Andreas Gunnarsson (Gothenburg): The First Swede in Space: The Making of a Public Science Hero. From Sweden's Axess, people's perception of themselves is much more critical in determining their class than occupation, residence or income; it seems to be a law of nature to divide people into groups and identify status; the right-left dimension has long been dominated by the issue of wealth distribution, but now questions about morals, culture and lifestyle are becoming increasingly important; the paradoxes of the halal hippie: Radical people support reactionary clergies, and the nationalist Sweden Democrats attack Islamists, with whom they actually have a great deal in common; and as we in Sweden were losing our ideological battles abroad, it became clear that our sympathy was often simply a pose aimed at disguising a taking of ideological sides. Frankly, IKEA is doing more for the image of Sweden than all governmental efforts combined. From n+1, a review essay on Stieg Larsson, the man who blew up the welfare state; and this is what happens when rich, well-traveled, and well-educated children from a tiny Viking country covered in forest grow up and try to write fiction. Why are Nordic detective novels so successful? (and more). The land of Hans Christian Andersen and Hamlet finds a place in the hearts of everyone who lives or studies there. In Norway, even murders and rapists have a shot at landing in "open prison". A review of Wasteland With Words: A Social History of Iceland by Sigurdur Gylfi Magnusson. Iceland after the fall: Notes from an icy island on the anniversary of its meltdown (and more). Whether Iceland will bring philosophy centre-stage for the first time in the nation’s life, history will tell. Rolf Hugoson on debating the Nordic consensus culture (and a response).
