@misc{CorbettSiegelThulinetal.2024, author = {Corbett, Tim and Siegel, Bj{\"o}rn and Thulin, Mirjam and Cs{\´a}ky, Moritz and H{\"o}dl, Klaus and Kasper-Marienberg, Verena and Berkovich, Ilya and Czakai, Johannes and Maślak-Maciejewska, Alicja and Stechauner, Martin and Dodou, Lida-Maria and Heimann-Jelinek, Felicitas and Nasr, Omar T. and Halbinger, Monika and J{\´a}noš{\´i}kov{\´a}, Magdal{\´e}na and Keßler, Katrin and Kauders, Anthony D. and Piskačov{\´a}, Zora and Arnold, Rafael D. and Schulz, Michael K. and Shapira, Elena and Sidky, Sean and Sun, Cheuk Him Ryan and Tirosh-Samuelson, Hava and Tusan, Michelle and Weigand, Susanne}, title = {Intersections between Jewish Studies and Habsburg Studies}, series = {PaRDeS : Journal of the Association for Jewish Studies in Germany}, journal = {PaRDeS : Journal of the Association for Jewish Studies in Germany}, number = {29}, editor = {Siegel, Bj{\"o}rn and Thulin, Mirjam and Corbett, Tim}, publisher = {Universit{\"a}tsverlag Potsdam}, address = {Potsdam}, isbn = {978-3-86956-574-3}, issn = {1614-6492}, doi = {10.25932/publishup-62207}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-622072}, pages = {202}, year = {2024}, abstract = {In the aftermath of the Shoah and the ostensible triumph of nationalism, it became common in historiography to relegate Jews to the position of the "eternal other" in a series of binaries: Christian/Jewish, Gentile/Jewish, European/Jewish, non-Jewish/Jewish, and so forth. For the longest time, these binaries remained characteristic of Jewish historiography, including in the Central European context. Assuming instead, as the more recent approaches in Habsburg studies do, that pluriculturalism was the basis of common experience in formerly Habsburg Central Europe, and accepting that no single "majority culture" existed, but rather hegemonies were imposed in certain contexts, then the often used binaries are misleading and conceal the complex and sometimes even paradoxical conditions that shaped Jewish life in the region before the Shoah. The very complexity of Habsburg Central Europe both in synchronic and diachronic perspective precludes any singular historical narrative of "Habsburg Jewry," and it is not the intention of this volume to offer an overview of "Habsburg Jewish history." The selected articles in this volume illustrate instead how important it is to reevaluate categories, deconstruct historical narratives, and reconceptualize implemented approaches in specific geographic, temporal, and cultural contexts in order to gain a better understanding of the complex and pluricultural history of the Habsburg Empire and the region as a whole.}, language = {en} } @misc{DinerKrahRabinetal.2021, author = {Diner, Hasia and Krah, Markus and Rabin, Shari and Schwartz, Yitzchak and Thulin, Mirjam and Czendze, Oskar and Schmidt, Imanuel Clemens and Cooperman, Jessica and Gallas, Elisabeth and R{\"u}rup, Miriam and Heyde, J{\"u}rgen and Meyer, Thomas and Ries, Rotraud and Ullrich, Anna and Geißler-Gr{\"u}nberg, Anke and Schulz, Michael Karl and Arnold, Rafael D. and Sinn, Andrea A.}, title = {PaRDeS : Journal of the Association for Jewish Studies in Germany = Foreign Entanglements: Transnational American Jewish Studies}, series = {PaRDeS : Journal of the Association for Jewish Studies in Germany}, journal = {PaRDeS : Journal of the Association for Jewish Studies in Germany}, number = {27}, editor = {Diner, Hasia and Krah, Markus and Siegel, Bj{\"o}rn}, publisher = {Universit{\"a}tsverlag Potsdam}, address = {Potsdam}, isbn = {978-3-86956-520-0}, issn = {1614-6492}, doi = {10.25932/publishup-51933}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-519333}, pages = {189}, year = {2021}, abstract = {The field of American Jewish studies has recently trained its focus on the transnational dimensions of its subject, reflecting in more sustained ways than before about the theories and methods of this approach. Yet, much of the insight to be gained from seeing American Jewry as constitutively entangled in many ways with other Jewries has not yet been realized. Transnational American Jewish studies are still in their infancy. This issue of PaRDeS presents current research on the multiple entanglements of American with Central European, especially German-speaking Jewries in the 19th and 20th centuries. The articles reflect the wide range of topics that can benefit from a transnational understanding of the American Jewish experience as shaped by its foreign entanglements.}, language = {en} } @misc{ThulinKrahGausemeieretal.2020, author = {Thulin, Mirjam and Krah, Markus and Gausemeier, Bernd and Mecklenburg, Frank and Oehme, Annegret and Tam{\´a}s, M{\´a}t{\´e} and Gerlach, Lisa and Gr{\"a}be, Viktoria and Wermke, Michael and Oleshkevich, Ekaterina and Arnold, Rafael D. and Wendehorst, Stephan and Talabardon, Susanne and Mays, Devi and M{\"u}ller, Judith and Herskovitz, Yaakov and Garloff, Katja and Kellenbach, Katharina von and Held, Marcus and Gr{\"o}zinger, Karl Erich}, title = {PaRDeS : Journal of the Association for Jewish Studies in Germany = Jewish Families and Kinship in the Early Modern and Modern Eras}, series = {PaRDeS : Zeitschrift der Vereinigung f{\"u}r J{\"u}dische Studien}, journal = {PaRDeS : Zeitschrift der Vereinigung f{\"u}r J{\"u}dische Studien}, number = {26}, editor = {Thulin, Mirjam and Krah, Markus and Pick, Bianca}, publisher = {Universit{\"a}tsverlag Potsdam}, address = {Potsdam}, isbn = {978-3-86956-493-7}, issn = {1614-6492}, doi = {10.25932/publishup-47365}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-473654}, pages = {180}, year = {2020}, abstract = {The Jewish family has been the subject of much admiration and analysis, criticism and myth-making, not just but especially in modern times. As a field of inquiry, its place is at the intersection - or in the shadow - of the great topics in Jewish Studies and its contributing disciplines. Among them are the modernization and privatization of Judaism and Jewish life; integration and distinctiveness of Jews as individuals and as a group; gender roles and education. These and related questions have been the focus of modern Jewish family research, which took shape as a discipline in the 1910s. This issue of PaRDeS traces the origins of academic Jewish family research and takes stock of its development over a century, with its ruptures that have added to the importance of familial roots and continuities. A special section retrieves the founder of the field, Arthur Czellitzer (1871-1943), his biography and work from oblivion and places him in the context of early 20th-century science and Jewish life. The articles on current questions of Jewish family history reflect the topic's potential for shedding new light on key questions in Jewish Studies past and present. Their thematic range - from 13th-century Yiddish Arthurian romances via family-based business practices in 19th-century Hungary and Germany, to concepts of Jewish parenthood in Imperial Russia - illustrates the broad interest in Jewish family research as a paradigm for early modern and modern Jewish Studies.}, language = {en} } @misc{ThulinKrahMeyeretal.2018, author = {Thulin, Mirjam and Krah, Markus and Meyer, Michael A. and Schorsch, Ismar and Brodt, Eliezer and Sariel, Eliezer and Yedidya, Asaf and Esther, Solomon and Kessler, Samuel J. and Bratkin, Dimitri and Sax, Benjamin E. and Stair, Rose and Ariel, Yaakov S. and Weidner, Daniel and Ebert, Sophia and Martini, Annett and Fischer, Bernd and Th{\"u}ne, Eva-Maria and Bock, Dennis and Engelmann, Jonas and Aust, Cornelia and Walter, Nancy}, title = {PaRDeS : Zeitschrift der Vereinigung f{\"u}r J{\"u}dische Studien = Cultures of Wissenschaft des Judentums at 200}, series = {PaRDeS : Zeitschrift der Vereinigung f{\"u}r J{\"u}dische Studien e. V.}, journal = {PaRDeS : Zeitschrift der Vereinigung f{\"u}r J{\"u}dische Studien e. V.}, number = {24}, editor = {Krah, Markus and Thulin, Mirjam and Pick, Bianca}, publisher = {Universit{\"a}tsverlag Potsdam}, address = {Potsdam}, isbn = {978-3-86956-440-1}, issn = {1614-6492}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-414943}, pages = {280}, year = {2018}, abstract = {PaRDeS, the journal of the German Association for Jewish Studies, aims at exploring the fruitful and multifarious cultures of Judaism as well as their relations to their environment within diverse areas of research. In addition, the journal promotes Jewish Studies within academic discourse and reflects on its historic and social responsibilities.}, language = {en} } @misc{KrahThulinFaiersteinetal.2019, author = {Krah, Markus and Thulin, Mirjam and Faierstein, Morris M. and Drori, Danielle and Coors, Maria and Schramm, Netta and Driver, Cory and Holzman, Gitit and Zuckermann, Ghil'ad and Fishbane, Eitan P. and Gruenbaum, Caroline and Schirrmeister, Sebastian and Ferrari, Francesco and Stemberger, G{\"u}nter and Schm{\"o}lz-H{\"a}berlein, Michaela and M{\"u}ller, Judith and Schulz, Michael Karl and Meyer, Thomas and Artwińska, Anna and Walter, Simon}, title = {PaRDeS : Zeitschrift der Vereinigung f{\"u}r J{\"u}dische Studien = Transformative Translations in Jewish History and Culture}, number = {25}, editor = {Krah, Markus and Thulin, Mirjam and Pick, Bianca}, publisher = {Universit{\"a}tsverlag Potsdam}, address = {Potsdam}, isbn = {978-3-86956-468-5}, issn = {1614-6492}, doi = {10.25932/publishup-43262}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-432621}, pages = {198}, year = {2019}, abstract = {PaRDeS, die Zeitschrift der Vereinigung f{\"u}r J{\"u}dische Studien e. V., erforscht die fruchtbare kulturelle Vielfalt des Judentums sowie ihre Ber{\"u}hrungspunkte zur nichtj{\"u}dischen Umwelt in unterschiedlichen Bereichen. Daneben dient die Zeitschrift als Forum zur Positionierung der F{\"a}cher J{\"u}dische Studien und ­Judaistik innerhalb des wissenschaftlichen Diskurses sowie zur Diskussion ihrer historischen und gesellschaftlichen Verantwortung.}, language = {en} } @misc{ZimmermannHornConradGoerlichetal.2019, author = {Zimmermann, Matthias and Horn-Conrad, Antje and G{\"o}rlich, Petra and Schlegel, Karoline and Kampe, Heike}, title = {Portal Wissen = Artificial intelligence}, number = {01/2019}, editor = {Engel, Silke and Zimmermann, Matthias}, address = {54}, organization = {University of Potsdam, Press and Public Relations Department}, issn = {2198-9974}, doi = {10.25932/publishup-44246}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-442469}, year = {2019}, abstract = {For a long time, there were things on this planet that only humans could do, but this time might be coming to an end. By using the universal tool that makes us unique - our intelligence - we have worked to eliminate our uniqueness, at least when it comes to solving cognitive tasks. Artificial intelligence is now able to play chess, understand language, and drive a car - and often better than we. How did we get here? The philosopher Aristotle formulated the first "laws of thought" in his syllogisms, and the mathematicians Blaise Pascal and Wilhelm Leibniz built some of the earliest calculating machines. The mathematician George Boole was the first to introduce a formal language to represent logic. The natural scientist Alan Turing created his deciphering machine "Colossus," the first programmable computer. Philosophers, mathematicians, psychologists, and linguists - for centuries, scientists have been developing formulas, machines, and theories that were supposed to enable us to reproduce and possibly even enhance our most valuable ability. But what exactly is "artificial intelligence"? Even the name calls for comparison. Is artificial intelligence like human intelligence? Alan Turing came up with a test in 1950 to provide a satisfying operational definition of intelligence: According to him, a machine is intelligent if its thinking abilities equal those of humans. It has to reach human levels for any cognitive task. The machine has to prove this by convincing a human interrogator that it is human. Not an easy task: After all, it has to process natural language, store knowledge, draw conclusions, and learn something new. In fact, over the past ten years, a number of AI systems have emerged that have passed the test one way or another in chat conversations with automatically generated texts or images. Nowadays, the discussion usually centers on other questions: Does AI still need its creators? Will it not only outperform humans but someday replace them - be it in the world of work or even beyond? Will AI solve our problems in the age of all-encompassing digital networking - or will it become a part of the problem? Artificial intelligence, its nature, its limitations, its potential, and its relationship to humans were being discussed even before it existed. Literature and film have created scenarios with very different endings. But what is the view of the scientists who are actually researching with or about artificial intelligence? For the current issue of our research magazine, a cognitive scientist, an education researcher, and a computer scientist shared their views. We also searched the University for projects whose professional environment reveals the numerous opportunities that AI offers for various disciplines. We cover the geosciences and computer science as well as economics, health, and literature studies. At the same time, we have not lost sight of the broad research spectrum at the University: a legal expert introduces us to the not-so-distant sphere of space law while astrophysicists work on ensuring that state-of-the-art telescopes observe those regions in space where something "is happening" at the right time. A chemist explains why the battery of the future will come from a printer, and molecular biologists explain how they will breed stress-resistant plants. You will read about all this in this issue as well as about current studies on restless legs syndrome in children and the situation of Muslims in Brandenburg. Last but not least, we will introduce you to the sheep currently grazing in Sanssouci Park - all on behalf of science. Quite clever! Enjoy your read! THE EDITORS}, language = {en} } @misc{HafnerZimmermannRostetal.2014, author = {Hafner, Johann Evangelist and Zimmermann, Matthias and Rost, Sophia and S{\"u}tterlin, Sabine and Kampe, Heike and Horn-Conrad, Antje and J{\"a}ger, Sophie and Eckardt, Barbara and Mangelsdorf, Birgit}, title = {Portal Wissen = Believe}, number = {01/2014}, organization = {University of Potsdam, Press and Public Relations Department}, issn = {2198-9974}, doi = {10.25932/publishup-44146}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-441461}, pages = {55}, year = {2014}, abstract = {People want to know what is real. Children enjoy listening to a story but when my children were about four years old they started asking whether the story really happened or was just invented. Likewise, only on a higher level, our academic curiosity is fuelled by our interest in knowing what is real. When we analyze poetic texts or dreams we are trying to distinguish between the facts (e.g. neurological ones or linguistic structures) and merely assumed influences. Ideally we can present results that were logically understood by others and that we can repeat empirically. But in most cases this is not possible. We cannot read every book and cannot look through every microscope, not even within our own discipline. In the world we live in we depend on trusting the information of others, like how to get to the train station or what the weather is like in Ulaanbataar. This is why we are used to believing others, our friends or the news anchors. This is not a childish behavior but a necessity. Of course, it is risky because they could all be lying to us, like in a Truman Show situation. The only time we are able to know that we are in reality is when we transcend our selfconsciousness and when we accept two propositions: first, that we are not only objects but also subjects in the consciousness of others and second that our dialogic relations are again observed by a third party that is not part of this intersubjective world. For religious people this is "belief" - belief as the assumption that all human relations only become real, serious and beyond any doubt if they know they are under the eyes of God. Only before Him something is in itself and not only "for me" or "among us". That is why biblical language distinguishes between three forms of belief: the relationship with the world of things ("to believe that"), the relationship to the world of subjects ("to believe somebody") and the assumption of a subjective supernatural reality ("to believe in" or "faith"). From an academic point of view belief is a holistic hypothesis. Belief is not the opposite of knowledge but it is the attempt to save reality from doubt by comprehending the fragile empirical world as an expression of a stable transcendent world. When I talk to students they often ask not only about what I know but what I believe. As a professor for Religious Studies and a believing Catholic I am caught in the middle. On the one hand, it is my duty as a professor to doubt everything, i.e. to attribute each religious text to its historical context and sociological functions. On the other hand, I, as a Christian, consider certain religious documents, in my case the Bible, an interpretable but nevertheless irreversible, revealed text about the origin of reality. On weekdays the New Testament is a collection of ancient writings among many others, on Sundays it is the revelation. You can make a clear distinction between these two perspectives but it is difficult to decide whether doubt or belief is more real. This issue of "Portal Wissen" explores this dual relationship of belief. What is the attitude of science towards belief - is it a religious one? Where does science bring things to light that we can hardly believe or that make us believe (again)? What happens if research clears up erroneous assumptions or myths? Is science able to investigate things that are convincing but inexplicable? How can it maintain its credibility and develop even so? These questions appear again and again in the contributions of this "Portal Wissen". They form a manifold, exciting and surprising picture of the research projects and academics at the University of Potsdam. Believe me, it will be an enjoyable read. Prof. Johann Hafner Professor of Religious Studies with Focus on Christianity Dean of the Faculty of Arts}, language = {en} } @misc{DemskeSuetterlinRostetal.2013, author = {Demske, Ulrike and S{\"u}tterlin, Sabine and Rost, Sophia and Zimmermann, Matthias and Kampe, Heike and Eckardt, Barbara and Horn-Conrad, Antje}, title = {Portal Wissen = Borders}, number = {02/2013}, organization = {University of Potsdam, Press and Public Relations Department}, issn = {2198-9974}, doi = {10.25932/publishup-44143}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-441430}, pages = {55}, year = {2013}, abstract = {The new edition of the Potsdam Research Magazine "Portal Wissen" approaches the subject "Borders" from different perspectives. As a linguist, this headline makes me think of linguistic borders and the effects that might result from the contact of two languages at a particular border. There is, for instance, ample evidence of code-switching, i.e. the use of material from at least two languages in a single utterance. The reasons for code-switching can be manifold. On the one hand, code-switching may result from a limited language competence, for example if a speaker lacks a particular word in a nonnative language. On the other hand, code-switching may be a matter of prestige if the speaker wants to demonstrate his or her affiliation to a certain social group by switching languages. If code-switching does not only occur sporadically but involves whole language communities over a longer period of time, it can result in significant changes of the involved languages. Which language "gives" and which one "takes" is determined by sociolinguistic factors. It is, hence, quite easy to predict that German varieties spoken in language islands in South and Eastern Europe as well as in North and Latin America will absorb more and more language material from their neighbouring languages until they disappear unless political will strives to preserve these language varieties. Increasing mobility of modern societies has multiplied the extent and the intensity of language contact and certainly comprises a large number of different contact situations besides the one most commonly known, i.e. the contact between German and English. From a historic point of view, German witnesses a strong influence of various Romance languages such as Latin, French and Italian. In Potsdam, one cannot help being reminded of the French influence during the 18th century. Overcoming language borders becomes also apparent in the everyday life of an international research university. In March this year, the Annual Conference of the German Linguistic Society took place in Potsdam, with more than 500 participants. Lingua franca of this conference was English. Compared to previous conferences, this further increased the number of international participants. The articles in this edition illustrate various approaches to the topic "Borders": On the trail of "Boundary Surveys", we follow the Australian explorer Ludwig Leichhardt. "Travellers Across Borders" is focussed on articles dealing with the literature of the colonial Caribbean or with the work of an Italian geologist deep beneath the earth's surface, for example. Looking for the "Boundless", our authors follow scientists who discuss questions like "Why love hurts?". The present issue of "Portal Wissen" also takes into account "Drawing Up Borders" in an article that is concerned with the limits of workrelated stress. Instances of successful "Border Crossing" are provided by the "Handkerchief Lab" as well as by new biotechnological applications. I would like to wish you inspiring border experiences, hoping that you will get many impulses for crossing professional borders in your field of expertise. Prof. Ulrike Demske Professor of the History and the Varieties of the German Language Vice President International Affairs, Alumni and Fundraising}, language = {en} } @misc{MikullaBossierSteuerwaldKampeetal.2021, author = {Mikulla, Stefanie and Bossier-Steuerwald, Sandy and Kampe, Heike and Pchalek, Magda and Zimmermann, Matthias and Horn-Conrad, Antje}, title = {Portal Wissen = Change}, number = {01/2021}, organization = {University of Potsdam, Press and Public Relations Department}, issn = {2198-9974}, doi = {10.25932/publishup-50994}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-509945}, pages = {60}, year = {2021}, abstract = {Change makes everything different. Let's be honest: Just about everything is constantly in transformation. Even huge massifs that seem like eternity turned to stone will eventually dissolve into dust. So is change itself the only constant? The Greek philosopher Heraclitus certainly thought so. He said, "The only thing that is constant is change." Change is frightening. A change that we cannot explain throws us into turmoil - like a magic trick we cannot decipher. Viruses that mutate, ecosystems that collapse, stars that perish - they all seem to threaten the fragile balance that makes our existence possible. Humanity is late in recognizing that we ourselves are all too often the impetus for dangerous transformations. Change gives hope. People have always been fascinated by change and felt compelled to explore its origin and essence. Quite successfully. We understand many things much better than generations before. But well enough? Not at all. Alexander von Humboldt said, "Every law of nature that reveals itself to the observer suggests a higher, as yet unrecognized one." There is still much to be done. The current issue of Portal Wissen is all about change. We spoke to an astrophysicist who has found her happiness in researching the formation and change of stars. We also look at different aspects of the very earthly climate change and its consequences: A geoscientist explains how global warming affects the stability of mountain ranges. A legal expert makes clear that the call for a right to climate protection has gone largely unheard until now. How human land use affects biodiversity is being investigated by young researchers of the "Bio- Move" research training group, who have provided us with insights into their work on brown hares, water fleas, and mallard ducks. Other researchers focus on change in the contexts of humans. A group of nutrition scientists at the German Institute of Human Nutrition (DIfE) and sports scientists at the University of Potsdam are investigating the factors that cause our bodies to change as we age - and why some people lose muscles more quickly than others. Despite all these changes, we do not lose sight of the diversity of research at the University of Potsdam. A visit to the laboratory of the project "OptiZeD" gives us an idea of the possibilities offered by optical sensors for the personalized medicine of tomorrow, while an educational researcher explains why cultural diversity is an asset beneficial to our education. In addition, a cultural scientist reports on the fascination of comics. They are all part of the hopeful change that science is initiating and accomplishing! Enjoy the read!}, language = {en} } @misc{GoerlichHornConradKampeetal.2018, author = {G{\"o}rlich, Petra and Horn-Conrad, Antje and Kampe, Heike and Zimmermann, Matthias and Scholz, Jana and Engel, Silke and Schneider, Simon}, title = {Portal Wissen = Cosmos}, number = {02/2018}, organization = {University of Potsdam, Press and Public Relations Department}, issn = {2198-9974}, doi = {10.25932/publishup-44167}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-441674}, pages = {53}, year = {2018}, abstract = {Speaking of the cosmos means speaking about nothing less than everything, about the entirety of space filled with matter and energy. We only see a tiny fraction of it from Earth: planets like Venus or stars like the Sun. There are at least 100 billion stars in our home galaxy alone. Bound by gravity, these luminescent celestial bodies of very hot gas form a system visible from Earth as a whitish ribbon, which we call the Milky Way. The observable cosmos contains at least 100 billion such galaxies with stars, cosmic dust, gas, and probably dark matter as well. The universe is 13.8 billion years old; crossing it once would probably take 78 billion light-years. Given these dimensions, it is hardly surprising that for us humans, the mystery of the properties of the cosmos is connected with questions of being. Where do we come from? Where are we going? Are we alone in the universe? Such questions are in the wheelhouse of astrophysicists, who explore the vastness of the cosmos through physical means, even though they, of course, deal with physical laws, mathematical formulas, and complicated measuring methods. In this issue of Portal Wissen, we talked with astrophysicists at the University of Potsdam about their research and everyday work. Lutz Wisotzki showed us a 3D spectrograph, which he has developed in collaboration with colleagues from the Leibniz Institute for Astrophysics (AIP) and six other European institutes. This technical masterpiece enables scientists to look deeply into space and to "journey" through time to galaxies shortly after the Big Bang. Philipp Richter introduced us to the astrophysics research initiative and demonstrated how the University of Potsdam is working together with the AIP, the Albert Einstein Institute (AEI) and the Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY) to train junior researchers. The newly appointed Professor of Stellar Astrophysics, Stephan Geier, presented us with stars so close together to each other that they appear to be one to the naked eye. The physicist, who is also a historian, researches their turbulent relationships. We have not confined ourselves to cosmic themes, though, but also questioned rather earthly matters such as modern consumption. We have thought about potential love relationships with robots and testimonials in literature and art. We learned why the rainforest in Central Africa disappeared 2,600 years ago, how to produce knee prostheses on a production line, and how animals in the field benefit from big data. But back to the cosmos. The writing of late astrophysicist Stephen Hawking fundamentally shaped our concepts and knowledge of the universe. And that is because he was both an important physicist and a literary genius. Hardly anyone has been able to capture difficult facts in such a clear, understandable, and beautiful language. With this exemplary understanding of science in mind, we hope to offer you a stimulating read. The Editors}, language = {en} }