The planning and writing of this book has taken rather longer than I had originally intended; what began as a modest literary project for two second-year medical students has expanded over eight years to become a complete book. The subject matter lent itself all too easily to a sen sationalist approach yet, on the other hand, a strictly scientific approach would probably have resulted in a dull dry text of little interest to the general reader. I have therefore attempted to bridge the gap ...

Diversity is one of the defining characteristics of contemporary German-language literature, not just in terms of the variety of authors writing in German today, but also in relation to theme, form, technique and style. However, common themes emerge: the Nazi past, transnationalism, globalisation, migration, religion and ethnicity, gender and sexuality, and identity. This book presents the novel in German since 1990 through a set of close readings both of international bestsellers (includi...

The concept of chemical transmission in the central nervous system has taken some time to be generally accepted, but an increasing number of compounds are now being recognized as hav ing a transmitter role in the brain. The acetylcholine system was the first to be discovered in the periphery and its charac teristic features of storage of transmitter in vesicles in the nerve terminal, its electrically-evoked release and rapid extra neuronal breakdown were considered to be necessary criteria...

Use the power of curiosity to transform challenging conversations into productive, meaningful, relationship-building experiences at work, home, or school.As leaders, parents, or teachers, navigating difficult conversations is part of the job. How do we keep calm and achieve a productive outcome, all while keeping our relationships intact?The secret is curiosity.Curiosity is the innovation-driving, emotion-calming skill that comes so naturally to us ...

On the river Sorgue in Provence lies Vaucluse la Fontaine, a village of some two hundred souls. The emerald green waters of the river turn the great wooden wheel of the old paper mill, where Jean Louis has lived from the age of eight.Now a young man, Jean Louis is excited, if a little apprehensive, as he leaves the village on his trusted mare Sorrel. He feels proud that Brother Xavier, the leader of the monks who runs the old paper mill, has asked him to deliver an important letter...

This book examines how German-language authors have intervened in contemporary debates on the obligation to extend hospitality to asylum seekers, refugees, and migrants; the terrorist threat post-9/11; globalisation and neo-liberalism; the opportunities and anxieties of intensified mobility across borders; and whether transnationalism necessarily implies the end of the nation state and the dawn of a new cosmopolitanism. The book proceeds through a series of close readings of key texts of t...

Günter Grass is Germany's best-known and internationally most successful living author, from his first novel The Tin Drum to his recent controversial autobiography. He is known for his tireless social and political engagement with the issues that have shaped post-War Germany: the difficult legacy of the Nazi past, the Cold War and the arms race, environmentalism, unification and racism. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature in 1999. This Companion offers the widest coverage of Gras...

Carbon Fluxes and Biophysical Variables from Earth Observation: Methods for Ecosystem Assessment transforms the way remote sensing data can be used to approach monitoring of carbon fluxes (CF) and biophysical variables (BV) in ecosystem and global vegetation monitoring. In a field where these two subjects have traditionally been treated as distinct entities, this book offers an integrated exploration of CF and BV retrieval through remote sensing. It not only delves into a wide array of app...

After the international success in the 1990s of authors such as Bernhard Schlink, Marcel Beyer, and Thomas Brussig, an impressive number of new German-language novelists are making a significant impact. Some, like Karen Duve, Daniel Kehlmann, and Sasa Stanisic, have achieved international recognition; some, like Julia Franck, have won major prizes; others, like Clemens Meyer, Alina Bronsky, and Ilja Trojanow, are truly "emerging authors" who have begun toattract attention. Between them the...

Phantoms of War in Contemporary German Literature, Films and Discourse offers an up-to-date and comprehensive analysis of fundamental shifts in German cultural memory. Focusing on the resurgence of family stories in fiction, autobiography and in film, this study challenges the institutional boundaries of Germany's memory culture that have guided and arguably limited German identity debates. Essays on contemporary German literature are complemented by explorations of heritage films and muse...

Reverberations of Nazi Violence in Germany and Beyond explores the complex and diverse reverberations of the Second World War after 1945. It focuses on the legacies that National Socialist violence and genocide perpetrated in Europe continue to have in German-speaking countries and communities, as well as among those directly affected by occupation, terror and mass murder. Furthermore it explores how those legacies are in turn shaped by the present.The volume also consider...

German National Cinema is the first comprehensive history of German film from its origins to the present. In this new edition, Sabine Hake discusses film-making in economic, political, social, and cultural terms, and considers the contribution of Germany's most popular films to changing definitions of genre, authorship, and film form.The book traces the central role of cinema in the nation’s turbulent history from the Wilhelmine Empire to the Berlin Republic, with special ...