The Netherlands: How the Dutch Built the Netherlands to Protect it from Flooding

through the building of dikes, drainage canals, and pumping stations. Today, there are more than 3,000 polders throughout the nation. This wasn't enough though, and in 1916, they suffered from severe flooding.

That's when the Dutch decided to work on the Afsluitdijk to protect low-lying areas and the wall off the Zuiderzee from the sea. The seawall was one of the largest engineering feats of its time, spanning 20 mi (32 km) and a final height of 23 ft (7 m) above sea level. More impressive was the fact that it was topped off by sand and clay, and held together by grass.

Read more at: How the Dutch Built the Netherlands to Protect it from Flooding

′Turkey is shooting itself in the foot′- by Thomas Seibert

urkey has rarely launched rhetorical attacks on so many different international players in such a short time. The pope came in for his share, as did the European Parliament.

Then it was Austria's turn, before Germany, France, Russia and the USA were also all verbally assaulted - in a series of foreign office statements issued at the rate of almost one a minute - for the positions they have taken in the debate on the correct word to give to the massacre of Armenians by Ottoman authorities one hundred years ago.

In the case of Germany, Ankara stressed that the Turkish people would neither forgive nor forget the words of President Joachim Gauck, who has spoken of an Armenian genocide. At the same time, the Turkish government warned the German parliament in Berlin against passing a planned resolution that also speaks of a genocide against the Armenians from 1915 to 1917.

The presidents of the USA, Russia and France - Barack Obama, Vladimir Putin and Francois Hollande - drew Ankara's ire because they also mentioned the massacre. And Obama didn't even use the "G-word" out of consideration for his country's important NATO ally.

Read more: ′Turkey is shooting itself in the foot′ | News | DW.DE | 26.04.2015