I thought that Vasso Eliades was a very innovative company that seemed to really prioritize efficiency. Firstly the fact that they built the main distribution center with sustainability in mind so that they achieve a carbon neutral status was interesting, especially how they took advantage of the sunny climate to illuminate the building’s inside as well as the photovoltaic process/use of solar panels that now helps to generate more electricity than is consumed. Additionally in order to keep track of the different products they distribute and over 5300 clients they have specialists that focus on each product category. I also took note of how bright the solar tubed lights were on the inside of the warehouse as well as the locations of the ventilation system that uses the underground air for cooling.

Dr. Solomou’s lecture was similar to a lecture at Pitt in the sense that he related the historical topics to current/real life events which chem and physics professors often will do. It however was different to me because he seemed very passionate about the information and sharing the history, maybe in part because we are a specialty group, but often professors at Pitt kind of drag on about the topics. Two interesting facts I noted from the lecture were that the British took control of Cyprus from the Ottomans not from fighting them but by helping them fight the Russians, similar to how the US is helping Ukraine fight Russia, and using their assistance as a strategic reason to own the land, and that when Cyprus became independent from Britain, they did not necessarily want it but they more so wanted to be a part of Greece.