Download - Nordic Innovations
Nordic
Innovations
By Svea No. 253, VOA
DISTRICT LODGE LAKE MICHIGAN No. 8
101st Annual District Convention
29, 30, and 31 May 2009
PROGRAM
Friday, 29 May 2009
Happy 96th Birthday, Svea No. 253
Established 29 May 1913
9:00 am
3:00 pm
3:00 pm – 10:00 pm
3:00 pm – 10:00 pm
3:00 pm – 10:00 pm
3:00 pm – 10:00 pm
5:00 pm – 7:00 pm
5:00 pm – 7:00 pm
7:00 pm
9:00 pm – 10:30 pm
Golf Tournament
Executive Board meeting
Swedish Emporium open
Silent Auction open
Bucket Raffle open
Cultural Displays open
Registration
Hospitality Suite open
Program – Sveaskolan #210
and Dans Norden
Hospitality Suite open
Brookshire Country Club
O’Connor Board Room
Heritage Ballroom
Heritage Ballroom
Heritage Ballroom
Heritage Ballroom
Heritage Ballroom Foyer
Arnold-Dugan Suite
Heritage Ballroom
Arnold-Dugan Suite
PROGRAM
Saturday, 30 May 2009
7:00 am
7:00 am – 8:30 am
7:00 am – 4:30 pm
7:00 am – 4:30 pm
7:00 am – 4:30 pm
9:00 am
9:30 am
12:00 Noon
12:30 pm
4:00 pm
5:30 pm – 6:30 pm
6:30 pm
7:30 pm
9:00 pm – 10:00 pm
New Delegates’ Breakfast
Registration
Swedish Emporium open
Silent Auction open
Bucket Raffle open
Opening Ceremonies
District Meeting
Lunch
Committee Meetings
Adjourn – Choir Practice
Social Hour – cash bar
Banquet Dinner
Greetings and Awards
Maennerchor Concert
Poolside A
Heritage Ballroom Foyer
Heritage Ballroom
Heritage Ballroom
Heritage Ballroom
Heritage Ballroom
Heritage Ballroom
Poolside A
Various locations
Heritage Ballroom
Poolside Dining room
Poolside Dining room
Poolside Dining room
Poolside Dining room
Sunday, 31 May 2009
7:00 am
7:00 am – 12:30 pm
7:00 am – 12:30 pm
8:15 am
9:00 am
12:00 Noon
12:00 Noon
1:30 pm
PDM Breakfast
Swedish Emporium open
Loppmarknad open
Memorial Service
District Meeting
Adjournment
Hospitality Suite open
Board meeting
Poolside A
Heritage Ballroom
Heritage Ballroom
Heritage Ballroom
Heritage Ballroom
Heritage Ballroom
Arnold-Dugan Suite
O’Connor Board Room
District Lodge Lake Michigan No. 8
Executive Board
Extends Fraternal Greetings to
SVEA No. 253
for hosting the
101st District Convention
Welcome to all delegates and guests!
Local Lodges
Siljan-Mora-Tuna No. 134
Thor No. 147
Linné No. 153
Kronan No. 179
Bessemer No. 203
Brahe No. 245
Svea No. 253
Nobel No. 288
Viljan No. 349
Austin No. 466
Linde No. 492
Satellite No. 661
Joe-Harbor No. 534
Bishop Hill No. 683
Hagar No. 721
Nordik Folk No. 761
Lindgren No. 754
Jubileum No. 755
Viking No. 730
Children’s Groups
Vårblomman No. 54
Förgät Mig Ej No. 64
Skansen No. 113
Nordikids No. 208
Pride Of The Family No. 209
Sveaskolan No. 210
DISTRICT LODGE LAKE MICHIGAN No. 8
VASA ORDER OF AMERICA 101st ANNUAL CONVENTION
May 29, 30, and 31, 2009 Indianapolis, Indiana
Hosted by Svea Lodge No. 253
Enjoy our theme: Nordic Innovations
The Nordic countries have been responsible for an incredible number of
discoveries in the natural sciences;
they have developed products that improve our health, extend our lives,
and make our lives more enjoyable; and
they are leaders in setting norms for how modern nations should be
governed and how they should conduct foreign affairs.
We will celebrate these attributes of the Nordic nations in our displays and
in our programs.
We hope everyone will enjoy reviewing the history of the progress of
these nations and also gain new understanding of the great future that
these nations should enjoy.
101
st
Anniversary
Best Wishes to
Svea Lodge No. 253
on a successful and prosperous
District Lodge Lake Michigan No. 8 Convention 2009
LYCKA TILL!
From
Linde Lodge No 492
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
And from SKANSEN
Children’s Club No 113
Milwaukee Wisconsin
The Nordic Nations
The Nordic Council provides the following information about the
Nordic Countries. The information is located on their website:
www.norden.org.
“The Nordic region has a population of 25 million. The Nordic
countries consist of Denmark, the Faroe Islands, Greenland, Finland,
Åland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden. The Faroe Islands and Greenland are
both part of the kingdom of Denmark, and Åland is part of the republic
of Finland.
Denmark, Norway and Sweden are all monarchies. Iceland and Finland
are republics.
Regardless of the form of government, the heads of state in the
Nordic countries have relatively little power. All the countries have a
democratic constitution dating from the 19th century, and, with the
exception of the Norwegian constitution, they have all been revised
several times.”
Swedish Logging Innovations
by Allen Hedeen
Sweden, with its vast forests and rich logging
history, has been a major global source of logging
innovation. Various makes of Swedish chainsaws
were designed, built, and sold on the world market
since 1949. Sweden has also been instrumental in the
development of the Nordic cut-to-length logging
method and its associated high-tech,
environmentally-friendly forest machines.
The Jonsereds Fabrikers AB factory was
originally located in the town of Jonsered near
Göteborg. Their company started in 1833 in the
textile industry and later expanded into the chainsaw
industry. In 1950, Jonsered was asked to make parts
for the rare Comet diesel powered chainsaw. Shortly
after, Jonsered purchased the Norwegian Comet
company and produced its own Raket line of saws
(Swedish for rocket). In 1966, Jonsered introduced
the model 60, the first of the classic red saws that
have made Jonsered famous. Jonsered continues to
sell its famous line of red chainsaws across the world
today.
The Husqvarna Company got its start on the
Husqvarna River flowing out of Lake Vättern where
a water mill was established on the estate of the
Rumblaborg castle. The word Husqvarna takes its
name from the word hus (Swedish for house) and
kvarn (Swedish for mill). The original “house” water
mill was an excellent source of power, so much that
King Charles XI established a weapons factory here
in 1689. As tensions eased in the Baltic region, the
arms factory was sold to private interests. Husqvarna
AB started production of sewing machines in the late
1800’s and is still famous for its sewing machines
today. It was not until 1959 that Husqvarna got into
the chainsaw market with its first Model A90 saw.
Husqvarna and the German company Stihl remain as
the world’s largest chainsaw manufacturers today.
Sweden along with Finland played a major
role in the development of the Nordic cut-to-length
logging method. The Nordic cut-to-length method
consists of a harvester and a forwarder team and is
responsible for about 16% of the global wood harvest
today. The harvester machine fells, delimbs, and cuts
the tree trunks to a specified length right out in the
woods (often times in less than one half minute per
tree). The forwarder machine loads the logs using an
onboard crane onto a self-contained bunk and
transports the logs to the roadside where they are
loaded onto a truck. Both machines resemble a high-
tech robot in many ways and utilize some very
sophisticated computer hardware and software.
The Nordic method is used primarily to thin a
forest thus leaving the best trees standing. The
Nordic method is known for its significantly reduced
fuel consumption per harvested volume, reduction in
required manpower, and precise wood utilization (as
opposed to other logging methods). The machines
are relatively light leaving less of a footprint.
Leaves, needles, limbs, and tops remain on the forest
floor where they can supply nutrients to seedlings
and remaining trees. The remaining debris also
provides support for the forwarder to drive upon
reducing rutting. Less space is needed for the
roadside loading area and fewer overall machines are
needed in the woods. Valmet AB of Umeå and
Rottne Industri AB are two Swedish companies that
are leaders in the innovation of Nordic cut-to-length
logging machines. It is not unusual to find Nordic
cut-to-length machines in many parts of the United
States, particularly in Wisconsin and Michigan’s
Upper Peninsula. It is a technology that is certainly
catching on, despite the production advantages of
other methods and total cost of machinery. Paul
Bunyan would be proud.
GREETINGS FROM
NOBEL LODGE #288
MOLINE, ILLINOIS
Economic Rankings of the Nordic Countries
Invest in Sweden Agency, ISA, has collected economic rankings of the Nordic countries. The rankings are
based, unless otherwise noted, on 2007 statistics. The rankings reflect the Nordic countries’ placements versus all
other countries. They are as follows.
Rankings of the most competitive countries, as
determined by the World Economic Forum:
3. Denmark
4. Sweden
6. Finland
Rankings by a composed competitiveness index,
tallied by ISA based on a number of contributory
rankings:
2. Sweden
4. Finland
5. Denmark
8. Norway
Rankings by investment attraction, based on foreign
direct investment:
16. Sweden
Rankings based on the Global Innovation
Scoreboard:
1. Finland
2. Sweden
9. Denmark
Rankings based on R&D expenditures as a
percentage of GDP (2005):
2. Sweden
3. Finland
7. Iceland
Rankings based on university-industry collaboration:
3. Sweden
4. Finland
Rankings based on networking readiness:
1. Denmark
2. Sweden
6. Finland
8. Iceland
10. Norway
Rankings based on skills in English (at least
conversational knowledge):
2. Sweden
3. Denmark
4. Finland
Rankings based on productivity growth in
manufacturing (2000-2006):
2. Sweden
4. Norway
10. Denmark
Rankings based on engineering salaries, bonuses, and
incentives (2006):
3. Denmark
8. Sweden
ISA, in their publication “Sweden in Fact 2008/09” describes their agency as follows:
“ISA is the government agency responsible for promoting investment and business opportunities in Sweden to
foreign investors. Professional guidance is guaranteed since most ISA staff have corporate backgrounds and
extensive expertise in the investment process. We offer an effective link between your company and the Swedish
business sector. The services provided are free of charge.”
In the same publication, ISA describes their publicity mission:
“ISA assembles and makes available valuable information on its website to give foreign investors an overall
picture of what Sweden has to offer and to facilitate business entries. Publications, fact sheets and PowerPoint
presentations in several languages are published. Find out more at www.isa.se .”
Best Wishes
to
SVEA Lodge #253
from Austin Lodge #466
V.O.A.
Meets 2:00 PM, the 2nd Saturday of each
month unless noted otherwise
at Svithiod Hall
5516 W. Lawrence Avenue
Chicago, Illinois 60630
New Members Always Welcome
Call: Chairman, Robert Oberg
773 - 477 - 0875
Nordikids No. 208 and
Nordik Folk Lodge No. 761
[site of the 2010 District No. 8 Convention]
Congratulate
Svea Lodge No. 253
On a Successful
Convention!
Innovation in Norway
A Norwegian agency, Innovasjon Norge, has the following mission, as stated on its website,
www.innovasjonnorge.no:
“Innovation Norway promotes nationwide industrial development profitable to both the
business economy and Norway’s national economy, and helps release the potential of different
districts and regions by contributing towards innovation, internationalisation and promotion.
Innovation Norway offers products and services intended to help boost innovation in
business and industry nationwide, foster regional development and promote Norwegian industry
and Norway as a tourist destination.
With offices in all counties and in more than thirty countries worldwide, we are easy to get
in touch with. Our staff’s knowledge of local and international conditions will help turn
customers’ ideas into business successes.
According to its objects clause, Innovation Norway is to be backer and promoter of
entrepreneurs, newly-founded and small and medium-sized enterprises that seek to grow, as a rule
in an international market. The organisation’s role is to provide or arrange financing, link
customer enterprises to know-how and help them build networks for their innovation projects.”
Good Luck and Success on your 2009
District Lodge Lake Michigan No. 8
Convention for May 29, 30, 31, 2009
From your friends at Viking Lodge
No. 730, Flint, Michigan.
Gotland, the Viking Island: Paviken Viking Village
SWEDISH INNOVATIONS
Swedes, including those who lived in the
area of Sweden before the country was founded,
have a 1500 Year tradition of innovation.
By the year 500, long before the Viking
era, Swedes used longboats to cross the Baltic
Sea and to navigate the rivers that flow into it.
These travelers were traders and settlers. Their
boats were skillfully constructed and were
wider and deeper than warships, so that they
could carry greater amounts of cargo.
In 791, a king established the first
trading town in Sweden, and named it Birka. It
was on an island in Lake Mälaren, west of
present-day Stockholm. It had 1000 inhabitants
and a fortress where a garrison was based.
Merchants from Northern Europe and even the
Middle East met here to trade.
By 860, according to chronicles,
Swedish military men, called Varangians or
Rus, were invited to establish rule in Novgorod,
setting the foundation for rule in areas that
became Russia. Swedish traders and settlers
traveled through Russian rivers to the Black Sea
and beyond.
In the year 1288, the oldest corporation
in the world was first mentioned in a document
signed by King Magnus Ladulås. The
corporation began as the copper mine in Falun,
Sweden; it was known as Stora Kopparberget—
the great copper mine. Its successor corporation
is Stora Enso, and it has expanded into many
other businesses. The copper mine is no longer
in use.
Allemansrätten is an unwritten law that
everyone has the right to access another’s land,
as long as it is done without damage. Everyone
is entitled to cross--at least on foot--anyone's
land and remain there temporarily. For example,
in the Middle Ages, anyone traveling through a
forest was entitled to gather a hatful of nuts for
nourishment along the way. It is not known
when this custom began, but it probably is 500
years old.
It is also not known when the term
smörgåsbord was first used, but it is also an old
custom, of having a large buffet meal with
many types of food, especially for holidays and
feasts.
In 1523 the Royal Svea Life Guards (the
Infantry part of the Royal Life Guards) were
formed as part of the army of Gustav Eriksson
Vasa during the war of liberation against the
Danish troops of King Christian II of Denmark
and Sweden. They are the oldest designated
military unit in the world. They took part in
nearly all Swedish battles from King Gustav
Vasa onwards.
In 1523 Gustav Vasa’s campaign against the
Danes succeeded, and he was crowned as the
first king of an independent Sweden. Sweden
still maintains a monarchy, although the form of
government is a parliamentary democracy.
Known as the “Lion of the North,” King
Gustavus Adolphus II began his reign in 1611.
He modernized military tactics with the use of
mobile artillery and by stressing offensive
tactics. He was one of the greatest generals and
statesmen of all time. He introduced policies
that brought Sweden to prominence in the 17th
Century.
In 1638, Swedish settlers established the
first colony in Delaware. Swedes continued to
settle in the Delaware River Valley and brought
the log cabin to America. The oldest surviving
log cabin in the United States was built by
Swedes in the 1600’s. Olof Rudbeck the Elder
was a “universal genius.” In 1652 he published
his discovery of the human lymphatic system.
He built bridges, planned water systems and
taught many scientific subjects. He made
pioneering contributions in many of these
fields.
In 1645 Queen Christina and Chancellor
Axel Oxenstierna established the Post och
Inrikes Tidningar. It is the official publication
for bankruptcies and corporate and government
announcements. It is the world’s oldest
newspaper. It is the vehicle for the government
to voice its official view.
In 1668 the Riksdag founded the
Riksbank, and it is the world’s oldest central
bank. It succeeded the Stockholms Banco
(1656), the world's oldest note-issuing bank. It
is responsible for the monetary policy of the
country; it maintains the stability of the national
currency and the money supply.
Christopher Polhem began work at
copper mountain in 1700. He was one of the
leading engineering specialists of the world.
His ideas impacted many technological
developments of his era. During his 90-year
life, he turned out numerous inventions and
ingenious designs.
In 1735, Carl Linnaeus developed and
published his system that is still in use for
classifying and naming plants, animals, and
minerals. He was a natural historian, and he
collected specimens from all over the world.
Many of his specimens are still being studied.
In 1742, Anders Celsius first used his
experimental thermometer, which is now known
as the Celsius thermometer, with 0 degrees as
the freezing point of water and 100 degrees as
the boiling point of water. He was an
astronomer, and made many valuable
observations of eclipses, planet and comet
orbits, and types of stars.
In 1771, King Gustav III began his rule.
He was a great patron of the arts, and a style of
furniture and decoration began in his reign that
has become known as Gustavian style. Several
furniture companies manufacture reproductions
in his style.
In 1772 Carl Wilhelm Scheele
discovered oxygen. He discovered eight other
elements and isolated additional ones. He made
more significant discoveries than anyone else
before him. His discoveries included chlorine,
manganese, casein, aldehyde, hydrogen sulfide,
glycerol and tartaric, oxalic, lactic, mucic, uric,
prussic, citric, malic, and gallic acids. It is said
that Scheele brought to his science knowledge
of a greater number of new substances of
fundamental importance than any other chemist.
In 1809, Sweden developed the role of
the ombudsman, who was a government person
designated to look out for the interests of
citizens who had grievances against the
government.
Sweden last fought a major war in 1814.
Since then, the nation has been able to maintain
international neutrality and often serves
diplomatic roles in world events.
In 1818, Jöns Berzelius developed the
first table of atomic weights, after measuring
the weights of nearly all the 49 elements known
then. He also developed the symbols for the
elements’ names. He was perhaps the last
chemist for whom it was possible to carry all
chemical knowledge in his head. He greatly
improved laboratory equipment and procedures.
In 1844, Gustaf Erik Pasch developed
the first safety match, which used red
phosphorus on the matchbox. In 1855, J. E.
Lundstrom developed a phosphorus-free match.
In 1862, John Ericsson built the Union
Navy’s armored ship Monitor, which fought the
Confederacy’s Merrimac. He also developed the
first practical propeller drive system for ships.
The Monitor was so-christened because it was
to monitor the Confederacy’s ports.
In 1866, Alfred Nobel began
manufacturing dynamite, after years of research
with nitroglycerine. He later developed other
explosives and also synthetic products based on
nitrocellulose such as rubber, leather, thread,
varnish, and silk.
In 1866, Anders Jonas Ångström laid a
foundation for the field of spectroanalysis. In
this year he published a listing of the spectra of
almost 100 elements. He used the number one
ten-millionth of a millimeter in measuring
wavelengths, and this number became
designated as the angstrom unit. (1 Å = .1 nm.)
In 1878, Gustaf de Laval developed the
centrifugal cream separator used for separating
cream from milk. His company became Alfa-
Laval, and the cream separator became
Sweden’s first major manufactured export. He
also developed a high-speed steam turbine
technology that was the most-used type for
steam power.
In 1870 Aurora Ljungstedt’s story,
known in English as “The Hastfordian
Escutcheon,” was published. It was a mystery
story that antedated the first Sherlock Holmes
story by Arthur Conan Doyle by 17 years.
In 1885, Lars Magnus Ericsson invented
the telephone handset. The Ericsson Company
also developed switches and network equipment
and dominated the Swedish market. In 1885,
Stockholm had more phones per capita than any
other city in the world. Ericsson is now known
worldwide for wireless phones.
In the late 1800s and early 1900s, Carl
Larsson was a well-known painter who
popularized a style of interior appearance.
In 1891, Artur Hazelius established the
first open air living history museum, Skansen,
in Stockholm. Over 150 historical buildings
have been moved there from throughout
Sweden. Hosts and hostesses in period costume
demonstrate domestic and manufacturing
occupations.
In 1892, Johan Petter Johansson patented
the first adjustable nut wrench. Overall, he
developed 118 inventions.
In 1900, Gideon Sundbäck developed the
first workable zipper, after other zipping
fasteners had been in use before.
In 1901, the first Nobel Prizes were
awarded, based on funding provided by Alfred
Nobel. They are awarded “to those who… have
conferred the greatest benefit on mankind.”
In 1907, Sven Wingquist founded the
company SKF. He is considered the inventor of
the modern spherical roller bearing.
In 1909, Vattenfall developed as a
company to use water power to generate
electricity. It is now a major supplier of power
in several European countries.
In 1912, the first production household
vacuum cleaners were manufactured by a
company which later merged to form
Electrolux.
In 1927, Assar Gabrielsson and Gustaf
Larsson founded Volvo Cars to build cars based
on car safety, quality, and strength.
In 1941, Viktor Hasselblad developed
precision cameras for aerospace applications
and for personal use. A Hasselblad was used to
take the pictures of the first moon landing in
1969.
In 1942, Astrid Lindgren began
publishing the stories of Pippi Longstocking, a
girl who encourages girls to have fun and to
believe in themselves.
In 1943, Ingvar Kamprad established the
first IKEA store. There are more than 500
million IKEA shoppers each year.
In 1948, the company Astra developed
xylocain, based on a local anesthetic developed
by Nils Löfgren and Bengt Lundquist in 1943.
Xylocain has been a standard local anesthetic
since then.
In 1951, Erik Wallenberg and Ruben
Rausing developed plastic-coated paper
containers for packaging milk and juice. Their
company Tetra Pak produces more than 100
billion containers each year.
In 1953, Helmuth Hertz and physician
Inge Edler developed the first cardiac
ultrasound machine, which performs
echocardiography.
In 1953, Sven Kamph developed a
hovering lawnmower, the Flymo, which floats
above the ground. More than 500,000 have been
made.
In 1955, Lars-Einar Fryklöf, Erik Sandell
and Ivan Östholm developed time-release
tablets, which release the medicine in a pill
gradually after it is ingested. We can take
medication less often, and medicate ourselves
evenly.
In 1958, Rune Elmqvist developed the
first implantable heart pacemaker, in association
with Åke Senning. Pacemakers enable
abnormal hearts to beat in a regular rhythm.
In 1959, Nils Bohlin of Volvo developed
the three-point safety belt, which used a strap
across the upper body as well as one across the
hips.
In 1961, Hans Karlsson developed the
retractable seat belt, which is the type most
widely used now.
In 1628, the warship Gustav Vasa sank
on its first voyage. It was raised in 1961 and is
now on display in Stockholm in its own
museum.
In 1965, Lennart Nilsson took the first
in-vitro baby photographs, which were
published in Life Magazine. They appeared in
the book A Child Is Born; some are aboard the
Voyager Spacecraft.
In 1965, a number of researchers at three
Swedish pharmaceuticals developed beta-
blockers. They are used for heart disease,
asthma, and other illnesses.
In 1965, Nils Alwall and Lennart
Östergren invented the kidney dialysis machine
that performs the functions of the kidneys for
people with kidney disease or failure.
In 1968, Lars Leksell invented the
gamma knife, which is not a knife, but a method
for using gamma radiation to destroy brain
tumors.
In 1984, Perstorp AB, founded 120 years
ago, introduced laminated flooring to the world,
first in Europe. It is now the world’s largest
supplier.
In 1990, Sweden began developing
Hammarby Sjöstad in Stockholm. It will be a
state-of-the-art community of 20,000 residents
and 10,000 jobs. It will have state-of-the-art
environmental programs, including renewable
energy, recycling, ecologically-friendly
building materials and designs, and public
transportation, and pedestrian and bike paths.
Located in a formerly unsightly industrial and
warehouse area, the community is built around
an inner harbor. The buildings will be all new
or renovated and will be very attractive.
GREETINGS AND BEST WISHES FOR A
SUCCESSFUL CONVENTION
FROM BISHOP HILL LODGE #683
HOME OF THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES
SWEDISH CHEMISTS AND THE ELEMENTS
By Dan Anderson
Most of you have probably
enjoyed (or suffered through) at
least one course in chemistry in
either high school or college. You
probably remember that there were 92
recognized elements, of which
everything on Earth is composed. Two
elements, 85 and 87, are not found in
nature, and have been produced only
in a nuclear reactor. It is estimated
that less than one ounce of each
exists on earth. Since the beginning
of the Atomic Age, 10-20 artificial
elements have been made, mostly in
microscopic quantities, by bombarding
heavy elements with subatomic
particles to make a larger atom.
The atomic number of an element
refers to the number of positive
particles (protons) in the nucleus,
balanced by an equal number of
negative particles (electrons), in
orbit around the nucleus. The Russian
chemist Mendeleev arranged the known
elements in numerical order, and
constructed a table in which elements
of similar properties fell in the
same vertical column as the atomic
weights increased. With this tool, he
was able to predict the properties of
several elements which had not yet
been discovered. When found, their
properties came very close to what he
had predicted.
Many elements, such as iron,
tin, gold, silver, mercury and
copper, had been known since ancient
times, and their Latin names are
still used in chemical symbols. Until
after the year 1000, chemistry made
little progress - the closest related
activity was alchemy, whose goals
were to produce gold out of almost
anything, and to produce a potion
which, when drunk, would result in
eternal life on Earth. Rational
science began to appear in the 16th
century, and strong efforts were made
to discover the laws governing the
motion of the earth, sun and stars,
and the composition of matter.
The use of electricity greatly
increased the pace of discovery of
new elements, as solutions and molten
salts could be broken down by passing
a current between two electrodes to
separate the portions of the mix
which were positively charged from
those which are negatively charged.
Although we often think of English
and German scientists in the field of
inorganic chemistry, Sweden was also
prominent in chemical research,
centered at the University of
Uppsala. In fact, Swedes have been
credited with the discovery of more
natural elements than any other
nation!
Andres Gustav Ekeberg had been
a student at Uppsala and studied
abroad for several years, absorbing
many of the new ideas and practices
of the Frenchman Antoine Lavoisier,
one of the founders of modern
chemistry. He eventually returned to
Uppsala as a lecturer in chemistry.
Although he was partially deaf from a
childhood illness and blind in one
eye from an exploding flask in his
laboratory, he pursued many projects,
including the analysis of ores from
Ytterby Quarry, near Stockholm.
(More about that later.) He believed
he had found a new element, but found
it extremely difficult to separate
from another with very similar
properties, so he called it tantalum,
after the mythological Greek
Tantalus. It was not until almost
sixty years later that tantalum and
its close relative niobium were
completely separated and Ekeberg
given credit for the discovery. While
teaching, he encountered a young
student, Jons Jakob Berzelius, who
had entered university with the
thought of becoming a medical doctor.
Although he limped through his
medical studies and eventually earned
an M.D., Berzelius became interested
in chemistry, which became the major
portion of his life's work.
Berzelius learned of the work
of the Italian Volta and was quick to
test Volta’s work in his laboratory.
He invented suitable electrodes and
developed processes for electrolyzing
solutions, which gave him the ability
to isolate several elements. He also
determined the atomic weights of
almost all the elements known at that
time, and found that there was a
definite amount of element A
combining with element B to form a
chemical compound of fixed
composition.
He experimented with electric
treatments on some of his medical
patients, but the results were
disappointing. His elemental
discoveries included silicon,
selenium, cobalt, zirconium and
thorium, the latter bearing the name
of the thunderbolt-wielding Norse
god. During his long life, he was
permanent secretary of the Royal
Academy of Science and was made a
baron by the king.
But Berzelius' contribution to
chemistry most familiar to us is his
introduction of one- or two-letter
symbols for the elements and numbers
representing the number of atoms of
each element in the molecule. For
example, aluminum oxide is Al
2
O
3
,
meaning that in each molecule, there
are two atoms of aluminum and three
of oxygen. The only change in his
system has been to write the numbers
below the line, instead of higher
than the letters in his original
proposal.
Carl Gustav Mosander was also a
medical doctor and pupil of
Berzelius. His chemical contributions
lay mainly in the further analysis of
the minerals from the famous quarry
at Ytterby. Gadolin, a Finn, and
Klaproth, a German, had separated two
types of metal oxide from the ore,
one of which was called ytterbia and
the other ceria. Most chemists of
the day suspected that neither one
was a compound of a pure element, so
Mosander devoted much time to
fractional crystallization, putting
the oxides into acid solution and
taking advantage of the slight
difference in solubilities of the
salts by repeatedly recrystallizing
the salts from solution until what
appeared to be a pure product was
obtained.
Among his discoveries were
erbium, terbium and lanthanum
(Ytterby again) and an oxide which he
called didymium, which was later
separated into two elements,
neodymium and praseodymium. Mosander
taught chemistry at the Carolinska
Institute in Stockholm and headed the
mineralogy department at the Royal
Academy of Science.
Per Theodore Cleve continued
working with the Ytterby ores and
monazite sand, another rich source of
what are called the rare earth
elements. He isolated the oxides of
two additional elements, holmium
(named after Stockholm) and thulium,
from Ultima Thule, the land at the
end of the world, a term often
applied to parts of Scandinavia.
Karl Wilhelm Scheele was born
in Pomerania, Germany, which at that
time was controlled by Sweden. His
career was that of a pharmacist, but
he experimented widely in the
chemical area. He spent much time in
determining the role of oxygen in
combustion, helping to destroy the
old theory that when a substance was
burnt, it absorbed something called
"phlogiston". He is credited with
discovering or isolating the elements
manganese, molybdenum, and chlorine.
Other Swedish scientists and
the elements they discovered were
Lars Fredrikson - scandium (named
after Scandinavia), Axel Fredrik
Cronstedt - nickel, Johan August
Arfwedson - lithium, and Georg Brandt
- cobalt. Two more elements were
named after that quarry near
Stockholm - yttrium and ytterbium. I
believe it's something of a record
when four elements are named for the
same location!
As was mentioned earlier, when
the periodic table was developed by
Mendeleev, there were a large number
of elements (about 16) which had
similar properties, but whose atomic
numbers were almost consecutive.
These, known as "rare earths",
because of the difficulty of
separation, were assigned two
spaces, in the same vertical column,
forming loops in the old periodic
table, but are now listed in a
separate category.
Apparently some of the
artificial elements of atomic numbers
higher than that of uranium follow a
similar pattern, but are unlikely to
be encountered outside of a nuclear
reactor. The rare earths are really
not that rare, and do have some
industrial applications. Separation
is much easier these days with the
use of chromatography and ion-
exchange resins.
So, when we use a chemical
product or plastic to help us with
some of the tasks of daily living,
please give a thought to the diligent
Swedes of two or three centuries ago
who helped "make this a better world
through chemistry."
Dan Anderson was
born in New York
State in 1931 and
majored in chemical
engineering in
college, obtaining a
degree in 1951.
After three years in
the Army, he
worked for two
chemical companies
in northeast Ohio
before moving to
Indianapolis in 1959, where he began work with
an electrical component manufacturer, rising to
the position of Section Head and leading a group
of engineers and technicians in the field of
electrochemistry of aluminum-based products.
Dan and his wife Sophia have been married for 48
years and have had three children. They have
been members of Svea 253 for about 30 years and
also belong to a German choral group. Since Dan
retired in 1987, he and Sophia have been deeply
involved in gardening, and taking part in
community beautification as well as giving talks
on wildflowers and their uses in the home garden.
They also like to travel and have been to Sweden
and other Scandinavian countries several times.
Welcome District Lodge
Lake Michigan No. 8, VOA
Wishing you a most successful
and pleasant convention.
Best Wishes and Congratulations
to Svea Lodge No. 253
hosting the 101st Convention
Marty and Chuck Lindgren
Svea Lodge No. 253
Indianapolis, Indiana
Best wishes Svea Lodge 253
Indianapolis, Indiana
For a Successful
101st Convention
from
Jubileum 755
Madison, Wisconsin
Swedish Art and Innovation
By Professor Michelle Facos, Indiana University
Sweden became more than a provincial
backwater of the art world in 1735, when French
artist Guillaume Taraval established an art academy
in Stockholm, based on the model of the one
established in Paris by Louis XIV in 1648. Swedish
artist Alexander Roslin (1718-1793), who trained at
the Stockholm academy, departed for more
glamorous Paris in 1750, where his precisely
rendered silks and laces and masterful renditions of
elaborate coiffures made him one of Paris’s most
sought after society portraitists; he was a particular
favorite of the Russian nobility. Considering
Sweden’s vast tracts of wilderness, it is no surprise
that early Swedish painters excelled at landscape
painting. Elias Martin (1739-1818) spent twelve
years in London, returning in 1780 and bringing
with him the British picturesque tradition that
prized idyllic depictions of a countryside graced by
fields and cottages. His student, Carl Johan
Fahlcrantz (1774-1861) was the very first professor
of landscape painting at the Stockholm academy
and the first Swedish artist to spend his entire career
in Sweden. His style, a Romantic one characterized
by leafy vegetation and broad vistas punctuated by
the steeples of distant churches, set the standard for
Swedish landscape painting in the nineteenth
century.
Teaching at the Stockholm academy
changed little since its inception in 1735 and by the
late nineteenth century, young artists became
frustrated by a curriculum that seemed hopelessly
outdated. They were tired of spending their student
years indoors, making drawings after casts of
ancient sculptures and, once they had mastered that,
of men posed like those ancient sculptures. They
did not want to represent subjects from history or
literature or paint landscapes according to tired,
outdated formulas. These young art students saw
what was happening abroad, especially in Paris, and
wanted to join the trend to represent contemporary
subjects in a more modern style – to chronicle the
times in which they were living.
So, in 1874, a migration of adventurous
Swedish artists to Paris began with the arrival of
Ernst Josephson, who was soon joined by Georg
Pauli, Carl Larsson, Nils Kreuger, Karl Nordström,
and Richard Bergh. They studied at the small
private art schools of Paris and attracted
international attention when they won medals at the
Paris Salon, the prestigious annual art exhibition.
This was much more impressive than the
accomplishments of their teachers in the academy at
home. The exhilarating atmosphere of Paris, where
anything seemed possible, contrasted with
Stockholm, where the academy had a virtual
stranglehold on the art market. The fact that Sweden
was so poor that few people were interested in
collecting art made thoughts of returning home
seemingly impossible. In 1885, however, these
young artists became impatient and established a
rival organization in Stockholm, the Artists’
Association (Konstnärsförbundet). The Association
organized Sweden’s first regularly held exhibitions,
and cultivated wealthy bankers like Ernst Thiel in
Stockholm and Pontus Fürstenburg in Göteborg,
who spent a fortune on this radically new, modern
art. They opened up the art market and made it
possible for the first time for artists to support
themselves without the endorsement of the
Stockholm academy.
Association artists working in Paris painted
what they saw – farmers plowing fields, their
friends, gatherings in cafes. They didn’t follow any
rules and tried to develop unique styles that
expressed their individuality. They continued this
practice when they returned to Sweden in the late
1880s. Nordström concentrated on the rugged
contours of his native Tjörn, Kreuger turned to the
lush fields of his native Öland, Zorn depicted the
folklife of his native Mora, Larsson painted the
domestic life of his growing family in Sundborn,
and Gustaf Fjaestad pictured the snowy silent
forests of his Värmland. Despite the vast differences
in style and subject matter, these artists were united
in their desire to establish a uniquely Swedish
school of painting, one that reflected the
biomystical connectedness of Swedes to nature.
This movement became known as National
Romanticism because it sought to evoke in its
Swedish audience an emotional attachment to their
homeland, a spirit of fosterlandkärlek (love of
native land) that could unite all Swedes.
As National Romantic artists aged, they too
became a kind of establishment, one against which
younger artists rebelled. Younger artists ignored the
plea of National Romantic to stay home and
celebrate Sweden, to remain untainted by foreign
influences and to further develop a uniquely
Swedish school of art. They, like their predecessors,
wanted to be modern and independent, and Paris
was still the place to go. There, art had changed a
lot since the residence of the National Romantics
there in the 1870s and 1880s. Instead of
Impressionism, Expressionism, Cubism, and
Futurism were the new trends. Ambitious Swedish
painters like Issac Grünewald and Sigrid Hjerten
studied with the renowned Fauve (“wild beast”)
painter Henri Matisse in Paris and became
interested in using colors to express emotions rather
than to describe objects. Instead of quiet paintings
that fostered meditations on Swedish nature,
painters such as Nils Dardel made exuberant
evocations of Paris streets and French harbors.
Although developments in twentieth century
Swedish art kept pace with progressive
developments in the international art scene, it is the
art of National Romanticism that continues to be
most closely linked to Swedishness. Recent scholars
have recognized how adventurous National
Romantics were in creating a wholly new kind of
art – neither Realist, nor Impressionist, nor
Symbolist, but with elements of each.
In Honor of
Gunnard Johnson
Best Wishes from
Satellite 661
Kalamazoo, Michigan
BEST WISHES
SVEA LODGE 253
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA
FOR A SUCCESSFUL 101ST
CONVENTION
FROM
JOE-HARBOR LODGE 534
ST. JOSEPH MICHIGAN
Nordic Co-operation
The Secretary General of the Nordic Council of Ministers, Halldór
Ásgrímsson, said the following to the Nordic prime ministers in June
2008:
"The Nordic countries come out best in a whole range of
international comparisons. However, we must continue to innovate, work
on areas where we share joint interests and play to our strengths in the
international world in which we live. Globalisation and
internationalisation are not going away. We have to face up to that
fact. We have to be pragmatic, positive but determined.”
Our Swedish National Anthem
We thank Sweden.se, the official gateway to Sweden, and the Embassy
of Sweden, Washington, D. C., for providing us a CD of the Swedish
National Anthem. The performers are the Band of the Royal Guards
Regiment. The anthem will be played in the opening of our
convention.
ERIK BERTIL HOLMBERG (1908-2000)
SWEDISH ASTRONOMER AND THE HOLMBERG GALAXIES
By Janet Holmberg Jegen, Svea No. 253
Erik Bertil Holmberg is an
internationally renowned
astronomer known for his
pioneering work on galaxies,
particularly multiple galaxies.
During the 1940’s, when he was a
professor at the Lund Observatory
in Sweden, and long before the
dawn of the computer era, he
performed a remarkable experiment
to explore the gravitational
dynamics of interacting galaxies.
His experiment consisted of using
light bulbs, photocells,
statistics, and skillful
observation. One of his
conclusions was that galaxies
often merge into one single
larger galaxy, and it was not
until about 30 years later, when
appropriate computers became
available, that his results could
be confirmed.
Holmberg was also a
professor at Uppsala University
and director of the Uppsala
Observatory from 1959 to 1975.
There, he inspired his students
to start work on minor planets,
which at the time was almost an
unknown topic for research in
Uppsala.
There are a number of
galaxies named after Holmberg,
designated from Holmberg I to
Holmberg IX, and there is an
asteroid named Holmberg 3573,
discovered in 1982 by C.I.
Lagerkvist, and later named in
honor of the Swedish astronomer
on the occasion of his eightieth
birthday.
When today’s astronomers
refer to the “Holmberg radius”,
the “Holmberg effect”, “Holmberg
galaxies”, and “Holmberg (3573)”,
they are honoring Erik Holmberg
for his many contributions to
extragalactic astronomy.
Hagar Lodge #721 VOA
Would like to congratulate the Delegates
To the 101st VOA Convention
VOA members and friends are welcome to join us on the
2nd Friday of the month September-June at 7pm
DANISH INNOVATIONS
In 1820 Hans Christian Ørsted
was the first to observe the
phenomenon of electromagnetism. He
saw that an electric current caused a
compass needle to deflect, indicating
that an electric current has magnetic
properties. After he published his
work, electromagnetism became a main
subject of study in physics. In 1825
he advanced research in aluminum by
producing a still-impure form of it.
Throughout his life he continued to
publish many works that helped to
spread the advance and knowledge of
science.
In 1835 Hans Christian Andersen
published the first of his Fairy
Tales, Told for Children. These were
innovative, full of enjoyable
characters and moral teaching. They
were based on folk tales. In Danish,
they are known as Eventyr. He
visited Sweden in 1837 and in 1839
wrote a poem Jeg er Skandinav (I am a
Scandinavian). He wrote a poem about
Jenny Lind, The Nightingale, which
led to her being called the Swedish
Nightingale. Among his best-known
works are Thumbellina, The Little
match Girl, The Snow Queen, The Ugly
Duckling, The Little Mermaid, The
Emperor’s New Clothes, and The
Princess and the Pea.
In 1865 Rasmus Malling-Hansen
invented a form of typewriting
machine known as the Hansen Writing
Ball. It was patented and produced
for sale in 1870 and is considered
the first commercial typewriter. He
also studied the growth of children
and flora and determined that growth
rates are not constant but that the
rays of the sun influence growth
rates in all nature.
In 1887 Frederik Hellesen
designed what is believed to be the
first dry-cell battery. This is the
most widely used type of battery
today, and the flashlight battery is
this kind.
In 1913, physicist Niels Bohr
published his model of atomic
structure. He posited that electrons
travel in orbits around the nuclei of
atoms and that the chemical
interactions of atoms are a function
of the number of electrons in the
outer orbits of an atom. He also
said that electrons could move from a
higher-energy orbit to a lower one
and emit a quantum of energy, a
photon. This introduced quantum
theory. In 1922, he was awarded the
Nobel Prize for physics. He
conceived the theory of
complementarity, which, for example,
leads to explaining light as a wave
or as particles. In 1943 he escaped
from Denmark to Sweden and then made
his way eventually to the US. He
worked on the Manhattan Project and
later campaigned for the peaceful use
of nuclear energy. He was one of the
greatest scientists and visionaries
in history.
In 1932, Ole Kirk Christiansen
began making wooden toys that he
named Legos, after the Danish phrase
leg godt—which means play well. Lego
is now the sixth largest toy company
in the world, and the building
components are now made of plastic.
There are four Legolands in the
world—open air theme parks containing
scale models made with millions of
Lego blocks each.
In 1933, Danish-born Niels
Christensen invented the O-ring.
This is a rubber ring—in the shape of
a donut—that fits in a groove around
a piston that slides back and forth
in a cylinder. The ring makes a
tight seal between the piston and the
cylinder. Christiansen received a US
patent for his invention in 1937.
Aurora Ljungstedt,
Sweden's First Mystery
Writer
by Jean Tygum, Svea No. 253
In 2009, the mystery genre is bursting with
good health. Whodunit stories and novels are
flourishing worldwide and Swedish authors such as
Per Wahlöö and Maj Sjöwall, creators of Detective
Martin Beck, and writer Henning Mankell, creator of
Detective Kurt Wallander, are universally known and
loved. But when did mystery fiction take root in
Sweden?
Some say it began on a foggy morning in
Stockholm in 1870, when a distinguished gentleman
made his way through the chilly streets to ask a favor
of a friend who published the widely circulated
newspaper, Nya Dagligt Allehanda. Would the
friend be willing to publish, in serial fashion, some
new work by the writer Claude Gérard? Specifically,
two short novels, Hastfordska vapnet (The
Hastfordian Escutcheon) and Det obturna brevet (The
Sealed Letter). (Escutcheon = family crest).
The publisher, having previously printed short
pieces by Claude Gérard, readily agreed, and the two
friends shook hands warmly. Thus the books
regarded by some literary historians as the first
Swedish mystery novels saw the light of day,
serialized in the newspaper in 1871.
These two novels perhaps fit better into the genre
of Gothic romance (skräckromantiska , “horror
novel”) than mystery as we think of it today, but they
do feature a detective who investigates and solves a
mystery. Moreover, though confronted with strange
happenings in a large spooky house, with a cast of
characters behaving suspiciously in a shadowy
moonlit atmosphere, the narrator-detective finds a
solution that is rational and realistic, which explains
away the seemingly eerie or supernatural.
Hastfordian Escutcheon, in fact, features not one but
two amateur detectives working in tandem: an elderly
retired judge named Uncle Benjamin and a
chambermaid called Lisslena.
Now, who was this “French” author, Claude
Gérard? Not a Frenchman at all, but the very
Swedish wife of the aforementioned distinguished
gentleman. His name was Samuel Viktor Ljungstedt,
he was a prison board official in Stockholm, and he
dutifully promoted his wife's writing throughout their
marriage.
Her name was Aurora Lovisa Hjort Ljungstedt,
she was 50 years old in 1871, and these two novels
were far from her first literary output. She had been
a scribbler since nursery days, when she shared her
original poems and stories with her family, her
captive audience. Supposedly her family discouraged
her literary ambitions (“Unladylike!”), but she
persisted. At age 25 she married S.V. Ljungstedt and
settled into a pleasant life of domesticity and writing.
Over the course of her 87 years, she wrote three
novels and many fanciful and murky short stories
which appeared, under more than one pen name, in
the Swedish newspapers Aftonbladet and Nya
Dagligt Allehanda between 1857 and 1878, and
likely through self-publishing. Her first novel, Hin
ondes hus (The Devil's House or The House of Old
Nick) appeared in 1853 under the French pseudonym
“Richard.”
Aurora Ljungstedt, née Hjort, was born
September 2, 1821, into an aristocratic family in
Blekinge Province in southern Sweden. During her
childhood, the family moved to Kolmården, south of
Stockholm. Young Aurora grew up in a beautiful
home in a woodsy area that no doubt lent credence to
the ghost stories and funereal legends that her
maternal great-grandmother related in hushed tones
by flickering firelight. Tales involving devils,
graveyard intrigues, and mysterious forest creatures.
Powerful fuel for a child's imagination.
In fact, Gothic tales of mystery and terror were all
the rage among the European reading public during
Ljungstedt's lifetime. Gothic fiction from England,
France and Germany reached Sweden in translation
in the late eighteenth century, works such as Horace
Walpole's Castle of Otranto (1765), Ann Radcliffe's
Mystery of Udolpho (1794) and The Italian (1797),
and Matthew Gregory Lewis's The Monk (1796).
Later, Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (1818) took
Swedish readers by storm, as did the opus of
Ljungstedt's contemporary, Edgar Allan Poe (1809-
1949).
The French were wild for Poe and Swedes were
wild for everything French. Both of Ljungstedt's
pseudonyms come from French stories. Claude
Gérard was a character in a story by Ljungstedt's
favorite French writer, Eugène Sue, whose popular
mysteries featured such unusual characters as a
female pirate. Ljungstedt also devoured everything
Poe wrote and like Poe, gravitated toward the bizarre.
Indeed, the title Det Obturna Brevet (The Sealed
Letter) seems a tip of the hat to Poe's “Purloined
Letter.” Not surprisingly, some literary historians
call Ljungstedt “the Swedish Edgar Allan Poe.”
Some say Hastfordian Escutcheon and Det
Obturna Brevet were “best sellers,” but this seems
unlikely. The newspaper presented Ljungstedt's
novels along with weather reports, news of the day,
obituaries and advertising. The novels were printed,
but were they read? Would her writing have been
published at all if her husband had not actively
promoted her? We cannot know. What is known is
that by 1872, the year after Nya Dagligt Allehanda
serialized the two mysteries, she faded into obscurity.
For decades she was forgotten, until late
twentieth century literary scholars began looking into
the history of the Swedish mystery and found Aurora
Ljungstedt. Her fame, if fame it ever was, did not
last, but she is of interest to us because of what
followed: A worldwide mania for detective fiction,
for the adventures of The Great Detective: Sherlock
Holmes, Hercule Poirot, Miss Jane Marple, Lord
Peter Wimsey, Inspector Jules Maigret, Lew Archer,
Philip Marlowe, Sam Spade, Nero Wolfe, and a
multitude of others. Including, of course, from
Swedish pens, the stellar Martin Beck and Kurt
Wallander.
Aurora Ljungstedt's novels have historic value
because it appears she was a pioneer on the path of
Swedish detective fiction, though it seems doubtful
that any later mystery writers, in Sweden or
elsewhere, ever heard of her. She was a reflector of
light rather than its source, one inspired rather than
inspiring. And yet, even a small star casts a glow.
Swedish detective fiction is alive and well in 2009
and Aurora Ljungstedt's star has a place in the
cosmos.
The Hastfordian Escutcheon and Det Obturna Brevet
(in Swedish, not English) may be purchased from
Swedish bookstores and online websites. You may
also check them out of the public library in Sweden.
An Icelandic Innovation
Icelandic explorers under the
direction of Leif Ericsson
discovered the New World in the
year 1000. Their literary sagas
tell the Viking stories, including
the story of this great voyage.
Greetings to all VASA members
Our best wishes for a successful
convention and a big THANK YOU to
Svea Lodge No. 253
for hosting the 101st annual
District Lodge Lake Michigan
No. 8 Convention
From all the members of
Siljan-Mora-Tuna Lodge No. 134
and the home lodge of
Sten Hult, Past District Master
and the Grand Lodge Deputy,
D. L. No. 8, 2006 – 2010
Lisa Cianci, D. L. Executive
Board member
The local lodge members are the
backbone of Vasa, but the youth
are the future of the Vasa Order.
Remember to support our
children’s clubs.
We thank Professor Annette
Johansson, Svea Lodge No. 253,
for her generous sponsorship
of the appearance of the
pianist for the Sunday
Memorial Service.
We thank Lillemor and Richard Horngren for
their generous donations of Swedish dolls and
pictures for Convention fundraisers.
We are sorry you could not attend, but will see
you next Convention!
We thank Chuck and Marty Lindgren of
Svea Lodge No. 253, who made generous
donations of golf tournament
prizes and gifts for fundraisers.
More than 90 members of Svea Lodge
No. 253 purchased fundraiser items.
They also contributed fundraiser gifts,
food and drinks for the hospitality room,
and most valuable of all, their time and
support for the Convention.
Tack skall du ha!
Thanks to our fellow members of District
Lodge Lake Michigan No. 8 for
supporting our fundraisers, for
contributing to our request for donations,
and for sponsoring advertisements in the
program book.
The Convention program book will
remain as a newsletter on the Vasa
District web site until
1 October 2009 at
www.vasaorder.net/newsletters.cfm?lodge=D8.
If you wish to contribute
to the program book, your input will
be added to the on-line version.
We will accept pictures taken at the
convention or additional articles
about Nordic innovations.
Address contributions to:
There is a Grand Lodge restriction
on the amount of space that can
be used on-line for a document,
but we will fit in as many
contributions as space permits.
From 1 October 2009, the next
Convention will use the web site
location for their program book
and/or news about their convention.
Please ‘watch that space’ often.
Enighet
ger
styrka.
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NORDIC MYSTERY WRITERS AND THEIR BOOKS
Icelandic Authors
Arnaldur Indridason
Jar City
Voices
Silence of the Grave
The Draining Lake
Yrsa Sigurdardottir
Last Rituals
Norwegian Authors
K.O Dahl
The Fourth Man
The Man in the Window
Karin Fossum
Don’t Look Back
He Who Fears the Wolf
When the Devil Holds the Candle
The Indian Bride
Black Seconds
Anne Holt
Punishment
The Final Murder
Jo Nesbo
The Redbreast
Nemesis
Devil’s Star
Swedish Authors
Karin Alvtegen
Missing
Betrayal
Shame
Guilt
Åke Edwardson
Sun and Shadow
Never End
Frozen Tracks
Kjell Eriksson
The Princess of Burundi
The Cruel Stars of the Night
The Demon from Dakar
Inger Frimansson
Good Night, My Darling
The Shadow in the Water
Mari Jungstedt
Unseen
Unspoken
The Inner Circle
Camilla Läckberg
The Ice Princess
Åsa Larsson
Sun Storm
The Blood Spilt
The Black Path
Stieg Larsson
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
The Girl Who Played With Fire
Henning Mankell
Faceless Killer
The Dogs of Riga
The White Lioness
The Man Who Smiled
Sidetracked
The Fifth Woman
One Step Behind
Firewall
The Pyramid
Before the Frost
Liza Marklund
The Bomber
Studio 69
Paradise
Prime Time
Håkan Nesser
Borkmann’s Point
The Return
The Mind’s Eye
Maj Sjöwall and Per Wahlöö
Roseanna
The Man Who Went up in Smoke
The Man on the Balcony
The Laughing Policeman
The Fire Engine That Disappeared
Murder at the Savoy
The Abominable Man
The Locked Room
Cop Killer
The Terrorists
Johan Theorin
Echoes from the Dead
Helene Tursten
Detective Inspector Huss
The Torso
The Glass Devil
Finnish Author
Matti Joensuu
The Stone Murders
The Priest of Evil
To Steal Her Love
Danish Authors
Peter Hoeg
The Quiet Girl
Christian Jungersen
The Exception
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ALFRED NOBEL
by Sten Hult from Scandinavian Review
Alfred Nobel is perhaps the Swede who is
best-known throughout the world.
On November 27 1895, Nobel penned his will;
he died one year later in his magnificent villa in San
Remo on the Italian Riviera. In his will Nobel
stipulated that the major part of his estate (31 million
Swedish kronor, that have grown into more than two
billion today) was to be invested. The income from
the investments was to be “distributed annually in the
form of prizes to those who during the preceding year
have conferred the greatest benefit on mankind”.
The five prizes are for work in physics,
chemistry, medicine, literature and peace. A prize in
economics “in memory of Alfred Nobel” was added in
1969. There is also a “Right Livelihood” prize
awarded simultaneously, which was founded by the
Swedish philanthropist Jakob von Uexkull.
Alfred Nobel’s will created was contested by
some of his relatives. Swedish King Oscar II claimed
that Alfred Nobel’s donation was not “patriotic”.
Today it is estimated that one-third of the world press
articles about Sweden can be attributed to the Nobel
Prize.
Nobel’s assistant and testament executor
Ragnar Sohlman insured that the will would be
enforced. Sohlman rushed to Paris and St. Petersburg,
with the Nobel family in hot pursuit, and withdrew all
funds and deposited them in a bank in Stockholm. A
three-year long dispute followed before the first prizes
could finally be awarded in 1901.
Alfred Nobel was born in Stockholm on
October 21, 1833. His father, an inventor, moved to
St. Petersburg, when Alfred was five, to start anew
after a bankruptcy in Sweden. The family followed
four years later after Immanuel had established a
successful industry, producing mines for the Russian
army. Alfred was sent on a two-year trip in Europe
and the USA when he was seventeen. He was fluent
in Swedish, Russian, English, French and German.
Immanuel’s company went bankrupt in 1850
and everything changed. Immanuel returned to
Sweden with his wife and sons, Alfred and Emil.
Sons Ludvig and Robert stayed on in Russia and it is
through them that the Nobel family today lives on in
Sweden.
Ludvig, an inventor, developed his own
company, Ludvig Nobels Maskinfabrik, into one of
Russia’s largest industrial concerns, as is still evident
in the blocks of buildings at the Viborg quay in Saint
Petersburg. Robert established a petroleum company
that became one of Russia’s largest industries and the
third power on the international oil market together
with the Rockefellers and the Rothchilds. When the
Communists seized power in 1917, the Nobel
industries were the very first to be seized by the Red
Army and the family had to flee to Sweden.
Immanuel Nobel, after fleeing from Russia,
set up a laboratory to manufacture explosives on a
farm in the south of Stockholm with his sons Alfred
and Emil. An explosion killed Emil and four others
and led to a stroke for Immanuel.
Alfred continued the experiments and found a
safe compound for blasting called “dynamite.” After
inventing dynamite in 1866, Nobel left Sweden and
established factories in several countries in Europe
and the U.S.
Alfred Nobel had a wide range of interests in
many fields of technology: imitation leather, artificial
rubber and synthetic silk, the electrical battery, the
electric bulb and the phonograph. Nobel had 93
factories around the world when he died. Many of the
leading industries in the chemical field today like ICI
(Imperial Chemical Industries) emanate from
companies established by Nobel.
He had homes in six countries complete with
laboratories. He said that “my home is where I work
and I work everywhere.” Towards the end of his life,
he bought the Björkborn manor in Karlskoga. He
lived there for only two years before he died. The
manor and the laboratory are a museum now. In
Stockholm, Nobelmuseet is dedicated to his prize.
Nobel sometimes wrote as many as 30 letters a
day. A year before his death he published the sad
novel Nemesis, which was performed as a play in
Stockholm.
Nobel was full of paradoxes. He was
successful yet felt inadequate. He made fortunes out
of war but fought for peace. He was a staunch patriot,
yet spent relatively little time in Sweden. He was an
accomplished scientist and inventor, yet had only one
year of formal schooling and no university degree. He
loved family life but had none of his own.
Alfred Nobel was an idealist and a realist
both. He hoped that he could encourage future
generations to improve the world’s condition by his
awards. They would reward people who made
achievements that were “the greatest benefit to
mankind”.
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National Anthems
United States
O say can you see, by the dawn’s early light,
What so proudly we hail’d at the twilight’s last gleaming,
Whose broad stripes and bright stars through the perilous
fight
O’er the ramparts we watch’d were so gallantly streaming?
And the rocket’s red glare, the bombs bursting in air,
Gave proof through the night that our flag was still there,
O say does that star-spangled banner yet wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave?
Sweden
Du gamla, du fria, du fjällhöga Nord,
du tysta, du glädjerika sköna!
Jag hälsar dig, vänaste land uppå jord,
din sol, din himmel, dina ängder gröna,
din sol, din himmel, dina ängder gröna.
Du tronar på minnen från fornstora dar,
då ärat ditt namn flög över jorden.
Jag vet, att du är och du blir vad du var.
Ja, jag vill leva, jag vill dö i Norden!
Ja, jag vill leva, jag vill dö i Norden!
Canada
O Canada!
Our home and native land!
True patriot love in all thy sons command.
With glowing hearts we see thee rise,
The True North strong and free!
From far and wide,
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
God keep our land glorious and free!
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
Election Results
District Master__________________________________
Vice District Master______________________________
District Secretary________________________________
Assistant District Secretary________________________
District Treasurer________________________________
Hospital Fund Secretary___________________________
Executive Board__________________________________
Executive Board__________________________________
Supr. Child & Youth Clubs________________________
Cultural Leader__________________________________
Chaplain________________________________________
Master of Ceremonies_____________________________
Auditing Committee______________________________
Auditing Committee______________________________
Auditing Committee______________________________
Inner Guard_____________________________________
Outer Guard_____________________________________
Memorial Service
District Lodge Lake Michigan No. 8
Sunday 31 May 2009
Indianapolis, Indiana
*indicates please stand as able
Music for gathering: Fäbodpsalm från Dalarna
Welcome Marv Anderson, Svea No. 253
*Psalm 8 Responsively L=Leader, P=People
O Lord, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
Your glory is chanted above the heavens
by the mouth of babes and infants.
When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars which you have established;
what are human beings that you are mindful of them,
and mortals that you care for them?
You have made them little less than God,
and crowned them with glory and honor.
You have given them dominion over the works of your hands;
you have put all things under their feet.
O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!
*Hymn “Praise the Lord Each Tribe and Nation”
Johann Franck, Tr. Augustus Nelson Swedish tune
Praise the Lord, each tribe and nation, Praise Him with a joyous heart;
Ye who know His full salvation, Gather now from every part;
Let your voices glorify, In His temple, God on high.
He’s our God, and our Creator, We, His flock and chosen seed.
He, our Lord and Liberator, Us from sin and peril freed.
And at last His flock shall rest In the mansions of the blest.
Give Him thanks within His portals; In the courts His deeds proclaim;
Hither come, ye ransomed mortals, Glorify our Savior’s Name.
Ever kind and loving, He Keeps His faith eternally.
“Reprinted from The Hymnal, copyright 1925 Augustana Book Concern, Used by permission of
Augsburg Fortress.”
*The Lord’s Prayer Inez Törnblom, District Chaplain, Viljan No. 349
Fader vår, som är i himmelen!
Helgat varde ditt namn;
tillkomme ditt rike; ske din vilja
såsom i himmelen så ock på jorden;
Vårt dagliga bröd giv oss i dag;
och förlåt oss våra skulder,
såsom ock vi förlåta dem oss skyldiga äro;
och inled oss inte i frestelse,
utan fräls oss ifrån ondo,
ty riket är ditt och makten och härligheten i evighet.
Amen.
New Testament Reading: Romans 8, selected
Anthem: “On Eagle’s Wings” Vasa Choir, Wesley Hanson, Director, Svea No. 253
Michael Joncas, arr. Mark Hayes and Wesley Hanson
The Memorial Roll Inez Törnblom
Siljan Mora Tuna # 134
Ester G. Carlson
Anna Nelson
Donald R. Johnson
Kronan # 179
Stina Hirsch
Nancy Johansen
Margaret Carlson
Bessemer # 203
Ellen Jeffers
William Kilstrom
John Pelzman
Brahe # 245
Lola Johnson
Patricia Gelasius
Eugene Blair
Lillie Kraemer
Svea # 253
Howard Jansen
Ann Black
Eva Månsson
Jeanne Metz
Viljan #349
Svea Erd
James Nystedt
Austin #466
Linnea Uppstrom
Linde #492
Evangeline Nelson
Marilyn Bittick
Ralph Scheele
George Childers
Janice Touve
Paul Nelson
Bishop Hill #683
Sonja Anderson
Loren Newman
Shirley Peterson
LeRoy Swanson
Hagar #721
Mats Johanson
Karl Schmidt, Jr.
Viking #730
Helen DeMar
Allen Johnson
Ken Nylander
Lillian Lagerkvist
Art Pierre
Lindgren #754
Janice Touve (dual
member)
Jubileum #755
Miriam Ericson
Frances Johnson
James A. Johnson
Bengt A. Johnson
Commendation Marv Anderson, Svea No. 253
*Hymn “God of the Ages”
Daniel C. Roberts and George W. Warren National Hymn
God of the ages, whose almighty hand
leads forth in beauty all the starry band
of shining worlds in splendor through the skies,
our grateful songs before thy throne arise.
Thy love divine hath led us in the past;
in this free land with thee our lot is cast;
be thou our ruler, guardian, guide, and stay,
thy Word our law, thy paths our chosen way.
From war's alarms, from deadly pestilence,
be thy strong arm our ever sure defense;
thy true religion in our hearts increase;
thy bounteous goodness nourish us in peace.
Refresh thy people on their toilsome way;
lead us from night to never-ending day;
fill all our lives with love and grace divine,
and glory, laud, and praise be ever thine.
*Closing prayer Marv Anderson, Svea No. 253
Music for fellowship and travel
Save the date!
14, 15, and 16 May 2010
Michigan City, Indiana
102nd ANNUAL CONVENTION
DISTRICT LODGE
LAKE MICHIGAN No. 8
VASA ORDER OF AMERICA
Hosted by
Nordik Folk Lodge No. 761
Contacts:
Steve Westlund, Chairman, [email protected]
Linnea Ogrentz, Convention Committee Chairman, [email protected]
Lynda Smith, Convention Co-Chairman, [email protected]
The Marten House Hotel and Lilly Conference Center
1801 West 86th Street, Indianapolis, Indiana 46260
(317) 872 - 4111 or (800) 736 - 5634
Vasa District Lodge Lake Michigan No. 8 Convention
29 May 2009 – 31 May 2009
Hospitality Rooms Friday evening and Sunday post-meeting:
Dugan Arnold
Executive Board Meeting
Friday 3 PM:
O’Connor
Saturday Lunch and
Saturday Banquet:
Poolside A – B – C
Culture displays, bucket
raffle, silent auction,
emporium, and
loppmarknad:
Depaul/Seton all
weekend
Convention meetings:
Marillac/Laboute/
Rendu
Registration Friday PM
and Saturday AM:
Heritage Foyer