Projects in the spotlight
CRC 1604: Production of migration
How and by whom does migration, i.e. the spatial change of the center of life, acquire changing meanings? How and why does society's approach to migration change? These questions are the focus of the Collaborative Research Center "Production of Migration", which thus addresses a research gap: the insufficient understanding of how and with what consequences for the transformation of societies they produce migration and its constantly renegotiated meaning. The aim of the Collaborative Research Center is to develop a reflexive theory of the social production of migration that includes science as an object of research.
to the Collaborative Research Center Production of Migration
CRC 1557: Functional plasticity encoded by cellular membrane networks
The researchers in the Collaborative Research Center 1557 use state-of-the-art methods of fluorescence microscopy and mass spectrometry for their basic biochemical questions, as well as a cryo-electron microscope that has been available since 2021. The Center for Cellular Nanoanalytics Osnabrück (CellNanOs) on the Westerberg campus is the hub of the Osnabrück CRC's cutting-edge research. Of particular interest is the analysis of functional plasticity, i.e. the adaptation of membranes to new conditions such as oxidative stress or starvation, which is essential for the survival of organisms.
A decisive advantage of the CRC 1557 lies in the close cooperation between working groups with different biological model systems and methodological expertise.
DFG Emmy Noether Group: Numerical and probabilistic non-linear algebra in applications
The aim of this project is to develop probabilistic and numerical methods to solve problems in non-linear algebra. These problems come from the following disciplines: computer vision, numerical decompositions of tensors, solving polynomial equations, random algebraic geometry and sampling of algebraic varieties. The focus is equally on the theoretical foundations and applications in the fields of learning, data science and engineering.
DFG Emmy Noether Group: Scales in language processing and acquisition: Semantic and pragmatic factors in the calculation of implicatures
The project investigates the processing and acquisition of a variety of different Horn scales. The overall aim is to develop a new model for the calculation of implicatures that takes into account the variability of different Horn scales. It is investigated (a) to what extent a single mechanism can be assumed for the calculation of implicatures and (b) which types of alternatives form the basis for the implicature calculation. A major focus is on the interpretation of adjective scales, which are well researched in semantics but have been little studied in pragmatics. A variety of psycholinguistic methods and probabilistic modeling will be used to integrate findings from semantics, pragmatics and cognitive science. The project is the first comprehensive investigation of different semantic and pragmatic factors in the processing of implicatures, both in adults and children.
DFG Emmy Noether Group: Multiprotein complexes that control chlorophyll biosynthesis
The process of chlorophyll biogenesis is complex and involves intricate multiprotein complexes. However, the mechanistic understanding of the underlying enzymatic reactions is insufficient due to a lack of structural information. The project aims to investigate the multiprotein complexes of chlorophyll biosynthesis and to gain mechanistic insights into this process. Structural biology techniques such as cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) and cryo-electron tomography (cryo-ET) as well as biochemical characterization and fluorescence microscopic localization methods will be used.
to the Emmy Noether Group Multiprotein complexes that control chlorophyll biosynthesis
DFG Research Training Group: Ecological Regime Shifts and Systemic Risk in Coupled Social-Ecological Systems
Current developments in relation to climate change and the loss of biodiversity clearly show the extent of global interdependence and interconnectedness. In various crisis contexts, it has been shown that this complexity and the resulting regime shifts (i.e. large-scale changes with long-lasting consequences in a complex system) and the associated systemic risks (that an entire system and not just its parts collapse) have so far been underestimated. Examples include the various impacts of intensive agriculture on biodiversity loss, soil degradation and water scarcity and pollution. These interlinked crises clearly show the urgency of interdisciplinary research for a better understanding of non-linear developments that may entail systemic risks and the ability to anticipate and respond to them. The Research Training Group is the first to comprehensively address ecological regime shifts, taking into account the dynamics of ecological systems, human activities and governance.
to the Research Training Group ecorisk
DFG Research Training Group: nanomaterials@biomembranes
The Research Training Group nanomaterials@biomembranes aims to contribute to answering unsolved questions in membrane biology with a customized combination of artificial nanomaterials and biomembranes. The highly interdisciplinary, biophysical research approach from biology, chemistry and physics will enable the investigation of the structure, dynamics and interactions of proteins and lipids in cellular membranes with unprecedented spatial and temporal resolution. The groups involved in the Research Training Group will jointly develop new methods to understand central biological functions such as transport and signaling across membranes down to the atomic level. In order to achieve this, chemists and physicists must work very closely with biologists.
to the Research Training Group nanomaterials@biomembranes
Participation in the DFG Research Training Group: Situated Cognition
In the interdisciplinary Research Training Group "Situated Cognition", researchers from Ruhr-Universität Bochum and Osnabrück University are working together on the question of how cognitive processes interact with external influences to produce human mental abilities. The research group will methodically link the philosophy of mind and cognition with psychology and the neurosciences, with philosophical theory formation at the center.
A basic assumption of the research work in the research group is that human mental abilities cannot be described solely as brain activity. External factors also play a role: for example, the facial muscles determine how a person feels - not just the other way around. Memory is also dependent on context.
DFG Research Unit: "Fundamental Aspects of Statistical Mechanics and the Emergence of Thermodynamics in Non-Equilibrium Systems"
The question of whether and how a physical system reaches equilibrium plays a key role in many areas of modern experimental and theoretical physics.
The research group "Fundamental Aspects of Statistical Mechanics and the Emergence of Thermodynamics in Non-Equilibrium Systems", now approved by the German Research Foundation (DFG) and headed by Junior Professor Dr. Robin Steinigeweg, will address this complex issue. The universities of Bielefeld and Oldenburg and the Research Center Jülich are involved. The DFG is providing the group with funding of around € 1.3 million for an initial period of three years.
DFG Priority Program 2377: Disruptive main memory technologies
Ever since pioneers such as Konrad Zuse and John von Neumann laid the foundations for today's computers, memory has been a central component in virtually every system. Over the decades, the hardware technology used has evolved, leading to larger capacities and higher speeds, but key characteristics of the interface between hardware and software have remained the same: Main memory is volatile, passive and largely homogeneous. These typical memory characteristics are now firmly anchored in the expectations of software developers and manifest themselves accordingly in their products, and we are currently observing a wave of innovations in the field of memory that are overturning these assumptions and in this sense are disruptive for the entire software industry and computer science. For example, newer server processors allow the use of non-volatile main memory modules with a low price and very high capacity.
Participation in DFG research groups
The research group FOR5044 is dedicated to the correlation of defect structure, electron and ion transport as well as electromechanical properties in polar oxides using the model system Li(Nb,Ta)O3 (LNT) as an example. In the first funding phase, fundamental insights into the special defect structure, the dominant charge carriers and transport mechanisms, the unusual polaron dynamics and the acoustic losses were gained based on the successful growth of high-quality solid solutions, which was only possible through the coherent combination of experimental and theoretical work. The transport phenomena in the domain walls were also investigated in a wide temperature range, so that a comprehensive overall picture has emerged, which is reflected in more than 50 predominantly joint publications.
to the research group Periodic low-dimensional defect structures in polar oxides
As the early land plants expanded their range, they exposed themselves to the constant risk of desiccation. As a result, the sexual reproduction of plants changed so that they became less dependent on water. Land plants developed a number of important innovations in sexual reproduction, such as the formation of spores (pollen) that transport immobile sperm cells, ovules that contain the reduced female gametophyte (embryo sac), and multicellular embryos that, embedded in seeds, can be efficiently dispersed in a dehydrated state. Thus, sexual reproduction in land plants provides many remarkable examples of essential biological concepts of "innovation" (e.g. the origin of the ovule and flowers) and "coevolution" (e.g. between signal peptides and their receptors that are important for fertilization). To date, the evolutionary dynamics and underlying molecular-biological mechanisms of these reproductive processes are only rudimentarily understood.
to the research group Innovation and coevolution in plant sexual reproduction
The potential energy landscape of mobile ions in solid-state materials is closely linked to the structure on the atomic scale. This interrelation and the resulting properties, e.g. ion mobility, have highly topical significance with direct application relevance in energy storage and conversion. The understanding of structure, energy landscape and ion transport is essential to develop improved and new functionalities with knowledge-based methodology. The aim of this research initiative is to quantify energy distributions of ionic sites in solids based on atomically resolved structures and in conjunction with transport properties through a concerted effort of experimental and theoretical research groups.
to the research group Energy Landscapes and Structure in Ion-conducting Solids
The creation and promotion of sustainable knowledge is an important goal of education. Schools and other educational institutions are expected to impart knowledge to learners that will remain with them for a long time - ideally a lifetime - and that they can use flexibly as required. Psychological and Education Science research on knowledge acquisition is also often concerned with identifying features of teaching and learning processes that promote the acquisition of knowledge that remains available and accessible over longer periods of time and can be used as a basis for further learning. However, despite the broad consensus that sustainable learning is one of the central themes of the learning sciences, empirical research to date has focused almost exclusively on examining learning outcomes within relatively short periods of time. As a result, there is hardly any systematic research - let alone a comprehensive theory - from which recommendations could be derived on how learning and teaching in schools should be designed in order to create sustainable knowledge.
Participation in priority programs of the DFG
The Priority Program SPP 2225 is an interdisciplinary consortium of microbiologists and infection researchers with the aim of investigating the spectrum of host cell exit pathways of intracellular pathogens belonging to the bacteria, fungi or protozoa. Host cell exit follows a strictly defined program that has evolved during the co-evolution of humans and pathogens and is based on the dynamic interplay of host cell and microbial factors. At least three different pathways of microbial egress from the host cell have convergently evolved in the different pathogen groups: (1) initiation of programmed cell death, (2) active lytic destruction of the host cell and (3) membrane-dependent egress without host cell lysis. The aim of SPP 2225 is to decipher the molecular mechanisms that trigger, regulate and synchronize host cell egress and to uncover the successive steps of host cell egress and the link between the egress pathway and host cell specificity.
to the priority program Host cell egress of intracellular pathogens
Plants first came ashore over 500 million years ago. This change in habitat was a huge challenge and required diverse molecular adaptations to various environmental factors. The landfall of plants changed the earth's atmosphere and soil composition and laid the foundation for life today. The Phragmoplastophyta include three lineages of streptophyte algae and the land plants (Embryophyta). The earliest land plants evolved from the streptophytic algae. Gradually, features such as stomata, the cuticle and the establishment of fungal symbioses for effective nutrient access evolved. These characteristics were probably decisive for the success of the plants. Initially morphologically simple plants evolved a complexity that enabled the conquest of further habitats.
The SPP 2240 "e-Biotech" utilizes the latest advances in (bio)electrochemistry, microbiology, materials science, systems and synthetic biology and process engineering to pave the way for an emerging new field, electrobiotechnology. It offers an immense opportunity using biocatalysis to develop completely new and highly efficient bioprocesses from electricity and sustainable substrates including CO2. This urgently requires basic research, especially with an engineering approach to link basic science with process technology. The SPP brings together research groups with broad expertise and from different locations for true interdisciplinary collaboration.
The priority program "Memristive Devices Toward Smart Technical Systems" (MemrisTec, SPP 2262) was established by the Senate of the German Research Foundation (DFG). The program started in 2021 and is scheduled to run for six years (two phases with a duration of three years each). The project proposal was initiated and coordinated by Prof. Ronald Tetzlaff. We propose a coordination project for the second phase of MemrisTec, dedicated to active stimulation, coordination and knowledge exchange between the projects, but also to the expansion of the software platform for circuit design. The MemrisTec software platform provides simulation tools for circuits that contain models developed in MemrisTec projects. Information, model implementations and data are made available via a cloud server and software platform to facilitate communication between the project partners.
to the priority program Memristive components for intelligent technical systems
This priority program (PP) is dedicated to the mathematical analysis of effects and phenomena that arise from the interplay of chance and geometry. Analytical work will dominate, but simulations, numerical, statistical and modeling work will also be part of the program. Many questions of intrinsic mathematical interest will be addressed. Disciplines such as physics, materials science and telecommunications will be crucial sources of problems, motivations, models and solutions.
Priority Programme 2267 (SPP) investigates the digitalization of the world of work as a systemic transformation that could fundamentally and sustainably change the institutional system of the working society. The aim is to research this transformation as an interplay of three dynamics in which this socio-technical change is a) socially prepared, b) technically enabled and c) discursively negotiated and socially managed. The PP examines the social conditions and possibilities for shaping the current digitalization of the working society as well as the dynamics and consequences. The aim is the interdisciplinary linking of social, economic and historical perspectives on new configurations of work and technology, on multi-layered dynamics of change and on changing forms and places of value creation.
to the priority programme Digitalization of the World of Work
The priority programme SPP2389 aims to establish the concept of bacteria as multicellular microorganisms that live, at least temporarily, in stable and highly organized tissue-like populations. These microbial tissues exhibit properties and physiological characteristics that go beyond those of individual cells. This concept rests on two pillars: (i) The FORM, i.e. the spatiotemporal positioning of phenotypically specialized cells in stable filaments or tissue-like aggregates. This form then provides the cellular framework for (ii) the emergence of unique and distinct multicellular FUNCTIONS that only occur in the multicellular context and/or are only physiologically meaningful there. Such a challenging endeavor requires the establishment of a close and highly interactive network that brings together and coordinates a group of multidisciplinary experts who share a passion for the concept of bacterial multicellularity.
to the Priority Program Emergent Functions of Bacterial Multicellularity
Combinatorics is the study of finite and discrete structures. Based on fundamental questions of arrangement, decomposition and structuring of finitely many objects or states, combinatorics forms the nanotechnology of mathematics and its applications. Due to its interdisciplinary nature, it is a central field of mathematical research with an influence that transcends departmental boundaries. Questions are unified and holistic theories with intrinsic questions and methods are developed from structurally related approaches. Discrete data has always been a source for the development of mathematical theories. Their analysis is comparable to the derivation of physical laws from the observation of natural phenomena. Due to the complexity and diversity of mathematical observations, we are at the beginning of a revolution of development cycles in the interplay of data and structure. This priority program identifies nine highly topical subject areas that will particularly benefit from the changing development cycles.
ERC-Starting Grant: TIME - Towards a dynamic account of natural vision
Various aspects of vision interact dynamically. The ERC project will take a closer look at this fascinating process: Through vision, visual information is filtered and selected in just an instant, it is processed in the brain and brought together with many other known pieces of information. At the same time, a number of processes take place, such as deciding when and where the eyes move to collect further information. In order to better understand these interrelated processes, high-resolution measurements of brain waves will be taken as part of the ERC Starting Grant and analyzed and modeled using machine learning methods.
To the working group on neuro-inspired machine learning
ERC Consolidator Grant: Taking turns - The 'missing' link in language evolution?
The emergence and development of communication and the special significance of gestures are at the heart of Prof. Dr. Simone Pika's ERC Consolidator Grant project. The focus is on the development and evolution of communicative interplay, turn-taking. In particular, the development of infants, primates and corvids will be examined. In addition, the influence of ecology, social structure and endocrinological profile on communication will be investigated. The turn-taking system can be understood as a unique feature of human communication. At the same time, it can also be understood as an evolutionary link between animal and human communication: a "missing link".