German Communication Styles

I just came across an illuminating web page explaining German communication styles (and the proverbial/alleged lack of humour). You can find it here.

Germany's Energy Research Plan

Oct 29, 2010 © Germany.info

German Education and Research Minister Annette Schavan recently presented Germany's new energy concept and the research investments that will support it in an editorial that appeared in the renowned international weekly journal Science.

"The 'Energiekonzept' (Energy Concept) foresees an end to the country's dependence on fossil fuels and defines key milestones to achieve by 2050, including the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 80 percent (compared to 1990 levels), the modernization and insulation of buildings, and a decrease in electricity consumption by 25 percent," Schavan states in the editorial, published in the October 15 edition of Science.

"By spring 2011, the German government will present a detailed new Energy Research Program that outlines important research tasks to support these new goals," she added.

"Renewable energies will play the major role in restructuring Germany's energy supply. These sources already generate about 16 percent of Germany's energy, including wind and hydropower, biomass, geothermal, and photovoltaic power," said Schavan.

Germany's global leadership in Green Tech innovations was based on major ongoing investments in research and the dissemination of technology, Schavan moreover underscored.

"In 2010 alone, the German government will spend approximately 1 billion euros on energy and climate research," she said.

A new 40-year Energy Concept for Germany was presented by Chancellor Angela Merkel on September 6 in Berlin. She hailed it as "a revolution in the field of energy supply" that would create the most efficient and environmentally sound energy system worldwide in Germany.

Related Links:

Germany's Energy Research Plan - read the full editorial by German Research Minister Annette Schavan published in Science (Oct. 15, 2010)

Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF)

Hermann Scheer, Leading Advocate for Solar Energy and "Hero for the Green Century"

Hermann Scheer (1944-2010): German Lawmaker, Leading Advocate for Solar Energy and "Hero for the Green Century" in one of his final interviews

"Was meint eigentlich Halloween" / Bambi-Lüge

Irgendwie habe ich das Gefühl, dass ich auch Opfer der sogenannten Bambi-Lüge war. Näheres in einem bereits etwas älteren aber durchaus aktuellen und wie üblich sehr unterhaltsamen Zwiebelfisch-Artikel.

Another example of environmental vandalism

Was it really necessary for "Sturgess of Leicester" to remove a couple of trees and a nice triangular green area on their site at the junction of Aylestone Road and Saffron Lane, just to gain a few more car parking spaces? And why did the Council give permission?

With a bit of foresight/imagination, they could/should instead have not only retained the trees/green space but improved it by implementing biodiversity/wildlife enhancements for the benefit of both their green credentials and the Aylestone Park area – after all, the high-profile site/location could be regarded as a kind of 'gateway' to Aylestone Park from the City.

The photo below (courtesy of Google Street View) shows the site before the disappointing and insensitive intervention. Photo showing the result of the environmental vandalism to follow.

"Judgement" or "Judgment"?

I always assumed that "judgement" is the correct spelling, but when my Word 2003 spellchecker complained about it (with the language flavour set to US English) I looked it up in the Concise Oxford English Dictionary (I have an electronic version, of course) and found this interesting entry:

"In British English the normal spelling in general contexts is judgement. However, the spelling judgment is conventional in legal contexts, and in North American English".

Schnaps or Schnapps?

The German spelling is Schnaps. It's a mystery to me how the second 'p' ended up in the apparently correct (or at least frequently encountered) English schnapps spelling, although the entry in the Duden Herkunftswörterbuch (see below) may give some clues.

Interestingly, the OED lists both version as correct and has this to say on the matter:
"An ardent spirit resembling Hollands gin. 1818 Blackw. Mag. III. 403 Enjoy your schnaps, give sorrow to the wind. 1823 BYRON Juan X. lxxi, Not like slow Germany wherein they muddle Along the road,..and also pause besides, to fuddle, With ‘schnapps’. a1848 O. W. HOLMES On Lend. Punch-bowl 16 He went to Leyden, where he found conventicles and schnaps. 1885 C. LOWE Bismarck II. 488 A General, talking of drinks, had laid down the principle: ‘Red wine for children, Champagne for men, Schnaps for Generals’".

This is what the Duden Herkunftswörterbuch has to say on the matter:
Schnaps: Das ursprünglich nordd. Wort (niederd. Snap[p]s) bezeichnet seit dem 18. Jh. den Branntwein, ursprünglich aber einen Mund voll oder einen schnellen Schluck, wie er gerade beim Branntweintrinken üblich ist. Es ist eine Substantivbildung zu schnappen. Abl.: schnapsen ugs. für »Schnaps trinken« (im 18. Jh. niederd. snappsen). Zus.: Schnapsidee »unsinniger, seltsamer Einfall« (20. Jh.; ein derartiger Einfall kann nur durch zu reichlichen Alkoholgenuss bedingt sein); Schnapszahl »Zahl, die aus mehreren gleichen Ziffern besteht« (20. Jh.; wohl nach der Vorstellung, dass ein Betrunkener beim Lesen einfache Ziffern doppelt oder mehrfach sieht). Duden - Das Herkunftswörterbuch, 3. Aufl. Mannheim 2001 [CD-ROM]