World Philosophy Day

World Philosophy Day was inaugurated by UNESCO at the beginning of the millennium. Students from BNRU and the University Engineering College, were joined by Nikita Starikov, the Deputy Director of Academic Affairs at the Institute, and Professor John Burgess, Chair of Systematic Theology at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary. The day involved skittles and other games and activities aimed at illustrating the philosophy of René Descartes. Valeria Nefedova used excerpts from Shakespeare plays, and Anastasia Alifanova used Zeno's paradox of Achilles and the Tortoise, to reveal Cartesian theories. More contemporary themes, were addressed by Vladimir Vasiliev, Valeriy Astashenkov and Diana Apatenko using the 'Sorting Hat' from Harry Potter, to call out terms in Latin French and Russian in affected voices. This rendered the Russian moniker for our university 'BelGU' into the French phrase 'Niveau Belle Goût', '[a] level [of] good taste'.