@misc{ZimmermannAgrofylaxScholzetal.2022, author = {Zimmermann, Matthias and Agrofylax, Luisa and Scholz, Jana and Kampe, Heike and Horn-Conrad, Antje and Mikulla, Stefanie}, title = {Portal Wissen = Humans}, series = {Portal Wissen: The research magazine of the University of Potsdam}, journal = {Portal Wissen: The research magazine of the University of Potsdam}, number = {02/2022}, issn = {2198-9974}, doi = {10.25932/publishup-56584}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-565843}, pages = {58}, year = {2022}, abstract = {When humans write and talk about humans, you notice right away: It's their favorite topic. It is not only that everyone (usually) is closest to themselves. As a species, Homo sapiens also attaches distinct importance to themselves. Aristotle was concerned about the order of things and ranked the human being - as the seemingly most complicated one - at the "very top." The book of Genesis in the Bible seems to take this up, calling the human being in a way the final point or "pride of creation" who should "rule" over Earth and all living beings. An impressive story, but it did not stand the test of time. The theory of evolution changed the pyramid into a far-branched tree and the human being to a little branch among many others. What has remained is that humans are not so easy to understand, especially to themselves. Or, as Marie von Ebner-Eschenbach said, "The simplest human is still a very complicated being." This and the ongoing interest of humans in themselves ensure that many sciences also deal with him, her, or us, again and again and from every conceivable angle. Medicine and linguistics, educational research and psychology, history and sociology - many disciplines revolve around human(kind) and their actions. Therefore, it is hardly difficult to take a small exemplary human research journey through the University of Potsdam with this issue of "Portal Wissen." We begin with a visit to the BabyLAB, where you can rewardingly watch even the youngest children learn languages. An economist points out that differences between men and women on their paychecks are anything but acceptable, and a start-up team showed us an app that can help you do something against dementia before it's too late. Besides, it should have been clear long ago: If we want to understand ourselves, we must always look at what is surrounding us. This means the social interactions that challenge and shape us on both a small and large scale. That's why we talked to historians who are investigating corruption in the ancient world. But it also includes the environment, both living and non-living, on which we leave our mark and which, in turn, constantly influences us. A specialist in ancient DNA, for example, is investigating whether even Neanderthals left an ecological footprint, while an ecologist is searching for the consequences of climate change for biodiversity in Africa. And a media scientist has spent years analyzing how various images can help communicate scientific findings on climate change in such a way that they are understood. We have not forgotten that the coronavirus continues to influence both our lives and research: A psychologist is working with partners throughout Germany to study how children and young people with chronic diseases get through the pandemic. In addition, we naturally do not leave aside the diversity of research - created by humans - at the University of Potsdam: We introduce one of Germany's best gravitational wave researcher and talk about the role of mathematics in earthquake research. Last but not least, we had the work of the new research center for digital data law explained to us.}, language = {en} } @misc{EngelHornConradScholzetal.2020, author = {Engel, Silke and Horn-Conrad, Antje and Scholz, Jana and Schapranow, Matthieu-Patrick and Zimmermann, Matthias and Kampe, Heike}, title = {Portal Wissen = Health}, number = {02/2020}, organization = {University of Potsdam, Press and Public Relations Department}, issn = {2198-9974}, doi = {10.25932/publishup-48145}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-481458}, pages = {58}, year = {2020}, abstract = {The Coronavirus pandemic has made it very clear how much health and well-being determine our lives. And that science led the way in this regard could not be ignored. At the University of Potsdam, too, many researchers deal with aspects of health maintenance, whether in nutritional sciences, sports and rehabilitation medicine, biochemistry, or psychology. Their research includes supporting chronically ill children and the professional handling of risks, as you can read in this issue of our magazine. With the establishment of our seventh faculty, the Faculty of Health Sciences, these and many new medical topics are getting more attention at the University of Potsdam. While in the beginning, the "Brandenburg Health Campus" funded by the federal state of Brandenburg was a virtual network of university and non-university research, it is now getting more points of intersection and, not only since COVID-19, a very practical use and plausible to everyone. The Faculty of Health Sciences, founded in 2018, is supported by three institutions: the University of Potsdam, the Brandenburg Technical University Cottbus-Senftenberg and the Brandenburg Medical School in Neuruppin. They pursue an interdisciplinary approach that holistically develops teaching, transfers new scientific findings from theory to practice and thus further improves overall medical care in Brandenburg. Their vision of being a central platform of research, teaching, and transfer combines socially relevant issues and existing expertise to align them with the needs of people in Brandenburg and use them to their benefit. This interdisciplinary structure has never been more important to advancing patient-oriented basic research and health care models. An innovative concept that can make Brandenburg a pioneer. In the meantime, the Faculty of Health Sciences has established 16 new professorships at the supporting universities, which are concerned with medicine and healthy aging, health services research, nursing and rehabilitation sciences, and telemedicine. Cardiology and physiology will play a central role as well. In general, the innovative faculty counts on strong interdisciplinary relationships, for example with nutritional sciences and the digital health department at the Digital Engineering Faculty. The role of digitization and well-prepared data in combating the Coronavirus pandemic can also be read about in this issue. As usual, the research magazine addresses the full range of research at the university: We introduce historian Dominik Geppert, who deals with the history of unified Germany after 1990 embedded in the tensions created by a context of national unification, European integration, and global networking. In a self-experiment, we explored together with a psycholinguist how to research word-finding disorders. Last but not least, we were able to take part in a trip to Namibia, where ecologists from Potsdam examine wildlife management in the threatened savannah. Let them take you where kudu and springbok live!}, language = {en} } @misc{ZimmermannWilkeHornConradetal.2020, author = {Zimmermann, Matthias and Wilke, Monika and Horn-Conrad, Antje and Kampe, Heike and Scholz, Jana}, title = {Portal Wissen = Energy}, editor = {Engel, Silke and Zimmermann, Matthias}, organization = {University of Potsdam, Press and Public Relations Department}, issn = {2198-9974}, doi = {10.25932/publishup-47297}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-472978}, pages = {58}, year = {2020}, abstract = {Energy - there is something to it. There is, of course, the matter-of-fact definition in every student encyclopedia: "the capacity to do mechanical work, transfer heat, or emit light." In this way, energy accompanies us, often undetected, all day long: getting out of bed, turning on the heat, switching on the lights, taking a hot shower, getting dressed, making coffee, having breakfast - before we have even left the house, we have already released, transformed, applied, and refueled a lot of energy. And we haven't even worked, at least not in the traditional sense. But energy is not just a physical quantity that, due to its omnipresence, plays a key role in every natural science discipline, such as biology and chemistry, but also in almost every technical field. It is also indispensable when it comes to how we understand and describe our world and our activities - and it has been for a long time. How about an example? The Greek philosopher Aristotle was the first to speak of en{\´e}rgeia, for him a rather nonphysical thing, a living "reality and effectiveness " - that which makes the possible real. About 2,100 years later, the uncrowned king of German literature Johann Wolfgang von Goethe declared it to be a humanistic essence. "What can we call our own if not energy, strength, and will!" And for his contemporary Wilhelm von Humboldt, energy "was the human's first and only virtue". Although physics began to dominate the concept of energy when it became the leading science in the 19th century, energy remained significant in many areas. Reason enough for us to take a look at energy-related matters at the University of Potsdam. We found them in a wide range of disciplines: While Iranian physicist Safa Shoaee is researching how organic materials can be used to manufacture the solar cells of the future, Swedish environmental researcher Johan Lilliestam is focusing on the different dimensions of the energy transition to learn what makes it successful. Slavicist Susanne Str{\"a}tling, on the other hand, crosses the boundaries of her discipline as she examines a complex conceptual history and tries to find out why energy electrifies us today more than ever. And physicist Markus G{\"u}hr is able to use ultrashort flashes of light to investigate how molecules change under its influence and convert energy in the process. Of course, we have enough energy to highlight the diversity of research at the University of Potsdam besides the feature topic of this issue. A cognitive researcher, for example, explains why our brain processes both music and language according to its own respective rhythm, while an environmental researcher presents a method that uses particles from outer space to measure soil moisture. Educational researchers have also launched a study on hate speech in schools and we introduce a palaeoclimatologist who is one of twelve researchers in the new postdoc program at the University of Potsdam. We have spared no energy!}, language = {en} } @misc{KampeZimmermannHornConradetal.2017, author = {Kampe, Heike and Zimmermann, Matthias and Horn-Conrad, Antje and Scholz, Jana and Eckardt, Barbara}, title = {Portal Wissen = Earth}, number = {02/2017}, organization = {University of Potsdam, Press and Public Relations Department}, issn = {2198-9974}, doi = {10.25932/publishup-44165}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-441652}, pages = {53}, year = {2017}, abstract = {Earth's surface is constantly changing. It is the synergetic overlap between the geosphere, biosphere, and climatic sphere and influences the development of our planet. It is our habitat and plays a key role in maintaining the wellbeing of humanity. Many aspects of this system as a whole, however, are not yet understood. This needs to change immediately because there is not much time left for the Earth - or for us. Photographer and filmmaker Yann Arthus- Bertrand warned in 2009, "In less than 200 years we have disturbed the balance of the Earth that has been created in over four billion years." Potsdam and Berlin geoscientists, biologists, and climatologists have now joined forces*: They are investigating processes of the Earth's surface in order to better understand them on various spatial and time scales and to predict how our living environment will develop. In this issue of the research magazine "Portal Wissen", we present some of the research projects as well as the researchers who drive them. We followed researchers to Ethiopia - to the "cradle of humankind" - where elaborate drilling is offering a glimpse into climate history. Analyses of the several-hundred-thousand- year old deposits provide insights not only for geological and climate researchers. Biologists were able to reconstruct how entire ecosystems developed over long periods using state-of-the-art genetic analysis. A geomicrobiologist shows us the vast insight you get when you cross disciplinary boundaries. His research is no longer taking place on and in the earth but even in outer space. The young researchers of the research training group StRatGy cut large boulders from the Argentinean Andes into the thinnest of slices in order to understand how the mountains developed. And a data analysis expert explains why it is not enough to collect and feed a lot of data into a computer; they also have to be made readable using the right analytic tools. "The world is a fine place and worth the fighting for," wrote Ernest Hemingway. This is exactly what researchers are doing when they look for solutions to prevent humanity from irreversibly damaging the Earth. We met a researcher who is working with colleagues throughout Europe to learn more about trace elements and using plants as pollutant "vacuum cleaners". And it was explained to us how satellite images taken from afar are revolutionizing nature conservation. The diversity of research at the University of Potsdam should not be forgotten. We followed administrative scientists on the trail of successful reforms around the world and we looked at how reading can be more successful. We asked what supplementary extracurricular lessons can offer (or not offer) and looked into the networked classroom of the future. Germanists also revealed their Brandenburg linguistic treasures to us, psychologists showed us their experiments, and a historian explained to us why the MfS - the GDR state security ministry - were active as development workers. Last but not least, we visited a chemist in the lab, were introduced to the language of climate images, and listened to a romance philologist who researches with all her senses. Enjoy your read! The Editors}, language = {en} } @misc{ZimmermannMikullaKampeetal.2021, author = {Zimmermann, Matthias and Mikulla, Stefanie and Kampe, Heike and Horn-Conrad, Antje and Lass, Sander}, title = {Portal Wissen = Departure}, number = {02/2021}, organization = {University of Potsdam, Press and Public Relations Department}, issn = {2198-9974}, doi = {10.25932/publishup-53713}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-537138}, pages = {54}, year = {2021}, abstract = {On October 20, 1911, the Norwegian Roald Amundsen left the safe base camp "Framheim" at the Bay of Whales together with four other explorers and 52 sledge dogs to be the first person to reach the South Pole. Ahead of them lay the perpetual ice at temperatures of 20 to 30 degrees Celsius below zero and a distance of 1,400 kilometers. After eight weeks, the group reached its destination on December 13. The men planted the Norwegian flag in the lonely snow and shortly afterwards set off to make their way back - celebrated, honored as conquerors of the South Pole and laden with information and knowledge from the world of Antarctica. The voyage of Amundsen and his companions is undoubtedly so extraordinary because the five proved that it was possible and were the first to succeed. It is, however, also a symbol of what enables humans to push the boundaries of their world: the urge to set out into the unknown, to discover what has not yet been found, explored, and described. What distinguishes science - even before each discovery and new knowledge - is the element of departure. Questioning apparent certainties, taking a critical look at outdated knowledge, and breaking down encrusted thought patterns is the starting point of exploratory curiosity. And to set out from there for new knowledge is the essence of scientific activities - neither protected nor supported by the reliable and known. Probing, trying, courageously questioning, and sensing that the solid ground, which still lies hidden, can only be reached again in this way. "Research is always a departure for new shoreless waters," said chemist Prof. Dr. Hans-J{\"u}rgen Quadbeck-Seeger. Leaving behind the safe harbor, trusting that new shores are waiting and can be reached is the impetus that makes science so important and valuable. For the current issue of the University of Potsdam's research magazine, we looked over the shoulders of some researchers as they set out on new research journeys - whether in the lab, in the library, in space, or in the mind. Astrophysicist Lidia Oskinova, for example, uses the Hubble telescope to search for particularly massive stars, while hydrologist Thorsten Wagener is trying to better understand the paths of water on Earth. Economists and social scientists such as Elmar Kriegler and Maik Heinemann are researching in different projects what politics can do to achieve a turnaround in climate policy and stop climate change. Time and again, however, such departures are themselves the focus of research: And a group of biologists and environmental scientists is investigating how nature revives forest fire areas and how the newly emerging forests can become more resilient to future fires. Since - as has already been said - a departure is inherent in every research question, this time the entire issue of "Portal Wissen" is actually devoted to the cover topic. And so we invite you to set out with Romance linguist Annette Gerstenberg to research language in old age, with immunologist Katja Hanack to develop a quick and safe SARS-CoV-2 test, and with the team of the Potsdam Center for Industry 4.0 to the virtual factory of tomorrow. And we will show you how evidence- based economic research can inform and advise politicians, and how a warning system is intended to prevent future accidents involving cyclists. So, what are you waiting for?!}, language = {en} } @misc{KampeHornConradZimmermannetal.2019, author = {Kampe, Heike and Horn-Conrad, Antje and Zimmermann, Matthias and Scholz, Jana and G{\"o}rlich, Petra and Eckardt, Barbara and Krafzik, Carolin}, title = {Portal Wissen = Data}, number = {02/2019}, editor = {Engel, Silke and Zimmermann, Matthias}, organization = {University of Potsdam, Press and Public Relations Department}, issn = {2198-9974}, doi = {10.25932/publishup-44257}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-442574}, pages = {54}, year = {2019}, abstract = {Data assimilation? Stop! Don't be afraid, please, come closer! No tongue twister, no rocket science. Or is it? Let's see. It is a matter of fact, however, that data assimilation has been around for a long time and (almost) everywhere. But only in the age of supercomputers has it assumed amazing proportions. Everyone knows data. Assimilation, however, is a difficult term for something that happens around us all the time: adaptation. Nature in particular has demonstrated to us for millions of years how evolutionary adaptation works. From unicellular organisms to primates, from algae to sequoias, from dinosaurs ... Anyone who cannot adapt will quickly not fit in anymore. We of course have also learned to adapt in new situations and act accordingly. When we want to cross the street, we have a plan of how to do this: go to the curb, look left and right, and only cross the street if there's no car (coming). If we do all this and adapt our plan to the traffic we see, we will not just safely cross the street, but we will also have successfully practiced data assimilation. Of course, that sounds different when researchers try to explain how data assimilation helps them. Meteorologists, for example, have been working with data assimilation for years. The German Weather Service writes, "In numerical weather prediction, data assimilation is the approximation of a model run to the actual development of the atmosphere as described by existing observations." What it means is that a weather forecast is only accurate if the model which is used for its calculation is repeatedly updated, i.e. assimilated, with new measurement data. In 2017 an entire Collaborative Research Center was established at the University of Potsdam, CRC 1294, to deal with the mathematical basics of data assimilation. For Portal Wissen, we asked the mathematicians and speakers of the CRC Prof. Sebastian Reich and Prof. Wilhelm Huisinga how exactly data assimilation works and in which areas of research they can be used profitably in the future. We have looked at two projects at the CRC itself: the analysis of eye movements and the research on space weather. In addition, the current issue is full of research projects that revolve around data in very different ways. Atmospheric physicist Markus Rex throws a glance at the spectacular MOSAiC expedition. Starting in September 2019, the German research icebreaker "Polarstern" will drift through the Arctic Ocean for a year and collect numerous data on ice, ocean, biosphere, and atmosphere. In the project "TraceAge", nutritionists will use the data from thousands of subjects who participated in a long-term study to find out more about the function of trace elements in our body. Computer scientists have developed a method to filter relevant information from the flood of data on the worldwide web so as to enable visually impaired to surf the Internet more easily. And a geophysicist is working on developing an early warning system for volcanic eruptions from seemingly inconspicuous seismic data. Not least, this issue deals with the fascination of fire and ice, the possibilities that digitization offers for administration, and the question of how to inspire children for sports and exercise. We hope you enjoy reading - and if you send us some of your reading experience, we will assimilate it into our next issue. Promised!}, 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} } @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{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{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{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{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{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{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{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{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} }