U.S. Election Day Results

As you may have heard, the results from this year’s mid-term elections are quite clear: control of both the Senate and the House of Representatives will be in Republican hands for the coming term. The implications of the election for American politics, however, might not be so obvious. William Chandler, Professor of Political Science at the University of California, San Diego, deciphers the results for us.

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5 November 2014Access Americaadmin

B.Y.O.B. – Bring Your Own Bag

By Bobbie Kirkhart

Americans have never paid for grocery bags – paper or plastic. Markets would even double-bag on request. No charge. Hence, we were slow to observe that killing trees for unnecessary paper or making plastic just to pollute oceans or fill landfills was a bad idea. The first time I took a canvas bag to the grocery store, the bagger proudly informed me that she had carefully wrapped each item in plastic “to protect your nice bag.” So much for the environment.

30 October 2014Creativity Corneradmin

An Early Halloween Treat — Patricia Briggs at Leuphana

Halloween arrived early at Leuphana this year – to be precise around the end of May. That is when best-selling Urban Fantasy writer Patricia Briggs conducted workshops and gave talks on vampires, werewolves, and the like. Interested? Don’t be afraid to watch!

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27 October 2014Access Americaadmin

Tricks or Treats – Halloween Goes German

By Daria Radler

It’s the time of the year for the undead to become alive again and for the living to be given the creeps. It’s a time of the year that children have been looking forward to for months and that even adults get excited about. The end of October marks the time of Halloween: spooky costumes, scary pumpkins, and possibly several bags filled with sweets and candy.

Even though the tradition of Halloween is a fairly recent phenomenon in Germany, you’ll find frights and thrills aplenty. So in case you don’t have anything planned yet, here are some ideas for you:

24 October 2014Best Books & Fabulous Filmsadmin

The Fault in Our Stars

By Daria Radler

Hazel Grace Lancester will never be a normal teenager. She doesn’t know that people don’t do pot but smoke it, or what it feels like to party the night away at a club with a fake ID. There is a swing set in her garden that hasn’t been used in years. Hazel was diagnosed with terminal thyroid cancer that eventually metastasized to her lungs when she was thirteen. Her reality consists of constantly carrying an oxygen tank, routine check-ups at the hospital, watching reality shows, and going to her support group. While, at first, support group sounds like the least enjoyable activity, Hazel soon meets Augustus Waters, who has lost his leg to osteosarcoma but is “on a rollercoaster that only goes up.” They connect, they talk – talk a lot, about their dreams and fears, about books and oblivion – and fall in love gradually but nonetheless intensively.

22 October 2014Teaching Toolsadmin

The U.S. Election Project

By Grant Helle

Let’s face it: Generation Y – affectionately known as Gen ‘Why’ – is not exactly politically minded. This was all the more due cause to develop a project geared to ignite students’ passion for politics, in this case, solving the riddle of the U.S. Election System.

The question posed by Leuphana University Lüneburg, the State Institute for Education and Media of Berlin-Brandenburg, eXploratorium/Life, and the Amerika-zentrum Hamburg was how to garner students’ interest in the U.S. political system while simultaneously teaching contemporary U.S. culture and improving their communicative competence in English. This idea developed into a two-month project, with special emphasis on new media, such as Internet learning platforms, MOOCs, and intercultural/democratic education. Read more »