THE WORLD OF Ideas from exquisite for the betterment of civilization - Part I -

The following editorial dossier is elaborated by students at the Master’s Program “International Economic Diplomacy”, from the Faculty of International Business and Economics, the University of Economic Studies, Romania. The World of Romania

Mihai Eminescu: The Ultimate Romanian Romanticist

Patricia-Elena PETRICU

he culture of a nation arises both or- by studying philosophy, history, law, political ganically, in an emergent fashion, but economy and philology at the University of Phi- also as a result of conscious devel- losophy in . Afterwards, he tried his luck opment by authorities eager to differ- in while, at the same time, he founded entiate themselves from neighbours, the literary society (you can find a lot Tassert values and aspirations and legitimize of his poetry published in the journal Convor- national priorities. , as a biri literare). Although very famous for his cultural figure, became both a suc- poetry, Eminescu was more than a cess for his audience and focus poet; he was also a journalist, point for Romanian cultural dramatist, essayist, and short development and promo- story writer. tion. As the “inimitable poet” of Romania’s ro- Eminescu’s contribu- mantic period, he is tion to our country and studied by children people has had an for his imagery, by extraordinary im- high schoolers pact: he managed for his depths to encompass in and by adults his work all the for his biting facets of the in- and caustic wit, dividual and the as well as his environment in socially-con- which he oper- scious patrio- ates, his divinity tism which, just and spirituality, like Romanian but also all the playwright I.L. stages of life, Caragiale, he demonstrating used to paint a and explaining picture of Ro- every particular- manian follies ity of human life, whose depictions from religion and of vice and iniqui- spirituality to edu- ty are still relevant, cation, intelligence, evocative and cur- and cultural habits. rent. This can be easily no- ticed, for instance, in his Mihai Eminescu (1850- greatest work, The morning 1889) was the son of Emi- star, which inspired critics to novici family (this is his original call Eminescu “the morning star surname that was changed later to of the Romanian literature”. In addi- Eminescu). He was born on the 15th of tion, the poet also attempted to bring back January 1850 in Botoşani, but he lived in Ipotes- to life old writings and proverbs. The desire to ti, in the north of (a historical and geo- revive the past made him appear “a dreamer graphical region of Romania). He completed his who was far away from reality, who did not suf- secondary education in Cernăuţi (a city in North fer because of the material conditions that he Bukowina, now part of Ukraine), and continued lived in”, as characterized him.

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Yet the poet’s contribution was more promi- nescu’s literary creation is still to be read and nent after his death. A large part of the poet’s understood. The romantic and dreamy young manuscripts can be found at his childhood home poet has been, is, and will be recognized world- in Ipotesti. Mihai Eminescu’s memorial house wide for his contribution to a better understand- attracts every year thousands of visitors from all ing of the meaning of life in a universe driven over the country and also from abroad, coming by divine laws. Recognition is given not only to see the environment in which one of the big- because Mihai Eminescu was a rebellious art- gest personalities that Romania can be proud ist who managed to study outside his country, of spent his childhood. Eminescu’s creation has but especially for his genius creation, as it is always been supplemented and improved both known that he could write in verses anytime by his contemporaries and followers. Titu Maio- and anywhere, even without the knowledge rescu was inspired by the poet’s work in his cre- accumulated until that moment, because he ation of “the theory of forms without foundation” was endowed with a special talent (however, (a theory of Romania’s modernization process). Eminescu did not, under any circumstances, Ion Creangă was his best friend: one was writ- accept to write in any language other than his ing prose and the other, transcribing in lyrics native language). a large volume of each other’s thoughts. Ioan Slavici was also influenced by him, along with As Mihai Eminescu said, “Geniuses have no many other artists in his entourage from Vienna death but no luck either”. He was born without and Berlin. luck, but with a special talent, and he is still seen today and will be in the ages to come a genius Nowadays, people tend to make statements who cannot die because he is part of the nation- in a more direct fashion. However, Mihai Emi- al conscience and knowledge.

Bibliography Caragiale, I.L. (1989). În Nirvana. In: C. Crăciun and V. Crăciun, Ei l-au văzut pe Eminescu, Cluj-Napoca: Dacia. Enotes.com (n.d.). Mihai Eminescu Critical Essays, https://www.enotes.com/topics/mihai-eminescu. Maiorescu, T. (1967). Critice, vol. II. Bucharest: Editura pentru literatură. Morari, C. (2016). Mihai Eminescu – Luceafărul poeziei românesti, https://www.edusoft.ro/mihai-eminescu- luceafarul-poeziei-romanesti/.

27 www.themarketforideas.com The World of Romania

Sarmiza Bilcescu: The First Lady… Lawyer

Victor TRIFAN

armiza Bilcescu is the first female law- courses in Law, which brought her the admi- yer in and the first woman in ration of her colleagues, but the antipathy of the world to have obtained a Ph.D. the Sorbonne teachers. During one of her first in Law, a professional area that until courses, Sarmiza was simply kicked out from then was considered to be reserved class by Professor Paul Sonday, who shout- Sexclusively for men. To find out more about ed: “No women! ... Science is done among the breaking of this barrier, I will try to men!”. However, in December 1884, in recreate the portrait of a famous, a hostile atmosphere, Sarmiza Bil- unique woman who devoted cescu, the young 18-year-old her life to the disadvantaged Romanian, encouraged by social categories, but her mother, attended the also strongly militated entrance exam. Her ex- for women’s right to amination lasted two education, and for weeks, which meant civil, social or polit- 14 days of discus- ical rights equal to sions about the men. women’s status and controversy Sarmiza Bil- over her legal cescu was born and social ca- in Bucharest on pacity. Frustrat- April 25, 1867, ed, Sarmiza’s being baptized mother faces a after Sarmize- discussion with getusa Regia, A.E. Pichard, the capital of the secretary Dacia prior to of the Faculty the wars with of Law, express- the Roman Em- ing her revolt in pire. As a child, drastic terms: she acted more “We came from like a tomboy, al- a remote country ways wrestling with where women are other boys, thus not denied the right receiving the nick- to education. How is name “Voinica”, which it possible, sir, that in means the sturdy one. a country where on the Until the age of seven she prison gates it is written is home-schooled, and then «Freedom, Equality and Fra- she attends the courses of “St. ternity», you prevent a woman Sava” College in Bucharest. In 1884, from studying?”. she receives her Baccalaureate diploma and decides to attend the courses of the Sor- At the end of the nineteenth century, there bonne Law School. were still a lot of prejudices. The French still had the concept of their old right, after which Sarmiza’s university choice was unusual for “la femme se doit garder l’autel, le feul et les those times, as she was the first girl to attend enfants” (woman must take care of the altar,

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the fire and the children) and were incapable Doctor of Law at the University of Sorbonne. of understanding the transformations they were She was only 23 years old. The event was the witnessing. Proposals concerning the creation sensation of the moment. It was out of the or- of a legal status for women’s advocacy came dinary, a curiosity for the public. The young much later and were received with a lot of in- Romanian student defended her Ph.D. thesis difference. Moreover, the excesses of extremist surrounded by reporters and photographers. feminism produced a pronounced reserve and Her thesis, entitled “On the Legal Condition of even hostility in the French nobility, which re- the Mother in Roman and French Law”, was a jected them as of fancy. This is the en- document that promoted the idea of equali- vironment where and the moment when the ty between women and men in marriage and young student Sarmiza Bilcescu began her ca- children’s rights. The final appraisals of her reer as a “feminist icon”. teachers are eloquent: “Relentless, worthy of all praise and flawless behaviour”. On June 12, 1890, Sarmiza Bilcescu made history, becoming the first woman in the world The next day after Sarmiza’s thesis defence, who, after defending her doctoral thesis at the all the Parisian newspapers gave details of the Faculty of Law, obtained the academic title of exam, publishing the candidate’s photo and bi-

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ographical notes. Even Australian newspapers cu chose not to work as an actual lawyer. Given displayed a picture of her and wrote articles the fact that mentalities were difficult to change, about the unusual event. “A young woman from she was more and more bypassed by clients, Romania managed to acquire, for the first time so she immediately understood she would not in the university annals, the highest distinction be able to practice. Sarmiza paid with regularity of the Faculty of Law in ”. It was not only a her Bar fees, but she would not practice, as we victory for feminism, but also for Romania, an find out from her correspondence with a French affirmation of its intellectual potential. woman. “I am bound to give consultations and even – thanks to God and my parents – I have The first Romanian reviewer of her thesis was the great joy of giving them free of charge”. In- Constantin Dissescu. His review, published in stead, she pursued a career dedicated to family L’Indépendence Roumaine on February 14/26, life, to fighting for women’s rights, and espe- 1891, points out that the author regards the cially to charity. subject of the thesis “from the point of view of the social organization”, which, according On March 18, 1894, together with other elite to Dissescu, “constitutes a progress towards Romanian women, she set up the “Romanian the theses law of that time circumscribed ex- Ladies’ Society”. Her role was the most import- clusively in the legal framework”. Dissescu’s ant: raising funds for Romanian cultural unity. In review, published in the newspaper’s editorial 1913, she created the Superior Council of the section, brought to the knowledge of the Roma- Domestic Industry, designed to highlight the im- nian public the exceptional event of Sarmiza’s portance and beauty of countryside traditions. achievement as the first woman to have a Ph.D. Every year, Sarmiza Bilcescu spent several in Law at the University of Paris. months at Căscioarele de Călăraşi, a village in Romania, where she was highly appreciated for After obtaining her Ph.D., Sarmiza returned her support of the everyday lives of peasants, to Romania, requesting enrolment in the Ilfov while she was also involved in many projects in Bar, which at that time included Bucharest, and, Muscel County, where she was loved for con- implicitly, the right to practice as a lawyer. It was tributing to the community life. the first request to join the lawyers’ organiza- tion coming from a woman, and, although the She was also the President of the Federation of leaders of the profession did not initially know Women in Academia, and she had even entered how to interpret it, they nevertheless decided: into politics in 1930, supported by the National “It is not possible to prevent the petitioner from Liberal Party. She was a member of the com- being enrolled as a lawyer”, a decision that be- mittees of patronage of several balls for charity came known worldwide. purposes. For the support she offered to others and for the many charitable acts she organized, Surprisingly, although she would have had Sarmiza was called and remained in history as ahead of her a glorious career, Sarmiza Bilces- “the mother of the troubled and deprived”.

Bibliography Brădăţeanu, V. (2016). Sarmiza Bilcescu – prima femeie avocat din Europa şi prima din lume cu un doctorat în drept, http://www.rador. ro/2016/04/27/portret-sarmiza-bilcescu-prima-femeie-avocat-din-europa-si-prima-din-lume-cu-un-doctorat-in-drept/. Diaconu, M. (2015). Prima femeie din lume care a devenit Doctor în drept – Sarmiza Bilcescu Alimănişteanu, http://www.cunoastelumea.ro/ romance-frumoase-si-faimoase/. Friedmann-Nicolescu, I. (2014). Chipuri şi portrete din lumea avocaturii româneşti, http://www.unbr.ro/chipuri-si-portrete-din-lumea-avo- caturii-romanesti/. Mincan, M. (2014). Povestea Sarmizei Bilcescu, prima femeie avocat din Europa, http://adevarul.ro/cultura/istorie/povestea-sarmizeibilces- cu-femeie-avocat-europa-1_532dbc2a0d133766a82247dd/index.html. Todireanu, A. B. (2017). Sarmiza Bilcescu Alimănişteanu – prima femeie doctor în drept din lume şi o feministă desăvârşită, https://www. forbes.ro/sarmiza-bilcescu-alimanisteanu-prima-femeie-doctor-drept-din-lume-si-o-feminista-desavarsita-84723.

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Constantin Brâncuşi: The Endless Sculptural Columnist

Alina RĂDOI

t is a known fact that most things were in- tural details in the pillars, which incorporate lo- vented by accident, and that many famous cal geometrical elements, and can be visited artists discovered their talents by pure nowadays in the Hobita village, , chance – Brâncuşi is one of them. In this Romania. text, I intend to unravel his evolution, from a Ipoor village child to a worldwide famous sculp- One of the moments that marked Constantin tor, via a moment – the “aha, I can be an artist” Brâncuşi’s perspective on the world took place moment – that changed his destiny, at least as when he was three years old. His family was an exercise of admiration, if not one of preparing a traditional Romanian plum inspiration. brandy and, as he sees the oth- ers tasting the liquor in order Taking a look back at the to check if the preparation artist’s past, we find out process was going well, that he was the sixth child young Brâncuşi follows of a family of peasants, the example by drink- who earned their liv- ing the liquid down ing from agriculture in one gulp. He fell and carpentry. His asleep instantly, family used to while his mother send him to lead desperately be- the cattle to graz- lieved that her ing and walk son was dead. along with them As the night set on the hills all in, somebody day long, which called the vil- meant that he lage healer, had a lot of time who checked to spare. You if the child was know how they still breathing say that bore- and then put dom is the root animal drop- of creativity. Well, pings under his in this case, it nose. Constantin proved to be true: started to sneeze, the artist found his and was then left to “calling” as he was sleep. The following trying to kill time while day, young Brâncuşi guarding the cattle, so is beaten with a cou- he started carving dif- ple of twigs by his father, ferent wooden household while being hung upside items, such as spoons, and down – a lesson that was bringing them home to his fam- supposed to teach him not to ily. His talent might have come from drink again. However, this occasion his father and his grandfather, who used to taught him another important lesson: he be carpenters: Nicolae Brâncuşi, the father of had the revelation that the world and that the the future artist, built their home from scratch, things around him can be seen from a different and what is remarkable about it are the sculp- perspective.

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Constantin Brâncusi completed his first is, after that he began exhibiting in the United years of school in Pestişani and Brădiceni, af- States, and in 1914 he opened his first personal ter which he worked as an apprentice in a dye exhibition at Photo Secession Gallery in New shop and in different workshops. Between 1894 York. Every year since, his work was present in and 1898, thanks to the support of an industri- all major exhibitions that took place in Europe alist who was attracted by his carving projects, and America. There are even known incidents Brâncusi studied sculpture at Craiova School of caused by the perception of his artwork in such Arts and Crafts. Following the recommendations exhibitions: in 1920, Brâncuşi is forced to with- of this school, Brâncuşi received a scholarship draw his work Princess X from a Parisian exhibi- from the episcopate of the church of Craiova tion, on the ground that it is indecent – a deci- to study at the Bucharest School of Fine Arts, sion vehemently criticized in the press by Marie where he was admitted first in the lists. During Curie, Jean Cocteau and Pablo Picasso. Anoth- his studies, he participated in various competi- er stormy episode took place in 1926, on the tions (the bust of Vitellius and the head of Laoc- occasion of a personal exhibition in America. oon were created on such occasions), yet from One of the works, The Bird in Space, was con- this period the most famous work remains The sidered by the American customs an industrial Ecorché, a representation of the human body, piece, as they deemed that it does not resemble carried out in collaboration with his anatomy an artwork, and suspected him of trying to intro- professor, that became teaching material for duce raw bronze in the country. So, they gave both art and medicine universities. him a fine, took his work and even arrested him. Brâncuşi sued the American state in a trial that In 1903, after completing his studies in Bucha- he won in 1928 – this trial, where important art rest, he received the first important commission critics of that day testified, defined modern art. of a public monument, the bust of general phy- sician Carol Davila (the founder of the modern His studio in Paris drew sonorous names medical school in Romania), which was meant of the epoch, especially from the avant-garde to help him pay for his way to Paris, where he movement: Guillaume Apollinaire, Amedeo was supposed to continue his studies. As Brân- Modigliani, Marcel Duchamp and many others. cuşi refuses to change some details of the bust Probably, it was not only the strong personality at the request of its commissioners, consider- of the great artist that attracted the interest of ing that they do not understand the sculpture, the visitors, but also the deep Romanian atmo- he loses half of the money meant to finance his sphere that characterized the place. By a 1951 departure to . However, he heads to Par- testamentary note, Brâncuşi intended to do- is by his own means, via and Switzer- nate his artwork to the , but land, reaching France after a couple of years, the Romanian Communist government refused after making a great part of his trip on . the donation, as the sculptor was considered a cosmopolitan bourgeois. This led Brâncuşi to In Paris, he earned his living by working eve- apply for the French citizenship, which he re- nings as a dishwasher in a restaurant, while ceived a year later, in 1952. Consequently, after during the day he was a student of École Na- his death on March 16, 1957, the works of the tionale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts, the most im- artist reached the National Museum of Modern portant arts academy of that time, in the class Art in Paris (Centre Georges Pompidou). He of the sculptor and painter Antonin Mercié. In was then buried in the Montparnasse cemetery 1907, through the interventions of Queen Elis- in Paris, though he wished he was able to re- abeth of Romania, he was received as an ap- turn to Romania: “I die with a sad heart that I prentice in Auguste Rodin’s workshop, but the cannot return to my country”. non-conformist Brâncuşi refuses the offer, say- ing that “Nothing grows in the shade of great A world without art would be empty. A world trees”. without the work of Brâncuşi would probably be even emptier. He always wanted to convey the If, until 1913, he frequently participated in ex- true essence, by encapsulating simple ideas hibitions organized both in Bucharest and Par- into apparently simple sculptures that have a

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lot of meaning behind them. His minimalist art from all over the globe, his artwork can be seen has shaped the creative world to the form that in many different modern art museums on all we see today, making important contributions, continents. However, his three most famous both in his native country and abroad. Inspired sculptures – the Endless Column, the Table of often by the architecture of his native places, Silence, and the Gate of the Kiss – are still at especially in woodwork, Brâncuşi created a home, and can be admired in Târgu Jiu (Ro- philosophy in images. With millions of visitors mania).

Bibliography Buican, A. (2006). Brâncuşi. O biografie, Bucureşti: Editura Artemis. Ion, A. (2016). Năzbâtiile făcute de Constantin Brâncuşi în copilărie: a scrijelit banca de la şcoală cu briceagul şi a fost închis într-un coteţ, https://adevarul.ro/locale/targu-jiu/nazbatiile-facute-constantin-brancusi-copilarie-scrijelit-banca-scoala-briceagul-fost-inchis-in- tr-un-cotet-1_57668ad75ab6550cb8187a46/index.html. Jianu, I. (n.d.). Influenţa lui Brâncuşi asupra sculpturii secolului XX, brancusi.1dez.com. Petringenaru, A. (1983). Imagine şi simbol la Brâncuşi, Bucureşti: Editura Meridiane.

33 www.themarketforideas.com The World of Romania

Mircea Eliade: The Mapper of the Sacred Time

Andrian UB GA

ircea Eliade, born on March 9th, 1907, but extremely interesting life, after leaving his in Bucharest, was a Romanian histo- homeland behind, and he ended up writing in rian of religion, fiction writer, philoso- three foreign languages. A Romanian by birth, pher, and professor at the University Eliade became a cosmopolitan, organically in- Mof Chicago. An Orthodox believer, Gheorghe corporating not only the Christian cultural tradi- Eliade registered his son’s birth four days be- tion, but also the spiritual experience of India. fore the actual date, to coincide with Throughout his life, he tried to find com- the liturgical calendar feast of the mon ground between the Western Forty Martyrs of Sebaste. After civilization, largely based on completing his primary ed- the Judeo-Christian roots, ucation, Eliade attended the mysterious East, and the National even the archaic beliefs College. As a child, he of primitive cultures. In was fascinated with his quest to “get to the natural world, the heart of things”, which represented Eliade managed to the inspiration for create an original his very first lit- religious concept, erary attempts, which he called as well as with the “history of the Romanian religions”. folklore and the Christian faith. Eliade was The young fas­cinated by Eliade’s inter- the philosophy est in physical of the Italian exercise and Renaissance adventure led during his high him to pursue school studies. mountaineering Later, he wrote and sailing, and about his youthful he also joined search:“Perhaps, the Romanian without realizing it, Boy Scouts. With a I was looking for a group of friends, he new, broader human- designed and sailed ism, bolder than the a boat on the , Renaissance humanism, from Tulcea to the Black too dependent on samples Sea. of Mediterranean classicism”.

Between 1925 and 1928, he at- The paths leading to this new type tended the ’s Fac- of humanism were found by Eliade in the ulty of Philosophy and Letters. Eliade’s schol- history of religions. According to Eliade, the arly works began after a long period of study at modern man is also homo religiosus, and the the University of Calcutta (India). Polyglot and fullness of the world and of life is real to him erudite, writer and scientist, diplomat and nov- only thanks to the unique personal experience ice of the Indian ashram, Eliade had a difficult of the sacred. However, even without altering

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the significance of this experience, the modern Romanian scholar’s heritage or with his reha- man is able to penetrate into the heart of other bilitation. However, it is indisputable that this cultures. Through the study of traditional and legacy requires further study. Eliade’s status as oriental cultures, a person of Western culture an organizer of religious studies at the interna- will be able to better understand himself. Mir- tional level makes his figure exemplary in sever- cea Eliade’s approach to the science of religion al key-issues: the role of the “great man” in the was one of the most influential and popular in organization of scientific study and teaching of religious studies of the last decades of the 20th religions; the problem of “observer/participant” century. Even now, his concept remains topical, in religious studies; historiography and interpre- international symposia and conferences being tation of historical reality in relation to ideology; devoted to the analysis of the scientist’s devel- interpretation of life experience, political activity opments, and his scientific works being actively and theoretical positions. published abroad. Students of religious theory learn about Eliade’s theory as part of their basic There is hardly any other philosopher and re- education, which leads them to react to or in- searcher in the field of religion of the 20th cen- corporate Eliade’s ideas in their own thoughts. tury whose works initiated such stormy contro- versy. In the specialty literature, one can find In the 1990s, Eliade’s contribution to religious diametrically opposed assessments of the val- studies became a debate topic at the confer- ue of Eliade’s ideas and methods, from harsh ences held by the American Academy of Reli- criticism and accusations, to full and enthusias- gions, while the Modern Language Association tic adherence. Undoubtedly, Eliade’s position is showed great interest in his literary works. How- extremely interesting and significant, not only ever, after Eliade’s death, we are witnessing for religious studies, but also for cultural studies a period in which the importance of studying and philosophy. For the most adequate under- Eliade’s biography supplants the importance standing of Eliade, one must proceed from the of studying his religious theory. Time will tell simple fact that he should be regarded as an whether this period will end with a denial of the original philosopher of religion.

Bibliography Rennie, B. 1996. Reconstructing Eliade: Making Sense of Religion. Albany, N.Y.: State University of New York Press.Petringenaru, A. (1983). Imagine şi simbol la Brâncuşi, Bucureşti: Editura Meridiane.

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Victor Babeş: Treaty on and Treatment against Bad Bacteria

Adrian BUSU

ictor Babeş was born on July 4th, 1854, in mitted through other means? Many such ques- Vienna, in a family of six boys and three tions were problems that scientists and chemists girls. The death of his sister Alma, at the including Robert Koch, Louis Pasteur, Victor Cor- age of 14, because of tuberculosis, was nil and, in our country, Victor Babeş were trying anV episode that changed his destiny. At that to explore and solve. time, he was a student of dramatic arts in Buda- pest, but, being disappointed that he could not Victor Babeş studied bacteriology with Robert help his sister and because medicine was not Koch in Berlin and, afterwards, the scholar went developed enough to save her, he chose to Paris, where he met Louis Pasteur. At to change his career path and start- the age of 31, in 1885, he published, ed doing scientific research in mi- along with Victor Cornil, the first crobiology and bacteriology. Bacteriology Treaty, which He enrolled at the University is considered to have laid of Medicine in the modern foundations and continued his stud- of this science. The vol- ies in Vienna, where he ume was received with completed his doctor- hostility due to the so- ate; later, he special- cio-political context ized in bacteriology at that time in Paris, in Berlin. Therefore, but the treaty had a a scholar who in great significance the first part of for the evolution his life wanted to of medicine, so, become an actor in the end, it was leaves this pas- accepted. This sion in the name was an important of research and accomplishment, evolution in med- achieved before icine. This was, other scholars we can say, a way such as Koch and in which the Uni- Pasteur who had verse shows us how more experience at a tragedy can lead to that time. Therefore, something good for Victor Babeş became humanity. an important figure in the field of research in The world of medicine medicine and science, be- and bacteriology in the 19th ing offered a lot of import- century was in its infancy, phy- ant opportunities and positions sicians and, implicitly, ordinary peo- abroad. However, at the request of ple being unaware of the fact that we are the Minister of Education, he decided getting sick from microbes, bacteria or viruses. to return to Romania and continue his research People believed in the so-called “miasma theo- here, establishing the Institute of Bacteriology ry”, which stated that we get sick because of par- (the second Institute of Bacteriology in the world) ticles of matter decomposed and transmitted by and thus helping the evolution of medicine in our air streams. But what about the diseases trans- country.

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Further on, the discoveries made by Victor tor Babeş, who did not manage to become so Babeş laid the foundation for antibiotics, which popular. made possible the development of many types of drugs that nowadays manage to prevent and Besides the scientific activity, Babeş was con- cure various diseases. cerned with the improvement of the sanitary sta- tus of the population, especially in combating There was a conflict between Victor Babeş and preventing pellagra. Studying the causes of and (Romanian doctor and this disease, which (as well as tuberculosis) had microbiologist (1863-1934), famous for having mass impact, he emphasized its social essence developed the anti-cholera vaccine), from which and in 1907 claimed: “I give you the remedy of the we can clearly see Victor Babeş’s profile and pellagra, of this disease of misery, of this national how he was perceived by others both as a man shame: the landowning of the peasants”. Babeş and as a scholar. The conflict between them was was also very concerned about the problems of rather at the social level and consisted in the prophylactic medicine, addressing issues such fact that they were viewed and perceived as two as the water supply of localities or the scientific opposite figures: Victor Babeş, the withdrawn organization of anti-epidemic struggle. scholar, less amenable to the world, and Ioan Cantacuzino, a pleasant, sociable and popular His philosophical conception was in line with character in the medical world of that time. The materialism and is set forth in the works: Con- only scientific conflict that existed between the siderations on the Relation of Natural Sciences to two was during the Balkan War of 1913 when Philosophy (1879) and Faith and Science (1924). the Romanian army from the South of the Dan- Babeş fought Kant’s agnosticism, Descartes’s ube became ill with cholera. Cantacuzino and inherited ideas (innéisme), Schelling’s idealistic Babeş came up with two different solutions but, apriorism, and fidelity. He consistently upheld as Ioan Cantacuzino had more political influ- the objective character of the world, the laws of ence, his remedy was adopted. Babeş opposed nature and causality. Cantacuzino’s remedy, which in the end proved to be successful, as it managed to heal 800,000 Victor Babeş founded the “Annals of the Insti- people. As a result, Cantacuzino succeeded in tute of Pathology and Bacteriology” (1889), “Med- creating a school around him, gathering his dis- ical Romania” (1893) and “Archives des sciences ciples and being admired, in contrast with Vic- médicales” (1895). He died in 1926 in Bucharest.

Bibliography Haţieganu, I. (1926). Victor Babeş. “The Society of Tomorrow” Magazine, Year III, no. 49-50, Cluj-Napoca. Priminescu, R.M. (2009). Evolution of the activity of the research institutes, reflected in the documents of the national archive fund, NOEMA Magazine, vol. VIII.

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Ioan Cantacuzino: How to Defeat Micro-Beasts

Antonia TĂNĂSESCU

his year marks the 155th anniversary of the the secretary and the aide of General Kiseleff, birth of a personality very well-known in and the Governor of the Romanian Countries. the international environment for his con- tribution to the development of medical As expected for the wealth of the environment Tsciences: Professor Ioan Cantacuzino. Nicolae he came from, in the first years of school he stud- Iorga1, who had an infinite consideration ied at home with private tutors. His mother for Professor Cantacuzino, wrote in was the one who noticed the intellec- a eulogy in 1934: “Professor Ioan tual qualities of his son and urged Cantacuzino was the complete him to continue his studies at incarnation of the power, a renowned Paris school. the human desire that Interestingly, the Faculty appears once in a few of Medicine was not his centuries. He touches first option. Ioan Can- all fields of science tacuzino first studied and all aspects of Letters, Philosophy, beauty, uniting and Sciences. deep knowledge Destiny led his with a chosen steps to France, elegance in pre- to the Faculty of sentation, but Medicine, where above all with he enrolled in an absolutely 1887. personal co- louring”. He gradu- ated from the Microbiolo- University of gist and found- Paris, Faculty er of the Roma- of Sciences and nian School of Faculty of Medi- Immunology and cine and worked Experimental Pa- at several hospi- thology, Ioan Can- tals in Paris, obtain- tacuzino was born ing his doctorate in on November 25th, 1894, with the thesis 1863, in Bucharest. His “Recherches sur le father, Ion Cantacuzino, mode de destruction du was minister under the rule vibrion cholérique dans of Alexandru Ioan Cuza, and l’organisme”. Later in the his mother, Maria Cantacuzino, same year, he began his aca- was the daughter of General Mavros, demic career as a deputy professor at the University of Iaşi, and returned to 1 (January 17, 1871 - November 27, 1940) Paris after two years to serve on the staff of the was a Romanian historian, politician, literary critic, mem- , where he worked under the di- oirist, poet and playwright. Co-founder (in 1910) of the rection of Ilya Ilyich Mechnikov. Democratic Nationalist Party (PND), he served as a mem- ber of Parliament, President of the Deputies’ Assembly His view on the life phenomena was a ma- and Senate, cabinet minister and briefly (1931-1932) as terialistic one. As a partisan of the Pasteurian Prime Minister.

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scientific spirit, Cantacuzino has consistently The second great accomplishment was the imposed and promoted the experimental princi- discovery in 1867 of asepsis and antisepsis by ple as the basis of his research. He was against British surgeon Joseph Lister (1827-1912), and finalism and a fervent adherent of the biological this method proved to be salutary in the man- determinism, while being a declared Darwinist. agement of different surgical diseases, in terms In 1901, Cantacuzino was assigned a teach- of prevention and combat against contamina- ing position in Bucharest, where he became a tion and inter-contamination during procedures major influence on a generation of scientists. and medical and surgical interventions on sick His discoveries were relevant in the treatment people because they considerably reduced of cholera, epidemic typhus, tuberculosis, and contamination and disease spread. The third scarlet fever. As a disciple of Mechnikov, he moment, as important as the first two, was the devoted part of his research to expanding the introduction of antibiotics in the therapy of infec- latter’s field of interest (phagocytes, the body’s tious-contagious diseases, and this era begins means of defence against pathogens, as well with the discovery of penicillin in 1928 by Alex- as the issue of immunity and invertebrates). He ander Fleming (1881-1955), which was turned invented the notion of contact immunity, the an- to advantage as late as 1945. ti-choleric vaccine (the Cantacuzino method) and discovered the agglutination of microbes The history of cholera, a specific infection (the Cantacuzino phenomenon). caused by vibrio cholerae, starts in ancient times. The sixth pandemic that began in 1899 One of the greatest accomplishments of and lasted until 1923 started in India and came medical sciences was the discovery and im- to Eastern Europe through . The expan- plementation of vaccination against the main sion of the epidemic in the Balkans was facilitat- infectious-contagious diseases, often spread in ed both by the two Balkan Wars3 and the First pandemic proportions, which shook humanity World War. Romania, as a participant in these throughout history through the epidemics that wars, was affected by cholera, which was es- decimated entire populations. The first great pecially common among the armed forces. If accomplishment was the implementation of the original source of the cholera issue is still active immunizations by the agents of vacci- controversial, both Romanians and Bulgarians nation, once the smallpox (black pox) vaccine accusing each other of being the basis of the was discovered in 1786 by the English physi- cian Edward Jenner2 and applied starting 1831. terms “vaccine” and “vaccination” are derived from Vari- olae vaccinae (smallpox of the cow), the term devised by 2 Edward Jenner, FRS (17 May 1749 - 26 January 1823) Jenner to denote cowpox. was an English physician and scientist who was the pio- 3 The Balkan Wars consisted of two conflicts that took neer of smallpox vaccine, the world’s first vaccine. The place in the Balkan Peninsula in 1912 and 1913.

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outbreaks South of the Danube, it is widely rec- Cantacuzino began vaccination. The first in- ognized that the extent of the disease was facil- oculation was made on July 21st with a dose itated by the sanitary conditions of food prepa- of 1 cm3 to all soldiers without exception. The ration and drinking water sources among both second inoculation with a dose of 2 cm3 was Romanian soldiers and the civilian population. done on July 27th, and the third inoculation with a dose of 3 cm3 was done on August 2nd. The During the 2nd Balkan War, not only the Ro- daily appearance of 100-200 cases was still ob- manian and Bulgarian soldiers were affected, served between the first and third inoculation. but also civilians of both populations. Three But immediately after the third inoculation, the years later, during the 1st World War, once again epidemic stopped abruptly on the second day, a cholera epidemic swept through Romania. registering only two new cases of the disease. It took the two Romanian cholera campaigns, in 1913 during the Second Balkan War and in Cantacuzino laid the foundations of the local 1916 during World War I, to obtain a reliable re- production of vaccines in the institute bearing sult and to remove doubts of the efficacy of the his name. On this basis, vaccinations were intro- cholera vaccine. duced rapidly in our country, and, what is more, until the end of the 20th century Romania was Under these conditions, in addition to numer- the largest producer of vaccines in South-East- ous measures against cholera taken by the Min- ern Europe through the Cantacuzino Institute. istry of War, Professor Cantacuzino successfully experimented outbreak vaccination for the first In addition to these achievements, Ioan Can- time in the world with a vaccine prepared by tacuzino’s attraction and preoccupation for himself and his collaborators. In 1912, Profes- culture and art garnered him the reputation of sor Cantacuzino sent a team of doctors to study a great connoisseur of refinement, and his col- the epidemic in Bulgaria during the First Balkan lection of engravings and sketches of the great War, collecting important epidemiological and European painters is, today, a national treasure. microbiological data. Strains of vibrio cholerae were brought and preparations for rapid pro- Little is known today about Professor Can- duction of large quantities of the cholera vac- tacuzino as a musician, for example. He had cine were made through the development of a real fascination for Wagner’s music, and he methods for mass culture in large balloons. The attended the Bayreuth festival every year. He result was a multivalent vaccine composed of was a very talented and artistic pianist, but he 25 races of vibriones, including 15 brought from stubbornly refused public affirmation. Canta- the Bulgarian outbreak. cuzino himself was also a great designer. His workbooks at the Roscoff Institute of Marine Bi- In the improvised hospital in Orhanie, where ology are true works of art, admired today for about 50,000 Romanian soldiers were camped, their scientific accuracy and detail.

Bibliography Argetoianu, C. (1991). Pentru cei de mâine, amintiri din vremea celor de ieri. Bucureşti: Humanitas. Brădăţeanu, V. (2017). Institutul de seruri şi vaccinuri “Dr. Ioan Cantacuzino” – sau despre cum ne distrugem institutele de succes, http:// www.rador.ro/2017/04/01/documentar-institutul-de-seruri-si-vaccinuri-dr-ioan-cantacuzino-sau-despre-cum-ne-distrugem-institute- le-de-succes/. Neghina R., Neghina A.M., Marincu I., Iacobiciu I. (2011). International Travel Increase and Malaria Importation in Romania, 2008-2009. Vector-Borne and Zoonotic Diseases, 11(9):1285-8, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21548762. Neguţ, M. (2013). 150 de ani de la naşterea lui Ioan Cantacuzino, http://www.viata-medicala.ro/*articleID_7733-dArt.html. Radioromaniacultural.ro, (2017). Ion Cantacuzino – cercetătorul care a răpus holera, https://radioromaniacultural.ro/ion-cantacuzino-cer- cetatorul-care-a-rapus-holera/. Surprising-romania.blogspot.com, (n.d.). Ioan Cantacuzino, https://surprising-romania.blogspot.ro/2009/05/ioan-c.html. Wikipedia.org. Edward Jenner, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Jenner.

No 9/2018, Jan. - Feb. 40 The betterment of civilizati`on

Ana Aslan: The Earthly Grail of… Youthfulness

Bianca-Andreea ALDEA

umanity has been and will continue to One of the most important moments in Ms. be attracted by the idea of eternal youth. Aslan’s career happened while she was teach- This goal was at the basis of the inven- ing. As one of her students was not attending tions Prof. Aslan succeeded to develop her classes anymore because he got sick, she Hin Romania during the fifties. decided to see him. The diagnosis was brief and accurate: arthrosis. Getting his permission, she Ana Aslan was the youngest of the three chil- started to administrate procaine to him. In the dren in the Aslan family. She was born in the beginning, the doses were small, but as the re- city of Brăila on the 1st of January 1897. After sults were good, she increased the dose. Unex- her father’s death in 1910, she moved to- pectedly, only a few days after, the young gether with her mother and the rest man could stand up and even walk of the family to Bucharest, the by himself. This seemed to be a capital city of Romania. From tremendous success. And it the early age of her life, she was not going to be the only seemed attracted to a ca- one. Knowing that the ef- reer either in or in fect of procaine by itself healthcare. In 1915, she was usually being neu- decided to enrol at the tralized by the human Faculty of Medicine in body, she decided Bucharest, where she to mix it with some completed her stud- other chemical el- ies in 1922. During ements in order to the years of study, achieve a formula she worked in mili- that would allow the tary hospitals, taking effect of procaine to care of people that last more. The re- were injured during sults that she was the First World War. able to see were Further on, while she spectacular: the skin was following her was looking better, doctoral studies, she the mobility was bet- worked at Filantropia ter, the blood pressure Hospital in Bucharest, was normalizing, mem- at the Medical Institute of ory was improving, and the Faculty of Medicine, at so on. a Medical Clinic in Timişo- At the beginning of the fif- ara and at the CFR Hospital in ties, the world was finally able Bucharest. After the war, she be- to find some peace after World came the manager of the Physiol- War II. Thus, from the very be- ogy Department of the Endocrinology ginning of the second half of the 20th Institute of Bucharest. From that moment on, century, a certain optimism was gripping she started her career in gerontology, the study humanity around the world. The post-war era af- of aging. Her colleagues said that Ms. Aslan was fected economies were starting to grow slightly. an enjoyable presence, a lively spirit and a stylish Among others, the healthcare & wellness sectors person that did not accept to see people around were also experiencing a rise. On this backdrop, her looking careless or slovenly. Such a person- the product called Gerovital H3 was entering the ality and attitude would have made a strong con- field of gerontology and geriatrics for the benefit tribution to her success. of tens of millions of people from all around the

41 www.themarketforideas.com The World of Romania

there were at some point the French politician Charles de Gaulle, the Indian Prime Minister In- dira Gandhi, the German chancellor Konrad Ade- nauer, the USSR leader Nikita Khrushchev, great actors such as Marlene Dietrich, Claudia Cardi- nale, Charlie Chaplin and Kirk Douglas, famous painters as for instance Pablo Picasso and Salva- dor Dali, the President of the Socialist Federal Re- public of Yugoslavia Josip Broz Tito, the Spanish politician Francisco Franco and many others. By the 1960s and then the 1970s, the product called Gerovital H3 and the innovative treatment method that Ms. Aslan was promoting became so popular that the product sales and the offer world. The medicine was meant to address the of complementary services succeeded to enrich aging process and other illnesses (such as ath- the Romanian economy during the Communist erosclerosis, vitiligo and scleroderma) that old regime by tens of millions of dollars annually. The people may be challenged by. In 1958, only 6 research activity initiated by Prof. Aslan in Roma- years after the product was invented, it was al- nia boosted the research & development activ- ready being sold in pharmacies. A whole market ity in the industry of gerontology and geriatrics was going to develop. What is more, the product around the world. For her valuable contribution started to be patented in no less than 30 coun- to the research and development of the health- tries from all over the world. care & wellness sector, Ms. Aslan was awarded While everyone was acclaiming the unbeliev- the “Leon Bernard” medal by the World Health able success of Gerovital H3, another extraordi- Organization, the “Order of Merit” by the Italian nary initiative that Ms. Aslan embraced was to the Republic and the “Order of Academic Palms” by ultimate benefit of millions of people around the the French Republic. world: The Gerontology and Geriatrics Institute in Unfortunately, Ms Aslan’s death brought to an Romania. As it was the first such institute created end the research activity in the national Institute in the world, it attracted significant attention. of Gerontology and Geriatrics “Ana Aslan” in Ro- Prof. Aslan was getting more and more re- mania. She was 91 years old when she died in nowned. People from all around the world were May 1988. Nowadays, one may remember Prof. coming to Bucharest in order to meet Prof. Aslan Ana Aslan as the first woman in the world that and to be treated by her. Even some of the most tried to both slow down the aging process and famous people at that time felt attracted by the prolong the lifespan of a human being as in the idea of looking younger and improving their over- Romanian saying “Youth without aging and life all lifestyle. Thus, among Ms. Aslan’s patients without death”.

Bibliography Ana-Aslan. Biografie, https://ana-aslan.ro/biografie/. Bălăceanu-Stolnici, C., Prada, G-I., Drăghici, R., Opriş, S. (2017). Ana Aslan National Institute of Gerontology and Geriatrics. Romanian Journal of Gerontology and Geriatrics, 6(2),http://www.rjgg.ro/pdf/pdf-1526460191.pdf . Farmec. Povestea Anei Aslan, femeia care a învins bătrâneţea, https://www.farmec.ro/document_files/sfaturi-practice/00001365/24pgr_po- vestea%20ana%20aslan_dolnd.pdf. Farmec. Povestea Anei Aslan, femeia care a învins bătrâneţea, https://www.farmec.ro/informatii-utile/povestea-anei-aslan-femeia-ca- re-a-invins-batranetea--1365.html. Fodor, D. (2012). Prof dr. Ana Aslan – secretul tinereţii, http://edituramateescu.ro/2012/01/prof-dr-ana-aslan-secretul-tineretii/. Historia. Tinereţe fără bătrâneţe: Ana Aslan şi miraculosul tratament Gerovital H3, https://www.historia.ro/sectiune/portret/articol/tine- rete-fara-batranete-ana-aslan-si-miraculosul-tratament-gerovital-h3. Istorie pe scurt. Ana Aslan – cea care a învins bătrâneţea, http://www.istorie-pe-scurt.ro/ana-aslan-cea-care-a-invins-batranetea/. Olteanu, A.M. (2017). Cum a apărut Institutul Ana Aslan şi ce s-a ales din el acum, https://momenteistorice.ro/cum-aparut-sanatoriul- ana-aslan-si-ce-s-ales-din-el-acum/. Popa, D. (2015). Ana Aslan – Geniul care a oprit timpul, Formula AS, http://www.formula-as.ro/2015/1191/societate-37/ana-aslan-geniul- care-a-oprit-timpul-19969. Radio România Cultural (2017). Ana Aslan – un nume care a fascinat mii de oameni în întreaga lume, https://radioromaniacultural.ro/ ana-aslan-un-nume-care-a-fascinat-mii-de-oameni-in-intreaga-lume/. Ştiri TVR. Miracolul românesc împotriva îmbătrânirii. Institutul Ana Aslan împlineşte 65 de ani. Imagini de arhivă, http://stiri.tvr.ro/ miracolul-romanesc-impotriva-imbatranirii--institutul-ana-aslan-impline--te-65-de-ani--imagini-de-arhiva_816034_video.html#view.

No 9/2018, Jan. - Feb. 42 The betterment of civilizati`on

Petrache Poenaru: The Fountain Pen of Written Wishes

Mihail-Alexandru BRAICĂ

riting instruments date back to an- cu in the 1821 Revolution of the people from cient times, but they have always against Phanariot rule1. While being had different forms. At first, part of this army, although he proved we had reeds to write that he lacked martial abilities, he Won papyrus or different types impressed the leader with his of animal skin, which, prop- educated spirit and sharp erly prepared, had proven mind, thus becoming to be a suitable material ’s for writing. Medieval personal assistant. scribes used a pen From this position, made of bone with he elaborated the a metal or lead tip, army’s manifesto, then wrote using now considered various types of one of the first pens, including Romanian pro- cane or feath- paganda news- ers from large papers. How- birds. Later on, ever, when the thanks to the re- rebellion was finement of the suppressed, metalworking Poenaru was technique, pen forced to leave were made from the country metals. Howev- because of his er, they corrod- involvement in ed from the early this Revolution. ink acids, so they This is how he made writing diffi- ended up studying cult. In 1800, the first abroad. fountain pens were invented and, even if Poenaru obtained the prototypes were nu- the patent for the in- merous, their inventor is vention of the pen from considered the Romanian the French Government in Petrache Poenaru. At the age 1827, a fact which also made of 28, while studying in France, as him the first Romanian inventor he needed an instrument to help him to obtain a patent. Yet later on, other save time while taking notes, Poenaru invented inventors would develop Poenaru’s writing in- the first fountain pen (known at the time as the 1 stylograph). The 1821 Revolution was a rebellion led by Tudor Vlad- imirescu in Wallachia (a historical and geographical region Petrache Poenaru was born in 1799 in Băneş- of Romania, by then a tributary state of the Ottoman Em- ti, Vâlcea County. He studied in Paris, Vien- pire) against the Phanariote administration (Greeks origi- na, and , being a mathematician, physi- nating from Constantinople and very loyal to the Sultan) cist, agronomist, engineer, inventor, and teacher, that had been placed there by the Sublime Porte (the gov- as well as a politician. He is also known for be- ernment of the ). Although not successful, ing part of the army led by Tudor Vladimires- the rebellion was considered the first major event of na- tional awakening.

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strument into a pen that was loaded through the ed nature, but especially because of his desire nib. Brissant and Coffin perfected the invention to be part of the Gipsy Slavery Liberation Com- in 1863 and Watterman in 1884. The latter cre- mission. However, he spend a period in prison ated a practical ink filling system for the tank because of his active involvement in their re- that dominated the production of pens until the lease. mid-twentieth century. After the Union of Principalities in 1859, Poe- Only 3 years after inventing the first type of naru ended up in the entourage of Alexandru pen, Poenaru returned to his country and en- Ioan Cuza, the elected monarch of the United gaged in the promotion and improvement of the Principalities. educational system, but also in the political and administrative leadership structure. Between In 1861, he was named honorary member of 1834 and 1835, he promoted the introduction of the Astra Society, but the high point of his ac- the decimal metric system in (a region ademic career was in 1870, when he became in Romania), while in 1835 he contributed to a member of the Romanian Academic Society. the establishment of the School of Agriculture. On this occasion, Poenaru gave a speech in Not surprisingly, despite his active involvement which he stated that his membership in Tudor in politics and cultural events, Poenaru cannot Vladimirescu’s army in the Revolution of 1821 stay far from rebellion and joins the Revolution changed his destiny. Five years later, in 1875, of 1848, this time not only because of his spirit- Petrache Poenaru died at the age of 76.

No 9/2018, Jan. - Feb. 44 The betterment of civilizati`on

Anghel Saligny: Bridging Epochs

Tudor-Cristian ŞULEA

nghel Saligny, a world pioneer when it had to find ways to cross or defeat water. comes to designing and building bridg- es, was born in Romania in 1854. He is Anghel Saligny completed his graduate stud- considered one of the founders of Ro- ies in Germany. Being passionate about astron- manianA engineering, being a well-known omy, he started studying this subject risk taker with great confidence at the University of Berlin. Howev- in his projects, the majority of er, from 1870 to 1874 Anghel which were based on his Saligny attended the Supe- own inventions. In order to rior Technical School in show his confidence in Charlottenburg. Despite the project that secured being offered a job as him a place in our his- a professor, he chose tory books, he guar- to begin working as anteed its success an engineer and, with his own life. after a brief peri- This article aims od of time during at showcasing which he worked this marvellous in Germany, he inventor’s life, returned home, works and the to Romania, impact he had and started on the world we working on know today. the Ploieş- ti-Predeal rail- Being born in way. He then a small Roma- designed mul- nian village called tiple railways Şerbăneşti, Salig- and roads in ny had French Romania, all origins. While in comprising inno- , his father, vative techniques. Alfred Rudolf de Saligny is known to Saligny, met import- have been the first ant Romanian political engineer in the world figures who convinced who used prefabricat- him to come to Romania to ed reinforced concrete be a French teacher for their parts when building silos and children. Here, Alfred Saligny bridges, being highly regarded founded a boarding school and mar- for his proves despite his youth. He ried his Polish wife Dobjanski. In April 1854, also built the first combined bridges (i.e. while the Saligny family was passing through including both a railway and a driveway) in Ro- Şerbăneşti, a big storm started and they had to mania between 1880 and 1882. find accommodation in the village. On the 19th of April, Anghel Saligny was born. Apparently, In 1885, the Romanian government orga- the storm was so powerful, that even the Salig- nized an international competition for the proj- ny family’s bed was almost flooded. This was ect of a railroad truss bridge over the Danube considered by many in the era a sign of Anghel River. The committee, formed of both Roma- Saligny’s future as a bridge maker, as he always nian and foreign experts, was not satisfied with

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the offers received and therefore rejected all changed to “Anghel Saligny Bridge” in later of them. After careful consideration and taking years. While in Romania this was by far the most into account Saligny’s already vast experience spectacular bridge at the time, the construction with bridges, the government decides to hand was also among the longest in the world, re- him the project. Subsequently, in 1890, in the ceiving recognition from the international press. presence of King Carol the 1st, the project be- Magazines have called it one of the most beau- gan. In just five years after its commencement, tiful bridges in the world (e.g. the Italian news- the work was done and the bridge was ready paper “Illustazione” named the bridge a mas- to be inaugurated. The use of soft steel was a terpiece that should set an example for “other, world premiere at the time and it was only one more technologically advanced nations”, and an of the multiple innovative and original solutions English newspaper called the bridge a “surpris- used by Saligny. The bridge was the largest one ing achievement”), and even today it is consid- in Continental Europe at the time and the third ered an attraction. largest in the world. The bridge was used exclusively since its open- One important aspect related to the construc- ing until 1987, when another system of bridges tion of this bridge is that the majority of engi- opened in its vicinity, because the number of neers in Saligny’s team were Romanians who trains circulating from Bucharest to Constanţa had attended the Romanian technical school (a city situated at the seaside and an important for bridges and roads. While Saligny could have port in Romania) increased significantly, so a chosen from a vast pool of people from different second bridge with a double railway was abso- countries, he deeply trusted and valued what the lutely necessary. Structurally, this second bridge Romanian schools had to offer. From that time is very similar to Saligny’s bridge, thus the ini- on, several engineers heralding from Roma- tial construction considerably eased the process nia have been appreciated in different parts of of designing the new one. However, Saligny’s the globe. Just to name one, Ionel Radu Priscu bridge is still functional and will be opened again (1921-1987) graduated from The Polytechnic for trains to cross it, as the bridge currently used University of Bucharest and he not only com- will undergo reparations. This is proof of how du- pleted important projects inside the borders, but rable this project was and how it still complies also internationally, designing and coordinating with the regulations and standards imposed by the building of numerous dams in Iran, Bolivia these new times. Another proof of strength came and Lebanon. However, as Communism came during WWII, when the bridge was bombarded to Romania, it led to a decrease in the interna- and still not destroyed, just damaged. tional reputation of individual Romanian engi- neers, since people could no longer travel and Since the Industrial Revolution was already perform relevant research anywhere else out- at its peak at the beginning of the 1800s in side the country. Nonetheless, today, the Roma- countries such as England, France, USA and nian education system is still highly thought of Germany, the transportation industry was in- and Romanian engineers can be linked to some creasing, as newer and more inexpensive ways amazing projects. to develop it emerged. In a time when all coun- tries were replacing their wooden bridges with Because Anghel Saligny’s bridge was a new, steel ones, because it had recently become difficult and risky project, naturally, many peo- more accessible, Saligny did the same in Ro- ple thought it could not work. That is why, on mania, at the end of the nineteenth century. Ro- the day of the tests, Saligny was sitting in an mania, to the best extend it could, managed to anchored boat, under the bridge, while 15 loco- keep pace with the more developed countries. motives crossed the bridge. That is how much Nowadays, many people who work in the field, confidence this genius engineer had in his own including the Romanian International Associ- work. He vouched for its success by taking the ation of Roads and Bridges, are recalling the enormous risk of losing his own life. Initially, the times of Anghel Saligny, when Romania was bridge was named after Carol the 1st, the king breaking world records with its exceptional rail- of Romania during the time. However, its name way infrastructure.

No 9/2018, Jan. - Feb. 46 The betterment of civilizati`on

By 2017, Romania and Bulgaria had the weak- When looking at his speeches, he never failed to est railway systems in the European Union ac- mention his collaborators and the incredible role cording to the European Railway Performance they played in his development. It is important Indicator, despite Romania having the fourth to note that his courage, perseverance and hard densest rail network in Europe. A historian from work were all factors that led to his success. the Museum of National History and Archaeolo- From vouching with his own life for his projects, gy Constanţa compares the bridges built nowa- to returning home even though he was present- days with the Anghel Saligny bridge saying the ed with an opportunity in Germany, he proved latter will probably still be in good condition in a his loyalty and dedication to improving Roma- few hundred years, while the new ones will not. nia until the end. While it is unfortunate that his great contributions are not as well-known to the To sum up, Anghel Saligny was an engineer rest of the world, the Romanian people are all who helped Romania tremendously (not to be very appreciative of his work and his name truly forgotten, the first funicular line in Romania means something not only for the people work- was also built by Anghel Saligny, and it repre- ing in the transportation sector, but to everyone. sented another development in the Romanian From a metro station named after him, to several transportation industry). His innovations put Ro- high-schools in different cities, and to the bridge mania on the map of world-class engineering that made him famous, Saligny’s name will sure- and even broke continental and world records. ly not be forgotten.

Bibliography Acad.ro, (n.d.). Ştiinţă, Cultură şi Cercetare – Technical Sciences, http://www.acad.ro/academia2002/acadrom/pag05_09.htm. Bajenaru, I. (2012). Anghel Saligny: Omul şi monumentul. Institutul Naţional de Cercetare-Dezvoltare în Construcţii, Urbanism şi Dez- voltare Teritorială Durabilă, http://uac.incd.ro/Art/v3n1a06.pdf. Boston Consulting Group. (2017). The 2017 European Railway Performance Index, https://www.bcg.com/publications/2017/transportati- on-travel-tourism-2017-european-railway-performance-index.aspx. Buhociu, L. and Buhociu, C. (2010). In Memoriam: Anghel Saligny, Agenţia Naţională de Îmbunătăţiri Funciare, http://www.anif.ro/cn- rid/20100622-Memoriu%20Anghel%20Saligny.pdf. Cioacă, I. and Matei, G. (2009). Podurile Dunărene: Capodopere ale geniului ingineresc şi al tehnicii româneşti. Slobozia: Ialomita XII Obiective istorice, culturale şi turistice, pp.104-113. Codău, A. (2015). Anghel Saligny, făuritorul Dobrogei moderne, comemorat la Constanţa, https://www.ziuaconstanta.ro/stiri/cultu- ra/a-proiectat-cel-mai-lung-pod-din-europa-anghel-saligny-fauritorul-dobrogei-moderne-comemorat-la-constanta-557589.html. Encyclopedia Britannica. (2016). History of Europe – The Industrial Revolution, https://www.britannica.com/topic/history-of-Europe/ The-Industrial-Revolution#ref58404. Identitatea Românească. (2017). Podul de la Cernavodă era cel mai lung pod din Europa în 1895, https://identitatea.ro/podul-de-la-cerna- voda-era-cel-mai-lung-pod-din-europa-1895/. Marin, P. (2015). Revista “DRUMURI PODURI” – Editorial nr. 215, [http://drumuripoduri.ro/editorial/70-editorial-nr-215. Revista Construcţiilor. (2015). Personalităţi româneşti în construcţii – Radu PRISCU, http://www.revistaconstructiilor.eu/index. php/2015//01/personalitati-romanesti-in-constructii-radu-priscu/.

47 www.themarketforideas.com The World of Romania

Aurel Perşu: Automotive and Auto-motivation

Andreea MădălinaU B LGĂREA

rilliant minds in Romania? Let me intro- Bucharest, on 26 December 1890, and to have duce you to the world of Aurel Perşu finished the Technical Higher School of Berlin – – a specialist in , a bril- Charlottenburg – in 1913 as valedictorian. After liant engineer among elite technicians graduation, he also received a medal from the Band, most importantly, the inventor of the Ministry of Public Instruction in Germany first automobile with a perfect aero- for his research on spacecraft. dynamic profile. Aurel Perşu is, unfortunately, not a house- In 1920, Aurel Perşu starts hold name, although he is to study how the aerody- the first inventor to apply namic shape of moving aerodynamic princi- bodies can be applied ples to a car, placing to cars, and in 1922- its wheels inside the 1923 uses his own body of the vehicle money to build, (as opposed to the in Germany, a typical design of vehicle inspired that time, with the by a falling wa- wheels outside ter drop – this the body of the was the shape car, covered or he believed a not by wings), perfectly aero- in an attempt to dynamic au- reach a perfect tomobile must aerodynamic have. The car shape. Even was able to though it was reach a maxi- created almost a mum speed of century ago, the 80 km/h, and design conceived navigate through by Perşu is still un- turns at 60 km/h beatable in terms thanks to its very of the coefficient of good stability given aerodynamic compo- by its low profile. Its nent. An entire chapter innovative feature re- of the volume “Aerody- sided in the fact that it namic automobiles in Eu- was the first car to have rope and the United States” the wheels inside its aero- is devoted to Perşu, portraying dynamics line, a feature that him as a “brilliant engineer that we take for granted today. With an should have been included long ago in engine of 1,400 cubic centimeters and the worldwide elite of technicians”. around 10 horsepower, Perşu did not create the automobile simply as a museum piece, as Historical data from his early and private life he himself drove the vehicle for a total distance is hardly known by and available to the pub- of 120,000 kilometres. The car is still working lic audience. Still, Perşu is said to be born in today.

No 9/2018, Jan. - Feb. 48 The betterment of civilizati`on

Aerodynamics matters a lot in the automo- a drag coefficient of 0.26, although these cars tive industry, as this is the part that influences a and Perşu’s vehicle are separated by a century long series of aspects related to the reliability of of progress in science and engineering. a car. Nowadays, almost 100 years since Aurel Perşu created his vehicle, many producers from Out of (what many say can be seen as a this industry are struggling to reach a drag coef- demonstration of) patriotism, Aurel Perşu re- ficient of 0.22-0.28 (depending on the source), fused to sell the patent of his car to famous pro- achieved by Perşu’s car in 1922 (compared to a ducers such as Ford and General Motors, as the drag coefficient of 0.8-1.0 common among cars companies did not agree to mass production of that time). By contrast, a Ferrari 458 Italia, an of the vehicle. So, in 1969, Aurel Perşu’s auto- iconic car in terms of aerodynamic efficiency of- mobile became part of the Romanian Technical ficially unveiled in 2009, has a drag coefficient Museum “Dimitrie Leonida”, where it can still be of 0.33, or a BMW i8 launched in 2014 reaches seen today.

Bibliography Bunghez, G. (2016). Povestea automobilului inedit creat de românul Aurel Perşu, http://newsbv.ro/2016/12/02/povestea-automobilului-in- edit-creat-romanul-aurel-persu/. Călugăroiu, P. (2015). Românul a cărui maşină de acum un secol încă le bate pe cele Ferrari, https://playtech.ro/2015/romanul-a-carui- masina-de-acum-un-secol-inca-le-bate-pe-cele-ferrari/. Cazacu, M.D. (2013). Aurel Perşu. Inventator al automobilului aerodinamic. Bucureşti: Editura Agir. Mărculescu, O. (2013). Prima maşină aerodinamică din lume a fost construită de un român, http://www.promotor.ro/masini-noi/news/ prima-masina-aerodinamica-din-lume-a-fost-construita-de-un-roman-11731969. Mnt-leonida.ro (n.d.). Aurel Perşu, http://www.mnt-leonida.ro/08GaleriaPersonalitatilor/AurelPersu.html. Pătraşcu, D. (2011). Perşu – The Rain Drop Car, https://www.autoevolution.com/news/persu-the-rain-drop-car-31151.html.

49 www.themarketforideas.com The World of Romania

>>> FOCUS <<< The Winged and Their Skies

An old aviation cliché says that “for those determined to fly, having no wings is just a minor detail”. While this might be true nowadays, when there are almost 300,000 active pilots in the world, 25,000 people own a private jet, and roughly 10,000 planes fly across the sky at any given moment, 100 years ago this picture looked considerably different. In fact, around the we were witnessing only the begin- ning of modern aviation, to which Romanian brilliant minds and ideas made a true valuable contribution. In 1906, a heavier-than-air flying machine with its own take off systems was first lifted from the ground by a Romanian inven- tor, , while around 1910, the first plane designed, built and piloted in Romania by takes off, and flies for about 50 meters. Also in 1910, Henri Coandă performs the first detachment from land of a plane equipped with a reactive en- gine, revolutionizing universal aviation. Shortly after, in 1930, An- astase Dragomir patents in Paris an early version of the ejection seat that, throughout the history, saved the lives of so many avia- tors. And in 1932, Smaranda Brăescu, the third pilot woman from Romania and the first European woman to receive an American pilot licence, performs a parachute jump which broke the world records of that time. This short dossier is intended to present the stories behind some of the Romanians that changed the world of aviation, and not only... making it a wiser, safer, and better one. Such stories are valuable, not only as a mere exercise of remembrance, but as an empowerment tool that will make people believe stronger in the wisdom of this nation.

No 9/2018, Jan. - Feb. 50 The betterment of civilizati`on Traian Vuia: The Kid with Paper Flying Kites

Adelina Georgiana ZOICÃREANU

raian Vuia came into the world on Au- Ambition and audacity gust 17, 1872. He was born from Roma- nian parents in a village called Surduc- In early July 1902, he decided to try his luck ul-Mic, which at that time was part of the in France, where Victor Tatin had attempted to TAustro-Hungarian Empire. His father, Simion build an two decades earlier. Once he Popescu, was a priest. His mother, Ana Vuia, arrived in Paris, he got in touch with the innova- whose maiden name he took, was a second tive engineer. Tatin listened to him with skepti- wife to his father. cism and even tried to convince him that man From an early age, he felt attracted to would never be able to fly an aircraft dens- flying. Rumour has it that it all start- er than air. ed with flying paper kites. He Vuia did not feel intimidated. wanted to learn the secret of On the contrary, he worked their take-off and , but hard on making his vision a most of all he wanted to reality. Eventually, in Feb- control their movement ruary 1903, he present- in the skies. This wish ed the French Acad- would guide him for emy of Sciences in the rest of his life. Paris with a project Traian Vuia be- entitled “Project of gan his studies at an Airplane-car”, the Confession- proving that a al School in his craft heavier than village, which the air could fly. now bears his The reactions name. He con- were abrupt and tinued his stud- violent. The proj- ies at the Ger- ect was consid- man School in ered a chimera Făget and at and his fellow the Hungarian scientists felt High School in offended by it. . At twenty, However, they did he went to Hun- not have the final gary to apply for word. the School of Me- On August 17, chanics at the Bu- 1903, after much in- dapest Polytechnic. sistence that some After a year, he quit academicians consid- because of the manda- ered useless and hereti- tory attendance require- cal, Traian Vuia obtained ment and, most probably, the patent for his project. Be- because of the tuition. Howev- ing so insistent turned out to be er, he enrolled in Law School and a good decision. For a long time, started working so he could pay for his more exactly until the patent was dis- education. covered in the French archives, the invention of In 1901, he earned his PhD in legal studies mechanical flying was attributed to the Brazilian magna cum laude. Soon after that, he realized (naturalized French) Alberto Santos-Dumont that air engineering, which has slowly turned (1873-1932). into an obsession, would be his future. Thanks to the confidence and devotion of the

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he had to do, so he built a new aircraft with a 28 HP V8 Antoinette engine designed by engineer Leon Levavasseur. “Traian Vuia 2” was exhibited at the first Paris Air Show and patented in Belgium. From then onwards, for a long period of time, Vuia focused on building a helicopter. He found his inspira- tion in Norman Paul Cornu, an engineer who experimented with a similar craft after reading Jules Verne’s novel “Robur the Conqueror”. In 1918 and 1922, he defied the skepticism of many specialists by building two helicop- ters together with Marcel Yvonneau. The heli- copters had several lifting rotors with separate axes. The first model was operated by muscu- lar strength and the second one was powered by a 16HP Anzzani engine and weighed 190 kilos. Both helicopters passed the take-off test at Juvissy. In 1922, another Romanian genius, George de Bothezat, born in the Russian Empire and settled in the US after the Revolution, was Lugoj community, Vuia managed to raise the building an aircraft with four rotors for the US funds needed to build his aircraft. He worked in- Army Air Service. The craft took off and flew 1.8 tensely on “Traian Vuia 1”, which he nicknamed meters off the ground for about two minutes. “The Bat”. Unfortunately, the Romanian inventor is inex- Many innovations were added to the original cusably presented as being Russian, whereas design; the compressed carbonic engine, which Traian Vuia is never mentioned among the in- had the disadvantage of running for only three ventors of the helicopter. minutes, was one of them. In 1905, he finished Traian Vuia was the master behind other nota- building his first aircraft. It was a monoplane ble inventions as well. In 1917, he built the aerial with folding wings similar to a bat. The wings torpedo together with Victor Tatin (1847-1917). were attached to a quadricycle with pneumatic He also invented the stream generator with in- wheels, which served as a take-off and landing ternal combustion and catalytic ignition, with gear. The whole structure was made of steel the help of which he built very high-pressure tubes joined by sleeves. For the wings, in the stream generators (100 to 120 atm vs. 10 atm, absence of a suitable material, he used treated the norm at that time). Today’s central heating flax fabric. The use of the propeller was another systems are still based on Vuia’s invention. innovation that made his flying machine stand In 1946, in recognition for his merits, Traian out from other aircraft built at that time. Vuia was elected an honorary member of the “Traian Vuia 1” took flight at Montesson on Romanian Academy. He was also politically ac- March 18, 1906. The flying machine powered by tive – on April 30th, 1918, the scientist left his its own engine rode 50 meters on the ground, inventions and research aside to preside over then sprung one meter above the ground and “The National Council of the Romanians in flew for 12 meters. On landing, it collided with and Bukovina”, which was found- a tree. ed in Paris, in support of the union of all Ro- The event was fully reported in April’s edi- manians under King Ferdinand. It is also worth tion of “L’Aerophile” Magazine. The experiment mentioning that Traian Vuia wanted to return to helped Vuia impose his philosophy against the Romania on several occasions, but could not scientific principles of those times. “Traian Vuia because of his disapproval of the Byzantinism 1” was the first flying machine to have taken off of the political system. and landed without any assistance, utilizing its In 1950 however, at ’s insistence, own propelling motion and landing gears. This he accepted to come to Bucharest. To his be- first aerial trip also led him to several conclu- wilderment, the capital was under an oppres- sions: the longitudinal stability and driving force sive Soviet occupation. On September 2nd 1950, of the aircraft were precarious. he died and was buried at the Bellu cemetery After making several improvements to his air- in Bucharest, Romania. Timişoara International craft, he built “Traian Vuia 2”. The results were Airport Traian Vuia (TSR), Romania’s third larg- far from what he expected. Still, he knew what est airport, carries his name.

No 9/2018, Jan. - Feb. 52 The betterment of civilizati`on Aurel Vlaicu: The Icarus of the

Daniela Alina SAVU

urel Vlaicu was called “the Icarus of the Romanian literary language. He was a student Carpathians Mountains”. He made the in this city between 1894 and 1900, when he first flight in the history of Romanian attended grades I-VI. Vlaicu was a good student aviation and is well-known for his flight who excelled in mathematics and geometry. It overA the Cotroceni hill. This was the first nation- was around this time that Vlaicu had the idea of al airplane made by a Romanian that was built building a “flying car”. on Romanian land. After finishing the studies in Orăştie, Although this plane flew only his parents tried to convince him to 50 meters and to a height of study theology and become a only 2-3 meters, Aurel Vla- priest. Vlaicu refuses to fol- icu was very proud of his low this path and leaves success and he said for where he con- that “not even the Alps tinues his studies and were higher than the passes his Bacca- height to which I laureate exam. In raised myself, be- Sibiu, he meets cause those four , meters were for Romanian poet me a record. I and later Prime was flying and Minister before this was the World War 2. purpose”. This His friendship scene remains with Goga an epic mo- proved to be ment in the life very important of Vlaicu and for the path in the history that Vlaicu is of Romanian pursuing in life. aviation. After finish- Aurel Vlaicu ing his studies was born within in Sibiu in 1902, a family of rich Vlaicu contin- peasants on the ued his studies 19th of November abroad at the Uni- 1882, at Binţinţi, versity of Budapest and then at the pres- (a village that is called tigious Ludwig-Max- Aurel Vlaicu today). Aurel imilians-Universität in Vlaicu spent his childhood Munich, Germany, where in his native land along with he obtained his engineering his siblings. He was a very gifted degree a few years later, in 1907. boy and was interested in doing mul- The year 1908 found him working as tiple activities. As a child, he was very ambi- an engineer at the car factory in Rüs- tious, curious and dreamed of doing big things. selsheim, but his curious, enterprising nature He was schooled in Orăştie and Sibiu. prevented him from becoming complacent. Orăştie represented an important city for the The friendship between Aurel Vlaicu and Oc- Romanian culture, because it was there that, tavian Goga is notorious among Romanians at the end of the 16th century, the book “Palia and with the help of Goga, Vlaicu returns to from Orăştie” was printed as a landmark for the Bucharest where he finishes the construction of

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a . The Romanian inventor, supported by strong influence from the economic and politi- the Royal Family and the Romanian Army, built cal environment, Romania strengthened its de- the first local plane, called “Vlaicu I”. With this fense industry during this period. plane, Vlaicu performed his first flight over the Vlaicu remains in the memory of Romanian Cotroceni hill on 17th June 1910. aviation as a great inventor, but his story is one With his invention, he made history and Ro- of even greater potential cut short. After the mania became 2nd after France in using planes planes Vlaicu I and Vlaicu II, his dream was to for military purposes. His inventions did not stop build a plane fully made from metal, but this there, as he obtained multiple patents. He later dream was never accomplished because, one built “Vlaicu II”, a much better version of the first day in September 1913, during one of his at- plane. With this plane, he gave a demonstration tempts to fly over the Carpathian Mountains, at Blaj, which attracted numerous Romanian Aurel Vlaicu crashes and dies at the age of 31. notable figures such as Nicolae Iorga, Ion Luca The Romanian aviation sector looks different Caragiale, Octavian Goga, George Coşbuc and today, having gone through many highs and others. lows. The Communist ambitions of full local The aviation sector was blooming worldwide development have been abandoned as infeasi- in the interwar period, known as the golden era ble given the global rapid advances in the field of aviation. For example, 1919 saw the inaugu- during the turmoil of the economic restructuring. ration of the first commercial line between Great The vision today is for Romania’s NATO mem- Britain and France. In Romania, the aviation bership to allow the integration of the Romanian sector develops thanks to the great inventions Aeronautical Industry into the globalized pro- of Traian Vuia and Henri Coandă, the latter be- duction chains of the world industries ing best remembered abroad for “the Coandă and to support the local maintenance of import- effect”. ant assets. But Aurel Vlaicu, along with other Between the years 1916-1919, Romanian pio- big names in the Romanian aviation sector, left neers made an important contribution to military his mark on aviation worldwide. As a pioneer operations, utilizing aircraft derived from Vla- of Romanian aviation, Vlaicu made history not icu’s work. Later, Romanian aviation developed only through the greatness of his legacy but also strongly between 1920 and 1940, following the for his personality, for his patriotism, and for his continuous world progress in this field. With drive to use his talents within the country.

No 9/2018, Jan. - Feb. 54 The betterment of civilizati`on Henri Coandă: The Man Who Conquered the Miracle of

Aurora Gabriela TORCEA

hen the airplane was just a strange obtains his PhD in Engineering Science. He then machine, rising above the ground with studies at the University of Liege (Belgium) and the help of a propeller, this ambitious the Montefiore Higher School of Electricity in Tu- young man, Henri Coandă, curious rin. In 1909, after finishing his studies in Italy, Henri Wand interested in numerous fields, but passionate Coandă left for Paris, where the Upper Aeronau- since childhood about the “miracle of wind”, tics School was founded, in which Coandă succeeded in revolutionizing aviation, enrolled and graduated as the head gaining worldwide recognition. of the class (Petrescu, 2011). Coandă, nicknamed Mico, was born on June 7th, 1886, in A brilliant career Bucharest, being the sec- ond son among the sev- In October 1910, en children of General while only 24 years Constantin Coandă old, he exhibits at and his French wife the second Inter- Hayda Danet. Hen- national Aeronau- ri Coandă spent tics Salon, orga- most of his child- nized in Paris, in hood in Perişor- the sumptuous Dolj and Calafat, Grand Palais on in the company the Champs- of peasant chil- Elysèe, the dren, living in the first reactive charming coun- propulsion air- tryside which craft, in fact a became his first non-propeller tutor. At the same one, conven- time, he often had tionally named to follow his par- “Coandă-1910”, ents through the revolutionizing countries where the aviation indus- his father served on try forever. diplomatic missions, On December 16, having the opportu- 1910, after the clo- nity to get to know the sure of the Internation- insights of the foreign so- al Salon, ciety, besides those of the Henri Coandă carried his Romanian one. He studied at plane to the field at Issy Les St. Sava High School, in Bucha- Moulineaux, near Paris, where rest, but the fact that he was threat- he attempted a run on the ground ened with a second examination at math- and in the air. The plane departed from ematics made his father move him to the Military the ground, floating in the air. The day of Decem- High School, in Iaşi, for a more severe education. ber 16, 1910 was included in the history of Roma- There, the young Coandă becomes an excep- nian and universal aviation as a reference date: tional mathematician thanks to Lieutenant Ion first detachment from land of a plane equipped Papură. He continues his studies at the Artillery with a reactive engine. School in Bucharest, and then, during a posting From the beginning, his device awakened a in Germany, he is recommended for the Techni- special interest among technicians and scientists cal University of Charlottenburg, Berlin, where he who visited the aeronautic show. His merit was

55 www.themarketforideas.com The World of Romania recognized not only in the country but also abroad. some people in the young inventor’s life who helped Thus, the French colonel Georges Espitalier, in that him to improve his work, and supported him con- year’s issue of the magazine “La Technique Aero- tinuously. Some of them were engineer Gustave nautique”, says that “the Coandă Aircraft is one of Eiffel and scientist Paul Painlevé, who helped him the rare devices to which everything is new”. Nor get the necessary approvals, so that Henri Coandă does the British Flight magazine remain indifferent carried out the aerodynamic experiments and built to the Coandă device, presented in 1910 as “a large the first reactive propulsion aircraft, which he pre- monoplane built entirely of wood, to which the usu- sented at the Second International Aeronautical Sa- al propeller was replaced by a tube of remarkably lon in Paris in 1910 (Iacovachi, 1966). Considering small size in comparison to the size of the device”. that Coandă’s invention was far ahead of its time, Reserve General Ion Guzu said that in 1910 it was admiring his work, said: “Too bad, “as if someone in another world landed with an un- boy, you were born thirty, if not fifty years sooner!”. witnessed aircraft” (EVZ.ro, 2010). Gustav Eiffel was one of the outstanding people in In 1934, he obtained a French patent for a process Coandă’s life, as he recognized the young engineer called the “Coandă Effect”, which is the deviation of as “a competent man, perfectly documented, and a fluid jet flowing along a convex wall, aphenom- whose achievements are destined to success, in the enon first observed by him in 1910, while testing advantage of the whole world’s technique, because the engine with which he had equipped his reaction he knows more than other experienced engineers plane. This discovery led him to important applicative with white hair” (Popa C. C., 2012). research on aerodynamic hypersurance, very loud sound attenuators, and more (Petrescu, 2011). Contributions In 1926, he invented a new concreting material, concrete-bois, and, in 1932, Coandă revealed the Coandă’s invention signified major contributions first prototype of the lenticular aerodyne (flying sau- to the aviation world but it would be over 30 years cer shaped vehicle). In 1969, Henri Coandă moved since Henri Conada revolutionized the aviation in- permanently to Romania to work on the remarkable dustry until the scientific world and aircraft builders “aerotubex” project, which could have become the were ready to adopt and further develop what the first high-speed train in the world (according to Ra- Romanian inventor had managed to create. The En- dio România Cultural, 2017). glishman Whittle, the Italians Caprons and Compini, Henri Coandă returned in 1969 as director of the the German Heinkel began to build, during 1939- Institute of Scientific and Technical Creation (IN- 1941, the first reaction planes. “Messerschmitt Me CREST) and, in the following year, 1970, he became 262” was the first operational hunting airplane intro- a member of the Romanian Academy. Henri Coandă duced by Germany at the end of the World War II, died in Bucharest on November 25, 1972, at the age mass produced in 1944. British Airline Corporation of 86 (Popa I. R., 2010). BOAC (British Overseas Airways Corporation) in- Although interested and passionate about many troduced its first service commercial jet aircraft on areas, as we have seen above, Coandă’s studies the London - Johannesburg line in 1952, using the have been predominantly in the aviation industry, to Havilland Comet commercial jet. The Boeing 707 which he served as an example of dedication and arrives to dominate the airline market in 1958. The passion. He had found out about the first flight of fastest military jet was the Lockheed SR-71 Black- the in 1903, while in Belin. This in- bird, reaching the speed of 3,661 km/h. Evolution creased his hopes that he can make something big, and improvements have continued until today, with spurring his interest in what is now considered the the evolution of technologies leading to significant world’s first reaction jet. The subsequent success is progress in this industry (Johnson, 2011). basically due to this moment. Always preparing for Henri Coandă said that “the fields of science are the practical fulfilment of his ideas, he also studied so vast and appealing that I could not refrain from the life and work of , who died in 1886 touching most of them. If in aerodynamics I have a flying a plane that he himself built. certain reputation, it does not mean that I have not The political climate in which Coandă made his found in other industries like biology, electronics, first contributions was a difficult one, due tothe crystallography, space studies, hydrodynamics, gen- start of the Great War in 1914, that made Coandă eral water, optics, thermodynamics, nuclear energy, resign from his position at the English “Bristol” fac- etc. interesting things” (EVZ.ro, 2010). tories and leave for France to offer his services as To exemplify – being tired and “taking a long an artillery officer. The French commander asked bath”, as was his habit after a hard day of work –, he Coandă, despite his very young age of 28, to adapt found himself playing with the drops of water flowing the airplane so as to ensure a ranging of 1,800 m, an from the tap. Seeing the water stick and following his extremely bold solution for that era. Then, on-board finger, he had a revelation and understood that this the device, Henri Coandă mounted recoilless gun, attachment phenomenon is somewhat similar to the also designed by him, which could shoot five shells phenomenon he had noticed 20 years before, to the at once (Aspera.ro). flames that had attached themselves to the wood- Despite this unpleasant situation, there were en fuselage of his first propulsion jet at the time of

No 9/2018, Jan. - Feb. 56 The betterment of civilizati`on his test. Using this effect on a thermal engine, he noticed an attenuation of the noise produced by the exhaust of those engines, then an increase of up to 53% of engine power, and 0 carbon monox- ide emissions, remarkable improvements for that period. This effect has been extremely useful for many of Coandă’s future inventions such as the construction of pumps and compressors, spray- ers and other devices, one of which was adapted to the need for fertilizer spraying on large agricul- tural surfaces. Agriculture became the field that helped him to detach as much as possible from what war and human suffering meant (Technical Science.com, 2016). One example I would emphasize, in highlight- ing his creative multidisciplinary, would be the conveyed tube systems which would have al- lowed the movement of solid substances or even humans. This system would have allowed trans- port, for example, between Bucharest and Ploieşti the Romanian engineer’s epochal invention, today in just 6 minutes. Unfortunately, the death of the it is a historical truth recognized by experts in the scientist led to the interruption of the research. fields, as Elie Carafoli noted: “The Coandă-1910 One of Henri Coandă’s most important inven- plane was born three decades before the famous tions, known as the “flying saucer”, was conceived builders Whittle and Campini built their jet pro- in 1935. He said: “I see the making of a flying car pelled planes that have completed this epochal after a whole new vision, meant to overcome and discovery” (Short History, 2014). overturn existing concepts. I consider the future Coandă’s inventions have brought multiple im- plane to take off to the vertical, to fly at any angle provements to society, whose effects are felt to and horizontally, at any speed, or to stay in the air this day. The use of the commercial airplane on at a place at the desired height, and to land still a global scale facilitates the easy movement of vertically. In the construction of this plane there people and goods across the planet, drastically must be no moving parts”. Some achievements reducing travel time. By 1950, 31 million people of human flight in the cosmos are also related were traveling by plane, by 2016 the figure had to his name. Among other things, he worked on reached nearly 4 billion, with the annual profits at complex devices which helped to brake the lunar 40 billion USD. After the economic crisis in 2008, module of Apollo 11 and Apollo 12 at the moment air travel registered steady growth and the num- of the landing (Southern Gazette, 2010). ber of companies is increasing. Of course, the industry is extremely competi- A scientific icon tive at the moment and indispensable for global transport. The International Air Transport Associ- Engineer Henri Coandă’s inventions range to ation (IATA) forecasts global net profit to rise to the impressive figure of 2,608, and the 700- pat $38.4 billion in 2018, an improvement from the ents recommend him as a great scholar of the $34.5 billion net profit in 2017 (revised from a previous century. $31.4 billion forecast in June). Also, 2036 Fore- Coandă has enjoyed an excellent recognition cast reveals air passengers will nearly double to both nationally and internationally, with an impres- 7.8 billion (IATA, 2017). sive list of diplomas, medals, and awards: The Di- In conclusion, Coandă has opened a wide ploma and the Great Gold Medal “Vielles Tiges”; range of transport opportunities today. He was a “Merit for Scientific Research” awarded by UNE- visionary who created an innovative device that SCO; Military Medal of French Aeronautics; The was ahead of its time. His genius extended to Order “Pour le mèrite” as Commander, Doctor many fields, but gained its greatest appreciation Honoris Causa of the Polytechnic Institute of Bu- in the aviation industry. He succeeded in asserting charest, granted in 1967; the organization of the himself worldwide, with a reputation recognized Symposium “Coandă Effect and its Applications” until nowadays. by the Romanian Academy. As engineer Constantine C. Gheorghiu wrote, Engineer Henri Coandă symbolizes by himself “his name will remain in the history of Romanian the past, the present and the future of air prog- and world aviation, marking the beginning of jet ress, “wrote the chronicler of a French magazine, aviation” (EVZ.ro, 2010). rightly calling him […] «the father of the reactive Note: The bibliographical references aviation»” (Short History, 2014). of this article are available in the online Although it has been more than a century since edition, at www.themarketforideas.com.

57 www.themarketforideas.com The World of Romania

Anastase Dragomir: The Savior of Pilots

Alexandru VLAD

nastase Dragomir was born in the city of many others. Brăila. He came into this world on Feb- Some of the most notable events that may ruary 6th 1896 and he was the child of have inspired Dragomir were, for example, Vasile Dragomir, who fought in the Ro- the ingenious last moment thinking of Jordaki manianA War of Independence of 1877 against Kuparenko (in Warsaw, 1808), who managed to the Ottoman Empire. He was the youngest child land safely after using what was left of his bal- of his family and, as many other kids at that time, loon as a parachute. Also, in 1911, the Russian he was very passionate about planes. And how Gleb Kotelnikov got his permit for a haversack could he had not been? The early years of the that was also a parachute. 20th century were marked by so many It was an incredible time for pioneers! innovations and discoveries in the As was already mentioned, An- field of aviation. Just to mention astase Dragomir went to France some: in 1903, Traian Vuia where, while working for sev- obtained his French pat- eral aircraft factories, he ent for his automobile also managed to perfect airplane and, just three a system in order to years later, in 1906, save people from ter- he managed an ep- rible accidents while ochal flight in Mon- in flight. In 1928, tesson, France; he applied for a in 1910, Aurel French patent Vlaicu got off the (“Nouveau sys- ground and flew tème de montage for about 40 des parachutes meters. dans les appar- Unfortunate- eils de locomo- ly, we do not tion aérienne” know what An- – New System astase Drag- for Installing omir studied Parachutes in during his ear- Means for Air ly years, but Locomotion) we know that and he obtained at some point in it two years later, his life he went to in 1930 (patent no. France where he 678566). His inven- worked in a few air- tion enabled pilots craft factories. And and passengers to that is where he in- save themselves if an vented his own system accident were to happen that was used to save by parachuting the cock- pilots or passengers when pit module, with them still in accidents occurred. This was their seats. an early version of the ejection He began the construction of seat. his catapulted cabin after he managed During his time, the planes were not as safe to get the necessary financing (during a rough as we know them today. So, while it is true that financial period for aviation) and he successful- he was inspired by the other inventors, he was ly tested it near Paris, at Orly airport, in 1929, also marked by the tragic accidents that took in a Farman brothers’ plane piloted by Lucien place, such as the death of George Fernic (civil Bossoutrot. After his deed, all the French pa- pilot), the death of Ionel Fernic (passenger) and pers were talking about him, including the Au-

No 9/2018, Jan. - Feb. 58 The betterment of civilizati`on

gust 29th, 1929, edition of Excelsior newspaper. Baker, SEMMB, UTC Aerospace Systems, NPP His invention in the field was recognized, as Zvezda, Airborne Systems NA Inc., Survival well as the importance of his catapulted cabin. Equipment Services Ltd or Neomega Resin. Just two months later, Anastase Dragomir Most of the market comes from the military ap- was already back home in Bucharest, Roma- plication of the ejection seat as it is mostly used nia, where, at Băneasa Airport, helped by Cap- for combat jets to secure pilot safety. tain Constantin Nicolau (at that time, engineer Anastase Dragomir invented more than an of the aviation technical services) he repeated early ejection seat. Without knowing it, Drag- his deed. Using an AVIA plane this time, he had omir created a new market worth millions of yet another successful test. As during the first euros. An ejection seat can vary in cost from time, newspapers (this time Romanian ones) around 115,000 EUR to about 230,000 EUR, praised his invention and the usefulness of it. according to the Martin Baker FAQ. Employing the knowledge which he had There are not that many pilots out there achieved from the previous tests, he improved compared to the general population, but be his invention and, in 1950, he obtained the sure that so many of those pilots were saved Romanian patent (no. 40658). Ten years later, by such seats. While this author did not access the distinguished inventor obtained another overall mortality rate data, counting pilots and Romanian patent (no. 41424) for a transport passengers since the invention of the ejection plane that had its cabins equipped with ejec- seat, one can be fairly sure that it had an im- tion equipment. His driving goal was to save pact. people from suffering terrible deaths in aviation So, with his invention he saved lives, built accidents. His invention was used for the su- an entire industry, created new jobs and a new personic military aircraft. market, generating wealth. I am happy to be Nowadays, there are multiple companies that able to say that this can be traced back to a manufacture and sell ejection seats, like Martin fellow Romanian.

59 www.themarketforideas.com The World of Romania Smaranda Brăescu: The Girl with Her Head in the Clouds

Raluca ŞANCARIUC

n the early 1900s, modern aviation was still anti-communist stand. But let’s start from the in its infancy. It was an era when iconic in- beginning… ventions and discoveries in terms of flying Smaranda Brăescu, an ordinary 14-years old machines were only starting to see the light school girl born and raised in the countryside, Iof day. The first pilot licence obtained in Ro- sees a plane for the first time in 1912, during the mania was issued in 1911, after the first Roma- execution of what is known as the fifth air raid nian aviation school was opened in the spring in the history of Romanian aviation (conducted of the same year. Against this backdrop, a also across Bârlad, the town where she career in aviation was, in the 1900s, was studying). While she feels in- an uncharted road, especially in stantly attracted to this “unusu- the case of women, for whom, al machinery”, the episode at that time, it was globally could have remained just uncommon to vote or to a memory if, after finish- have a job… any type ing high school, her of job. Just to remind faith didn’t lead her you that the first Eu- to work as a teach- ropean country to er in a town that introduce wom- hosted a military en’s suffrage has aviation school. done so in 1907, Surrounded by while Romania planes and pi- gave women lots, Smaranda the right to vote becomes more only in 1938. and more in- Also in Roma- terested in fly- nia, married ing, both as women were an experience allowed to ma­ and as a ca- nage their own reer path. And income only finally, after the starting­ 1926. intervention of Yet the history her brother, who proudly offers us, acted as an avia- in aviation as well tion observer, she as in other fields, is given the op- (female) role models portunity to fly for that break stereotypes the first time in 1923 and change mind-sets – a sort of “baptism of for the sake of their pas- air” that determines her sion. Smaranda Brăescu, to apply for this aviation the first parachutist and the school in order to become a third pilot woman from Romania, pilot. However, military and avi- the first European woman to receive ation regulations of that time did not an American pilot licence, and an absolute allow her admission. Disappointed, she world record-breaker in aviation counts towards enrols in the Academy of Fine Arts in Bucharest this (short) list. She remained in the collective (1924-1929). memory of the Romanian people for multiple At that point, we were witnessing the Gold- reasons, including her aviation record achieve- en Age of Aviation, with a shift from ments, her kind-hearted support to those in to streamlined motor monoplanes, record need during World War II, and nonetheless her and round-the-world flights, the emergence of

No 9/2018, Jan. - Feb. 60 The betterment of civilizati`on air mail and commercial airlines that allowed long-distance travelling – a context in which sky diving also gained more popularity (the official sky diving committee is founded as part of the International Aeronautical Federation around that times, leading to the international recog- nition of this sport). In this context, Smaranda starts to become interested in sky diving, as an alternative to piloting, which was denied to her. Seeking to pursue this new ambition of hers, she initiates a series of discussions with the Ger- man parachutist and engineer Otto Heinecke, who designed and built several parachutes, in order to buy a parachute and obtain a sky diver licence. With difficulty, she manages to lend the much needed money and finally buys a Schro- eder parachute. After intensive training under the direct guidance of Otto Heinecke, she ex- ecutes the first parachute jump in July 1928 in a crowdfunding campaign initiated by a national Germany, becoming, at the age of 31, the first newspaper. So, in December 1931 she leaves parachutist woman in Romania. for US, which was at that time the best country Coming back home, Smaranda makes anoth- for achieving such a bold objective, given that er request for admission into aviation school, aviation there was significantly ahead of what but she is, again, knocking at a closed door. Europe could offer. Aviation figures in charge of the selection tell Heading first to Miami, Florida, she is told that her that “women are not allowed to enter avi- she would not be able to execute a record-break- ation, as they do not have strong nerves and ing jump there, as on all the fields that were large the country does not have planes to waste”. Yet enough to accommodate her landing lived ven- shortly after this second rejection, she executes omous snakes and other animals that were very her first parachute jump inside the country, be- likely to hurt her. Disappointed, she finally finds a coming an icon of sky diving in Romania. En- proper field in Sacramento, California, announc- couraged by her victory, she asks the Romanian ing, in the spring of 1932, that she is ready for authorities to support her in breaking the world the big jump. But, after two months and five record by jumping from 6,500 meters, but re- failed attempts due to unfavourable weather or ceives another rejection on financial grounds. technical problems, she still does not manage So she decides to raise the money herself and, to break the absolute world record: the first two for this, she attends multiple air shows where times, the plane that was supposed to lift her to she executes demonstrative parachute jumps. the desired altitude did not manage to raise be- In August 1930, Smaranda suffers a painful yond 6,000 m, the next two times, despite hav- accident that pulls her out from the aviation ing a more performant plane, either she or the world for six months due to numerous fractures. pilot ran out of oxygen after reaching the proper For many, such an accident would have been altitude, while the fifth time the pilot took her over enough to abandon their passion, but not for a mountainous area above Sierra Nevada, as he her: “I am not afraid of death, I may be hurt by an was slightly drunk after enjoying a bottle of whis- invalidity, but failure would torment me harder”, key. As disappointment turned into desperation she states in an interview. Overcoming this mo- since she was running out of money, Smaranda ment, Smaranda starts training again and, one tries for one last time, deciding that, whatever year later, in October 1931, she executes the happens, she will jump anyway, but without a jump that made her establish the first absolute parachute if things do not go properly. As the national record and the first female world re- plane reached 7,500 m, the pilot announces her cord in sky diving ever held by a Romanian (al- that he is out of oxygen and faints shortly after, though, at the moment of lending, she is barely having pushed his limits to compensate for past conscious, due to strong wind during descent). mistakes. Smaranda is left with no other alter- Proving her worth, Smaranda is now publicly native, so she executes the 7,233 m jump that supported to reach the world absolute record makes her break existing records and become for the highest parachute jump (at that point an absolute world champion in skydiving in May held by a US parachutist) and to obtain in the 1932, while she was 35 years old. US the pilot certificate denied in Romania, in- Note: A complete version of this article may be cluding with the necessary financing thanks to read online, at www.themarketforideas.com.

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