Jacobs University Student Newspaper Since 2004

PULSE
to in order to present said petition. A first meeting was requested with Heinz-Otto Peitgen and subsequently scheduled with Thorsten Thiel, Jacobs Universitys CEO and COO respectively. This preparatory meeting saw a set of wide-ranging, yet unofficial assurances from the side of the university administration. During a second meeting with both the CEO and the COO, the petitions were submitted and Mr. Peitgen strongly suggested clearing the matter with the Housing Department. The Housing Department, however, could not facilitate any information regarding the clauses of student interest. As stressed by Mrs. Hurlemann, head of the department, the Housing Department receives directives from the COO, but is accountable to the CFO. Therefore, they would know exactly as little as the porters, who are contracted externally. Eventually, the COO promised to consult back with the CEO, who before had seemingly not developed a policy for the implementation of the annual inspection. At last, COO Thorsten Thiel clarified the clause. This little tale of eternal meetings tells a very essential story. If James Humes was right, then "the art of communication is the language of leadership. And this language follows the very simple an old dogma of Divide et Impera[Divide and Rule]. The Housing Department, reporting back to the financial office, keeps track of missing signatures. The porters distribute the contract without knowing about its content. The COO may decide upon an

OF THE WORLD
Issue 30 Tuesday, October 1, 2013

the

Decoding the Gene Pool of Leadership at Jacobs University

Benedikt van den Boom International Politics and History 2015, Germany

Divide Et Impera

Arriving on campus at the beginning of the semester, the colleges face a completely different role than before. A policy paper is created out of the blue, while a report is thoroughly neglected. The quest for answers on the Housing Agreement reveals that everybody knows something, but barely anyone knows everything. Are these current developments purely Photo Copyright http://www.trevena.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/bureaucracy-maze.preview.jpg

implementation policy, but it needs to be communicated by the CEO. Channels of communication between these bodies are kept impaired. By dividing communication, leadership from the top is stabilized. The price for this overlapping and neutralizing division of competences is a sta-

Inside this Issue

01 Divide Et Impera Editorial 03 Letter from the Editor Jacobs Life 03 Introducing the New USG Pres. 04 Welcome Home Freshies 05 Media at Jacobs 07 The Sports Desk 08 Olympix 2013 Outside the Bubble 09 The Fight of Colors 10 The Syrian Crisis Updates 11 The Indian Rape Case 12 Chinas Energy Conservation 13 Spains Separate Nation Food for Thought 14 The Financial Suspensions 15 The Egoism Inside Us www.pulseoftheworld.com

coincidental or can we reveal some kind of pattern behind these events? Can we extract some communicative, administrative and consultative traits that form the role-model brand of Leadership at Jacobs University? At the beginning of the semester, several students drafted a petition commenting on many policy changes. Among other goals, they demanded a clarification on unspecified sections of the Housing Agreement for which they were able to collect more than 320 signatures from the undergraduate student body. Once this was achieved, the question rose, whom to talk

02
decline of efficient communi-cation. But it also grants the valuable timeframe to decide to which office the student can be sent next to not receive an answer again. Et voil: the communicative trait of THE LEADERSHIP at Jacobs. se two documents. The official report states, printed in bold, that Most of the ideas require further discussion and feasibility checks (p.1) and suggests several action points for clearly defined success factors of student-centered learning [if THE LEADERSHIP were an exclusive discotheque, colorful flashcards would be the bouncers. STAKEHOLDER is written on these cards, ACTION POINT or SUCCESS-FACTORS and a dazzling myriad of abbreviations]. The policy paper from the Presidents Office does not display these qualities. It creates facts (will, must), where the power team uses cautionary language (would, should, may). Additionally, it does not attempt to reflect the structure of the report or to differentiate between conditions, inputs and outcomes. This report naturally raises the question of the administrative face of THE LEADERSHIP. The impression created outside the power team is summed up by Prof. Dr. Matthijs Bogaards. The confusion is caused by the president. He insisted on having power teams consisting of faculty, administration, and students and then he circumvents these power teams by having his own people working in parallel, drafting their own paper. If you look at the report of the power team on student-centered learning, you see that it is a clearly structured, well-researched, thoughtful document The other paper, drafted by Verena Oetzmann from the presidents office, is in many ways the opposite of the report by the power team and I think it would be best if we simply forgot about it. Gabriela Ponce, herself a member of the power team, adds: I think we now see what we were worried about from the start: Our results are prone to be misunderstood or even ignored. They both stress how THE LEADERSHIP by principle splits the administrative competences on campus in order to leave patters of decision-making in the realm of obscurity and to facilitate the other traits of LEADERSHIP. With regards to Jacobs alcohol policy, we can observe the potentially most stunning trait of THE LEADERSHIP. All students living on campus had to transfer their semester fees, which include room and board, by the 15th August to not face any penalty costs. However, upon arrival they were presented, matter-of-factly, a new contract that had been amended significantly. These proceedings were not limited to students only. According to 6.2 of the General Rental Terms and Conditions, the consumption of alcohol in the common rooms is only permitted following written consent from an authorized person and under supervision. Unofficial reactions by some of these authorized persons reveal two lines of thought. Firstly, there has not been sufficient consultation, if any, whether the directly involved stakeholders would want to take up the assigned role. Secondly, there has not been sufficient consultation on the question, if student life in fact requires such measures. Hierarchical leadership relies on established processes. The outcome must be channeled through, and to a certain extent be dependent on, these structures. THE LEADERSHIP is different, however. Talks about the role of all stakeholders, the realities of student-life and the needs of the administration take place, but the idea behind them is different. Following an individualized approach of leadership, the result is much more important than the structures. This in itself does not necessarily need to be a negative idea in itself, but THE LEADERSHIP adds a special twist to it. The stakeholders are presented an irreversible fact. The consultative trait of THE LEADERSHIP is that there is no consultation, but only a top-down presentation of taken decisions and established facts.

Divide et Impera : divide communication and stablize leadership from the top. This grants a valuable timeframe to decide where to send the next person to not receive an answer.
Does this now mean that communication and decision-making are dysfunctional everywhere on campus? Not necessarily, and USG Representative Gabriela Ponce (IES & ESS, 2014) asserts that for example the Undergraduate Education Committee is very well operating. This committee, in which the administration is represented along with faculty and students from both schools as well as the registrars, has been set up years ago through constitutional means. During Spring Semester 2013, THE LEADERSHIP decided to introduce power-teams outside the constitution and along-side existing committees. These power-teams were made up of similar stakeholders and covered a wide range of topics. This is by no means a negative development per se, but an assessment of the way THE LEADERSHIP deals with the first published results of these powerteams then adds an administrative trait to the Jacobs brand of LEADERSHIP. Student-Centered Learning was a topic covered by one power-team. Nonetheless, the search string scl results in two documents published on teamwork. The first, twelve pages long including an extensive appendix, is the Report of the power-team on student-centered learning model. Eleven authors from all areas summarized their conclusions from four meetings. The second document, six pages long and much less academic in language and structure, may best be described as a policy paper. It has been authored by the Presidents Office/Verena Oetzmann, with neither the office, nor the person being a member of the power team. From this rather unusual administrative starting point, we should briefly compare the-

The stakeholders are presented with fait accompli. There is no consultation, but only a top-down presentation of taken decisions and established facts.
In this light we can explain why RAs might now be responsible for policing the students and why the College Masters should supervise adult students. One cannot expect anyone to develop an understanding of the everyday situation of students by a 35-hour-a-week impression from across campus. This would need consultation with the social workers in the Colleges (we call them College Office Managers, College Masters and RAs) and one could assume that such consultation should be possible on a 80 acre campus with a continuous schedule of meetings. But the lack thereof reveals the third innate trait of THE LEADERSHIP. We see decrees instead of consultation and a rule of fait accompli instead of discussions and deliberation. Concluding, these are merely three ex-

Editorial 03
amples of interrupting communication, of splitting and ignoring competences and of establishing universal truths to deal with by others. What does this lead to? The serveries are buzzing with rumors. College Offices turn into market places for information. A bushfire of observations, expectations and imaginations runs around campus and infects students, faculty and staff. One term dominates the discourse in all its forms: THE LEADERSHIP. But THIS LEADERSHIP is not only a group of sages that guide the fate of Jacobs University from the place we almost lovingly call Reimar Lst Hall. It is not only a blurry set of mind that is surrounded by an aura of mysticism and erraticism. THE LEADERSHIP is also at the core of the gene pool of our education. Initiative, creativity, responsible leadership, social awareness are essential traits that Jacobs University seeks to nurture. It is Jacobs declared mission to prepare the leaders of tomorrow and this semester shows on which understanding of leadership actions are based, hoping that it will not contaminate the new USG and other bodies.

Dear Readers,

Letter from the Editor

areas in the world, including our very own Germany.

Welcome back to a new (and for some the first) year at Jacobs! We hope you had a nice summer and are surviving the slowly approaching midterms and winter. This year is starting off with a new POTW team as well all of whom are mentioned in this issue. Our first issue of the year addresses many topics which have been circulating and of high well-needed and well-deserved interest both on and off campus. Some of the most pertinent issues for students include this years new housing agreement as well as issues related to financials. Additionally, we aim in our Outside the Bubble section to shed light on global occurrences and issues happening in various

Editor-In-Chief
Nadine El-Nabli

In our Food for Thought section we leave the floor to you to express yourselves in any and every way you can poetry, opinion, photography. The Pulse of the World wishes you the best of luck in upcoming exams (and surviving the virus that seems to be spreading around to every one these days)! Best, Nadine El-Nabli STARTING IN THE OUR NEXT ISSUE, WE WILL BE INCLUDING A LETTERS FROM OUR READERS, SO PLEASE SEND US YOUR COMMENTS OR CONCERNS VIA OUR FACEBOOK PAGE.

Executive Board
Franziska Ehlert Sarah Reitz Section Editors Lisa-Marlen Gronemeier Beenish Waris Emre Yildiz Copy Editors Helena Gellersen Lorna Schtte Creative Designer Ciara Mulvaney

Introducing Bradley Leatherwood

Lisa-Marlen Gronemeier Integrated Cultural Studies 2015, Germany

Hello, Mr. President

Bradley and his contestants Laura Garcia and Frdrique Mittelstaedt. I liked the enthusiasm of the parliamentarians. Its really promising with regard to the next USG period, says Bradley. After the Q&A, the candidates were assessed in a suspenseful debate until the winner was proclaimed. Now its time to get to work, he instantly knew. Walking through the servery now, Bradley cannot escape animated greetings like Hello, Mr. President which still seem odd to him. Many Jacobs students cannot help but wonder how one could manage to assume such a significant position with the many other demands students have. For Bradley, the answer is clear: I applied for the position because I want to make a difference and help the university out. I think that the former USG took too soft

Many Jacobs students cannot help but wonder how one could manage to assume such a significant position alongside the many other demands students have to fulfill. After five intense hours of Q&A, electoral debates and waiting, the decision of the USG parliamentarians was finally announced, around 1 am on September 19. It was crazy, I had been so nervous that I had to wear my headphones and listen to music, Bradley explains. My competitors were really fair, though. After the announcement of the decision, they even came to congratulate and hug me. In the Q&A session preceding the election, the parliamentarians of the four colleges had been fervently interrogating

an approach when faced with the administration. We saw the change in the meal plan policies, the departure of valued proPhoto Source Jacobs Admissions

04 Jacobs Life
fessors and now we are confronted with a new housing contract. I believe that we need to make communication and cooperation the tone and the norm within our university. One progressive step will soon be taken: the USG will ask the registrars office to facilitate the earlier release of exam schedules this week so that students might be able to arrange their flights back home for Christmas at a more reasonable time. Bradley is determined to also address USG internal issues like regular attendance, the election process and constitutional issues. Besides, I want the committee members to be empowered which can be attained through some management strategies. The new incumbent sees his main task in assigning responsibilities according to the parliamentarians skills, coordinating between the different individuals and bodies and fostering effective solution strategies. I really want to make sure that everyone stays involved and thus, the enthusiasm of the different members needs to be channeled. At this point, the USG still seems like an abstract and remote construct to us. Bradleys wish, however, is to create a bridge between student body, USG and leadership. We have to break the students perception that the USG cant help as this is restricting its potential power. The hope is that students will help to fertilize the USG with their ideas. But, according to Bradley, the USG first has to provide service to gain the students trust. Therefore, the students need to get familiarized with their own government. The Pulse of the World and a hopefully soon to be inaugurated screen in the coffee bar could serve as windows to USG affairs. Besides, students can always talk to me or the parliamentarians if they have any questions or concerns. The USG is opening its doors to leave room for students interests and ideas. Bradley states: We are at a turning point now. The leadership is cutting down on what is unique about Jacobs. It is crucial that we step up now to set the direction.

Welcome Home Freshies

The Happenings of O-Week 2013
ted getting better and worse at the same time. On the one hand, we remembered some of the names, found our ways more easily and knew what dessert one should definitely go for. But on the other hand, we realized how hard it was to get up at 7am when you had been socializing throughout the night. The worst thing, though, and you can ask every freshie about this, was the fire drill. Starting 30 minutes early, we had to run across campus, pick apples from trees and kiss a duck while being bombarded with water balloons. One of the freshmen even shouted I hate you for this! at the 2nd years, which only resulted in laughter from their side. Another phenomenon was the reaction of the second years when they saw a new face. The sentence Uh, Freshiiiies!!! was one of the most often heard ones beside the freshmens Sorry, whats your name again? But with every day, the memory grew
Alena di Primio Biotechnology 2016, Germany

One more step and you are a student at Jacobs. One more step and college life starts. One more step and you leave everything behind. We came as blank sheets. No friends, no knowledge, no nothing. We took the chance and stepped through the portal unknowing what future would bring. Crazy, busy and unforgettable are only three of the words with which the freshmen of 2013 described their O-Week at Jacobs. Arriving in your new home away from home, finding new friends, a new family in people you have never seen before it seemed scary at first but after one week all doubts were long forgotten and the blank sheets that had arrived on campus a few days before were already beginning to fill. After the four weeks weve been here, O-Week seems so remote. But the fact is that three weeks ago we were still going around asking for someones name every five minutes. This years O-Week began on 27th August 2013 when all the Freshies, one by one, arrived on campus. Their eyes glistening with excitement and curiosity, their faces red from the heat as well as from the heavy suitcases and their arms full of documents to fill during the days to come. The first dinner with your student advisors, the first talk with your roomie, and then the first evening events of many that were yet to come. But that was only the beginning. After the first day, things star-

and names were no big problem anymore. Groups were forming and the time spent while eating was used to get to know people from your own college. The atmosphePhoto Copyright Jacobs University Adminstration

re in general was very openminded and friendly. After all nobody wanted to step on anyones foot during the first week. The first impression sticks within peoples minds, especially when you see them every day, which in the Jacobs case is not that unusual. The two probably most important events during O-Week were the major and the club fair since they would help you decide which way to go and what to

Jacobs Life 05
Photo Copyright Jacobs University Adminstration

do with your practically nonexistent free time. These decisions would form us, so we took our time deciding and making the right ones. I always wanted to do this and now I actually have a chance to do so! said one girl after joining the Zumba club. Im really looking forward to it and its so cheap, too! said another freshman who had just signed up for swimming. But soon enough, there were complaints about the prizes in Germany, the health insurance and German bureaucracy in general. People would say This costs only a third of this back in and German students would look around, feeling asha-

med of their nationality. What helped us understand each other was the intercultural training. Some would say only basic knowledge was conveyed, but then again one has to consider the different customs and habits of ones fellow students. In the end, our O-Week was filled with firsts: the first trip to Haven Hvt, the first meeting with our student advisors and our roomies, the first meal in the servery, the first shopping tours, and more. Then, on 1st September, our O-Week was over. In a short amount of time we

had found a new home, new friends, and a new family. Six days earlier we had taken a step into the unknown and now we had found our place and future. Six days that felt like three months or even longer. Six days of excitement and busy schedules. Now we are just like you: students running from one class to the next, studying for tests, relaxing in the common room, learning pool/ table tennis/ fussball when we should be learning something completely different. But most of all, were looking forward to tyrannizing the next generation of Freshies during the fire drill next year.

Unleashing the Ropes of Media

Community Standards at Jacobs
poster triggered a debate surrounding its appropriateness. Issues of objectification, stigmatism and discrimination were raised within the argument. Those who initiated the criticism and sparked the debate were members of Jacobs Feminist and Queer Equality Alliance (FQEA). The FQEA official stance concerning the poster is as follows: We firmly believe that this type of advertisement should not be used in order to promote university-sponsored community events. Furthermore, we believe that the depiction of the anonymous woman in the poster, in addition to being completely unrelated to a sports event, violates our Jacobs University Community Standard. It is easy to disregard or undermine the concerns of individuals who speak out against the unnecessary sexualization of women, and label these concerns as overreactions. After all, we see sexualized images of women everywhereall the time. Nevertheless, we cannot ignore
Nadine El-Nabli Integrated Social Sciences 2014, USA/Egypt

On September 20th there was a virtual uproar surrounding a promotional poster for the upcoming Sports Olympix. The poster, published on the events Facebook page, depicted a half-naked woman posing with her back to the viewer with her arms tied up behind it. Underneath the woman was this years Olympix slogan Unleash Your Spirit. After extensive criticism and debate, the event admins insisted that the creator of the poster remove it. The creator was approached for a statement but decided not to comment at this time. Yet, the surrounding discussion is still being echoed around campus. Within a matter of minutes of publishing, the poster received many disapproving comments and lots of heartfelt criticism on Facebook. While there were those enthused by the poster and the event it was made to promote, the content of the

the impact that these images have on our communities. This impact has been highly researched and the results show a clear connection between the sexualization of women and violence against women, rape culture, eating disorders, depression (the list of social maladies goes on). Nothing happens in a vacuum and we are undoubtedly influenced by the types of media we consume. So why, exactly, would we use the image of a bonded woman in her underwear to promote a sports event and community spirit? It just doesnt make any logical sense.

Such concerns are undermined as overreactions, sparking debates over the sexualization of women in the media.

06 Jacobs Life
Henrieke Max, a first year Integrated Social Sciences student, member of the FQEA and one of the main participants of what eventually became a very heated discussion on Facebook added that "the objectification of women in media is harmful. Period. It does not happen in a parallel universe, it connects to our reality. It does contribute to unequal treatment of women; it does influence and bias our mindsets. I find myself having gender biases towards both men and women, and I am not fond of it. I want to rid myself of these stereotypes created by media that intrude into my brain and dictate my behavior. She explained the need to take a stance on the poster with the following: If I shrug off the "little things that are easy to ignore, I shrug off my opportunity to recognize the larger picture and thus, my chance to fight objectification and sexism. There were, of course, those who considered the critique an overreaction and stressed that there is hypocrisy surrounding the promotion of gender equality. They argued that if the image depicted a half-naked man in the same position, it would not have caused as much uproar. This was even strongly illustrated through a post on the Jacobs Confessions and Messages page, which appeared almost five days after the incident, reading: #1035 I feel like if the Olympics pump-up picture had been this: (shows image of a man in bondage), the reaction would have been a lot different #doublestandards.
Photo Source Some claim that the poster is, in their opinion, not offensive at all and could, in fact, be viewed as liberating if looked at from another perspective. I thought the picture itself was nice. I honestly saw it as empowering women, not the opposite - even though I didnt even really think about the girl in the picture at first until the attention was brought to her. It was empowering because the woman is freeing herself from the rope which here was meant as the release of your college spirit, elaborated Sarah Cleto, a second year Integrated Social Sciences student. Jacobs Olympix Event Page

The most common pattern that came up in the wide survey of statements collected on this controversy is that this image was inappropriate and such images ought not be used in the promotion of anything, let alone campus events or activities. However, many believe that no specific individual ought to be blamed. My reaction to this was not particularly strong, probably because you see pictures like

used a poster like this. People learnt from this and will be more cautious in the future, expressed Lisa-Marlen Gronemeier, a second year Integrated Cultural Studies student. This is such a sensitive issue just like any other issue that affect the whole society. There are always two sides to the story and people always tend to consider only one of them. There are always people who agree with something and are offended by it and other people who dont and arent. But in order to create a good society you should just try to meet each other halfway. Basically, if someone is offended by something then put yourself in their shoes and try to understand or maybe not necessarily understand because you were born in a different society or have had different experiences, values and ideas but for the sake of a strong community you should be considerate. If this is offending one person then while it may not offend you try and respect that. You need to really just meet each other halfway. They [the offended] understand that it is a mistake that anyone could have made and is an unconscious consequence of media today and so the other people [the offenders] should also understand that this is something that could be personal for others. It would be so much easier if people would just put themselves in other peoples shoes, second year Integrated Social and Cognitive Psychology student Nada Hashweh concluded from these events. Over the past year, many initiatives have been and continue to be taken to address issues of gender, sexuality and feminism here at Jacobs and they continue to garner a growing focus on campus. But it is inevitable that with the complex nature of these subjects, they are still sources of much dispute and will remain to be as long as there continues to exist a gap in the education and information of our community, and communities in general, concerning the core values of humankind (as described in the Jacobs University Community Standard).

this in the media on an every day basis. Its quite clear that no harm was meant by it, but I guess it generally shows that the promotion strategies, which can be found in popular culture, are effective and the images they create ingrained in our minds. I generally dont approve of how women are portrayed in e.g. music videos (most of which really seem very sexist), and thus think we should not encourage that tendency on campus, but wouldnt really condemn any individual for having

Jacobs Life: Sports 07

Catch Up on the Latest News and Results

Mens Basketball
Last Game Results

The Sports Desk

Running Club Running Schedule Monday, 21.00 Wednesday, 12.50 Thursday, 21.00 Friday, 18.50 Saturday, 10.00 Sunday, 17.00
Where: Tennis Courts in front of C3 What: Running distance depends on participants in the respective training session (either 5,7 km or 10 km) Past Game Results

68:76
JACOBS

B. LESUM III

22 September 28 September 27 October 10 November 17 November

18.00 14.00 17.00 17.30 15.45

Jacobs University BG Bierden-Bassen Achim Jacobs University Bremen FireBasketz Jacobs University

Basketball Lesum Vegesack III Jacobs University SC Weyhe und Umgebung e. V. Jacobs University Bremer BV Brinkum II

Womens Football
Last Game Results

JACOBS
September saw the Female Football Team make history, not once but five times! On September 1st, the long-held dream of having their own football team that plays competitively in the German leagues became reality as they hosted the first ever official football match on campus, drawing with local rivals SV Grohn. Adriana Canby scored the first ever official goal on campus in this match as the girls earned the first point in their history. On September 15th, the team won their first ever match, beating 1.FC Burg 4-0 in a game that gave them their first ever 6 October 13 October 11.00 11.00 clean sheet!

4:0

FC BURG

Jacobs v. SV Grohn

4:4

FC Huchting v. Jacobs

7:0

Sandwiched between these two games, the team played away at FC Huchting, a very experienced and established team and lost 7-0. However, the scoreline flattered the hosts and the Jacobs girls had suffered several injuries by the end, which contributed to the final score. Important lessons were learnt in this game and fuelled the desire to make amends for this, shown in the great victory in the next game.

So, September has been quite remarkable for a team which in the last 9 months has gone from an idea and a dream of a handful of girls to a 19-strong squad which looks set to establish themselves as one of the top teams in the division. The team would also like to express their gratitude for the great support that they have received in both home games so far this season and look forward to seeing everyone at the next home game on 6th October. BY COACH ROBERT RENNIE

Jacobs University TuS Komet Arsten

Eintracht Aumund II Jacobs University

08 Jacobs Life: Olympix

The 2013 Olympix

Results of the Weekend C3 NM 3 RD 1 ST FRISBEE KR 2 ND C3 1 ST MC 3 RD BASKETBALL G&A 2 ND

TOP RIGHT: Basketball Game with Nordmetal versus Mercator MIDDLE: The Opening Ceremony BOTTOM LEFT: CIIIs Womens Tug of War Team Photo Credit to Alexandru Mihai

NM 1 ST

3 RD DODGEBALL C3 1 ST

C3 2 ND

C3 1 ST

NM 3 RD FOOTBALL KR 1 ST

MC 2 ND

C3

1 ST NM 3 RD VOLLEYBALL NM 1 ST

MC 2 ND

MC 3 RD CHEERLEADING C3 1 ST

NM 2 ND

NM 3 RD 400 RELAY

C3 2 ND

3 RD TUG OF WAR (W)

KR 2 ND

G&A 3 RD TUG OF WAR (M)

NM 2 ND

There are no official sources for these results but the POT W team did its best to collect accurate results from the community at random. For corrections contact our staff.

Outside the Bubble: Germany 09

The Fight of Colors

Elections in Germany
reasons was for example Green is my favorite color (anonymous). The Dutch Comparing Political Systems-Professor Dr. Matthijs Bogaards is sad that he cannot join the elections: I like the FDP and would like to go voting, but as a nonGerman citizen I am only allowed to vote on local level. So did Jacobs students vote this year? The distance to the voting booth is only approximately a fifteen minute walk from campus. For all interested students, there was the possibility to go to the booth together. The rest of the German students preferred the option of postal voting. I think it is important to vote because it is a way to have influence on what is going on, explains IPH-student Anna-Lena Scherer. GEM-major Laura Nelde adds that you cannot complain about the result afterwards if you dont vote. If you dont know anything about politics, you shouldnt vote, comments a CPN-student, but if you are well-informed and dont take part in the elections, it is bad. Not only students agree that it is important to vote, but also the professors and lecturers at Jacobs. They claim it shows that citizens do not forget about politics and still wish to take part in it. All interviewed professors stated they voted and had some assumptions about the outcome. The common view of students and lecturers was that Angela Merkel will get the chance to continue her as the German chancellor. I suppose the CDU will be the strongest party. My tip would be that we will have a black-yellow government assuming the FDP makes it into the parliament. Otherwise, the parties might agree on the big coalition, guessed second-year IPH-student Jessica Klemeier. A big coalition would consist of the two leading parties, CDU and SPD. For the first time in the partys history, the FDP did not receive the necessary 5% to enter the parliament. The CDU/CSU won 41.7% of the votes and hence the bare majority (Source ARD, 11.18pm). Thus, the party scarcely missed the absolute majority needed to govern on their own. The SPD was planning to form a coalition with the Green Party. However, they did not achieve the needed number of seats in the Bundestag either. Consequently, the big question is, who the parties in power will be and which parties will make the decisions for Germany in the upcoming four years.
Alina Noeth International Politics and History 2016, Germany
Photo Copyright http://scrapetv.com/News/ newsbrief/international/pages-3/Angela-Merkel

Black, red, green, yellow, orange, purple. At first, this sounds like a nice color pot with which one could paint nice pictures. But those are not just any colors. They are the colors of Germanys leading parties. Recently, one could see them quite a lot: in the news, on posters around the city and so on The reason the elections for the German Bundestag on September 22nd, 2013. The elections are only held every four years and display the allocation of seats in the Bundestag. The Bundestag then elects the German chancellor meaning the party with most seats chooses its candidate. This year, the two main
Photo Copyright http://www.dw.de/image/0,,16311813_303,00.jpg

candidates were Angela Merkel from the CDU (Christian Democratic Union) and the contender Peer Steinbrck from the SPD (Social Democratic Party of Germany). At Jacobs, you find different views on German politics. Biochemistry and Cell Biology Professor Sebastian Springer thinks that in this country like in many others, personalities are overemphasized in the political process, and most people find it difficult to name the positions of the party they are electing on important issues. Many people seem to elect their favorite candidate by the general impression s/he makes or even just by their looks. Jacobs students as well as professors have different or no political affiliations for varying reasons. One of the

Photo Copyright http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/sep/22/germany-election-results-merkel-live-updates

10 Outside the Bubble: World

The Syrian Crisis

The Updated Story
Mike Lamsfuss International Politics and History 2015, Germany

When the feelers of the so called Arab Spring reached Syria in March, 2011, hopes were high among a large part of the countrys population and within the international community that a similar shift towards more political participation of the people would be achieved just as it seemed to happen in Tunisia and Egypt at the time. However, while the protesters in these two countries were able to force their head of states out of office shortly after the outbreak of the demonstrations and with relatively limited use of violence - at least compared to the Syrian case Syrias ruler Bashar al-Assad did not step down and denied all sorts of democratic reforms. While government troops made peaceful demonstrations impossible, the protesters also increasingly used military force to defend themselves and to assert their demands. The result was an interior military conflict that developed into a civil war which has up to now - 2 and a half years after the outbreak of protests taken the lives of around 100,000 people and has forced around 2 million people to leave their homes (UN data). What makes the conflict extremely complicated is the involvement of a many different groups with different goals. While initially, the boundary could be cut quite clearly government troops on the one side and opposition forces on the other - this has changed drastically over time. Today, the conflict has also attracted Islamist groups fighting against Assad and Hezbollah forces fighting for Assad. Another difficult factor are the divisions between religious groups, especially the long-lasting rivalry between the minority Alawites -Assads sect- and the majority Sunni. The complicated and unclear situation in Syria has - besides other reasons such as the Iranian governments favorable stance towards Assad - also kept the Western world from militarily intervening in the country as it had done in Libya in 2011. However, U.S. President Barack Obama made clear in a statement in August, 2012, that a "red line would be crossed for his government if the Assad regime made use of chemical weapons. In that case, it had to expect a military action by the United States. There have been accusations that chemical weapons were used by both Assad

and rebel forces since early on in the conflict. However, it was not until the deadly events in the Damascus suburb of Ghouta on August 21st of this year that the position of Western countries towards a military response began to shift. Reports of deaths varied from around 300 up to 1,700. United Nations inspectors, who were granted access to the affected sites

clude putting "boots on the ground and would be limited "in duration and scope. The declared aim of a military strike was not to bring about a decisive advantage for the rebel forces or to topple Assad, but to simply hold the regime responsible and to send out a message that the use of chemical weapons was unacceptable. As the U.K. refused to participate in any

US and Russia reach agreement on Syria crisis. Photo Source Business Insider in Ghouta, confirmed the use of the nerve agent sarin. As in many cases before, both government and opposition forces accused each other of the attacks, but final evidence as to who was responsible could not be established. However, the U.S. government, on grounds of findings of its own and other western countries intelligence services made out the Assad regime as the perpetrator and now pushed on intervening militarily in the conflict even without the consent of the U.N. Security Council. Surprisingly, though, the United States could also not count on active military support from the United Kingdom as the House of Commons voted against these measures at the end of August. In light of this, U.S. President Obama on August 31st, declared that he will first seek approval by Congress before launching an attack, which, as he made clear, should not inmilitary action, France has become the most important ally of the United States in this matter, while Germany has ever since the outbreak of the conflict shown that it opposes any military intervention in Syria and sticks to that position even after the Ghouta incidents. A common resolution of the U.N. Security Council for a military intervention has not been possible as both Russia and China oppose these measures. However, while the U.S. Congress was discussing on what measures to take, the Russian government surprisingly gave the developments a new direction by taking up a comment of U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry that there was a chance to avert United States military strikes if the Assad regime agreed to destroy its chemical weapons under international supervision. The Russian government made clear that a peaceful solution could be achieved for the chemical weapons problem if the United States for the moment

Outside the Bubble: World 11

abstained from taking military measures and let Russia negotiate with the Syrian government. The U.S. side agreed to give these plans a chance and from September 11th to 14th, Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov met in Geneva in order to negotiate the possible destruction of Syrias stockpile of chemical weapons while Russia maintained its contacts with the Syrian government in order to convince it to agree to the conditions. On September 14th, Kerry and Lavrov declared that an agreement had been reached to the extent that the Assad regime consented to destroy its chemical weapons under international supervision and that the United States would for the moment abstain from taking any military measures. In detail, international inspectors are to be on the ground in Syria by November and all components of the countrys chemical weapons program are to be destroyed by mid-2014. The U.S. government made clear that non-compliance by the Syrian government meant that plans of an American military strike - which for now are only suspended - would be taken up again. However, while a military intervention from the outside has been averted for the moment and the Assad regime committed itself to destroy its large stock of chemical weapons, an end to violence in the country is still not in sight.

The Verdict for the Rape Case in India

Adriana Canby Cognitive Psychology and Neuroscience 2015, USA

The Four Hangings

being a juvenile. It will send a wrong signal. This verdict as a result had sparked more protests and a debate on lowering the juvenile age to 16 in India. Though within India the death penalty has come to the relief of those gunning for harsh punishment others are still hesitant, as stated by the New York Times Some of Indias most ardent womens rights advocates hung back from Fridays celebration, skeptical that four hangings would do anything to stem violence against women Tara Rao, Director of Amnesty Internati-

on to an ongoing problem. Mari Harf, State Department spokesperson of the United States said, We are heartened to see that the Indian justice systems has spoken and the perpetrators of these heinous attacks have been convicted and sentenced in a court of law, and that like so many people in India and around the world, we were saddened by this horrific act of violence, yet moved by civil societys response at the same time. She also stated that the U.S. would like to continue working with India to counter gender-based violence for the death of these men will, probably, not help lessen
Photo Copyright http://images.theage.com.au/2013/09/18/4758546/ SG_729_Mallika-20130918191847873428-620x349.jpg

Four to be hangings. Four to be deaths. Four criminals soon to be gone from this world. Many question the death penalty; it is a huge topic for debate within the United States, and has been banned from the European Union. Yet many people around the world and within India felt this harsh penalty was deserved in the case of Nirbhaya. Nirbhaya fearless (her real name has not been released, in accordance with Indian law) was a 23 year old medical student, who was on her way home from a movie with a friend when she was attacked and raped on a bus in Delhi, India last December. Nirbhaya died two weeks later from substantial internal injuries. Her brutal attack brought to a head the issues of sex-related violence within India and caused the country to call for heavy punishment of her six attackers. Of these attackers one committed what seems to have been suicide in jail, four were sentenced to death, and the sixth a juvenile at the time he committed the crime has been sentenced to 3 years in prison. Vrinda Grover, an advocate in the India Supreme Court said A juvenile court can give maximum punishment up to three years in an observation home. The idea is not to punish but to reform the child. This last punishment has angered many in India who agreed with the statement of Nirbahayas younger brother, Gaurav Singh: When he [the juvenile] committed the crime he was seventeen and half years old. It will be an injustice to my sister if he is given a lesser sentence for

onal India, shared this concern. The rape and murder of the young woman in Delhi last year was a horrific crime and our deepest sympathy goes out to the victims family. Those responsible must be punished, but the death penalty is never the answer. Rao also says the hangings will accomplish nothing except short-term revenge and that it is a quick fix soluti-

attacks. Though many question the severity of the death penalty, the outcome of the case, with the exception of the short sentence of the juvenile, seems to satisfy the anger of India and the outrage of the world.

12 Outside the Bubble: World

Energy Conservation vs. Economic Growth

A Dilemma in China
Yina Wu International Politics and History 2014, China

The 16th BASIC (Brazil, South Africa, India, and China) Ministerial Meeting on Climate Change was held in Foz do Iguau, Brazil on 15th and 16th September 2013. After the conference, Mr. Xie Zhenhua, Vice Chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission of China, was interviewed for his opinions on the counter-pollution measures and energysaving efficiency in China. Since the Twelfth Five-Year Plan concerning energy conservation was issued, the energy consumption rate per GDP in China has declined by 2.01% in 2011 and by 3.6% in 2012. With regards to this fact, Xie is quite optimistic that the first set of energy conservation goals to ensure that the energy consumption rate per GDP would decrease by more than 3.7% could be realized in 2013. Compared with the situation under the Eleventh Five-Year Plan, the dominant positions of the enterprises in energy conservation have been strengthened under the Twelfth Five-Year Plan. According to Mr. Xie, the chief goals of energy conservation in China are to be achieved mainly by industries and various enterprises, who play indispensable roles in improving energy efficiency. Our next step is to make adjustments in structural energy conservation. We have already launched actions that encourage enterprises to engage themselves in energy saving in many

However, the situation does not seem to be as optimistic as Mr. Xie has portrayed it. According to the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), in recent years, high-energy consumption and high-pollutant emission industries have been developing at a faster rate. Thus, the energy conservation process is, to a certain extent, hindered by such a de-

energy conservation the central government could only exert very limited influence, while the local governments would not necessarily be willing to strengthen their control due to some hidden entanglements with local enterprises. Moreover, measures taken at the policy level are far from enough. Structu-

Photo Copyright https://s3.amazonaws.com/cd.live/uploads/content/image/3096/main_618

Our next step is to make adjustments in structural energy . . . [then] the energysaving target . . . is within our reach.
industries. Since their energy consumption takes around 65% of that of the whole society, so long as these enterprises would actively take the new measures recommended by the state, the energy-saving target of our society is within our reach, said Mr. Xie.

velopment, and more burdens are placed on processing industrial waste emission. The NDRC also expressed its concern that more and more problems resulting from incomplete policies and insufficient work at a basic level are coming to the surface. Through an overview of the conditions in the recent years, we might infer a pattern of energy conservation: during times of economic boom, the goals of energy conservation cannot be achieved, while during times of economic slow-down, these goals can be better realized. This is because high-consumption and high-emission industries develop so rapidly that policies cannot even slow down their forces, and the reverse situation holds true when the economic progress is slowed down, said Lin, Boqiang, Chairman of the energy economics research center at Xiamen University, China. Therefore, it can be concluded that in the whole process of

ral transformations of these high-energy consumption industries should also be in place. With structural transformations, many obsolete energy production modes are expected to be eliminated. However, critics point out that even though such an elimination process has already existed for more than 10 years, the potential of energy conservation by eliminating these obsolete measures is still rather limited. The crux lies in that the growth of these high-consumption and high-emission industries should be under control. If a new round of energy conservation missions are to be carried out, many highenergy consumption enterprises are not able to achieve the goals only with their existing technologies. They are expected to heavily invest in research and development for new measures of energy production albeit such attempt and intention are very likely to be crashed by lack of sources of finance. But when these enter-

Outside the Bubble: World 13

prises largely reduce their production or even totally shut the plants down, then the goals are again within the reach, said Yu, Yabiao, expert from China Association of Environmental Protection Industry. At the same time, Mr. Yu also admitted that production reduction and similar measures could only be expedient measures; in the long run, structural transformations in these high-energy consumption industries are inevitable. Even though the state hopes to force the industries and enterprises into transformations by implementing a new round of regulations concerning energy conservation, many enterprises lack sufficient sources of financing, technology, and knowhow to comply with the regulations. What is more, many of the main points in the energy conservation mission statement published by the NDRC are rather obscure. One important question is to be answered: How and into which direction should such structural transformations be facilitated?

Sparkles
A Poem
Darlina Mamaqi Foundation Year, Albania

~ In a path where nobody goes I hear you coming. I stay in the beginning of the road with my eyes wondering. I can feel the noise of your steps in the dry ground. Silence... The sun stops, the air stops, the flowers that sor round the path all along stop. You can hear only a sound- my heart beat ing ! It beats because of you. It seems like it is out of control, like it slips down from where he belongs and turns back again. Ding-ding... You are coming closer. I close my eyes gently, the wind spreads away my blond,soft hair and it pampers my lips giving birth to a shy smile, it dandles my cheeks coloring them in red rose. I can see you with my heart. Your charming body moves toward me smoothly and impatiently in the same time. You walk and melt the green, the little stones, all the flourish atmosphere. I can hear your heart beating too.. It becomes stronger in each step you make. I can listen to your eager ness while staring at me as you have not seen me for ages. Like the beast sees his beauty. And then the beating of two hearts quiets down in the burning flame of our kiss.

A Separate Nation
Spains Other Country
Helena Kreiensiek International Politics and History 2014, Germany At the thought of FC Barcelona, Dal and sunny beaches anyones eyes would light up when confronted with the upcoming darkness of the Bremen winter. Besides being a buzzing metropolis on the Mediterranean Sea, Barcelona is the capital of Spains economic power house: Catalonia. The autonomous community of Spain has recently hit the headlines again with protests for Catalonian independence from Spain. The separatist movements in fact date back to the Spanish Consti tution of 1978 and can be considered Spains problem child out of tradition. The ever-repeated question though, is whether or not Catalonian independence is realistic; can the region of about the size of Belgium survive without the sup port of the Spanish government? And if so, will an independent Catalonia still be a member of the European Union? According to catalannewsagency.com, Brussels confirmed the possibility of continuing to have the Euro as curren cy while not being part of the European Union just like it is the case in Andorra, Monaco and Montenegro at the moment. Given the current economic situation with record-breaking unemployment numbers and frustration concerning the fiscal system the strong sense of Catalan nationalism is understandable. In addi tion, cultural differences to the rest of Spain as well as a history of oppression under the Franco regime have further fostered the persistent calls for independence. Hence, the upcoming year prom ises interesting developments. The Cata lonian self-determination referendum, which was ratified in 2012, is planned for 2014 and intends to solve the ques tions concerning Catalonias political fu ture. Nevertheless, opinions on this matter diverge strongly. Put in the words of Pe ter Selman, interviewed by the guardian: Catalonia receives less than one sixth the foreign investment of Madrid; it has the same credit rating as Bangladesh; it has a smaller GDP than Greece; it has the same unemployment levels as Sudan and Gabon; it will face a massive boycott of its products from its main market, Spain; it would probably start independence with over 100% of its GDP in national debt; and it is highly likely the biggest Catalan businesses will leave. Granted, Catalonias fiscal deficit is a tad unfair, but to me that suggests negotiating a new fiscal deal (similar to the Basque Coun try) would be a more sensible step in the middle of a massive financial crisis, which would be made far worse if Catalonia gained independence [The guardian, Nov.2012]. Complete independence, more sovereignty, or deadlock all belong to the spectrum of possibilities. Hence, all par ties concerned eagerly await an answer to the question of what the near future holds in store for us.

14 Food for Thought: Opinion

The Suspensions on Financial Grounds

Whats the Story?
Juan Vivanco International Politcs and History 2014, Chile

Young or old, rich or poor, man or woman, everyone has the right to a good education. We have all seen the egalitarian citation, printed in bold black letters at the entrance of Reimar Lst Hallmost likely on our way to drop off an overdue medical excuse, or hurrying up to get to the Student Services Center to get our hands on a brand-new Amazon purchase. But what does the citation mean to the people enacting the policies of this university, the very people sitting quietly and almost invisibly in their offices in Reimer Lst Hall? Like most governments, our administrations policies have changed over the past few years. In June 2012, President Heinz-Otto Peitgena businessman and part-time academic within the bio-medical sciencestook office, and with him, things began to change in the university. In February 2013, it was announced that students would be charged a 100-euros late fee if they did not make a payment on time. This sounds, at the very least, perplexing: if a student could not make a payment on time, then said student may probably not be able to make a now increased payment on time. But compared to what was announced six months later, this was just a little nuisance. On August 22, the student body was informed, in an e-mail by the administration, that the very difficult but im-

other decisions of the new administration to make our University more profitable, was repudiated in social networks. In response to the e-mail, students called the message verbal diarrhea, expressed concern about the supposedly fair way in which financial suspension was conducted, with no clear, publically available criteria, and, in general, were highly critical

August 15th deadline still remains. I was not asking them to somehow wipe out my outstanding balances and allow me to free-ride Jacobs. I was simply asking them to understand my situation, to be flexible, and to be humane. Essentially, I was asking them to follow Klaus Jacobs words.

Sign hanging on an admininstrators door in RLH. Photo Credit Ahmed Elbadry of the policies regarding transcripts and other official documents given to students on financial suspension. I experienced all of this first hand. My parents lost their jobs as I entered my second year, just after the new president positioned himself in office. They have been paying tuition with their savings, which have slowly drained. I have lived through every new policy regarding financial probation. And over this summer, I lived through the escalated policy on financial suspension. E-mail communication with the Student Financial Services office wasat best poor. Normally, it was like talking to a wall. Long explanations of, for instance, why I was asking for an extension on my payments, were responded with: You agreed to a payment plan you did not adhere to. Your option to pay by the Since communication seemed impossible with any of the officers at the SFS, I resorted to my last chance: to speak with the Presidents right hand, the CFO and Vice-President: Mr. Marc Janke. In a non-

Students were informed by administration, via e -mail resulting in poor communication.

portant decision of suspending students based on financial reasons would take place. A network of people informed about the decision was supposedly set up to help students affected. The decision, a culmination of various

I experienced all this first hand and I was simply asking for a second chance.
chalant manner, he simply answered with a Jacobs shouldnt be blamed for your financial struggles after regurgitating me back the financial handbook. Needless to say, the relationship with my parents became exclusively focused on paying the debt: I was simply passing on the immense pressure the SFS office exercised through their emails to my parents.

Food for Thought 15

I ended up receiving external money from my government in time, and was able to, by a few hours, register for this semester at Jacobs. If this had not happened, I would simply be one of the many invisible suspended students. Some students on the other side of the spectrum claimed that suspended students just should not have chosen a private university if they cannot pay for it. This, however, clashes with the original idea of the university: a place where talent from around the world gathers to lead the world of tomorrowregardless of background. In light of its latest decisions, it seems that the new administration agrees with these students. Though no official information is available, because none has been published, students have been concerned over the changing origins of the student body, favoring the before-limited German population, as well as favoring full-payers (people that pay the full price tag). Within the larger picture, these changing policies, which not only include financial suspension and changing admission polices, will change the picture our university portrays to the outside world. The Weser-Kurier has already called us in multiple times an Elite-Uni, an elite university, but elite in the German sense of the word: somewhere highly exclusive where only the rich and powerful are allowed to study. A few months ago, German TV network ARD released Von Anfang an Elite (From the beginning, elite), in which elite institutions, including one of the other few German private universities, were portrayed negatively, in particular for limiting the chances of the wider population. Jacobs was not included, but it is usually considered by the non-academic public to be a part of these institutions.And it might as well be: new policies will determine that the student body will ultimately come from a particular subset of societyone that can pay. Many of us came to the university because of the way it was portrayed: an international, tolerant, diverse, and academically-challenging institution. When people told us that we were a rich peoples university, we could easily defend ourselves. Our campus flourished with diversity, both ethnic and financial. Unwillingly, or perhaps willingly, our administration, due to the financial struggles the university itself has been facing, has slowly begun to change this reality, and it seems there is no foreseeable end to it.

The Egoism Inside Us

The Moral Philsophy Debate
er contends? With the categorical imperative above, Kant means that we should not do any good deed for the sake of a second end but as an end in itself, or simply for its own sake. The moment you help the person who fell off the bicycle with the intention of showing those who are sitting in the IRC that you are a really nice person, you degrade the categorical imperative to a hypothetical imperative not worthy to be a universal law for all human beings. It is exactly this point where Schopenhauer brings in his criticism. Even if you want to observe the categorical imperative, on what basis do you determine your will of action? In other words, what are you able to "want in the first place? For Schopenhauer, it is a regulative that serves as a basis for your will. And this regulative is clearly the egoism, the vivid norm for all acts of will. To go back to our example, if you decide to help the person on the ground, then you do it because you put yourself into her place and would want to be helped. Your point of origin is thus yourself. It is your egoism, which tells you that you do not want to be in a position in which nobody helps you. Only through your egoistic perspective you can relate to the categorical imperative.
Emre Yildiz International Politcs and History 2015, Germany

Assume that it is a wonderful sunny Sunday afternoon. You decide to go for a walk through campus green. You pass by the Interfaith House and see someone falling off her bike right there. Since you believe that in a situation like this, people should generally assist the person, you decide to go up to her and help her get up. By the sheer motivation for your action, dear reader, you triggered a huge and fundamental debate in moral philosophy. If Kant was alive and beside you, he probably would have patted you on the shoulder, nodded his head and felt vindicated in his words "Act only according to that maxim by which you can at the same time want that it should become a universal law. Schopenhauer, if he were there on Campus and witnessed that, would have lost his nerves. He would have turned to Kant and asked him "what is it that I can want or not want? He would have then turned to you and while shaking his head he would have said: "It is only your egoism that made you do the good deed you just have done. Why this discrepancy? How do both argue and come to their conclusions? And above all, is it true, that we all while doing good deeds are egoists as Schopenhau-

In his Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals, Kant gives two examples for supporting his categorical imperative. The first example is that of "lying: Nobody would want lying to become a universal moral law, since we would fear that "nobody would believe us or that everyone would return us the like. The second example is that of unkindness or coldness: By incorporating coldness into your

Lying must not become a universal moral law, because then the truth would become nonexistent.
ethics, Kant argues, you deprive yourself of receiving assistance, condolence, and love. Since no reasonable person would naturally like to be exposed to helplessness, it becomes clear that helpfulness and kindness should amount to a universal moral law. Behind Kants examples, Schopenhauer spots an assumed reciprocity, or a return expected to receive in the future. You help the person up, so that others help you in the same or similar situation when you fall down. You, or your egoism would never want to be in misery where everyone

16 Food for Thought

refuses to offer his or her help to you. Schopenhauer seems to be right, when he says that the only way to realize Kants categorical imperative is to use our egoistic point of view and determine what should be a moral law and what not. Only by referring to what our egos would want in bad times we are able to make maxims universally applicable as Kant want these to be. In conclusion, the help we are offering the person on the floor has its root in our egoism once we think and reason about it. Inside we are all egoists in our motives and no moral law designed to fit the categorical imperative can arise from another source.

Desiring the Casual

Frances Coronel Computer Science 2016, USA

The books tilt, the light bulbs twitch

So it would be best not to

Come, come insects and birds! Devour and bite, no longer hide For this day can no longer get any worse With Waldo nowhere in sight

The deep intuition and wisdom is pro gressing, yet... Everything learned will forget to return

Very dark outside. A reminder of That one individual. Breathing in a lo nesome world right now indeed. Those thoughts of him are noxious for my brain With his eyes bluer and deeper than the Marianna trench, Im drowning in the sea.

The books on the desk stand up straight They beckon you to dance with them Impossible. Youre outside.

Piano playing Impossible. Youre outside. Enclosed within a masquerade, are you?

The womanly mosquito decides to bite its host

Caring to notice is almost the same as caring about other things

I desire the casual yet I know it is Time to think of the impossible.

OKTOBERFEST . . . IVALS Oktoberfest may be over, but festival season is in full swing. BY ABBEY TAYLOR

The Flying Pig

Bremen
Freimarkt (October 18th to November 3rd): Coined the largest festival in Northern Germany, Freimarkt is a full night out in one stop. Fill up on roasted almonds, sauted mushrooms, beer, and crepes, then try and keep all of it in on the numerous amusement rides. And if your wallet is as empty as mine, then just go for the ambiance and great people watching.

Hamburg
Theater Festival (October 12th to November 10th): Youve read Shakespeare, can recite Chekhov, have a little bit of an Oedipus Complex going on, and you need something to relate to? Then get ye to the Theater Festival in Hamburg. Plays include King Lear, Uncle Vanja, and Baal. Tickets start at 10 euros for students. Knoten (October 11th to 13th): Germany is home to many talented and innovative street artists. This festival pays homage to these and various other urban artists. Their motto is, we do not only want art, we want to celebrate it! After each days exhibitions, DJs turn up the music for all to dance to. Entrance is 3 euros. Lesbian and Gay Film Festival (October 15th to 20th): Coming out day is October 11th, and this festival is just another way to celebrate equality and sexuality. Films range from documentaries to comedies to drama. Admission is the same as any other movie, so expect to pay around 7 euros. Other films, such as She Said Yes: The Story of Fifth Column, are free. The festival also hosts numerous parties, workshops, and readings, including Homosexuality in the Simpsons.

A Picture Says More Than a Thousand Words 17

When an internship becomes an unforgettable life-giving and character building experience. BY RAJU GURUNG

18 New Pulse of the World Website Coming Soon!

Dont forget to check out our Facebook page and website at www.pulseoftheworld.com

Disclaimer: This is an independent newspaper. The views and opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors named and are not necessarily those of the Undergraduate Student Government or its individual members