Droemer Knaur*

10
POPULAR SCIENCE
Markolf Niemz
Lucy in the Light
224 pages, 3-426-27420-0
August 2007
On the trail of the hereafter, in the
tradition of Kübler-Ross
Lucy, the narrator, combines discoveries
of modern physics and philosophicaltheological
methods of researching death
in a very impressive way. What happens
the moment we die? Is there life after
death? Is there such a thing as a soul?
Lucy With a C was a self-published book
with no marketing to speak of, yet it
made it all the way to number 15 on Gong
magazine’s bestseller list. Now, physicist
Dr. Markolf Niemz takes his creation, a
little girl named Lucy in a spaceship, on a
second journey through space and time.
This time he wants to find out what happens
to our souls after death. By comparing
the theory of relativity with the oftendescribed
phenomena of near-death
experiences – a warping of space and a
light at the end of the tunnel are common
to both – he proves that our soul accelerates
to light speed. There’s more: at
the time of death, our weightless soul is
put in a state of omnipresence and timelessness.
Lucy’s arguments for the existence of the
hereafter are not proof in a scientific
sense, but they do impress with their
high degree of plausibility.
Dr. Markolf Niemz is a professor of
physics in Mannheim.
Manfred Theisen
The Love Code
240 pages, 3-426-27376-4
February 2007
Korean rights sold to ChungRim
Publishing
The genetic rules of the game of love
Darwin knew it, and so did Freud in his
own way. Now science has proven it: it’s
genes and hormones that give us butterflies
in our stomach, and cause those
other crazy things that happen when we
fall in love. But how do we crack the “love
code?” Manfred Theisen gives us the key
and helps us to better understand the
language of love.
Why do men glance at breasts and hips in
those first few moments, while women
look at a man’s face, and how can knowing
this help us flirt better? Why is it a
tragedy for love when doctors remove a
tiny organ in the nose? How come educated
women are more likely to be unfaithful?
And what’s the simple way to activate
the body’s hormone Oxytocin to help a
fading libido and often rescue long-time
relationships that are in danger of slipping
away? Manfred Theisen proves that
civilized though our society may be, the
most beautiful feeling in the world is
actually controlled by genes that haven’t
changed since the dawn of man.
Science reporter Manfred Theisen writes
for the Tagesspiegel and the Cologne
Rundschau. He lives and works in
Cologne.
Eva Goris
Pre-Packaged Nutrition?
320 pages, 3-426-27413-2
February 2007
How changing eating habits affect our
health
Mass-produced food is taking over from
traditional fare – what risks does that
entail? Well, look at the pork we eat, for
example. These days only three breeds of
pig account for 98 percent of the livestock
in the stalls, and these are fattened
in record time. Pork that’s not from these
factories isn’t just healthier, it tastes
better too.
Many consumers are trying the cage-free
eggs that are now widely available. The
author points out that the same principle
of avoiding “industrial” food in favor of
food produced as it was in bygone days
could be applied to pork, apples, fish,
cheese, and yogurt, too.
The author goes into detail on how food
is mass-produced today. And that’s not
just the part about meat, but also fruit,
vegetables, fish and baked goods! But the
author goes on to discuss how to rediscover
the much larger selection of foods
available in our grandparents’ day as well
as the art of cooking them.
Eva Goris is editor for environmental
topics for the newspaper Bild am
Sonntag. She has won awards for her
series of investigative articles on health
and environmental topics.