"We Are Concentrating Our Hopes on Growth"

SPIEGEL in-depth interview with the head of the Bayer Group, Werner Wenning, about the intended break-up of the traditional company, the future of the chemical sector which has been split off, and his strategy for the rest of the group:

"The markets have changed rapidly over the past few years. That's why it's time we at Bayer concentrated on the innovative growth markets and let go of the largely exhausted field of the classical chemical industry. ... What remains is a portfolio which must be able to measure up to its competitors in the respective individual markets, and which must in each case achieve the same profitability as its best competitors. ... Pharmaceuticals are part of our more extensive health care business, in which we are well positioned apart from the pharmaceuticals sector. You only need to think of the OTC medicines such as Alka Seltzer or Aspirin, of self-medication or veterinary medicine. ... We will continue to support our pharmaceuticals business. We will confine ourselves to a few indications in which we are strong. And we will increasingly obtain licences, in other words acquire finished products."

"Helpless beneath the Red Flag"

Cover story: Its members are leaving the governing SPD, or else seeking comfort in memories. They feel deserted by the party leadership and are waiting for a new perspective. Meanwhile power struggles have begun over the era after Gerhard Schröder.

"We're too Big to Be Dwarfs"

SPIEGEL interview with the Austrian Christian Democratic chancellor Wolfgang Schüssel about the argument over the European constitution and the resistance of the smaller EU countries against the dominance of the larger ones:

"No one wants to call the draft constitution fundamentally into question. But we cannot simply nod and wave through an important treaty which is supposed to last perhaps 30 years, and not just three like the Nice reforms. ... The principal issue is about why it's deemed reasonable, in a Union that will in future have 25 members, in terms of an equality of rights, for France or Finland not to be represented at all in the Commission for five years. That isn't right. And it would be quite wrong to exclude the new member states altogether from working on the Commission."

"The Bazaar of the Human Traffickers"

Middle East: Jewish hostages being held prisoner in Lebanon are to be exchanged for Arab fighters being detained under arrest. For years, deals like this have been the subject of secret negotiations in which bizarre details are haggled over - now this one might work. German intelligence agents have been involved as mediators. After several years of negotiations mediated by the Germans - and conditional to resolving a few last, though critical, details - it may finally work out: over 400, mostly Palestinian prisoners are to be exchanged for one Israeli hostage and the bodies of three Israeli soldiers. In Beirut and among the Palestinian families concerned, the predominant feeling is one of joyful anticipation. In Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, however, the heated discussions continue: Was it even justifiable to negotiate with a "terrorist leader"? Is this a good deal, four for four hundred? And most of all: Can the only living Israeli be welcomed with open arms, seeing that it is a Jewish scoundrel who is returning, not the long-lost Jewish hero?

"Speculation Lives On"

Bankruptcies: For decades, shareholders have cleverly exploited IG Farben. Now the darkest chapter in German economic history is drawing to an end: the horrific corporate group from Nazi days is bankrupt. But the speculators are still hoping for billions in profits - while the victims are left empty-handed.

"Game Over"

Crime: In a nation-wide raid, investigators have busted a ring of software forgers. The list of the product pirates' customers even included the police force. More than a third of the programs used by computer owners in Germany are forgeries. Naturally, the main victim is software giant Microsoft.

"Help for Uncle Feisal"

Foreign policy: The Syrian president is urging the German government to revoke the warrant for the arrest of a member of his family. In return for such leniency, he is offering exclusive information. Bashar al-Assad, the strong man in Syria since his father's death three years ago, is angry because the German judiciary is carrying out a world-wide search for his uncle, Feisal Sammak, on suspicion of his being an accessory to murder. He is believed to have been involved in one of the shady affairs which gave the Syrian regime its bad reputation in the 1980s. Not a nice business, the Chancellery agrees - and yet it is seeking to find a way of meeting the Assad clan halfway, because since the attacks of 11 September, the Syrians, who know a lot about the Al Qaida network, have become important allies in the war against terrorism. But the Syrians are not cooperating for free: in return for fighting 21st century terrorism, they want forgiveness for 20th century sins.

"We Need High-rises"

SPIEGEL in-depth interview with star architect Lord Norman Foster, about his controversial new skyscraper in London, the Babylonian dream of building as high as possible, and about the struggle over the reconstruction of Ground Zero:

"The shape of the [London] building is a result of an almost evolutionary process. ... The air can circulate around it. This shape also has aesthetic advantages: through it you gain completely new perspectives looking out from the inside. ... We can no longer afford large areas with lots of detached family houses; because they simply consume too much energy. So what is the solution? We need high-rises in which the primary consideration is how to build and run them in a way that economises on resources. ... Any sports stadium in the world is more vulnerable than a responsibly built high-rise. ... My design for Ground Zero was very popular particularly among the general public of America. They would have liked to have new twin towers."

"I Was Never Normal"

Interview with French singer Juliette Gréco about her life, her friendship with the philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre and her credo of philanthropy:

"I am not normal, I was never normal, and I am not becoming quieter with old age. I have a limited time left to live. I'm surprised I have actually grown this old. I must not waste this gift. ... Life has given me terrible and wonderful things. It would suit me well to die upright. ... People who are not capable of loving, and of respecting others, have no business being on Earth. I wish evil would disappear as if through a gust of wind - soundlessly and without a ripple. ... Sartre was one of the most amusing and most cheerful people I have known."

"Descent into Hell"

Archaeology: Hundreds of thousands lost their lives in the Colosseum, the arena in which cruel fights were held. Now, a German building researcher has for the first time worked out how the cunning system of elevators functioned, which heaved beasts of prey, stage sets and gladiators into the arena at top speed.

"The Lean Machine"

Aviation: Boeing is developing a long-haul jet which could make air travel cheaper than ever before. The low-cost plane "7E7 Dreamliner" is Boeing's last chance to win through in its battle against Airbus. Both manufacturers are putting their futures on the line with billion-dollar projects. And their two new planes reflect different forecasts for the future of the air traffic market. Airbus believes that airlines need gigantic aircraft in order to be able to fly routes like Frankfurt-Bangkok or London-Tokyo economically. Boeing, on the other hand, believes that passengers will be less and less willing to fly via interchange airports such as Frankfurt or London. The 7E7 is supposed to make long-haul connections with fewer passengers profitable - also between Bremen and Bangkok or Leipzig and Laos. But will Boeing ever build the plane? The group is showing signs of anxiety.

"Fatal Fad"

Medicine: Some 5000 babies in Israel were fed using the special soya milk "Super-Soya 1" by the German baby food manufacturer Humana, a strictly kosher substitute for mother's milk specially developed for the Israeli market, which was manufactured in Germany under the supervision of rabbis. But the high-tech product appears to have largely lacked the essential vitamin B1. Two babies died of heart failure, 15 others were hospitalised displaying the typical symptoms of vitamin B1 deficiency. In the meantime, at the instigation of Humana's legal department, the public prosecutor's office in Bielefeld has opened an investigation of the head of product development on suspicion of manslaughter through culpable negligence. Thousands of concerned and outraged parents, not just in Israel, are now asking how something like this was able to happen? Was it really a "chain of unfortunate circumstances", as claimed by Humana? Or was it after all a fatal mixture of negligence, lax legislation, cover-ups and sloppiness?

"A Seriously Ill Patient"

Olympic Games: Leipzig celebrated its election as the German candidate for the 2012 games euphorically. But now more and more red tape, nepotism and political intrigues are becoming apparent. Despite passionate appeals from Berlin, the city's application stands virtually no chance.

"Orchestra of Heavenly Messengers"

Musicology: Researchers in Leipzig want to resurrect the Renaissance sound. Original instruments from Freiberg Cathedral are providing the basis for the retrospective concert. The 16th century small descant viol is just 40 centimetres long. Other boxes contain tenor and bass viols, trombones, shawms, cornets, citterns, harps, lutes and triangles. Musicians last played these rare instruments over 400 years ago. They survived the ages in the hands of the statues of angels in the cathedral of Freiberg, a town in the Erzgebirge. After five years of research, the musicological coup is now almost complete: this week the instruments - accurate copies of the originals - will for the first time ring to the sound of music.