Contents and
editorial

‘You can cut all the flowers but you cannot keep Spring from coming’. It is true: you cannot stop spring from coming, and fortunately, the new Broerstraat 5 cannot be stopped either. Despite concerning reports of budget cuts and the departure of editor-in-chief Fenneke Colstee-Wieringa, we will continue to produce an engaging and varied magazine for our UG alumni and associates.

Not surprisingly, spring is one of the main topics in this edition. For example, how are birds coping with the fact that spring seems to be coming earlier every year? We asked Professor Christiaan Both, a passionate birdwatcher, who once drove all the way to Sweden in a single night to follow a pair of pied flycatchers for his research. And how does spring fever affect fruit flies? Professor in Neurogenetics Jean-Christophe Billeter is studying why sexual attraction is always at its highest in spring.

A fresh spring breeze blows us on to music. The exhibition ‘Hip Hop is’ in the Groninger Museum and a four-day hip-hop conference in our city, have put Groningen on the map as the European capital of hip-hop. Linguistics specialist Steven Gilbers was involved in both events, and is currently researching the language of Tupac Shakur. To mark the occasion, we have compiled a special playlist featuring hip-hop from Groningen. We also have a new Spotified with music by alumni. In this edition, the 100th episode of  ‘Ain Wondre Stad’ features Ralf Poelman, famous for the hit ‘Noorderplantsoen’.

But we also make room for more serious matters such as our cover story featuring Professor of International Crime Alette Smeulers, who in her book ‘Angstaanjagend normaal’ (Terrifyingly normal) warns us against what she considers the most dangerous thought: the assumption that you could never become a perpetrator. From war criminals, genocidaries and Trump, it is not such a big leap to preparing for a disaster or emergency. Professor by special appointment in Crises, Safety, and Health Michel Dückers explains all we need to know about preparing for an emergency. All in all, plenty to get you thinking in the spring edition!