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‘Memory of Egypt’...Prominent Figures, Heritage

The Memory of Egypt releases a new issue every three months - Asharq Al-Awsat
The Memory of Egypt releases a new issue every three months - Asharq Al-Awsat
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‘Memory of Egypt’...Prominent Figures, Heritage

The Memory of Egypt releases a new issue every three months - Asharq Al-Awsat
The Memory of Egypt releases a new issue every three months - Asharq Al-Awsat

The 46th issue of the Memory of Egypt magazine released by the Library of Alexandria, highlighted heritage features from the Egyptian society characterized with cultural diversity and richness, in addition to exploring the centennials of many historic figures and events.

In the issue’s introduction, Dr. Mostafa al-Feki, head of the library, writes about two great figures who left our world in the past few years, Pedagogist Dr. Hamed Ammar, and Islamic philosophy professor and former minister of Endowments Dr. Mahmoud Hamdy Zakzouk.

According to al-Feki, they both represented a vital example of creativity in their fields given their contributions in the movements of religious and civil education.

The issue also featured a number of articles, including “Judicature between Literature and Egyptian Cinema…Standing on the Edge of Reality” by Judge and novelist Ashraf al-Ashmawy; “Centennial of Hamed Ammar, Teacher of the Poor” by Dr. Kamal Mughith; “Raya and Sakina…Case that Fascinated Egyptians for 100 Years” by Editor-in-Chief Dr. Sameh Fawzi; “Route to Sidi Fathallah al-Ajami” by Dr. Mohammed Suleiman; “Queen Farida…Centennial of a Queen that Owned Egyptians’ Hearts” by researcher Mohammed Ghanima; “Popular Anniversary Celebrations…Tolerance Message from Egypt” by Dr. Doaa Bahieddine; “Alexandria and Golden Age of Cinema” by journalist Mohammed al-Malihi; “Neighborhoods, Lanes of Cairo in Modern Age” by Dr. Kamal Jamal Mahmoud; and “Scenes of Egyptian Cultural Diversity” by Dr. Sahar Hassan Ahmed.

This issue is a contribution to the magazine’s strategy in shedding lights on the different life aspect in Egypt, the creative historic and cultural manifestations, and the country’s connection to the Arab and international horizons.

Former issues contributing to this strategy include a special edition on the Nile which placed special emphasis on the river’s origins, myths, geographic features and popular heritage, and another that focused on the history of Egyptian summering. The magazine is also preparing a special issue on the civil work in the country in line with this year’s theme “2022: Year of Civil Society.”

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Varieties

Venice Is Sinking… But Italian Engineer Suggests Plan to Lift the City

Boats sail on a canal as flags of EU, Italy and Venice fly at half-mast at the building of Veneto Regional Council to pay tribute to the late Pope Francis in Venice on April 22, 2025. (Photo by Sergei GAPON / AFP)
Boats sail on a canal as flags of EU, Italy and Venice fly at half-mast at the building of Veneto Regional Council to pay tribute to the late Pope Francis in Venice on April 22, 2025. (Photo by Sergei GAPON / AFP)
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Venice Is Sinking… But Italian Engineer Suggests Plan to Lift the City

Boats sail on a canal as flags of EU, Italy and Venice fly at half-mast at the building of Veneto Regional Council to pay tribute to the late Pope Francis in Venice on April 22, 2025. (Photo by Sergei GAPON / AFP)
Boats sail on a canal as flags of EU, Italy and Venice fly at half-mast at the building of Veneto Regional Council to pay tribute to the late Pope Francis in Venice on April 22, 2025. (Photo by Sergei GAPON / AFP)

It’s the “floating city” but also the sinking city. In the past century, Venice has subsided by around 25 centimeters, or nearly 10 inches, CNN reported.

Meanwhile, the average sea level in Venice has risen nearly a foot since 1900.

It’s a tortuous pairing that means one thing: Not just regular flooding, but an inexorable slump of this most beloved of cities into the watery depths of its famous lagoon.

For visitors, its precarious status is part of the attraction of Venice — a need to visit now before it’s too late, a symbol that humanity cannot win against the power of nature.

For Venetians, the city’s island location has for centuries provided safety against invasion, but also challenges.

Tides have got ever higher and more frequent as the climate crisis intensifies. And the city sinks around two millimeters a year due to regular subsidence.

But what if you could just... raise the city? It sounds like science fiction. In fact it’s the idea of a highly respected engineer who thinks it could be the key to saving Venice.

While the Italian government is currently spending millions of euros each year raising flood barriers to block exceptionally high tides from entering the lagoon, Pietro Teatini, associate professor in hydrology and hydraulic engineering at the nearby University of Padua, says that pumping water into the earth deep below the city would raise the seabed on which it sits, pushing Venice skyward.

By raising the level of the city by 30 centimeters (just under 12 inches), Teatini believes that he could gift Venice two or three decades — during which time the city could work out a permanent way to fight the rising tides.

“We can say we have in front of us 50 years [including the lifespan of the MOSE] to develop a new strategy,” he says, according to CNN. “We have to develop a much more drastic project.”