Marginalia

Die Zeit nach Weizsäcker

What is time? TLDR: Nobody knows.

An Ideal of Ideal-Free Democracy

Why a purely procedural conception of democracy cannot do without normative ideals.

Das Physikverständnis Paul Samuelsons

Paul Samuelson (Nobel Prize in Economics, 1970) and his views on physics, economics, and their interplay. A similar critique may be applied to many pre-paradigmatic strands of AI safety research.

An Economic Overview of the Minimum Wage Debate in the Context of Neuchâtel, Switzerland

Neoclassicists and Keynesians on the minimum wage; early musings on Neuchâtel’s cantonal minimum wage of 2017.

Erfahrungsbericht IYPT 2016

The Swiss team at the International Young Physicists’ Tournament in Yekaterinburg: a four-way final against Singapore, Germany, and Taiwan, and gold medals.

Straße, Platz, Palast. Zur Architektur demokratischer Räume

Jan-Werner Müller, 2026 · Street, Palace, Square: The Architecture of Democratic Spaces · dt. von Michael Bischoff, 2026

Pikalähettinä Pekingissä: Duunarielämää 2000-luvun Kiinassa

Hu Anyan (胡安焉), 2023 · I Deliver Parcels in Beijing (我在北京送快递) · suom. Rauno Sainio, 2026

Vaterland

Paweł Pawlikowski, 2026

Verdict: Le monde d’hier, overcome

Coming soon.

The Odyssey

Christopher Nolan, 2026IMAX 70mm

Verdict: Lost in large-format

More of “Oppenheimer-Nolan”, as opposed to “Inception-Nolan”. The film is carried by its beautiful cinematography¹ and mythological score². Odysseus’ leitmotif was especially effective, and it continues to echo in my mind. I highly recommend watching it in the rare IMAX 70mm format, if you get the chance. However, the movie frequently drags on, only to suddenly burst into full-on Hollywood action. The latter felt especially off-rhythm and pulled me out of the movie immediately. While not Nolan’s best work, it is definitely worth seeing in the large format, though it does come across more like an intellectual exercise than a piece of art entertainment.

¹ Cinematography: Hoyte van Hoytema · ² Score: Ludwig Göransson