In the preface to Morgenröte, Daybreak, Friedrich Nietzsche calls himself ein Lehrer des langsamen Lesens, a teacher of slow reading. Philology, he writes, is a venerable art that asks one thing of its admirer above all. He calls it a goldsmith’s art and connoisseurship of the word. He ends with a request to his readers to learn to read him well.
Inspected by the Book, and Still It Fell
In the night to 11 September 2024, part of the Carolabrücke, a bridge over the Elbe in Dresden, collapsed. An expert report found hydrogen-induced stress corrosion in the prestressing steel. Damage to many tendons had most likely gone undetected despite regular and proper inspections. In July 2026, the public prosecutor closed the investigation and found no sign of a criminal offense. Engineers then asked a new question. Could the inspection methods in use detect this kind of damage at all?