“Two Geniuses and the Bomb”

Nuclear physics: The Werner Heisenberg case. The meeting between the two Nobel laureates Werner Heisenberg and Niels Bohr during the Second World War continues to be one of the great mysteries in modern-day history of science. British author Michael Frayn has written a spectacular play on the issue which has been causing a sensation on New York’s Broadway for many months. In the play, Werner Heisenberg, who was initially ostracised in America, appears in a surprisingly good light.

“The Germans Are Catching Up”

Biotechnology: The young German biotech industry is imbued with a spirit of optimism. Entrepreneurs and speculators expect to make billions on new drugs and controversial GM foods. Now the Chancellor wants to allay the fears of the German population concerning the genetic revolution. In terms of the number of companies, 372 to date, Germany’s biotechnology industry is in fact the number one in Europe, ahead of the UK. However, most of these companies are small affairs with a few dozen members of staff, while the larger ones have one or two hundred employees. But a few fast-growing firms have already started to expand on an international level and buy up foreign rivals. Their success is not only crucial to the weal and woe of daring entrepreneurs and greedy speculators, who believe they have found a new gold mine after the Internet fever – but also to the future competitiveness of the German economy.

“Asian Adventure”

Car industry: The involvement with Mitsubishi is becoming a problem for DaimlerChrysler. The Japanese partner appears to have rather lax views on safety and quality. In Japan, car manufacturers are obliged to report customer complaints concerning quality and safety problems with their vehicles to the ministry of transport. Since 1977, Mitsubishi has been violating this law in order to avoid costly recall campaigns. DaimlerChrysler boss Schrempp is now coming under pressure: is the brand Mercedes-Benz, a world-wide synonym for quality and safety, likely to come to harm if Mitsubishi becomes part of the group? He does not want to call off his company’s involvement with Mitsubishi, which has already been announced though not finally signed. However he is not in a position to exert any more pressure on the Japanese company either.

“Let Car Drivers Cry”

Interview with OPEC’s Secretary General Rilwanu Lukman on the pricing policy of the oil cartel, on new alliances among oil-producing countries and his strategy for the meeting of the oil sheikhs in Vienna:

“It’s true that the prices are currently on the high side. But we ourselves are not in favour of the prices being that high, it is not in our interest for them to be … In order to be able to make long-term plans we would prefer to have moderate but stable prices … We would consider prices of 25 dollars or slightly above fair. If people are nevertheless having to pay more than this, then that isn’t our fault. … Following the deterioration in the prices, a new spirit developed within OPEC. Since then there has not only been a closer collaboration within the organisation itself, but relationships have also developed with the major, non-aligned oil-producing countries such as Mexico, Oman, Russia, Angola and Norway. This even made it possible to take oil off the market and allow prices to increase again.”

“What on Earth Am I Doing Here?”

Round-the-world sailing: The Basques are celebrating some new national heroes. For 17 years a family of four travelled the world’s oceans. Then the sons rebelled.

“The Disturbing Victory”

Contemporary history: The largest German military cemetery in the world is to be opened near St. Petersburg – an occasion for Russian intellectuals to reconsider the “Great Patriotic War”.

“Tired of the Corsicans”

France: Prime Minister Jospin wants to make concessions to the troublesome inhabitants of the fourth largest Mediterranean island. In order to pacify Corsica, he is risking a national uproar. The only alternative – a tough stance towards the nationalists – has repeatedly failed, Jospin argues. If you want peace, you have to try new approaches. In July he reached an agreement with the Corsican representatives which was subsequently approved almost unanimously by the island’s territorial assembly. Step by step the Corsicans are to be given the right to adjust certain laws passed by the Parisian national assembly to their particular insular circumstances. In addition, the Corsican language, which has been systematically suppressed and scorned since Corsica became part of France, is in future to be taught in primary schools. According to traditional French views, this amounts to a cultural revolution.

“A Pure Thirst for Adventure”

SPIEGEL in-depth interview with writer, painter and collector Lothar-Günther Buchheim, on his latest book ‘The Farewell’ and his museum:

“I started on ‘The Farewell’ 15 years ago. During that time I repeatedly got the feeling that things weren’t moving ahead. Then everything got put aside for the time being. … Ever since childhood I have hated frightened, unimaginative bourgeois people. I was a child prodigy and already an outsider at school. I have found school essays written by me which have knocked me over. At the age of 12 I described a visit to the main fire station in Chemnitz – using the same stylistic devices as in ‘The Boat’ … Many people only wanted the expensive Expressionists, not the entire collection. And because of that, people often tried to put a spoke in our wheels. But we didn’t give in, and instead kept climbing up a extra step and moving closer and closer to the place where the museum is now being built, in Bernried on Lake Starnberg.

“Tamers of Carbon”

Precious stones: Will diamonds soon become a cheap commodity? Russian laboratories are supplying startlingly high-quality synthetic diamonds to the West. Only specialists are able to distinguish the test-tube gems from natural ones. Even the world-wide De Beers group regards them as a challenge. Only a small fractions of the diamonds can really be studied in detail. Particularly small gems of less than half a carat are subjected to virtually no checks. Larger specimens, on the other hand, are usually sold with a certificate.

“Trip through a Waking Hell”

Medicine: A patient in Freiburg suffered through months without sleeping because a bacterium had settled in his brain. To doctors, his ordeal is a sensation: until now they believed that survival was impossible without sleep. Nobody knows exactly what role sleep plays in human survival. At what point is the mind of non-sleepers so shattered that they see white mice running round the room? How long can the body do without the restoring powers of sleep? When does the immune system go haywire, when do hormones, blood pressure, heart rate and body temperature get thrown off balance? Finding answers to these questions is difficult because long-term experiments with human beings are ruled out for ethical reasons. The case of the Freiburg patient shows that the limits on wakefulness are apparently much broader than scientists previously believed.