New things do not emerge where communication functions smoothly and cultural patterns make our daily orientation easier. They arise where we do not understand immediately and our patterns of order fail. The resulting dynamics of cultural innovations can be described retrospectively as a continuous development, but in reality, they result from breaks, accidents, or, as Jurij Lotman writes in his foundational work on cultural theory, from "semiotic explosions." The name Jurij Lotman has long been associated with one of the most nuanced and original semiotic theories of the 20th century. However, in German literature and cultural studies, he has so far been primarily known for his study on the structure of literary texts. With the volume "Culture and Explosion," German-speaking readers are now given their first insight.