CancelHomeUniversity Sustainability Other App State Podcasts All EpisodesTuesday Jul 02, 2024
Download“Find Your Sustain Ability” host Laura England
associate director of App State’s Quality Enhancement Plan (“Pathways to Resilience”) and practitioner-in-residence in the Department of Sustainable Development
talks with 2024 Appalachian Energy Summit keynote speaker Katrin Klingenberg
co-founder and executive director of the nonprofit Phius (Passive House Institute U.S.)
Klingenberg shares her journey from working for a corporate architecture firm to developing a passion for passive building — which led her to build the nation’s first passive house
Passive building uses core building principles to create net-zero structures that utilize clean
renewable energy sources to generate as much or more energy than they consume annually
Phius aims to decarbonize the built environment by making high-performance passive building the mainstream market standard
Welcome back to the Find Your Sustainability podcast
I'm Laura England from the Department of Sustainable Development
and I'm serving as associate director for the Pathways to Resilience Quality Enhancement Plan
I have the pleasure of getting to talk with the keynote speaker for App State's 2024 Appalachian Energy Summit
or Kat as well call her today is co-founder and executive director of the nonprofit organization Phius
which stands for passive house institute US
and is dedicated to decarbonizing the built environment by making high performance
passive building the mainstream market standard
Kat's visionary leadership in this field has driven the development and adoption of passive building and zero energy standards
Passive building methodology originated in the US and Canada in the 1970s
when she designed and completed the first home to meet passive house standards in the United States
The interest that followed ultimately led her to found Phius
the organization she continues to lead today
Kat's work with Phius includes developing and delivering building science based training in how to design and build the energy efficient zero energy buildings
She has collaborated with federal and state government agencies to tailor passive building standards for various climate zones
and has consulted on projects nationally and internationally
She has also contributed to the field of sustainable building through articles
book contributions and presentations in the U.S
and has been recognized for her leadership with numerous awards
we're thrilled to have you visit APS state and I thoroughly enjoyed your keynote talk last night at this year's Energy Summit
can you start by telling us in layperson terms what is passive building and what is zero energy building
And why are these approaches so important in the context of climate change
I'm really glad I can be here and talk to you about my passion and kind of like life's work that I kind of have been dedicating my career to passive building and passive house
as a single family design where people tried to create a building shell out of materials that would be very well insulating
It's almost like you're putting on a big jacket and then it traditionally came out of the colder climates
and by putting on a jacket and by making the building less drafty
they actually created a home that could be heated just by the internal heat gains in the building that I already present
like you dog or like your water heater or so
So that was the ideal in the 70s that you could create this equilibrium in a building where the internal gains are
And we do that by applying passive building principles
You put on a big down jacket in a cold climate
You put on a little less thick down jacket in a warmer climate
and then you have the lighter one that you take on
I'm so glad that I got to live an experience that
That started off this interest in the whole thing
It was the first passive home in the United States
really cold in the Midwest and then the temperatures after the blizzard are like -20 F
and look out and it's sunny in the morning
I'm walking around in a t- shirt because some solar
passive solar is part of the whole design process
that must have been really satisfying to have
built the home and then to have it really demonstrate to you those passive principles in action
You have no idea what kind of a smile I had on my face
And then you open the door and you poke your nose out and like
And then what is a zero energy building then
So what I just talked about is essentially like
you take windows that are very high performing and that let
But at that point you want to keep the solar out
Like otherwise you get really hot in your building
So once you do all that and you optimize the envelope to reach this equilibrium where the internal heat gains and the losses of the envelope
or they almost balance out and you can get away with a very
then you switch over to renewables and the system that you now need to get to zero energy for operation is super tiny
But that doesn't mean that you cannot do the same thing in a bigger home
the PV system that covers all the energy that is still left after I did all these efficiency measures
And it over produces 10,000 electric car miles
My bill is just the connection to the grid because I'm still interconnected
I stayed away from this 20 years ago because I felt that was too complicated
I still haven't made my choice in terms of
like small home energy management systems now that are inverters that are like home management systems that decide when to keep energy like in the battery
But like in states like California where they actually pay you based on like peak consumption
the utility actually loves that when you're a micro producer and they get in a into a pinch
and too many people are drawing energy from the grid
they pay you big bucks to send like another kilowatt hour their way
So once you have these like super energy efficient building shells
then you add a very small now affordable renewable system to it
And then you can start trading with the utility if the the utility recognizes the value to them to shave off peak demand
then they don't have to build as many peaker plants and the peaker plants only run 2% of the year because like those peak moments don't last very long and they are super expensive to the utility
that actually buildings are really the cornerstone of this redesign of our energy supply as part of a renewable grid
And back to your second part of the question: Like
in the context of climate change and resilience
maybe we could have been talking about only mitigation
We have a great story from some of you might remember the cold spell in Texas when a lot of people
actually died because it was too cold and the grid went down and…
a home that was retrofitted to our Phius standards in Austin
They hadn't installed a small backup system yet
And so the limiting factor was the fridge no longer working
so you put enough of a battery in to keep your critical loads going
And this point that you're making last night is becoming even more clear for me now that there are synergies between transformation of the built environment and transformation of our energy systems
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has called for rapid
far reaching transformations across all sectors
And I'm hearing like on the homeowner individual scale
like it's more affordable to put the photovoltaic solar array on your roof
If you've done the passive building work to really
And that's a big obstacle for a lot of people
The cost of putting a solar array on your roof to meet the current level of energy use is prohibitive
but these two things are really synergistic
Like so if you have a regular standard home
it uses so much energy like you will have to have your roof is not even going to be enough
You will have to have photovoltaic panels in your yard and all of a sudden you pay like 40 K for like a system or 50 or whatever
Nobody can afford the so with the incentives
I was able to purchase my little itty bitty like five kW
solar system for I think in the end it cost me like 6k
I literally have no energy except the ten bucks that I'm being charged to..
And last night you talked a lot about the various other benefits of passive building besides the energy reduction and what that means for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and the cost savings by reducing energy demand
Can you talk about some of those other benefits
it's like a total win win win on all levels
essentially what we're well it’s not accidentally like it's intentional
but we're making the thermal comfort much better in buildings like
most of us are probably used to very drafty
that don't have very good indoor air quality if your live in a humid climate
You have to run your air conditioning a lot to get the humidity out
So these passive principles help to improve all this to a level that is almost unbelievable
When people came into my home initially for tours
when I was trying to show it to the city council
they came in and one person came and said like
it's springtime and my allergies are killing me
And even the windows are so high performing that there's no draft next to full height windows
You can sit like it's it's it's it's really cold outside or warm for that matter
like on the windowsill and you're super comfortable
the quietness a lot of people refer to the quietness
The acoustic quality in these buildings is just unbelievable
And that makes a big difference in big cities
inherently from the building science perspective
we’re preventing any kind of condition for potential mold growth in the wall
since the buildings are built so tight and the ventilation happens through intentional ports
there's no moist air that can get into the wall assembly
So there's no condensation inside of the wall assemblies not on the surface or inside and not inside
So your building will last pretty much indefinitely
I cut holes into my wall after 20 years and the material was as if I had just brought it back home from Home Depot yesterday
affordable housing developers who actually hold their properties and
they can monetize the savings that are built into it
PV system is so powerful that it over produces and actually starts making us money
So the overall total cost benefit calculation looks fabulous
And you talked last night about the ways in which demand for your work is accelerating
and what are some of their remaining obstacles for sort of broad adoption and implementation of passive building principles
and we keep discovering those new obstacles
like when when I first started in 2002 and three
And we'll see this exponential growth and it will become standard
So that was my vision for the nonprofit that I founded
we want to make these standards code by 2020
it actually has become code in some places
they forged ahead and and they didn't just do this willy nilly
They built like eight projects and they studied the costs and they're like
And they analyzed what does it cost on top of regular construction
And they found it was roughly between 1 and 3%
Like it's it's always you got to do this on a local basis
And at that point they just sprinted ahead like
Well this is going to be the basis for a zero energy stretch code
And like in Mass a lot of municipalities adopted the stretch code ahead of time
In two years it's going to become law for everybody
And they're basically showing right now that this can be done on a broad level
the buildings have grown from single family to multi-family
So that was a big growing period for us because we had to evolve from single family
home building kind of focus to like now to multifamily
And now we're also evolving into the commercial construction realm
And we also are getting into retrofitting buildings using the same principles
The biggest issue that we're facing is really training up the workforce
if a project costs more than these like 1 to 3% and that's for multifamily
Like don't try this on a single family home
Single family homes are still more expensive
so the workforce coordination is really key
it will take you more time training up the designers
If you right now go to contract and who's not familiar
It's just like rethinking certain things and like redesigning your sequence of construction
And when they are faced with new technologies that they're not familiar with
everybody is at the table right from the beginning
Not like we've been doing this in the past
Like somebody designs something puts it out for bid
It's all like everybody loves in their own little silos
And that just doesn't work because we are trying to tap into the synergies and not just between the technologies
the passive elements and the renewable elements and then the wider grid elements
it's we're trying to tap into the synergies between the trades and everybody
all the players that are involved in making buildings happen
building sciences and sustainable technology are in the same department
they're talking to one another in the academic setting and getting training across those different fields
So perhaps graduates of programs like ours are more prepared to do that talking across what has been siloed
She is at NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory) now
like coming here because I believe you guys
are perfectly positioned to actually spearhead that kind of integration in academia
And I've talked to some of your colleagues last night
We have a whole suite of trainings developed that is out in the market for the executive kind of group of professionals
But we've also been pushing our university version of it
So I'm very excited to continue that conversation with the respective departments of your school
Since we have this five year climate literacy initiative that starts in just a few months in August of this year
they're asking for it and the skills are not doing it
Like so when I taught at University of Illinois that's already like what
I was teaching passive building and we had just gotten a new head of the department
and he wanted to turn a traditionally also building science based school into a design school
The students staged a sit-in in the dean's office and he kicked them out
We have to do things differently here at App State
staff and students across campus who are working together
speaking of students and their interest in being a part of solutions
you really are an agent of change in your field
Have been and a lot of our students are interested in being agents of change in their chosen professions and the work of Phius
I don't know if we made this clear earlier
but you're not doing the building of the homes and buildings
You're working in ways that leverage larger change
And someone who has been an agent of change
broader impact and any advice you may have for our students who see themselves again
going into a profession and really wanting to help implement the transformations that are needed
I think it's really important that someone has this experience of practical experience
So I'm really glad that I was forced out of my corporate architecture career by myself
but I never had seen a piece of wood in any of my drawings
because then I have control and I started building my house
So knowing how these things go together in 3D as an architect
I did all the structural calculations on my building and it’s still standing up really happy about this
so I really had to think everything through
then I felt like I had a good baseline to then start a business around it
but having done this for 20 years now and having built this business and as you say
like I started planning out a strategic change plan
We need a really good standard that doesn't make people… that allows people to do this safely
So to the students who want to be change agents
I believe we've shown that environmental action can actually be profitable and that it is a win win for everybody
And now having been in the nonprofit world for so long
Like my vision for my next chapter is actually going into for profit because
what I want to inspire in like a global entrepreneurial world that that really is the fire we need to light next
I was talking to the chair of your economy department last night
He was studying in London when that was a thing
but that speaks to now if we think about like systems change
Start a business that leverages these synergies and then prove to the world that this is an economic driver and makes life better
I think we're really at that point where we're understanding these systems designs
and we need immediate action globally like pretty much yesterday
So let's just unlock this entrepreneurial spirit in students
You talked about basically strategic thinking strategic planning
thinking ahead to thinking systems thinking
What are the the outcomes we need to get to and then what are the strategies to get there
but so what I'm really excited about in my field is like
I've started working with developers because I'm trying to light that fire under their butts
people like this is not just good for affordable housing developers
This is also really good for for profit developers
So if we could start thinking about housing as infrastructure for decentralized energy production
housing basically becomes the rig for your solar
And now the housing itself is so efficient that you can overproduce on a multifamily scale or like a city block
You add all these efficiencies that we talked about during my presentation last night
you actually become like an energy company and housing is kind of like a side product
I have this vision that housing becomes free somehow
because it has this other amazing benefit to developers and to society to make money
I'm going to be an energy and housing developer
Well and what you just said you're embodying this strategic thinking/systems thinking like you have worked within a particular system
And that's part it's a subsystem of a bigger system
And Now you're probably thinking multiple systems ahead of the one
how can we take that model and take it to places like Africa for example right
they haven't done too much like old bad stuff
let's get started right out of the gate on the right foot
on like sort of a more practical question you talked about in cold climates
what it looks like for passive building here
the down jacket insulation being really key for the climates
like the Piedmont of the southeastern United States
where it's very hot in the summer and very humid
What are some of…like help us visualize like what are those building practices look like to get to zero energy or passive homes
So we have annual conferences every year to plant flags and different regions of the U.S
and the US is actually super interesting in terms of climate specific design
So this is like what I'm priding myself in having come up with the idea of climate specific passive building standards
and wrote the papers and did the research and with NREL in 2015
will people take us up on this and think that this is a real thing
I think this was one of our best conferences
the principles exactly apply in hot and humid climates as well
It's essentially best building science practices
Like you still need a certain level of insulation
You definitely need the leak free construction because you don't want…you have the humidity
That's also a big contributor to your energy consumption if you have to dehumidify
because then you bring in all the humidity
So you have a set of levers and you just pull different ones
different amounts depending on the climate
kind of jigger it until it's perfect including cost
and because you do not need that much insulation
you can imagine you need a bigger down jacket
And if you go and buy a Canada goose jacket
I can pull this thing at the airport out of a vending machine
So it's funny but it's a similar kind of relationship
you've laid out a big vision and shared with us a lot about passive building
some might include folks working in the building industry
Tell us about where we can get information through your organization
But also like what would be a good starting point for someone who wants to move in this direction
maybe almost like a little bit too much information
But there is a lot of awesome information on our website
We've put together a whole bunch of calculators
so if you wanted to try to figure out how to build your own home
You just have to do a whole bunch of reading
I do not recommend it because these homes are delicate designs
a professional is a really good investment because if you try to figure it out yourself and you make one small mistake
then you might be ailing from that mistake
And on our website you will also find information about training
So if you are in any of the fields that are relevant and you might want to like
anybody along the delivery chain of passive building
We also just recently launched our new trades training
And what's the airtight layer of vapor barrier like all these like technical terms for building science
If you're in a profession and you're interested in
And we have that infernal website and I will say
sign up for our newsletter because our team kicks out new information all the time
Lots of exciting stuff happening all the time
we're having three educational events coming up
This year we are together with Green Built
we have a dedicated track at Green Built for the Phius technologies and certifications and buildings
Very excited because the case we're trying to make is like these systems are synergistic
They are not like energy over here and green building over
They work together similarly with the living building challenge
Like any other holistic green building program
Same thing we are the intel inside we are the energy optimization logic that you should plug into these other systems
And then we also have a Phius pro forum for the first time this year
which is especially dedicated to the professionals in Massachusetts who are now challenged on a large scale to basically reconfigure their entire business model to to crank out like
So we're trying to help them to come up to speed and feel more secure that they can actually do that
one of the most relevant building scientists in like
and he has a long-standing building science symposium every year
And they are always looking for young folks and new people to join because the older
If you're interested in going to summer camp
Send an email to info@phius.org and that'll get to me
It would be great to have a few young folks to show up for that conference as well
Your organization is phenomenal in creating change
in the complexity and enormity of the climate problems that we face
what gives you hope or courage to keep doing this work that you're doing
Like I felt like I was on my soapbox all the time
maybe sometimes a little too forceful sometimes
you don't want to inflame this politicization of the climate debate
What we're proposing here is something we all want
We don't want to spend a fortune on energy
when it all clicked and when it all fell into place
and I saw the potential for this black swan event
something that seemed so daunting 20 years ago and all of a sudden it's taken off in entire industries were struggling to make this change happen
I created a newsletter on LinkedIn and it's called
that was my effort of kind of like switching my thinking from doom and gloom to like
Now we just need to win the hearts and minds of the people and communicate like this is the win win
So the more people we can convince of that and inspire to follow in the footsteps of the better
I believe this is a really great idea and we can make it happen…and we can make it happen in time
Well said in that point that with climate mitigation strategies or climate solutions
there are so many co-benefits as they're called
If we focus on that instead of the controversial pieces…the parts that are uncontroversial
we have the possibility of making a whole lot of headway
Thank you for coming to App State and sharing with us about your work and for talking with me today
Copyright 2015 Appalachian State University
Anneliese Michel/FacebookAnneliese Michel as a young child
roughly 15 years before the exorcisms that took her life
the horrifying events of the 2005 film The Exorcism of Emily Rose were not entirely fictional
but rather were based on the actual experiences of a young German woman named Anneliese Michel
Anneliese Michel grew up devoutly Catholic in Bavaria
she suddenly blacked out at school and began walking around in a daze
Though Michel herself had no memory of the event
her friends and family said she was in a trance-like state
Anneliese Michel experienced a similar occurrence
where she woke up in a trance and wet her bed
Her body then went through a series of convulsions
leaving many of those closest to her certain that she was possessed by a demon
But what happened next was even more disturbing
and the exorcisms that her family used to treat her symptoms eventually left her dead on July 1
This is the haunting story of Anneliese Michel
Anneliese Michel/FacebookAnneliese Michel during college
Michel attended mass twice a week and was devout herself
until Anneliese Michel began experiencing bizarre episodes
Michel attempted to live a normal life — even going on to attend college at the University of Würzburg
although her classmates described her as closed off and deeply religious
After the second time she went into a trance
Anneliese Michel visited a neurologist who diagnosed her with temporal lobe epilepsy
and experiencing visual and auditory hallucinations
Temporal lobe epilepsy can also cause Geschwind syndrome
Keystone Press / Alamy Stock PhotoJoseph and Anna Michel
Anneliese Michel began taking medication for her epilepsy
the drugs she was given failed to help her
and as the year progressed her condition deteriorated
Though she was still taking her medication
Michel began to believe that she was possessed by a demon and that she needed to find a solution outside of medicine
She began to see the face of the devil wherever she went and said she heard demons whispering in her ears
When she heard demons telling her she was “damned” and would “rot in hell” while she was praying
she concluded that the devil must be possessing her
Anneliese Michel and her family sought out priests to help her with her demonic possession
but all the clergy she approached rejected her requests
saying that she should seek medical help and that they needed the permission of a bishop anyway
Michel’s delusions had become extreme
compulsively performed up to 400 squats a day
crawled under a table and barked like a dog for two days
He stated that “she didn’t look like an epileptic” in later court documents
Anneliese Michel/FacebookAnneliese Michel during one of her exorcisms
you pray for me” and also once told him
“I want to suffer for other people… but this is so cruel.”
who eventually approved the request and granted a local priest
Arnold Renz permission to perform an exorcism
but ordered that it be carried out in total secret
FacebookAnneliese Michel’s 67 exorcisms slowly killed her over a period of many months before she finally perished on July 1
Exorcisms have existed in various cultures and religions for millennia
but the practice became popular in the Catholic Church in the 1500s with priests who would use the Latin phrase “Vade retro satana” (“Go back
Satan”) to expel demons from their mortal hosts
The practice of Catholic exorcism was codified in the Rituale Romanum
a book of Christian practices assembled in the 16th century
By the 1960s, exorcisms were very rare among Catholics, but a rise in movies and books like The Exorcist in the early 1970s caused a renewed interest in the practice
following the bishop’s approval of Anneliese Michel’s exorcism
Michel revealed that she believed she was possessed by six demons: Lucifer
Anneliese Michel/FacebookAnneliese Michel being restrained by her mother during an exorcism
All these spirits would jostle for power of Anneliese Michel’s body
and would communicate from her mouth with a low growl:
Anneliese Michel continued to physically and mentally deteriorate
They think it’s all over after death
It goes on” and Judas saying Hitler was nothing but a “big mouth” who had “no real say” in Hell
Anneliese Michel would frequently talk about “dying to atone for the wayward youth of the day and the apostate priests of the modern church.”
She broke the bones and ripped the tendons in her knees from continually kneeling in prayer
Over these 10 months, Michel was frequently restrained so the priests could conduct exorcism rites. She slowly stopped eating, and she eventually died of malnutrition and dehydration on July 1
Michel weighed only 66 pounds and was suffering from multiple broken bones and pneumonia
Anneliese Michel/FacebookAnneliese Michel continued to genuflect despite her broken knees
After her death, Anneliese Michel’s story became a national sensation in Germany after her parents and the two priests who conducted the exorcism were charged with negligent homicide
They came before the court first the first time on March 30
The prosecution called forth doctors to testify that Michel was not possessed by demons
but rather suffering from extreme mental illness stemming from her religious upbringing and physical health issues
the defense presented a recording of the exorcism to try to justify their actions
the two priests were found guilty of manslaughter resulting from negligence and were sentenced to six months in jail (which was later suspended) and three years of probation
The parents were exempted from any punishment as they had “suffered enough,” a criteria for sentencing in German law
the famous horror movie The Exorcism of Emily Rose was released in 2005
Loosely based on Anneliese Michel’s story
the movie follows a lawyer (played by Laura Linney) who takes on a negligent homicide case involving a priest who allegedly performed a deadly exorcism on a young woman
Sony PicturesA scene from the popular 2005 movie
the film was both praised and panned by critics for its depiction of the sensational court case that followed the death of the character Emily Rose
Although much of the movie focuses on courtroom drama and debate
there are plenty of scary flashbacks that depict the events leading up to Emily Rose’s exorcism — and her untimely death at age 19
Perhaps one of the most memorable scenes from the film is the flashback of Emily Rose screaming the names of all her demons to her priest
While reviews of The Exorcism of Emily Rose were decidedly mixed
including an MTV Movie Award for “Best Frightened Performance” by Jennifer Carpenter
Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0The gravesite of Anneliese Michel
Other than her inspiration for a horror film
Anneliese Michel became an icon for some Catholics who felt modern
secular interpretations of the bible were distorting the ancient
“The surprising thing was that the people connected to Michel were all completely convinced that she had really been possessed,” remembers Franz Barthel
who reported on the trial for the regional daily paper the Main-Post
still come to Michel’s grave,” Barthel says
“The grave is a gathering point for religious outsiders
They write notes with requests and thanks for her help
While she may be a source of inspiration for some religious people
the story of Anneliese Michel is not one of spirituality triumphing over science
but of people who should have known better than allowing a mentally-ill woman to die
It’s the story of people projecting their own beliefs
and the price that was paid for those beliefs
Anneliese Michel died of malnourishment and dehydration after undergoing 67 exorcisms in a span of 10 months
she weighed only 66 pounds and suffered from multiple broken bones
priests from the Catholic Church and Michel’s parents believed that Michel was possessed by multiple demons
doctors had diagnosed her with temporal lobe epilepsy when she was just 16 years old and believed that her condition triggered psychosis that was made worse by her deeply religious upbringing
An autopsy of Anneliese Michel’s body showed that she died as a result of malnourishment
and physical trauma sustained during the exorcisms
She had suffered from several physical ailments stemming from her exorcisms
including broken knees and severe weight loss
She received an exorcism once or twice a week
Michel’s exorcisms were performed primarily by Father Arnold Renz
the exorcisms were approved by Bishop Josef Stangl
Both the priests who performed the exorcisms and Michel’s parents were charged and brought to court
Renz and Alt were found guilty of negligent homicide and given suspended prison sentences
the courts ruled that they had suffered enough with the death of their daughter
The fictional account inspired by Michel’s story follows the story of a lawyer working the case of a priest charged with negligent homicide after a college-age woman named Emily Rose died during an exorcism
the story is highly dramatized and features supernatural themes
including paranormal activity that later plagues the lawyer
Emily Rose becomes a saint-like figure whose grave becomes a pilgrimage site
Michel is buried at Friedhof Klingenberg am Main in Klingenberg am Main
Her grave has become a pilgrimage site for many Catholics
After reading about Anneliese Michel and the real-life story that inspired The Exorcism Of Emily Rose, learn about other alleged cases of demonic possession throughout history. Then, read about true stories of exorcisms from decades past
In a rematch of a Women's World Cup semifinal match
the US Women's National Team faced Germany on Wednesday in the final of the SheBelieves Cup
Things were not going well for the US until Alex Morgan unleashed one of the best goals of her career
Morgan took a long pass from Meghan Klingenberg and deftly flicked the ball with her left foot over the defender's head
Before the ball came back down to the ground
Morgan slammed it past the goalkeeper and into the back of the net
The inaugural SheBelieves Cup tournament was designed as a warm-up for the 2016 Rio Olympics and is meant to help the growth of women's soccer and support the #SheBelieves campaign to inspire young girls to accomplish their goals and dreams
The dates displayed for an article provide information on when various publication milestones were reached at the journal that has published the article
activities on preceding journals at which the article was previously under consideration are not shown (for instance submission
Ecological IndicatorsCitation Excerpt :In recent years
due to the increasingly serious water shortage
water pollution problem has attracted extensive attention from researchers all over the world
and the research on metal(loid)s pollution of sediment is also increasing
the existing research about metal(loid)s pollution in sediment mainly focused on large rivers (e.g
few research was carried out on the upstream sediment of river in water conservation area
contaminated leachates flow directly into downstream and tributaries
thus forming an additional pollution source
once leached from the sediment phase into the overlying water
trace metals pose adverse effects on the aquatic ecosystem
the resulting exposure risk to the communities (Hahn et al.
Dam constructions have continuously increased the sediment load
further accelerating excessive accumulation of trace metals in fragile ecosystems (Huang et al.
All content on this site: Copyright © 2025 Elsevier B.V.
The woman screamed in agony as the searing liquid scorched her flesh
Her body convulsed in pain and she began shaking violently
Two priests watched as she struggled against the three men that held her down
This was not a normal reaction to holy water
or water blessed by a priest and used for spiritual cleansing
snapping her teeth at the men restraining her and hurling obscenities at the two priests in the guttural growl of an animal
This was just the first day in the exorcisms conducted on Anneliese Michel
Michel was raised by devout Roman Catholic parents in the town of Klingenberg am Main
She and her sisters were taught strictly under traditional religious methods and would attend mass twice a week
Her parents opposed the modern practices of the church brought about by the Second Vatican Council
Michel lost consciousness at her school for unknown reasons
Michel claimed to have felt paralyized to the mattress at the time
It was as though a heavy force was pushing down on her
Michel blacked out again and had another seizure
She was taken to a neurologist and became diagnosed with temporal lobe epilepsy
which are recurring seizures originating from the brain’s temporal lobes
No medication was prescribed to her due the infrequency of the seizures
She contracted a number of different illnesses including tuberculosis
Her tonsils had to be removed after she developed tonsillitis
She also started having heart and circulatory issues
Michel was soon admitted to a medical facility called the Mittenberg Clinic for recovery
Another seizure occurred during Michel’s stay at the facility on Jun
She was prescribed a new series of medications as her physical and mental health continued to decline
The face stared at her with malefic eyes before suddenly vanishing
She stopped praying out of fear and began questioning whether there was a demon inside of her
Michel became increasingly depressed and faced more of what people believed were hallucinations
She claimed to have heard knocking sounds in her room
as well as voices stating she was damned to rot in hell
Her mother also claimed to have one day found her staring blankly at a statue of the Virgin Mary with black eyes
Michel was taken by her father to a saint shrine at the San Damiano church in Assisi
and claimed that the ground burned like fire
Michel said a piercing white light blinded her every time she glanced at a painting of a biblical figure
she tore off her rosary beads and started speaking in a deep
The family attempted to seek help from the Roman Catholic church and Michel began consulting with many priests
They were eventually referred to Father Ernst Alt
Alt believed she was being possessed by a demonic entity
He pleaded to Bishop Josef Stangl for the approval of an exorcism
but was denied under the belief that she just needed more medical treatment
Michel’s behavior got increasingly strange over the coming weeks
She began destroying religious objects around the house
including crucifixes and more rosary beads
At one point she crawled under a table and remained there for two days
Her family also said that she began eating spiders and coal from the fireplace
She lashed out more frequently towards her family and parts of her body began to swell at random
Alt pleaded once again to the Bishop and finally was given approval
but only under the condition that the exorcisms were done in secret
Bishop Stangl appointed a young priest named Father Arnold Renz to assist him in the rite and they began Sept
Renz conducted a total of 67 exorcisms on Michel
The sessions occurred once or twice a week and usually lasted over an hour
Michel claimed to have heard and seen everything during the exorcisms
Her parents had full faith the exorcisms would help cure their daughter and took Michel off psychiatric treatment
the priests learned Michel was possessed by a total of six demons
who was the disciple that betrayed Jesus Christ in the Bible
the son of Adam and Eve who murdered his own brother
A disgraced German priest from the 1500s named Valentin Fleischmann was also listed
These six demons allegedly fought for control over Michel and could often be heard arguing through her voice
Some speculate the names of the demons were lies and only chosen by the demonic entities within her to insinuate fear
The priests made audio and video recordings of the session to show to the church for analysis
A total of 42 audio recordings were collected
All of them feature Michel shouting and groaning in a disturbing distorted voice
Michel could not be left alone often during this time because it was feared she would harm herself if given the chance
She had also stopped eating and claimed the demons would not permit her
Michel would stand and drop down on her knees repeatedly to pray
This resulted in her breaking the tendons in her knees
Michel believed that she was suffering for the sins of the generation’s youth and the modern priests of the church
She claimed to have had a vision of the Virgin Mary telling her this directly
1975 that the demons were believed to have finally been expelled from Michel’s body
The joy of the priest’s success was short-lived as the entities returned 15 minutes later
she screamed in agony and lied rigidly in bed for long periods of time
She still refused to eat and would throw herself against the walls
Michel soon made the claim that her suffering would end in July
Michel was extremely frail and weighed under 100 pounds
She had a high fever and felt very exhausted
The only words she uttered during this session were
Her mother found her dead in bed the next morning July 1
An autopsy ruled her cause of death as dehydration and malnutrition
the autopsy found she had a healthy brain with no damage that could cause epileptic seizures
Michel’s pupils were also found to be unusually dilated
were brought to trial for her death March 30
The court believed Michel was just mentally ill and that exorcisms had only worsened her condition
It was thought that she would have survived if she was given proper medical treatment
The audio tapes taken of the exorcism were played in their defense
Michel’s parents were charged with negligent homicide
but weren’t given a jail sentence as it was believed they suffered enough with the loss of her daughter
Renz were charged with negligent manslaughter and were sentenced to six months behind bars
It is long debated whether the case of Annelise Michel was an episode of demonic possession or poor mental health
The modern age has lost touch with a majority of spiritual practices and beliefs
Michel’s declining mentality would be the most logical answer
Perhaps that’s just an excuse to not dwell into what science can’t explain
such as the voice captured on the audio recordings
and the fact that she knew the month she’d die
While she may have had a rough mental state
there’s a strong possibility she really was possessed
It was reported that a mysterious fire had broken out in the house where Michel died June 6
Police have reported the incident as a case of arson
but many people believe the fire has a connection to Michel’s possession
It’s rather ominous that it occurred on the sixth day of the sixth month
a date that’s often attributed with the Devil and the coming of the Antichrist
and throughout the world have signed a statement calling for peace in Nagorno-Karabakh
Below we have republished their statement in full
The statement was originally published on Caucasus Talks and is open for signatures.
As you read this message people are dying in and around Nagorno-Karabakh. Young boys and men are killing one another with no solution in sight.
The main victim of this war is not objective truth. Rather it destroys the lives of real people, real children.
It is becoming a losing battle for the entire South Caucasus region.
If it does not affect you now, the war or the consequences of it will get to you tomorrow.
War will never resolve the conflict. It will only leave us in a darker, more vicious circle of enduring wars and unresolved grievances.
Defending peace is not a neutral position. We reject the militarist positions conditioned by narratives of war and instead seek pathways to build peace.
This war recalls the tragedies and the wounds of the past. It does nothing to heal them, but only creates new ones.
This war has no winners. It brings misery, death, poverty and loss of independence to the whole Caucasus region.
We urge external powers not to incite further clashes and not to partake in war-making.
We are advocating an immediate ceasefire and inclusive negotiations encompassing all of the Armenian and Azerbaijani parties to the conflict.
Open Caucasus Media brings you news, commentary, multimedia, and podcasts from the North and South Caucasus.
The hosts of the podcast were charged with hooliganism after insulting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and other ruling party figures.
The rhetoric echoed similar sentiments made by both Georgian and Russian officials regarding Georgia.
The statement came on the same day as Armenia marked progress in the World Press Freedom Index.
Georgia fell to 114th place in the world, while Armenia rose to 34th.
A large-scale architectural transformation is taking place in the very heart of Dushanbe today. This process causes understandable public discussions and concern of Dushanbe residents for the preservation of historical sites. The latest such case was the recent decision of the city authorities to build a new business center on the site of the TV “Safina” building.
At the center of this discussion is the fate of the historical heritage site of “Shashmaqom” mosaic, which adorns the wall of the building.
In 1976, muralist Asror Aminjanov created the famous "Shashmaqom" mosaic made of natural stone. This time is considered to be the heyday of mosaic art in Tajikistan. It was in the 60-80s of the last century that iconic works in the style of socialist realism, modernism and abstractionism appeared in Tajikistan.
In 2024, the Chairman of Dushanbe decided to preserve this historical mosaic for future generations. This task was entrusted to the TGEM company, which will erect a new building on the site of TV “Safina”.
OJSC TGEM confirmed to “Asia-Plus” that they are well aware of the value of “Shashmaqom” mosaic and therefore took the task set by the mayor with all seriousness.
According to the representative of the company, when choosing experts, the main attention was paid to their experience in the preservation and restoration of historical sites.
As a result, the choice fell on an international team of experts led by engineer Andrey Rykshin. It is this team that will carry out work on the preservation and restoration of Dushanbe mosaic.
Rykshin is a restorer engineer with extensive experience in the field of construction and restoration of historical sites in Germany and Russia. Moreover, it turned out that Andrey hails from... Dushanbe!
“Asia-Plus” found the engineer's contacts in Germany, contacted and talked to him. It turned out that Andrey Rykshin is a representative of the engineering dynasty in the third generation. His grandfather, after graduating from the Kerch Polytechnic Institute, built the Kerch Metallurgical Plant and after that came to work in Tajikistan as an engineering technician, where he later became the head of one of the departments of the State Construction of the republic.
His grandmother worked as a chief accountant in the road building department. Andrey's father, Evgeny, was born here, who worked as a chief engineer at many construction sites in the republic in the system of the Ministry of Water Management "Tajikgiprovodhoz".
All this was the reason for my choice of a future profession. People usually say that they don't choose their place of birth, but in my case, I didn't choose my profession either. I inherited it!", - says the expert.
In the early 90s, Andrey Rykshin entered Kuibyshev Moscow Institute of Civil Engineering (MGSU). Immediately after completing his studies in 1995, he began his career in construction companies in Moscow, worked his way up from foreman to deputy construction management.
In 1997, he was invited to work in Germany. Here, in Munich, he continued to engage in design, construction, and supervision in the field of construction.
In 2000, the young engineer became a co-founder partner of the design bureau in Munich, in 2004 he became a member of the Engineering and Construction Chamber of Bavaria, continuing his design and consulting practice in Germany and Russia. For the last 25 years, Rykshin has been actively involved in projects for the restoration of cultural sites in both countries.
According to Andrey Rykshin, progress in urban planning is inevitable, it is a natural process - cities must change, become more modern, but at the same time it is necessary to maintain a balance between historical memory, which is important for self-awareness, and changes in the modern city.
Andrey Rykshin shares this approach and has repeatedly found successful solutions in his practice to modernize existing cultural facilities in a changing urban environment.
"Due to constant floods, ancient cities have been devastated by natural disasters for many years. The German federal authorities have decided to restore the damaged facilities of these cities and ensure their reliable protection from future disasters.
We faced a difficult task: to determine which historical objects should be restored, fully preserving their original appearance, and which should be modernized, - Rykshin shares his memories. "As a result, our team managed to preserve the unique character of the cities and find modern solutions to protect them from floods."
New walls appeared on some streets to prevent buildings from collapsing under water pressure, while waterproofing systems were introduced on other streets, for example, windows in houses became waterproof, similar to those used in submarines, capable of withstanding water pressure.
Despite the major changes made to the structure of the cities, their historical spirit has remained unchanged, the expert notes.
"Tourists and locals today can enjoy the atmosphere of ancient buildings that have remained in their original form, despite the introduction of modern technologies to protect against natural disasters," he says.
In Russia, engineer Rykshin and his team have implemented dozens of restoration projects. One of the examples of a successful combination of technical modernization and restoration of a historical object was the Chekhov Moscow Art Theater.
Under the leadership of Andrey Rykshin, a project was implemented here to introduce new technological equipment into this ancient building and transform the theater stage.
An important requirement of the project was the preservation of the historical interior of the theater, emphasizing its uniqueness and ancient character. The modernization work was carried out with maximum attention to detail, which allowed us to preserve the atmosphere of the past.
The technical modernization of the stage has significantly expanded the capabilities of actors and directors. Now the Moscow Art Theater stage is able to transform globally, creating the most modern productions. At the same time, the audience, being in the hall, does not notice the changes, since the carefully preserved historical interior of the theater visually remained the same.
The reconstruction project of the “Space” Pavilion at VDNH in Moscow has become another important project of our countryman and an example of successful restoration of historical heritage. During the pavilion restoration, fragments of an old mosaic made of gold smalt were found on the inner walls of the dome hall. This inspired a group of restorers led by engineer Rykshin to recreate this unique mosaic.
"Initially, we did not have such a task, but we accepted it, emphasizing the historical functional role of the pavilion as the pride of the country for achievements in mechanical engineering. It was important for us to preserve this imprint of time for future generations, people who are interested in the history of the past," says Andrey.
For this work in the “Space” pavilion, Rykshin and his team received the prestigious Moscow Government award "Moscow Restoration" in the best restoration and adaptation project category.
In addition, his team was awarded a special first-degree diploma of the organizing committee of the national independent architectural rating "Golden Capital". This work was also noted by the State Duma of the Russian Federation Federal Assembly in the form of gratitude for the contribution to the development of the concept and project of the “Cosmonautics and Aviation” Center on the territory of VDNH.
Andrey Rykshin compares the process of developing a restoration project with a consultation of doctors who decide on the fate of a patient – whether to remove an organ or try to save it.
Similarly, in the restoration of a cultural heritage site, each decision is analyzed, potential gains and losses are taken into account.
According to the expert, for the self-awareness of the city and the nation, it is important to preserve as many artifacts as possible, which can be a memory, artistic or cultural value.
If the object is an art monument, then it is important to preserve it as the author intended, as carefully and efficiently as possible. This desire for balance and compromise becomes a key element in the restoration process, where each decision affects the preservation of cultural heritage and the perception of the city as a whole.
Andrey accepted the invitation to participate in the preservation of Dushanbe “Shashmaqom” mosaic because this project is not just an order for him. According to the engineer, this is a kind of return to the roots, to childhood, to the cultural heritage that has become an integral part of himself.
The expert sees each piece of the mosaic as a mystery, a part of Tajik history, in every detail of which lies the spirit of the past.
According to the expert, the work on “Shashmaqom” mosaic has already begun. Andrey recently came to Dushanbe to conduct an initial assessment of the canvas and discuss possible methods of preservation and modern use of the historical architectural work.
"We are developing a phased program for working with mosaics. There may be several forks in the conservation. In the near future, we plan to come again to begin a more detailed study for the execution of draft versions and the formation of draft drawings for the mosaic transfer," says Andrey Rykshin.
Today, there is enough engineering knowledge to efficiently transfer and preserve cultural heritage sites. It is impossible to ravage the business center investor, the company TGEM and the city administration with some unthinkable ideas. There must be a balanced decision, for it to be like this, a thorough on-site investigation is necessary."
In his opinion, structurally, the transfer of the mosaic is a difficult but achievable task. Restorers carry out thorough measurements, fully examine the structure, visually examine every crack, fix all the details.
Like the restoration of damaged paintings, where every thread is restored, the transfer of the mosaic requires the most careful attitude and attention to detail, especially to constructive auxiliary structures that will ensure its relocation to a new location.
According to Rykshin's deputy, Serbian architect Aleksandar Jovanovic, who will also work on the mosaic preservation, the invitation of foreign experts and the preservation of "Shashmaqom" represent a significant step forward for the Tajik capital, which has not previously engaged in such projects.
This process requires expert solutions and the involvement of all architectural and restoration forces of the city and an international team of specialists.
According to experts, the Tajik mosaic is generally in good condition despite the fact that it has "lived" in sunny Dushanbe for almost 50 years. The wear of the panels was to some extent influenced by the water that used to flow down the surface of the mosaic. But a preliminary assessment shows that the existing damage is insignificant and quite amenable to subsequent restoration.
The leadership of TGEM believes that “Shashmaqom” mosaic will soon find a new life and we are waiting for the continuation of the story that began with the artistic view of Asror Aminjanov back in 1976.
We can only add one thing: the initiative of the capital's authorities and the developer company to preserve the valuable mosaic may be the beginning of a new stage in the modern history of the Tajik capital, when the modern development of the city does not exclude the preservation of its cultural heritage.
Professional career of A. E. Rykshin and some of his projects for the restoration of cultural heritage sites (CHS):
1998 – 2000: Project manager in a German design organization:
Design and execution of a combination of solid basic protection and restoration of cities of the XIII-XVIII centuries from floods, Würth am Main, Klingenberg am Main;
2000 - present: Co-founder and partner of BUSL.ppm, Munich, Germany:
Restoration of the cultural heritage site "Prince Leopold Barracks Command Building";
Restoration with adaptation to accommodate the flagship Cabin of CUPRA electric vehicles in the historical center of Munich at Odeonsplatz 1;
The concept of restoration with the adaptation of an Officer's casino in the suburb of Berlin, Furstenwald;
2009 – 2011: Chief Project Engineer and Deputy Director General of the Institute of FSUE "SPETSPROEKTRESTOVRATSIA ":
Development and implementation of priority emergency and conservation measures to protect the cultural heritage site " Voskresensky New Jerusalem Monastery";
Development and implementation of priority emergency and conservation measures to protect the cultural heritage site "Ostankino Estate Museum";
Comprehensive restoration and preservation of the “Ryazan Kremlin” Cultural Heritage site and territory;
Project reconstruction of the cultural heritage site "Arbitration Court of the Volga-Vyatka district (City Duma building in Nizhny Novgorod)";
The concept of reconstruction with preservation of the historical appearance of the building of the Federal State Culture Institution "Polytechnic Museum");
2011 – 2014: Chief Engineer of the Institute of State Unitary Enterprise of the Moscow Research and Design Institute of Typology, Experimental Design:
The restoration project of the Architectural Monument "The building of the newspaper “Pravda” Combine";
Restoration of the cultural heritage site "Lutheran Church of St. Peter and Pavel in Moscow";
Restoration project of the cultural heritage site "Old Believers Theological and Teaching Institute", now school No. 459;
2014 – 2018: Head and partner of the Design and Restoration complex workshop Arhicad:
Reconstruction of Pavilion No. 57 (Light industry) for the adaptation of the Multimedia Historical Park "Russia - my Story", VDNH;
Restoration of the cultural heritage site "Space Pavilion" with adaptation for the Aviation and Cosmonautics Center, VDNH, (together with the MW Project);
2016 - present: Chief Engineer of the MW-Project Design Bureau:
Reconstruction of the cultural heritage site "Urban Estate – House of Bobrinskie";
Restoration and adaptation of the cultural heritage site "Theater on Malaya Bronnaya";
Restoration, reconstruction and recreation of the Northern Wing of the cultural heritage site "Tsurikov Manor";
Restoration of the cultural heritage site "Moscow Drama Theater named after M.N. Ermolova";
Restoration of the cultural heritage site "Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary on Kulishki";
Restoration of the cultural heritage site "Theater at the Nikitsky Gate";
The project of partial reconstruction of the cultural heritage site "Russian State Library (named after Lenin)".
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A woman who suffered 67 exorcisms was the real-life inspiration for horror movie The Exorcism of Emily Rose
The 2005 film is based on the story of Anneliese Michel and follows a defence counsel (Laura Linney) representing a parish priest (Tom Wilkinson)
who is accused by the state of negligent homicide after he performed an exorcism on 19-year-old student Emily Rose
the real story is arguable far more daunting and the pictures are even more-so
German-born Anneliese was raised within a strict Catholic family and had always been pressured to live a religious life
However, she started to show signs of unusual behaviour at the age of 16, falling into trances and wetting the bed
doctors couldn’t find anything medically wrong with her - that was until she was hospitalised with tubercolosis
The voices inside her head began to escalate and no one could quite understand why
Afterwards, she began having epileptic seizures
she started having terrifying hallucinations and seeing ‘devil faces’ became a regular occurrence
with Anneliese beginning to believe that she was possessed by the devil
Witnesses claimed that she would lick urine from the floor like a dog
The clergymen believed they had no choice but to perform 67 exorcisms on the young woman
It is also alleged that Anneliese was chained up throughout after an autopsy report showed she had endured broken teeth and knees
The 26-year-old would also starve herself because she believed that depriving herself of food would help weaken Satan’s influence over her
She dropped down to just 68lb and eventually died of malnutrition
Speaking with The Telegraph back in 2005
her parents and the priests involved were charged with negligent homicide
with the prosecutor claiming death could have been prevented if proper intervention had taken place even just a week before she died
Anneliese’s sad tale is usually attributed to mental illness which went improperly treated
Bavaria has become a place of pilgrimage for those who believe she died to atone for the sins of others
Topics: Film and TV