Dec 07
Norman Ohler’s Blitzed is a disturbing, engaging and insightful look into how drugs shaped the lives of both soldiers and leaders in Nazi Germany. At the same time that drug addicts were being sent to the concentration camps, military researchers in Germany were testing the effects of Pervitin -a brand name for methamphetamine- upon soldiers. When …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.introtoglobalstudies.com/2018/12/blitzed-a-book-review/
Oct 25
Every year I cover an appropriate international mystery for Halloween. For example, last year I talked about ghosts of Hong Kong and Macau. Earlier this month I talked about the ghost ship the Baltimore, which was found with only a single survivor, a woman, who soon vanished from Nova Scotia and was never seen again. This year …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.introtoglobalstudies.com/2018/10/book-review-of-wylding-hall/
Oct 20
Every Halloween I do a post on global folklore or an international mystery, from a haunted building in Hong Kong, to the mystery of the ghost ship Baltimore. This year I’m doing some additional posts on this theme, because I want to share a wonderful BBC podcast, the Supernatural North. Eleanor Rosamund Barraclough travels to Norway …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.introtoglobalstudies.com/2018/10/scandinavian-supernatural/
Jan 15
I have a colleague who teaches a course on the rise of populism in Europe, which is an increasingly important topic. What is interesting to me is how quickly populist and nationalist movements have emerged and flourished in the region. Anne Applebaum had an article in the Atlantic on this topic titled “Polarization in Poland: …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.introtoglobalstudies.com/2018/01/the-rise-of-populism-and-europe/
Aug 04
Luke Harding’s, A Very Expensive Poison, describes how Russian security services murdered dissident Alexander Litivenko in 2006. While the study of the assassination itself is detailed, riveting, and depressing, the true horror is the picture that the book paints of the Russian state. According to Harding’s detailed and well-sourced account, Russia’s senior leaders -including Vladimir Putin …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.introtoglobalstudies.com/2017/08/a-very-expensive-poison-a-book-review/
Jun 16
Traveling is difficult work: obtaining a visa, planning the flight, booking the hotels. Then there is all the information that you need once you arrive. For this reason, it’s great to have to have a single source that can provide the essential information that you need. If you are planning to travel to France, my …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.introtoglobalstudies.com/2017/06/resources-for-ed-abroad-in-france/
Jan 25
Europe is currently facing myriad challenges, including a wave of migration from the Middle East and Europe, bank debt in Italy, the enduring financial problems of Greece, as well as Brexit. Still, at the heart of many of these challenges has been the deep economic inequalities between Europe’s north and south. A better understanding of …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.introtoglobalstudies.com/2017/01/map-of-innovation-in-europe-draft/
Nov 16
Earlier on this blog I’ve talked about the evidence that the Syrian civil war needs to be understood in the context of a devastating drought, and the government’s inability to respond effectively. What is chilling, however, is what global warming entails for the entire Middle East and northern Africa. The recent Washington Post article by …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.introtoglobalstudies.com/2016/11/too-late-to-stop-global-warming/
Aug 05
I love international folklore, and have written about everything from a mystery island in Mexico, to conspiracy theories and the 2009 influenza pandemic. Few instances of folklore, however, have received as much attention over the last year as the “Polish Gold Train.” According to local legends in southwestern Poland, during the waning days of the …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.introtoglobalstudies.com/2016/08/polish-folklore/
Oct 09
One of the most controversial questions during the current Ebola outbreak has been whether restricting air travel to West Africa is more of a help or a hindrance. There have been passionate arguments on both sides, and the question has become politicized. For a balanced look at the question, see this recent National Geographic article. …
Permanent link to this article: https://www.introtoglobalstudies.com/2014/10/ebola-and-air-travel/
