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NobelprysDie Nobelpryse word jaarliks toegeken aan mense vir uitstaande navorsing, vir pionierswerk in die ontwikkeling van nuwe tegnologie of toerusting of wat 'n buitengewone bydrae tot die samelewing gemaak het. Dit word algemeen aanvaar as die hoogste eer wat aan 'n mens toegeken kan word in vandag se wêreld. Die pryse is tot stand gebring deur die testament van Alfred Nobel, 'n Sweedse nyweraar en die uitvinder van dinamiet. Hy het sy testament geteken by die Sweeds-Noorweegse Klub in Parys op die 27ste November, 1895. Hy was geskok om te sien hoe sy uitvinding gebruik word om verwoesting te saai en wou hê dat die pryse toegeken word aan mense wat die mensdom goed gedien het.
1895, Fisiologie (of Geneeskunde) en Literatuur]]
Die eerste seremonie om Nobelpryse vir literatuur, fisika, chemie en geneeskunde toe te ken is gehou by die Ou Koninklike Sweedse Akademie vir Musiek in Stockholm in 1901; sedert 1902, word die pryse formeel toegeken deur die koning van Swede. Die toekenning van nasionale pryse aan buitelanders is aanvanklik nie deur Koning Oscar II van Swede goedgekeur nie, maar het skynbaar van opinie verander toe hy die publisiteitswaarde vir sy land besef het.
Die Pryse word toegeken by 'n formele seremonie wat jaarliks op 10 Desember gehou word, die datum waarop Alfred Nobel oorlede is. Die name van die wenners word tipies al in Oktober aangekondig deur die verskeie komitees en inrigtings wat as die keuringsrade vir die verskillende pryse dien.
'n Groot geldelike toekenning is ingesluit by die Nobelpryse en staan tans by die 10 miljoen Kroon (effe meer as 1.1 miljoen Euro of 1.4 miljoen V.S.A. Dollar.) Dit was aanvanklik bedoel om die wenners in staat te stel om hulle werk voort te sit sonder die druk om geld in te samel. (Baie wenners was egter al afgetree teen die tyd dat die pryse aan hulle toegeken is en baie Literatuurwenners het ophou skryf na die toekenning van die prys.)
Pryse is jaarliks, sedert 1901, toegeken vir prestasies in:
- Fisika gekeur deur die Koninklike Sweedse Akademie vir Wetenskap.
- Chemie gekeur deur die Koninklike Sweedse Akademie vir Wetenskap.
- Fisiologie of Geneeskunde gekeur deur die Karolinska Instituut.
- Literatuur gekeur deur die Sweedse Akademie.
- Vrede gekeur deur die Norweegse Storting.
Na Nobel se dood het dit geblyk dat hy nooit enige van die keuringsliggame gevra het of hulle die verantwoordelikheid sou aanvaar nie; hulle het egter huiwerig besluit om dit wel te doen.
Ander Toekennings
Ander vakgebiede wat nie Nobelpryse het nie, het ook pryse van hulle eie ingestel wat nie so welbekend is nie, is: die Polar Musiekprys, die Fields Medalje vir wiskunde; asook die Abelprys vir wiskunde, wat deur die Koning van Noorweë toegeken word, die Pritzkerprys vir argitektuur, die Turing toekenning vir rekenaarwetenskap, die Wollaston Medalje vir geologie, die Schockprys vir logika en filosofie, wiskunde, visuele kunste en musiek. Die Kyoto prys word toegeken in drie kategorieë: Gevorderde Tegnologie, Basiese wetenskappe, en Kuns en Filosofie. Die Millennium Tegnologieprys is 'n internasionale toekenning vir
buitengewone tegnologiese prestasies. Die Right Livelihood Toekennings (ook bekend as die "Alternatiewe Nobelpryse") word toegeken aan persone wat 'n belangrike bydrae gelewer het in gebiede soos omgewingsbeskerming, vrede, menseregte, gesondheid ens. In 2002 is die Astrid Lindgren Gedenktoekenning, 'n internasionale prys vir kinder en jeugliteratuur, ter ere van die Sweedse kinderboekskrywer Astrid Lindgren, tot stand gebring. Die humoristiese Ig Nobelprys is 'n parodie wat jaarliks navorsing vereer wat "nie herhaal kan of behoort te word nie."
Sien ook
- Lys van pryse, medaljes en toekennings
- Wikisource: Nobel Prize
Lectures in Physics
Eksterne skakels
- [http://www.nobelprize.org/ Die Nobel e-Museum] - Amptelike webwerf
- [http://nobelprize.org/nobel/nobel-foundation/index.html Die Nobel Stigting] - Amptelike webwerf
- [http://www.kva.se/KVA_Root/swe/awards/nobel/index.asp Die Nobel Komitees] van die [http://www.kva.se/ Koninklike Sweedse Akademie vir Wetenskap]
- [http://info.ki.se/ki/nobel_en.html Die Nobel Komitee] van die [http://www.ki.se/ Karolinska Instituut]
- [http://www.svenskaakademien.se/ENG/ Die Sweedse Akademie]
- [http://www.nobel.no/ Die Noorweegse Nobel komitee]
- [http://www.nobelprizes.com/ Die Nobelprysargief op die internet] - 'n nie-amptelike werf
- [http://www.nobel-winners.com Tydlyn van Nobelpryswenners]
- [http://www.nobelpreis.org/english/index.html nobelpreis.org]
Category:Nobelprys
Category:Toekennings
ja:ノーベル賞
ko:노벨상
simple:Nobel Prize
th:รางวัลโนเบล
zh-min-nan:Nobel Chióng
Swede
Swede is 'n skandinawiese land wat grens aan Noorweë en Finland. Die hoofstad is Stockholm. Swede is sedert 1995 'n lid van die Europese Unie.
Bevolking: 9 000 000 (2004)
Links
- [http://www.visit-sweden.com/gb/frontpage.asp?show=fp www.visit-sweden.com (en.)]
category:Europa
als:Schweden
fiu-vro:Roodsi
[[got:
27 November
Gebeure
-
Geboortes
-
Sterftes
-
Vakansies, vierings, en waarmeningsdae
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Dae in die Geskiedenis
Kategorie:Datum
ja:11月27日
ko:11월 27일
simple:November 27
1895 Gebeure
- 28 Desember - Geskiedenis van die rolprent: Die Lumière broers vertoon vir die eerste keer bewegende prente aan 'n betalende gehoor.
- Roentgen ontdek X-strale
Geboortes
Sterftes
- Théodore Hersart de la Villemarqué (1815-1895), Bretonse skrywer
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Dae | Eeue | Geskiedenis
Kategorie:19de eeu
ko:1895년
simple:1895
GeneeskundeGeneeskunde is die vakgebied toegespits op die bestudering van die sel-, weefsel- en orgaansisteme (fisies en chemies), sowel as die patologiese manifestasies (biochemie, histologie, hematologie, mikrobiologie...). Sekondêr (holistiese benaderings) - sielkunde en psigiatrie. Daar word gestreef na die herstelling van die mens na 'n gesonde toestand d.m.v. diagnose, prognose en voorkoming.
Westerse geneeskunde is gebaseer op bewyse en analise. Daar is 'n logiese verband tussen oorsaak en gevolg - dus word die diagnose gemaak deur kliniese voorkoms en toetse ter bevestiging.
Bestaande terapie sluit farmakologie, chirurgie, bestraling (onkologie) en psigoterapie in. Alternatiewe geneeskunde word al hoe meer populêr.
Sien ook
- Gesondheidsorg - Die gesondheidsorg is as mediese dissipline 'n toegepaste wetenskap wat met die gesondheid van mense te doen het. Onder gesondheidsorg word nie alleen die ondersoek, die studie en die kennis van gesondheid begryp nie, maar ook die toepassing van die kennis om die gesondheid van mense te verhoog, infeksiesiekte te genees, en die liggaamlike funksies te verbeter. Gesondheidsorg gebruik die biologie, snykunde en natuurkunde en die sosiale wetenskappe (byvoorbeeld die mediese sosiologie) as boustene.
- Patologie - die studie van siektes in die mens.
- Lys van siektetoestande
- Ortopedie - Die term "ortopedie" kom van die samevoeging van twee Griekse woorde, naamlik orthos (reguit) en pais (kind). Ortopedie is die vertakking van die geneeskunde wat betrekking het op die korreksie van skeletale misvormings en afwykings met betrekking tot die lokomotoriese strukture van die liggaam (Brink, 97: 454; Taber’s, 93:1358). Dit is gerig op die studie van die vorm en funksie van die menslike liggaamsbou en toestande wat tot misvorming aanleiding kan gee of die gebalanseerde meganisme van die menslike liggaam kan omverwerp.
- Osteoartritis Progressiewe degenerasie van artikulerende kraakbeen. Subartikulêre been reageer deur verdikking en sklerose en later vorm daar subchondrale siste, en die kraakbeen fragmenteer. Gewrigte is benig vergroot, pynlik, en teer. Mobic word soms voorgeskryf vir pynlike osteoartritis van pasiënt. 7,5 mg eenmaal/dag. Een van die newe-effekte hiervan is die gastro-intestinale stoornisse. Kontra-indikasie wat kan voorkom is renale inkorting.
- Retinopatie - Retinopatie is ‘n oogkomplikasie, wat verminderde sig kan veroorsaak, en soms tot blindheid kan lei. Een van die oorsake van retinopatie blyk hoë bloeddruk te wees. ‘n Studie word tans uitgevoer om te kyk of die medikasie Candesartan (‘n bloeddrukpil) doeltreffend aangewend sal kan word om die pasiënt se risiko te verminder om retinopatie te kry, of indien hy reeds diabetiese retinopatie in die beginstadium het, te kyk of Candesartan kan verhoed dat sy sig verswak. Toetse sal ook gedoen word om te bepaal of Candesartan die niere kan beskerm teen beskadiging. Nuwe tegnologie maak dit ook moontlik om beskadiging van die macula te herstel deur middel van laserbehandeling.
- Linker ventrikulêre hipertrofie - Een van die mees algemene oorsake van hipertrofie van die linker ventrikel is hipertensie. Met hipertrofie van die linker venrikel verskuif die gemiddelde elektriese as na links (linkerasafwyking) Die rede vir die verskuiwing is dat die ventrikel wat hipertrofieer, meer spierweefsel bevat. Dit ontwikkel dus meer elekrisiteit as die normale ventrikel. Die prekordiale afleidings is die geskikste on hipertrofie mee te diagnosee
- Elektrokardiogram - Die EKG is ‘n grafiese rekord van die hart se elektriese aktiwiteit. Die elektriese aktiwiteit word na die liggaamsoppervlak gelei, waar dit met behulp van elektrodes op die vel waargeneem word, vanwaar dit geïnterpreteer word deur ‘n apparaat wat dan die bekende EKG-grafiek verskaf. Die normale EKG bestaan uit 12 afleiverbindings. ‘n Rustende EKG toon ‘n sinusritme van 72 slae/min (normaal).
Bronnelys
- Brink, A.J. et al. 1997. Woordeboek van Afrikaanse Geneeskundeterme. Kaapstad: Pharos.
- Brody, J.E. “New Hope for Taming Deadly Septic Shock” in The New York Times, 5 Maart 2002. http://www.nytimes.com.
- E-orthopaedics: Load Tran – A numerical Laboratory for the Analysis of Prosthesis Fixation. http://www.e-orthopaedics.com/loadtran/index.htm.
- “An Implanted Prosthesis Can Restore Walking” in Hopkins Medical News , Lente 2000. http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/hmn/sp00/mu_3.html
- Lippincott Manual of Practical Nursing, The. (Nettina, S.M. (Redakteur)). 2001. Philadelphia, PA: Lippincot.
- “Sulzer artificial hip implants recall of hip joint surgery” http://www.hip-implant-replacement.com
- Thibodeau, G.A. en Patton, K.T. 1987. Anatomy & Physiology St. Louis: Mosby.
- Taber’s Encyclopedic Medical Dictionary. (Thomas, C.L. (Red)) 1993. Philadelphia: F.A. Davis.
- Viljoen M.J. en Uys L.R. (Reds). 1997. Algemene Verpleegkunde - Mediese en Chirurgiese Handleiding. Deel 2. Pretoria: Kagiso.
- Vlok, M.E. 1989. Handboek van Verpleegkunde (Vol 1: Basiese Verpleegkunde). Kaapstad: Juta.
Kategorie:Geneeskunde
als:Medizin
fiu-vro:Arstitiidüs
ja:医学
ko:의학
simple:Medicine
th:แพทยศาสตร์
zh-min-nan:I-ha̍k
1902 Gebeure
Die tweede Anglo-Boereoorlog kom tot 'n einde
- 1 November - By Glentana word 'n droogdok bo-op 'n skerp rots neergesit, die Doks van Glentana
Geboortes
Sterftes
- 26 Maart - Cecil Rhodes
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Dae | Eeue | Geskiedenis
Kategorie:20ste eeu
ja:1902年
ko:1902년
simple:1902
th:พ.ศ. 2445
Swede
Swede is 'n skandinawiese land wat grens aan Noorweë en Finland. Die hoofstad is Stockholm. Swede is sedert 1995 'n lid van die Europese Unie.
Bevolking: 9 000 000 (2004)
Links
- [http://www.visit-sweden.com/gb/frontpage.asp?show=fp www.visit-sweden.com (en.)]
category:Europa
als:Schweden
fiu-vro:Roodsi
[[got:
EuroDie Euro (simbool: €, ISO-geldeenheidkode: EUR) is die geldeenheid van die Europese Ekonomiese en Monetêre Unie (EMU) - die sogenaamde Eurosone - en na die Amerikaanse Dollar die belangrikste munteenheid wêreldwyd. Die Euro word deur die Europese Sentrale Bank in Frankfurt am Main beheer en is die wettige betaalmiddel in 12 van die 25 lande van die Europese Unie (EU). Die Euro is bowendien die wettige geldeenheid van ses lande wat nie tot die EU behoort nie. 'n Verdere vyf lande en twee monetêre gebiede het hulle munteenheid met 'n vaste wisselkoers aan die Euro gekoppel.
Die Euro is in die jaar 1999 as bankgeld en op 1 Januarie 2002 as "stoflike" betaalmiddel ingevoer. 'n Euro word opgedeel in 100 sente (voorgestel deur die letter c). Daar is net een stel banknote ter waarde van 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 200 en 500 Euro beskikbaar, terwyl die muntstukke (1c, 2c, 5c, 10c, 20c, 50c, 1€ en 2€) naas 'n identiese voorkant 'n nasionale agtersy het.
Wisselkoerse
Die amptelike wisselkoerse van die Euro ten opsigte van die ou nasionale munteenhede is soos volg vasgestel:
13,7603 Oostenrykse Schilling (ATS)
40,3399 Belgiese Frank (BEF)
1,95583 Duitse Mark (DEM)
166,386 Spaanse Peseta (ESP)
5,94573 Finse Mark (FIM)
6,55957 Franse Frank (FRF)
0,787564 Ierse Pond (IEP)
1936,27 Italiaanse Lire (ITL)
40,3399 Luxemburgse Frank (LUF)
2,20371 Nederlandse Gulden (NLG)
200,482 Portugese Escudo (PTE)
340,750 Griekse Drachme (GRD)
Spesiale muntstukke
Alle lande van die Eurosone kan spesiale muntstukke uitgeef, wat alleen in die herkomsland geldig is, en nie in die andere lande nie.
Aanpassing Euro
Waarskynlik moet die Euro aangepas word, as ander lande die Euro gaan gebruik (byvoorbeeld Pole) - hierdie lande is nie op die Euro afgebeeld nie.
fiu-vro:Õuro
ja:ユーロ
ko:유로
ms:Euro
simple:Euro
th:ยูโร
zh-min-nan:Euro
1901 Gebeure
- 1 Januarie - Nigerië word 'n Britse protektoraat
- 25 April - New York word die eerste staat wat motorkar-nommerplate vereis.
- 24 Junie - Eerste uitstalling van Pablo Picasso geopen.
- 25 September - Die Koninkryk van Ashanti word deur Britanje ge-annekseer as deel van die Gouekuskolonie.
Geboortes
- 11 Maart - Leopold III van België
- 7 Mei - Gary Cooper, akteur (d. 1961)
- 4 Augustus - Louis Armstrong, jazz-musikant (d. 1971)
Sterftes
- 9 September - Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, skilder.
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Dae | Eeue | Geskiedenis
Kategorie:20ste eeu
ja:1901年
ko:1901년
Nobelprys vir LiteratuurDie Nobelprys vir Letterkunde word jaarliks toegeken aan 'n skrywer vanaf enige land, wat die mees uitsonderlike werk, binne die idealistiese tendens, gelewer het. Die werk verwys na die skrywer se werk as geheel, en nie na individuele stukke nie, alhoewel individuele stukke soms in die toekenning genoem word. Die Sweedse Akademie neem die besluit wie, indien enige, in 'n gegewe jaar die prys verdien.
Hier onder volg 'n lys van die ontvangers van die Nobelprys vir Letterkunde vanaf 1901 tot die hede.
__NOTOC__
1900s - 1910s - 1920s - 1930s - 1940s - 1950s - 1960s - 1970s - 1980s - 1990s - 2000s
1900s
1910s
1920s
1930s
1940s
1950s
1960s
1970s
1980s
1990s
2000s
Notas:
- Die vroue wat die Nobelprys vir Letterkunde ontvang het, is
- Selma Lagerlöf,
- Grazia Deledda,
- Sigrid Undset,
- Pearl S. Buck,
- Gabriela Mistral,
- Nelly Sachs,
- Nadine Gordimer,
- Toni Morrison,
- Wislawa Szymborska en
- Elfriede Jelinek.
- Die Nobelprys is nie die enigste maatstaf van literêre uitmuntendheid en volgehoue waarde nie. Om dit te illustreer, het die volgende persone byvoorbeeld nooit dié prys ontvang nie:
- Jorge Luis Borges,
- Bertolt Brecht,
- Julio Cortázar,
- Anton Chekhov,
- Jorge Amado,
- Jacques Derrida,
- Lion Feuchtwanger,
- Graham Greene,
- Aldous Huxley,
- Henrik Ibsen,
- James Joyce,
- Franz Kafka,
- Alberto Moravia,
- Vladimir Nabokov,
- George Orwell,
- Marcel Proust,
- Oswald Spengler,
- Leo Tolstoy,
- Arnold Toynbee en
- Fernando Pessoa.
Buiteskakels
- [http://www.nobel.se/literature/laureates/index.html]
- [http://www.nobelprizes.com/nobel/literature Nobel Prize Winners in Literature]
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zh-min-nan:Nobel Bûn-ha̍k Chióng
ko:노벨 문학상
ja:ノーベル文学賞
th:รายชื่อผู้ได้รับรางวัลโนเบลสาขาวรรณกรรม
Category:Literêre toekennings
Letterkunde
Nobelprys vir VredeDie Nobelprys vir Vrede is een van vyf Nobelpryse wat nagelaat is deur die Sweedse industrialis en uitvinder Alfred Nobel. Die pryse vir Fisika, Chemie, Geneeskunde en Literatuur word jaarliks in Stockholm, Swede, toegeken, maar die toekenning vir Vrede vind plaas in die Norweegse hoofstad, Oslo. Die Noorweegse Nobel-komitee word verkies deur die Norweegse Parlement. Hulle kies die pryswenner en die prsy word deur die komitee se voorsitter, tans Dr. Ole Danbolt Mjøs, toegeken. Ten tye van Nobel se oorlye was Swede and Noorweë in 'n posisie onderling waar die Sweedse parlement alleenlik verantwoordelik was vir buitelandse sake en Sweedse binnelandse sake, en die Noorweegse parlement slegs vir Noorweegse binnelandse sake. Nobel het dus stipuleer dat die Vredesprys deur Noorweë toegeken moes word, omdat hy gevrees het dat die verkiesingsproses negatief beïnvloed sou kon word deur 'n buitelandse moondheid. Volgens sy testament behoort die prys toegeken te word aan die persoon wat die beste of die meeste werk gedoen het vir die bevordering van broederskap tussen nasies, en vir die totnietmaking of vermindering van weermagte, en vir die ophou en bevordeing van vredeskongresse.
Anders as met die ander Nobelpryse, kan die Vredesprys toegeken word aan 'n persoon of instansie wat te midde van die oplos van 'n konflik is, en is dit nie nodig dat die konflik reeds opgelos moet wees nie. As gevolg daarvan lyk sommige van die toekennings vir ons vandag ietwat verdag, omdat die poging nie blywende vrugte afgewerp het nie. Voorbeelde hiervan is die toekennings gegee aan Theodore Roosevelt, Le Duc Tho, en Henry Kissinger. Voorts word die komitee ook voortdurend deur regse groepe gekritiseer as dat hulle skyn bevooroordeeld te wees pro linkse bewegings. Die prys toegeken aan Yasser Arafat, dien as brandstof vir hul argument, aangesien hulle hom beskou het as 'n ondersteuner van terrorisme.
Pryswenners
Lys van Nobelpryswenners in die Vrede-kategorie vanaf 1901 tot op hede.
__NOTOC__
1900s - 1910s - 1920s - 1930s - 1940s - 1950s - 1960s - 1970s - 1980s - 1990s - 2000s
1900s
Vrede
Category:Vrede
ja:ノーベル平和賞
zh-min-nan:Nobel Hô-pêng Chióng Bhopal dissaster
The Bhopal Disaster of 1984 is claimed by many as the worst industrial disaster in history. It was caused by the accidental release of 40 tonnes of methyl isocyanate (MIC) from a Union Carbide India, Limited (UCIL, now known as Eveready Industries India, Limited) pesticide plant located in the heart of the city of Bhopal, in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. UCIL was a joint venture between Union Carbide and a consortium of Indian investors.
The accident, in the early hours of December 3 1984, produced heavier-than-air toxic MIC gas which rolled along the ground through the surrounding streets killing thousands outright. The gas also injured anywhere from 150,000 to 600,000 people, at least 15,000 of whom later died. In addition, a BBC investigation conducted in November 2004 confirmed that contamination is still present.
Overview of the disaster
The Union Carbide plant was established in 1969 and had expanded to produce carbaryl in 1979; MIC is an intermediate in carbaryl manufacture.
The chemical accident was caused by the introduction of water into MIC holding tank E610, due to slip-bind water isolation plates being excluded from an adjacent tank's maintenance procedure. The resulting reaction generated a major increase in the heat of liquid inside the tank (to over 200°C). The MIC then gave off a large volume of toxic gas, forcing the emergency release of pressure. There were many factors that contributed to this accident, all of which were preventable. In chronological order, they were:
- Recent documents, obtained through discovery in the course of a lawsuit against Union Carbide for environmental contamination before a New York Federal District revealed that Carbide had exported "untested, unproven technology" to the Indian plant.
- Unlike Union Carbide plants in the USA, its Indian subsidiary plants were not prepared for problems. No action plans had been established to cope with incidents of this magnitude. This included not informing local authorities of the dangers of chemicals used and manufactured at Bhopal.
- Reports issued months before the incident by scientists within the Union Carbide corporation warned of the possibility of an accident almost identical to that which occurred in Bhopal. The reports were ignored outright and never made it to senior staff.
- Due to falling sales, staff had been laid off and safety checks became less and less frequent.
- Slip-bind plates that prevent water from pipes being cleaned leaking into the MIC tanks via faulty valves were not installed. Their installation had not been included on the cleaning checklist.
- The MIC tank refrigeration unit was disabled at the time of the event. A simple press of a button in the control room would have activated it, but this was overlooked by staff.
- The gas scrubber was placed on standby, and therefore did not attempt to clean escaping gases with sodium hydroxide (caustic soda), which may have brought the concentration down to a safe level.
- The water curtain that may have reduced the concentration of the gas was only set to ~13 m and did not reach the gas.
- Though the audible external alarm was activated to warn residents of Bhopal, it was quickly shut down to avoid causing panic among the residents. Thus, many continued to sleep, unaware of the unfolding drama.
- The flare tower used to burn off gases before they are allowed to escape into the air was inoperational and was due to be repaired.
- Doctors and hospitals were not informed of proper treatment methods for MIC gas inhalation. They were told to simply give cough medicine and eyedrops to their patients.
Union Carbide denies these allegations on its [http://www.bhopal.com website] dedicated to the tragedy. It cites a non-peer-reviewed investigation that concluded that a single employee secretly and deliberately introduced a large amount of water into the MIC tank by removing a meter and connecting a water hose directly to the tank through the metering port. Carbide claims such a large amount of water could not have found its way into the tank by accident, and safety systems were not designed to deal with intentional sabotage. UC says that the rest of the plant staff falsified numerous records to distance themselves from the incident, and that the Indian Government impeded its investigation and declined to prosecute the employee responsible, presumably because that would weaken its allegations of negligence against Union Carbide. Union Carbide has never publicly named or identified the employee it claims sabotaged its Bhopal plant.
The majority of deaths and serious injuries were related to pulmonary edema, but the gas caused a wide variety of other ailments.
Investigation and legal action against Union Carbide
In an out-of-court settlement reached in [1989], Union Carbide agreed to pay US$470 million for damages caused in the Bhopal disaster. (The original lawsuit was for $3 billion.)
The CEO of Union Carbide at that time, Warren Anderson, who had retired by 1986, was declared a fugitive from law by the Chief Judicial Magistrate of Bhopal on February 1, 1992 for failing to appear at the court hearings in a culpable homicide case in which he was named the chief defendant. Orders were passed to the Government of India to press for an extradition from the United States, with whom India had an extradition treaty in place. However, the demanded extradition never materialized. Many activists allege that the Indian government has hesitated to put forth a strong case of extradition to the United States, fearing backlash from foreign investors who have become more important players in the Indian economy following liberalization. A seemingly apathetic attitude from the US government, which has failed to pursue the case, has also led to strong protests in the past, most notably by Greenpeace.
A plea by India's Central Bureau of Investigation to dilute the charges from culpable homicide to criminal negligence has since been dismissed by the Indian courts. To date, Anderson is still an absconder before the Indian courts and faces charges that if proven may result in imprisonment of up to 10 years.
Meanwhile, very little of the money from the settlement reached with Union Carbide went to the survivors, and people in the area feel betrayed not only by Union Carbide (and chairman Warren Anderson), but also by their own politicians. On the anniversary of the tragedy, effigies of Anderson and politicians are burnt. In July 2004, the Indian Supreme Court ordered the government to pay to victims, and families of the dead, the US$330 million remaining in the compensation fund.
Union Carbide sold its Indian subsidiary, which had operated the Bhopal plant, to an Indian battery manufacturer in 1994. The Dow Chemical Company purchased Union Carbide in 2001 for $10.3 billion in stock and debt. Dow has publicly stated several times that the Union Carbide settlement payments have already fulfilled Dow's financial responsibility for the disaster.
Ongoing contamination
Ownership issues have led to a stalemate on the issue of cleaning up the plant and its environs of hundreds of tonnes of toxic waste, which has been left untouched. Environmentalists have warned that the waste is a potential minefield in the heart of the city, and the resulting contamination may lead to decades of slow poisoning, and diseases affecting the nervous system, liver and kidneys in humans. Studies have shown that the rates of cancer and other ailments are higher in the region since the event. Activists have demanded that Dow clean up this toxic waste, and have pressed the government of India to demand more money from Dow.
In an investigation broadcast on BBC Radio 5 on November 14, 2004, it was reported that the site is still contaminated with 'thousands' of metric tons of toxic chemicals, including benzene hexachloride and mercury, held in open containers or loose on the ground. Some areas are reportedly so polluted that anyone entering the area for more than ten minutes is likely to lose consciousness. Rainfall causes run-off, polluting local wells and boreholes, and the results of tests undertaken on behalf of the BBC by accredited water analysis laboratories in the United Kingdom reveal pollution levels in borehole water 500 times the legal maximum in that country. Statistical surveys of local residents, with a control population in a similarly poor area away from the plant, are reported to reveal higher levels of various diseases around the plant.
2004 hoax
On December 3, 2004, the twentieth anniversary of the disaster, a man claiming to be a Dow representative named "Jude Finisterra" was interviewed on the BBC. He claimed that the company had agreed to clean up the site and compensate those harmed in the incident. ([http://www.theyesmen.org/hijinks/dow/video.html video]) Immediately afterward, Dow's share price fell 4.2% in 23 minutes, for a loss of $2 billion in market value [http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=04/12/06/1453248]. Dow quickly issued a statement saying that they had no employee by that name — that he was an impostor, not affiliated with Dow, and that his claims were a hoax. BBC broadcast a correction and an apology. The statement was widely carried [http://www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?SectionID=66&ItemID=6795].
"Jude Finisterra" was actually Andy Bichlbaum, a member of the activist prankster group The Yes Men. In 2002, The Yes Men issued [http://theyesmen.org/hijinks/dow/bhopalmemorialpress.html a phony press release] explaining why Dow refused to take responsibility for the disaster and started up a website, DowEthics.com, designed to look like the Dow website but give what they felt was a more accurate cast on the events. In 2004, a producer for BBC News emailed them through the website requesting an interview, which they gladly obliged. [http://www.theyesmen.org/hijinks/dow/]
Taking credit for the prank in an interview on Democracy Now!, Bichlbaum explains how his fake name was derived: "Jude is the patron saint of impossible causes and Finisterra means the end of the Earth". He explained that he settled on this approach (taking responsibility) because it would show people precisely how Dow could help the situation as well as likely garnering major media attention in the US, which had largely ignored the disaster's anniversaries, when Dow attempted to correct the statement [http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=04/12/06/1453248].
External links
- [http://www.bhopal.net/ International Campaign For Justice in Bhopal]
- [http://www.bhopal.com/ Union Carbide Corporation's Bhopal Information Center Web Site]
- [http://www.studentsforbhopal.org/ Students for Bhopal]
- [http://www.dowethics.com Hoaxer's website]
- [http://webdrive.service.emory.edu/users/vdhara/www.BhopalPublications Health and Epidemiology Papers About the Bhopal Disaster] - mostly from peer-reviewed journals
- [http://webdrive.service.emory.edu/users/vdhara/www.BhopalPublications/Health%20Effects%20&%20Epidemiology/Health%20Effects%20Review%20articles/Health%20Effects%20Review%20AEH.pdf The Union Carbide disaster in Bhopal: A review of health effects]. V. Ramana Dhara & Rosaline Dhara. Archives of Environmental Health. Sep/Oct 2002;57(5):391-404
Category:Indian environment
Category:Industrial disasters
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