tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-85162042024-03-13T22:15:09.908+01:00Aufbau OstWritings about life in East Germany, Germany, Europe and on this planet.Aufbau Osthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10847952591018738623noreply@blogger.comBlogger41125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8516204.post-22260777885471681722008-09-07T17:34:00.003+02:002008-09-07T17:41:20.784+02:00Project Canada: Fieldwork Phase Four<a href="http://www.artsevestre-photography.com/">Photographer and Biologist Arthur Sevestre</a>, who is the author of <a href="http://project-canada.blogspot.com/">"Project Canada"</a> is currently in Canada, travelling through Yukon Territories and British Columbia. Check out his blog for updates and, for instance, for the story how road improvement work on Highway 37 has affected wild life behavior.<br /><br /><center><a href="http://project-canada.blogspot.com/"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_7X8sgyZ7w84/SMNOyAgHMWI/AAAAAAAAAHc/LT3VD-sVxjU/s400/20080904_ASP3960HDCblog.jpg" /></a></center>Aufbau Osthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10847952591018738623noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8516204.post-35198583699938197062008-06-19T14:12:00.000+02:002008-12-11T09:25:12.754+01:00Project Canada Photo ExhibitionDutch photographer <a href="http://www.artsevestre-photography.com/">Arthur Sevestre </a>is currently having a photo exhibition in Limburg (Lahn) Germany. The exhibition features marvelous pictures from different areas, such as the Isle of Skye and the Dutch coast. However, most of the pictures are from his field work for <a href="http://project-canada.com/">"Project Canada"</a>, which explores conservational and environmental issues in Canada. So if you happen to be in the area make sure to check out the exhibition.<br /><table><tbody><tr><td width="350">Address:<br />Cafe Galerie<br />Brückengasse 5<br />65549 Limburg an der Lahn</td><td><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_7X8sgyZ7w84/SFelCZAVd4I/AAAAAAAAACI/ShyShGZ3aR4/s200/20070917_ASP7608LCA.jpg"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_7X8sgyZ7w84/SFelCZAVd4I/AAAAAAAAACI/ShyShGZ3aR4/s200/20070917_ASP7608LCA.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_7X8sgyZ7w84/SFelCZAVd4I/AAAAAAAAACI/ShyShGZ3aR4/s200/20070917_ASP7608LCA.jpg"></a></td></tr></tbody></table><br />The exhibition will be there to view till November 2008 and the venue is a really nice and cosy place to relax while having a good cup of coffee and enjoying the photographs.Aufbau Osthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10847952591018738623noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8516204.post-43594881592328922552007-12-23T21:20:00.000+01:002007-12-23T21:23:36.268+01:00Happy Holidays!I would like to wish the readers of this blog happy holidays and all the best for 2008!<br />Thank you for stopping by this blog!<br /><br /><center><img src="http://homepages.wmich.edu/~m0kintz/Images/200712232511-2.jpg" width="450"></center>Aufbau Osthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10847952591018738623noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8516204.post-48701684809863659942007-09-23T17:38:00.000+02:002007-09-23T23:06:54.635+02:00Dresden and Leipzig among the 10 most popular cities for Tourists<a href="http://magazine.web.de/de/themen/reise/staedte/deutschland/4547166-Die-beliebtesten-deutschen-Staedte,page=10.html">Web.de</a> reports that Dresden and Leipzig are among the 10 most popular citties for tourists. Last year nearly 53 million overnight stays were booked in German hotels. However, no single regions seemed to be more popular than another and the Top 10 presenting cities from North to South.<br />Here is the ranking (number of overnight stays booked in brackets:<br />1. Berlin (6.0 million)<br />2. Munich (4.2 million)<br />3. Frankfurt/ Main (2.5 million)<br />4. Cologne (1.6 million)<br />5. Hamburg (1.6 million)<br />6. Dusseldorf (1.2 million)<br />7. Stuttgart (830.000)<br />8. Dresden (490.000)<br />9. Hanover (416.000 )<br />10. Leipzig (307.000)<br /><br />Well, in the spirit of this blog I would like to encourage tourists to travel more to the east of Germany to discover places from the Baltic Sea, Lake Müritz to Saxony Switzerland, cities like Rostock, Schwerin, Potsdam but also Weimar, Jena and Seiffen.<br />In this spirit I'd like to send you to a lightbox on Istock of pictures from the East found here:<br /><br /><center><a href="http://www.istockphoto.com/file_search.php?action=file&lightboxID=2277410&refnum=Mellimage"><img src="http://homepages.wmich.edu/~m0kintz/Images/200709230002.jpg" alt="shut down excacator"></a></center>Aufbau Osthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10847952591018738623noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8516204.post-83325515325253915242007-08-09T11:48:00.000+02:002007-08-09T11:56:14.961+02:00Guest Blogging: Dams - beauties or beasts?<center><img alt="Spray Lakes, Kananaskis Country, AB" src="http://www.project-canada.com/Canada/Images/LCA/20070602_ASP1036LCA.jpg" width="450" /></center><br />Sunset can hide a lot from the eye. Here it is the complicated and laden subject of hydroelectricity. Just beyond the foot of the mountain on the right is a dam that controls the waterflow of the lake and that creates hydroelectricity that gives the town of Canmore, lying a few kilometers beyond that dam, a lot of its necessary power. It could be argued that dams provide green energy, because no burning of gas, coal or oil is needed. However, dams have huge impacts on the environment and not seldomly also on (indigenous) people. The lakes that form behind the dams flood huge areas and the plant material there will slowly rot, releasing methane. Methane is a far more potent greenhouse gas than CO2 is, so the CO2 emissions that dams save is at least partially nullified by that. The changes caused by the sudden appearance of a large lake takes the natural system quite a while to adapt to, especially if wildlife corridors or important habitat is suddenly lost. In the dammed river too, the changes are huge. The river itself of course is one big wildlife corridor and fish and other animals and plants are much hindered in their travels. Dams have caused dramatically reduced diversity in rivers, including the loss of breeding grounds for salmon in many parts of North America and the rest of the world.<br />In quite a few cases the building of dams led to the forced moving of native people (not only in North America!), not seldomly without any compensation for their losses. In some cases, where these people lived in such remote places that it was perceived to be too much trouble to seek them all out, they were not even warned and simply suddenly saw the water rising above their heads.<br />Such is the thirst for power (in more than one sense of the word) that dams have been built in many places thoughout the world, arguably producing green power, but at huge costs.<br /><br /><center><a href="http://www.project-canada.com/Canada/Images/LCA/ASP1562LCA.htm"><img alt="Brilliant Dam, near Castlegar, BC" src="http://www.project-canada.com/Canada/Images/LCA/20070606_ASP1562LCA.jpg" width="450" /></a></center><p><br /><br />Read a related article <a href="http://www.project-canada.com/Canada/Images/LCA/ASP1562LCA.htm">here</a>. </p><p><span style="font-size:85%;"><em>Written by Arthur Sevestre</em></span></p><p><span style="font-size:85%;"><em>In support of </em></span><a href="http://www.project-canada.com/"><span style="font-size:85%;"><em>Project Canada</em></span></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><em> this blog will feature small articles written by Arthur Sevestre about environmental and conservational issues in Canada. If you are interested in the goals of this project, please check out the website.<br /></p></em></span>Aufbau Osthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10847952591018738623noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8516204.post-83386441850106806812007-05-18T22:29:00.001+02:002007-05-18T22:38:20.420+02:00Guest blog: Living in bear countryLiving in an area where bears occur means that you need to adapt to them. The sheer size and strength of bears makes them a factor that you have to consider for many of the decisions you take in your daily life. Take going out for a walk for example. For your own safety it is a good idea to become a bit of a biologist so that you can recognize where you might encounter a bear and a bit of an animal behaviorist to know how to act to avoid an attack in case an encounter does happen. That extra knowledge is also important for decisions like where to store your trash, your dog food and if you will have a birdfeeder in your garden. Seemingly trivial things for those who do not live in 'bear country', but essential if you do and want to avoid luring bears to your house with all that potential food. Once that happens, a bear is often doomed. A food conditioned bear is not afraid of humans and will actively search them out because it knows that food is always nearby. Knowing that there are bears in the forests and mountains around you is one thing, but bumping into one when you open your backdoor is quite something else. Some very smart bears have even developed a way to scare hikers out of their backpacks in order to get to the food inside it. By chance they found out that hikers often drop their backpack to distract an aggressive bear's attention so that they had a chance to escape. From that it was only a small step for the bears to learn that a bluff charge will make the human simply drop the food right in front of your feet! Now if that isn't easy food! However, not much is needed to transform such a bluff charge, really not intended to hurt the hiker, into a full charge. So, conditioning bears to our food, be it in the garbage or in a backpack, intentional or not, can lead to extremely dangerous situations. Even if a conditioned bear has not been aggressive towards people yet, quite often the bear will be killed as a precaution because the conditioning is very hard to undo.<br /><br /><center><img alt="a grizzly bear (Ursus arctos) in Kananaskis Country" src="http://www.project-canada.com/Canada/Images/AWMC/2005110324883AWMC.jpg" width="450" /></center><br /><br />Negative conditioning is possible though, but is usually only successful in the very early stages. Because it can not only save human lives, but also that of bears, it is an important tool in the conservation of the animals. The method is often to shoot a bear with non-lethal rubber bullets, by making lots of noise and sometimes by letting specially trained dogs (Karelian bear dogs) harass the bear. This is done when a bear is found feeding or looking for food in or very close to a human settlement, so that it will start to associate that place with pain, irritation and other negative experiences instead of with an easy meal. This sounds easier than it really is. First of all, you have to be ready to start the negative conditioning as soon as the bear strikes. To be able to do this, some areas have specialized teams that are on the alert all the time. As you can see on this photograph of a grizzly bear (Ursus arctos) in Kananaskis Country (Alberta, Canada), some bears wear transmitters (you can see an antenna hanging down from the ear tag), so that it is possible to keep an eye on their whereabouts. If the bear comes too close to a human settlement, the team can be ready on the spot, which makes the process all the more effective. The earlier a bear can be treated, the greater the chance of success and the smaller the chance that it will have to be shot.<br /><br />The transmitter is not only used for this, but also for studying bears. A better understanding of the animals is also necessary for the conservation of the species, but can also help to reduce the risk of conditioning and dangerous encounters. Amongst other things, being able to monitor the places where bears hang out through the seasons has shown that they often choose different places as the year progresses. In Banff National Park for example, that has led to closures of certain areas for the public in a certain period of the year because it is very likely that bears will be there at that time. This way, a lot of trouble can be avoided and it makes it easier for humans and bears to share their living space in peace.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">Written by Arthur Sevestre<br /><br /><i>In support of <a href="http://www.project-canada.com">Project Canada</a> this blog will feature small articles written by Arthur Sevestre about environmental and conservational issues in Canada. If you are interested in the goals of this project, please check out the website. </i></span>Aufbau Osthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10847952591018738623noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8516204.post-11833429995562252742007-05-17T07:40:00.000+02:002007-05-17T07:42:32.137+02:00Little SisterYesterday "Aufbau Ost" got a little sister blog. Since I started to earn a bit of money with my photography I created a blog promoting my work. If you are interested, you can check it out here: <a href="http://mellimage.blogspot.com">http://mellimage.blogspot.com</a>Aufbau Osthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10847952591018738623noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8516204.post-80178832657562475492007-04-25T21:58:00.000+02:002007-04-25T22:12:33.112+02:00Renft Street really coming?Remember my post from last October? The one announcing the Tamara-Danz-Street? In that post I asked: "Now, I am wondering if we will see in the future a Renft-square or a Dreilich-Road? Maybe a suggestion for urban planners?"<br /><br />Today the Leipziger Volkszeitung reported that Leipzig might become its Renft-Street, a street named after Klaus Renft who passed away last year after loosing a battle with cancer. Apparently city-councillor Guenther Poetzsch had the idea for a Renft-Street which is supported by the city committee for cultural affairs.<br /><br />Plans so far suggest that the street to be named after Renft will be in Moeckern, near the "Anker" a cultural institution that is host to many musical guests. The naming of the street might take place on October 9th, 2007 which marks the first anniversary of Renft's passing. Naming the street after him shall recognize Renft's constant critical thinking about the totalitarian regime of the GDR and he thus had become a role model for many.Aufbau Osthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10847952591018738623noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8516204.post-59304232904558871852007-04-23T11:01:00.000+02:002007-04-23T11:19:43.027+02:00Turnout high and lowIt seems as if yesterday was a beautiful day all over Europe. In terms of electoral participation it had its positive and negative effects. As well noted throughout the media, electoral turnout was the highest in 25 years in the presidential race in France.<br />Things are quite different in Saxony-Anhalt. Electoral turnout set a new record there as well - a record low. Only 35,3 per cent (Source: Volksstimme) of those allowed to vote decided to actually cast their vote. The lowest turnout happened in the "Saalekreis" where only 32.2 percent of the voters went to vote.<br />Just like in the state elections last year, Saxony-Anhalt makes headlines with its low turnout numbers. The low turnout in this election may be due to the nature of the election, which became necessary because of the administrative reform in the state. With the creation of new counties elections became necessary, however, the councils are rather distant organs for voters. On the other hand, it seems as if overall dissatisfaction with politics plays another major role in the low turnout numbers. Infratest dimap (through the MDR) cites disappointment in politics as the number-one reason (51%) for the low turnout. On the other hand, 58% of the respondents of a survey said that they weren't interested in local elections.Aufbau Osthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10847952591018738623noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8516204.post-62193544447569083882007-04-21T23:36:00.000+02:002007-04-21T23:41:15.954+02:00Sarcastic CampaignThere are local elections tomorrow in Saxony-Anhalt. A few weeks ago I spotted this campaign poster in Merseburg:<br /><center><img src="http://homepages.wmich.edu/~m0kintz/Images/200704213487.jpg" width="450" /></center><br />The printed part says (roughly translated): Saxony-Anhalt - we are moving forward<br />The handwritten part adds: towards disaster.Aufbau Osthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10847952591018738623noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8516204.post-12645823932572133152007-04-20T23:00:00.000+02:002007-04-20T23:19:00.659+02:00Guest blog: Wildfires in the Kootenay National Park (Canada)<i>In support of <a href="http://www.project-canada.com">Project Canada</a> this blog will now from time to time feature small articles written by Arthur Sevestre about environmental and conservational issues in Canada. This is the first one. If you are interested in the goals of this project, please check out the website.</i> <p><br /><center><img src="http://www.project-canada.com/Canada/Images/LCA/20070309_ASP1715LCA.jpg" width="450"></center><br />Kootenay National Park has suffered much under wildfires in the past decade or two, as this picture shows. Many square kilometers of forest have been burned, especially during the extremely hot and dry summer of 2003 and much of that area's 'cover of vegetation' still consists only of blackened dead trunks of burned trees. The ground is still barren, nothing grows there, wildlife finds nothing to eat there and that will remain so for years...<br /><br />Ironically, forest fires are part of the natural processes in these forests. The species are adapted to them and for some of them regular fires are even vital for their survival. But there are roughly two kinds of fires. Under normal natural circumstances, the first kind only burns the surface and what is above it, leaving the seedbank deeper down in the soil intact. The dying of the trees and other older plants gives the seeds in the ground the space and light that they need to develop. Some seedpods that accumulate on or just underneath the surface actually only open to release their seeds when they are burned. And so, not long after the fire, there will be a whole fresh cover of young plants that will eventually grow out into a forest again. This fresh cover is a very important foodsource for many species that cannot find enough food in older forests, which typically offer less of the easy to digest and easy to reach young vegetation. These herbivores then serve as food for predators and so the circle of life runs its course. The size of these fires is usually relatively small and only occurs where enough flammable material has accumulated, which is often only in mature forests where old dry leaves, needles and bark pile up. The relatively low temperatures of this fire makes it burn slowly and when it reaches a place with less highly flammable material, like a recent burn with young vegetation, it will simply go out. In this way, only small patches here and there are rejuvenated, which helps to keep the natural system dynamic and diverse.<br /><br />Unfortunately, management has suppressed these natural forest fires for many years because they were deemed destructive and harmful instead of rejuvenating and necessary (interestingly, many native people knew about the beneficial powers of wildfires long before 'the white man' even arrived in the Americas). This led to two important results and eventually to the second kind of fire. The first result was that there was no more rejuvenating. The whole area kept on developing into mature forest, and the young vegetation typical for recent burns disappeared. This disturbed the circle of life, because animals that needed the fresh greens to survive were going hungry, and their predators awaited the same fate. The second result was that the heaps of dry leaves, bark and moss that under normal circumstances would have ignited a 'rejuvenating' fire, were kept from doing so and thus only grew higher. The suppression of fires went as planned for a certain period, but with more and more flammable material it kept getting harder and harder to keep it from igniting. In the extremely hot and dry summer of 2003 especially, suppression was no longer possible and many areas of British Columbia and some in Alberta finally caught fire. But this fire had a completely different result compared to the first one. The abundance of food for the flames made them much hotter and they did not only burn the surface, but also the seedbank. Moreover, the uniformity of the forests meant that the fires found food everywhere and were not stopped by areas with less flammable material. Therefore, much larger areas burned in one time. These fires were not rejuvenating, they were sterelizing! And instead of bringing diversity and dynamics, diversity took a deep dive and the area will not be dynamic anymore for a long time. It will take many years for seeds to arrive in the area again and for nature to restore itself again.<br /><br />Since the last decade of the 20th century, realisation is growing that wildfires will have to keep occuring. Fortunately, management is adapting to that knowledge and now sometimes intentionally sets fire to certain areas before there will be enough food for the flames to make them too hot. The fires are still more or less controlled in that way, so that human activities in the area are less affected by unpredicted fires. It is a step in the right direction, but much research is still needed to find the best ways to manage this phenomenon.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">written by Arthur Sevestre</span>Aufbau Osthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10847952591018738623noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8516204.post-53198009386706808422007-04-13T21:54:00.000+02:002007-04-13T21:56:27.896+02:00Before and after<center><img src="http://homepages.wmich.edu/~m0kintz/Images/2007041301.jpg" width="450" /></center><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">8 sunny days in between</span>Aufbau Osthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10847952591018738623noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8516204.post-16791786989782649022007-04-06T21:44:00.000+02:002007-04-06T22:30:36.756+02:00Leipzig - View from the "Fockeberg"<a href="http://anneruthmann.blogspot.com/">Anne Ruthmann</a>, whose photographic work I admire, told the readers of her blog to blog something on their own blog, so she has something to see when she cannot sleep. So here we go with some views of Leipzig downtown, taken from the top of the Fockeberg (in the south of Leipzig) last week.<br /><br /><center><img src="http://homepages.wmich.edu/~m0kintz/Images/200704062605.jpg" width="450" /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">View to downtown showing the mdr highrise and the Messehochhaus</span> <p><br /><img src="http://homepages.wmich.edu/~m0kintz/Images/200704062617.jpg" width="450" /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">View to downtown showing the townhall on the right, the roof (greenish color) of the Federal administrative court and the Westin Hotel highrise<br /></span></center></p><br />I know this all is not that spectacular, more to see and read in the next few days, promise!Aufbau Osthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10847952591018738623noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8516204.post-47113562507881102282007-03-27T18:33:00.001+02:002007-03-27T18:34:00.076+02:00Project Canada 2007<b>Support Project Canada and get a signed print free! </b><br /><br /><center><img src="http://www.project-canada.com/Canada/Images/LCA/2005102023138LCA.jpg" width="450"></center><br /><br />This project's goal is raising awareness of natural values in the Canadian Rockies.The first period of Field research was done in 2005. The fieldwork period in 2005 was mainly intended for reconnaissance and building up a network with relevant organizations and individuals. Both have worked out well. The period resulted in several published articles and photos in magazines. Now Arthur Sevestre is back in Canada to conduct further research. If you want to help making this fieldwork period successful, if you want to help making this whole project more efficient and if you can afford it, then please consider supporting Project Canada. This project is a self-financed research project. In return for your support , you will receive Arthur's deep gratitude, a special mention on the project's website, a signed photograph of your choice and a discount on the book that this project will eventually culminate in!<br /><br />For further details see: <b><a href="http://www.project-canada.com/Canada/info.htm">Project Canada</a></b>Aufbau Osthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10847952591018738623noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8516204.post-50953393939962399832007-03-22T18:14:00.000+01:002007-03-22T18:16:27.338+01:00Natural Curtains<center><img src="http://homepages.wmich.edu/~m0kintz/Images/200703222294.jpg" width="450"></center><br />It's snowing outside. In fact, it has snowed these past two days of spring than it snowed all winter.Aufbau Osthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10847952591018738623noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8516204.post-1167344035631215792006-12-28T23:10:00.000+01:002006-12-28T23:13:55.643+01:00First snow in LeipzigAfter some very warm days in Leipzig we had the first showing of winter today. For a few hours we had snow on the ground. Now it is all melting away. But here is the proof from this afternoon:<br /><br /><center><img src="http://homepages.wmich.edu/~m0kintz/Images/20061228-393.jpg"><p><br /><img src="http://homepages.wmich.edu/~m0kintz/Images/20061228-400.jpg"></center>Aufbau Osthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10847952591018738623noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8516204.post-1166801891150229772006-12-22T16:36:00.000+01:002006-12-22T16:39:04.396+01:00Holiday greetings<center><img src="http://homepages.wmich.edu/~m0kintz/Images/20061221-210ed.jpg" width="450"></center>Aufbau Osthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10847952591018738623noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8516204.post-1165792197445258822006-12-11T00:06:00.000+01:002006-12-11T00:09:57.456+01:00Scandinavia's first astronautScandinavia sent its first astronaut to space this past weekend. Christer Fuglesang, a Swede with a Norwegian father, started his trip to space on board the Discovery.<br />More can be found <a href="http://www.aftenposten.no/english/local/article1564337.ece">here.</a>Aufbau Osthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10847952591018738623noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8516204.post-1164217669538340042006-11-22T18:42:00.000+01:002006-11-22T18:47:49.550+01:00PotsdamPictures from summer 2005.<br /><center><img src="http://homepages.wmich.edu/~m0kintz/Images/MK2006112201.jpg" width="450" /><br />Sans Souci <p><br /><img src="http://homepages.wmich.edu/~m0kintz/Images/MK2006112202.jpg" width="450" /><br />Downtown in the late afternoon <p><br /><img height="450" src="http://homepages.wmich.edu/~m0kintz/Images/MK2006112203.jpg" /><br />Window in the Alexandrovka settlement <p></center></p><br /><small>Do not use without authorization</small>Aufbau Osthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10847952591018738623noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8516204.post-1163770975784230572006-11-17T14:38:00.000+01:002006-11-17T14:42:55.793+01:00Tamara-Danz-Straße is realityTuesday the Tamara-Danz-Straße in Berlin became reality.<br /><br /><img src="http://www.meinberlin.de/sixcms/media.php/85/061116danz_ddp_50x34.jpg" width="450" /><br /><br /><span style="font-size:85%;">Copyright by: ddp</span> <br><br />More information (in German) <a href="http://www.meinberlin.de/nachrichten_und_aktuelles/40186.html">here</a>.</p>Aufbau Osthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10847952591018738623noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8516204.post-1162684303651727342006-11-05T00:46:00.000+01:002006-11-05T01:00:08.090+01:00City Blogs  If you wanna know more about what's going on in cities such as these:<br><br />    Leipzig: <a href="http://leipzig-blog.de/">http://leipzig-blog.de/</a><br />    Dresden: <a href="http://dresden-blog.de/">http://dresden-blog.de/</a><br />    Chemnitz: <a href="http://chemnitz-blog.de/">http://chemnitz-blog.de/</a><br />    Bautzen: <a href="http://bautzen-blog.de/">http://bautzen-blog.de/</a><br />    Zwickau: <a href="http://zwickau-blog.de/">http://zwickau-blog.de/</a><br />    Halle (Saale): <a href="http://halle-blog.de/">http://halle-blog.de/</a><br />    Potsdam: <a href="http://potsdam-blog.de/">http://potsdam-blog.de/</a><br />    Erfurt: <a href="http://erfurt-blog.de/">http://erfurt-blog.de/</a><br />    Rostock:<a href="http://rostock-blog.de/">http://rostock-blog.de/</a><br />    Berlin: <a href="http://berlin-blog.de/">http://berlin-blog.de/</a><br /><br />  I am sure there are many more. <p>Aufbau Osthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10847952591018738623noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8516204.post-1162570368275454662006-11-03T17:09:00.000+01:002006-11-03T17:14:43.043+01:00Fall in Leipzig<div align="left"><img src="http://homepages.wmich.edu/~m0kintz/Images/MK2006110301.jpg" width="450" /><br /><span style="font-size:78%;">Do not use without authorization</span>.</div>Aufbau Osthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10847952591018738623noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8516204.post-1161694336620579532006-10-24T14:39:00.000+02:002006-10-24T14:54:13.270+02:00Cottbus has the library of the yearThe university library of the Brandenburg Technical University won the "library of the year" award, which comes with a grant of 30 000 euros. This library was chosen for the award because it is a center that combines library, multi-media center and computer lab in one building with an extra-ordinary architecture. Source: <a href="http://www.tu-cottbus.de/cms/index.php?beitrag_id=80008817">TU Cottbus</a> <p><br /><center><img src="http://www.fotos.sc/img/u/noshadow/h/IKMZ_Cottbus_Bibliothek.jpg" width="450" /><br />Copyright by Martin Ridder at <a href="http://www.fotos.sc">www.fotos.sc</a><br /></center><br /><br />Since none of the East German universities could be named elite universities (no East German university placed in the top 10 even), it is comforting that an East German university has a well equipped library with an innovative concept.Aufbau Osthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10847952591018738623noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8516204.post-1160601674810635482006-10-11T22:54:00.000+02:002006-10-11T23:22:22.546+02:00Renft passes away, street to be named after Tamara DanzThis passed weekend another well-known East German musician, Klaus Renft, passed away at the age of 64. He had suffered from cancer. Renft was leader of the Klaus Renft Combo, a band that was founded in 1958 in Leipzig. One of its most-well known songs was "Wer die Rose ehrt". Due to its very politically critical songs, the band was forbidden in the 1970s.<br />Personally, I do not have a true connection to the Renft combo, but it still saddens me that after Tamara Danz of Silly and Herbert Dreilich of Karat another great East German musician has passed away. Having grown up with a father who loved music, I listened to the radio a lot as a child and followed the East German charts religiously. Thus, such "oldies" like "Wer die Rose ehrt", "Als ich wie ein Vogel war" and "Apfeltraum" are dear to my heart and I still listen to them. Just like I still (occassionally) listen to Karat and Silly.<br /><br />And speaking of Silly: <a href="http://www.taz.de/pt/2006/10/06/a0219.1/text.ges,1">TAZ</a> reports, that a street around the new Anschutz-Arena in Berlin (in the Ostbahnhof area) will be named "Tamara-Danz-Street". Tamara Danz was the lead singer of the band Silly and died from cancer in 1996. Information as to why the city council choose Tamara Danz isn't available. However, Tamara Danz lived and worked in Berlin and aften sang about the city.<br /><br />Now, I am wondering if we will see in the future a Renft-square or a Dreilich-Road? Maybe a suggestion for urban planners?Aufbau Osthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10847952591018738623noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8516204.post-1153484130387980652006-07-21T14:09:00.000+02:002006-07-21T14:17:10.166+02:00Baltic Sea IIThis isn't meant to be a photoblog, but since I just returned from another beautiful trip to the Baltic Sea, here some impressions.<br /><br /><center><img src="http://homepages.wmich.edu/~m0kintz/Images/MK2006072104.jpg" height="500"><br />sunrise</center><br /><br /><center><img src="http://homepages.wmich.edu/~m0kintz/Images/MK2006072108.jpg" width="420"><br />Full moon rise</center><br /><br />Note: don't use these pictures without authorization!Aufbau Osthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10847952591018738623noreply@blogger.com1