"Adams, Plaid and Persen combined the poem with electronic music and the ambisonic field recordings to produce a piece titled Nord Rute -- the first in a four-part collection of performances about indiginous peoples titled The Compass Series, which merge poetry from Valkaeapää, music from Plaid and ambient audio from Adams. Nord Rute is a narrative account of the Sami people's annual migration.

The resulting performance is described as a "three dimensional psycho-acoustic experience" and an "ambisonic narrative evocation". During a performance the floor is covered with reindeer pelts and surrounded by speakers that create a plane of sound within which blindfolded audience members can immerse themselves in the atmosphere of the journey across the frozen wastes. To enhance the experience, there'll be absolutely no heating -- blankets will be provided and schnapps will be served instead."

"While many of us are working to ensure that the Occupy movement will have a lasting impact, it’s worthwhile to consider other countries where masses of people succeeded in nonviolently bringing about a high degree of democracy and economic justice. Sweden and Norway, for example, both experienced a major power shift in the 1930s after prolonged nonviolent struggle. They “fired” the top 1 percent of people who set the direction for society and created the basis for something different."

"Yet one of the most significant things Sahlberg said passed practically unnoticed. "Oh," he mentioned at one point, "and there are no private schools in Finland."

This notion may seem difficult for an American to digest, but it's true. Only a small number of independent schools exist in Finland, and even they are all publicly financed. None is allowed to charge tuition fees. There are no private universities, either. This means that practically every person in Finland attends public school, whether for pre-K or a Ph.D.

The irony of Sahlberg's making this comment during a talk at the Dwight School seemed obvious. Like many of America's best schools, Dwight is a private institution that costs high-school students upward of $35,000 a year to attend -- not to mention that Dwight, in particular, is run for profit, an increasing trend in the U.S. Yet no one in the room commented on Sahlberg's statement. I found this surprising. Sahlberg himself did not."

"So why is comparing and contrasting Finland and Norway important?

Upon hearing about the progress Finland has had with their education system, many policy-makers in other countries may be inclined to point towards the Finns smaller, more homogenous population as the primary reason for their successes in the classroom. That Norway and Finland can share such similarities in population and yet differ with their education systems may be enough proof that policy choices, rather than demographics, can play a potentially larger role in a nation's educational success."

"What these societies have in common is that rather than striving to be the biggest they instead aspire to be constantly better. Which, in the end, offers an important antidote to both the rhetoric of decline and mindless boosterism: the recognition that whether we are falling behind or achieving new heights is greatly determined both by what goals we set and how we measure our performance."

"In the safest, most boring country, the worst lone gunman shooting happens. The worst in the world, in history. But it will not make our country worse. The safe, boring democracy will supply him with a defense lawyer as is his right. He will not get more than 21 years in prison as is the maximum extent of the law. Our democracy does not allow for enough punishment to satisfy my need for revenge, as is its intention. We will not become worse, we will be better. We lived in a land where this is possible, even easy. And we will keep living in a land where this is possible, even easy. We are open, we are free and we are together. We are vulnerable by choice. And we will keep on like that, that's how we want to live. We will not be worse because of the worst. We must be good because of the best."<br />
<br />
[via: http://tobia.tumblr.com/post/7987038256/in-the-safest-most-boring-country-the-worst-lone ]

"In general, my reaction to Norway's lenient, rehabilitation-focused justice system is not that the Norwegian sense of retributive justice is underdeveloped and defective, but that America's is. Norway has one of the world's lowest murder rates. America is worst in the developed world. Maybe we could learn something. Perhaps we should wonder why our detention facilities aren't more like Halden. Of course, we couldn't afford it, as we imprison such a disgracefully huge portion of our population, and in often sub-human conditions…

Were the mass-kid-killing Mr Breivik thrown into this lion's den, there's a good chance he would not come out alive. And I think a lot of Americans would cheer that result. But clearly there is something wrong with a lot of us such that so many of our jails and prisons are like this. And maybe there is something wrong with relishing the idea of Mr Breivik's lawless death at the hands of wilding prisoners."

"In the five days since the deadly attacks in Norway, the world has paid a huge amount of attention to the ideas of Anders Behring Breivik — as he no doubt intended when he posted a manifesto online before setting off on his killing spree.<br />
<br />
As my colleague Nicholas Kulish reports, the attacker’s ideology has already entered into the political debate in several European countries — including Sweden, Italy and France — where nationalist politicians opposed to immigration were forced to denounce some of their party members who suggested that, while the killings were repulsive, the killer’s fear and hatred of Muslim immigrants was understandable or even inevitable.<br />
<br />
A good deal less attention has been paid to the ideas of the dozens of people he killed, among them young members of a Norwegian political party, who were attending a summer conference at a camp ground on Utoya…"

"Final thought. When you go to Tim Wendelboe in Oslo, order a sort kaffe, black coffee, grab a seat, let it cool. This could be the cup of coffee that changes your understanding of coffee.<br />
<br />
There are four or more kinds of beans on the menu, so the play is to ask the person behind the bar for what is brewing best. This is a Tekangu from Kenya, AeroPressed by Ida. It was like drinking fresh juice made with Seville and Valenica oranges, clean and sweet and bright.<br />
<br />
It stays with you."

"Mr. Meyer’s favorite pay-and-performance comparison pits Statoil against ExxonMobil. Statoil, which is two-thirds owned by the Norwegian government, pays its top executives a small fraction of what ExxonMobil pays its leaders. But Statoil’s share price has outperformed Exxon’s since the Norwegian company went public in October 2001. Through March, its stock climbed 22.3 percent a year, on average, Mr. Meyer notes. During the same period, Exxon’s shares rose an average of 11.4 percent annually, while the Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index returned 1.67 percent, annualized."<br />
<br />
"OTHER aspects of Statoil’s governance also appeal to Mr. Meyer. Its 10-member board includes three people who represent the company’s workers; management is not represented on the board. In addition, Statoil has an oversight group known as a corporate assembly, something that is required under Norwegian law for companies employing more than 200 workers…"

"I am an interaction designer and researcher working and living in Oslo.<br />
<br />
Current design and research interest evolve around the social web and physical things that connects to it. For instance I have made Skål (and it's website) - a physical interface for digital media.<br />
<br />
You can see more work in my portfolio."<br />
<br />
[See also http://www.skaal.no/ AND ªªhttp://cargocollective.com/superduper ]ºº

"reflexive critique of comparing Finnish & US ed systems is to say Finland’s PISA results are consequences of country being much smaller, more homogeneous…How could it possibly offer lessons to US?…answer is next door…Norway…akin to US…in approach to ed…<br />
<br />
Moreover, much as in US, classes in Norway are typically too large & equipment too scarce to run science labs. A science teacher at a MS in Oslo told me labs are unfortunately exception, not rule, & that she couldn’t recall doing any labs as a student a decade ago. Unsurprisingly, much as in 2000, 2003, & 2006, Norway in 2009 posted mediocre PISA scores, indicating that it is not necessarily size & homogeneity but, rather, policy choices that lead to country’s educational success.<br />
<br />
Finns have made clear that, in any country, no matter size or composition, there is much wisdom to minimizing testing & instead investing in broader curricula, smaller classes, & better training, pay, & treatment of teachers. US should take heed."

"CONDITIONS, is a new Scandinavian magazine focusing on the conditions of architecture and Urbanism. Presenting new perspectives, in the way of conceiving and analyzing designs, works and theory for architecture.In opposition to ignorance and superficiality this magazine is conceived in order to search for knowledge and predicaments of our continuously evolving society. It is organized in a fluctuating network of agents reflecting the present globalized state of a dynamic society, economics, politics and culture which are the motivators of architecture. Through a play of thoughts in an open ended forum, predefined “facts” will be unsecured and constantly reinvented. The forum will gather the architect, client, politician and the public, a communion of ideas creating conditions for evolution."

"swedish architecture firm jagnefalt milton has been awarded third prize for 'a rolling master plan', their proposed development for the idea competition of andalsnes in norway.

the design utilizing new and existing train tracks to create a diverse system where buildings roll through the city on rails, providing an opportunity to reorganize programmatic requirements in relation to the urban space. the mobile flexibility allows the city to adjust for uses such as concerts, festivals, markets, and seasonal changes.

the integration of mobile structures - including a rolling hotel, public bath and concert hall - has the potential to transform the city into a dense, integrated and continually changing scenography. the temporary, small-scale structures sets the 'city in motion', providing an important connection between the land and the sea."

[See also: http://www.jagnefaltmilton.se/page4.html ]

"It stretches 5.4 million square miles. It's freezing, inhospitable, and devoid of any native residents. Why, then, is the southernmost continent at the center of such contentious wrangling? We take a look at who owns what in Antarctica, and why the battles have recently grown more tumultuous."

"In the short time I have been in Norway, I have visited several schools and have observed a number of practices commonly associated with effective education for young adolescents. Schools typically practice looping in ungdomsskoler, and teachers often have a great deal of control over the daily schedule and instructional groupings. I have seen teachers working together in teams and students engaged in cooperative learning, and recent national reforms have put greater emphasis on curriculum integration."

"Troops from nearly 50 lands dine on combat meals in Afghanistan — each reminding them of where they’d rather be."

[This links to images of meals from 15 different countries. The article is at: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/05/weekinreview/05gilbertson.html via: http://charliefinn.tumblr.com/post/1070455364/a-taste-of-home-in-foil-packets-and-powder ]

"While the United States may still be the richest nation on Earth, it can't claim to be as happy as Denmark or Finland. In fact, according to a new analysis of data provided by the Gallup World Poll, the relationship between overall life satisfaction and wealth may not be as straightforward as previously thought."

"So with a similar population base, and a similarly useful strategic position, could Australia become the ‘Nordic Region’ of the Pacific Economy?

"located in toten, norway this farm house by jarmund/vigsnaes architecture echoes the materials and design

"In inner-city Philadelphia, a pilot program is arming its high schoolers with laptops. But in countries like Norway—and increasingly in the developing world—that’s the norm. Why is the United States so behind? And is it worth it to play catch-up?"

"Established on Svalbard Island, Norway, about 700 miles from the North Pole, the Seed Bank's purpose is to preserve a wide variety of plant seeds from locations worldwide in an underground cavern, part of an effort to protect the planet's rapidly diminishing biodiversity."

"Persian is easy in terms of grammar, most Western European languages have the advantage of common vocabulary and recognition. Norwegian happens to have both of these, and in this post I'm going to show why Norwegian is the easiest language for your average English speaker to learn."

"creative centre & resort...meeting place for designers, schools and companies to develop

"story by now familiar: while no simple explanation for student success in these countries, contributing factors include wider social safety net, high pay & status of teachers, pervasive (& unfiltered) access to internet, much less emphasis on testing."

"Amazingly only a few years after it begun the Seed Vault in Svalbard has opened. I cant wait to go and see how they built a multi-millennial structure so fast."

"he worked for two years in the studio of Jean Prouvé"

"I was leafing through my fifth-grader’s new maths book and was impressed to see that in a few months time she’ll be learning to use a spreadsheet!"