you can;

Do not clap after the European anthem (really, do not!);

Do clap after the speeches ;

Do not disturb others by talking loudly with other members of your committee;

Do communicate actively using sticky notes;

Do not come wearing ripped jeans or snickers (seriously though, do not!);

Do try to speak clearly and listen to others carefully;

Do not ask a question for the sake of asking a question;

Do raise points if you genuinely have an opinion;

Do not waste time on any abstractions such as social media;

Do take self ies during breaks;

Do not abstain from voting if possible;

Do formulate a personal opinion on each resolution;

Do not use mainstream and typical phrases during your summation speech (Honorable mention: ?Close your eyes and imagine? ?);

Do start with an attention grabbing sentence;

Do not let nervousness get in the way of you being active;

Do have fun;

Do not mix up defense and sum up speeches;

Do feel free to clarify any structural details with your chairperson the night before the GA. 20