Working

I've been working at the Ernst-Moritz-Arndt University Greifswald (Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany) for three years. During this time my PhD thesis came to be. Then I jumped over the big pond to become a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Geophysical Laboratory of the Carnegie Institution of Washington (Washington D.C., USA). Now, two years later, I spend my time in the Centre for Fusion, Space & Astrophysics of the Department of Physics of the University of Warwick (Coventry, UK).

Studying

The University of my choice was the Ernst-Moritz-Arndt University Greifswald (Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany). Motto: "study where others spend their holidays". I finished with a diploma degree in theoretical physics. Greifswald is known for its small classes and for the fact that one can study plasma physics very well. Together with the Institute for Low Temperature Plasma Physics (INP) and the Institute for Plasma Physics (IPP), the University hosts a unique center for plasma physics research and study.

Living

Having lived at some very different places half around the world I must say that it was nice everywhere I happend to stay for a while. You should try to visit Greifswald, Washington D.C., and Coventry/Kenilworth. For some reason I like Neustrelitz (Mecklenburg, Germany) very much. Insiders should stop in Johanngeorgenstadt (Saxonia, Germany) in winter.

Life 

There is one key ingredient that keeps my life together (apart from a cool crowd of friends, movies, books, skiing and occasionally a beer): paddling in its mighty variability. It may be flatwater sprint canoeing, dragon boating, kayaking, outrigger, river running - as long as it is on the water, it is my sport. I particularly enjoy high kneel sprint canoeing, a simple enough discipline where athletes kneel on one knee in a boat 35 cm (14 inch) wide and handle a canoe paddle to stay on course and try to be as fast as possible over distances between 100 meters and 30 kilometers.