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Dr. Natalia Ospina-Alvarez. Photo: Karla Fritze.

In Her Element – Why thallium and other trace elements are becoming a problem for the environment and what can be done about it

They are everywhere: in the soil, in the water, and sometimes even in the air, albeit often in such small quantities that they are hardly traceable. …
Potsdam Summer School participants in 2016. Image: IASS/Pierro Chiussi.

Potsdam Summer School Explores the Future of Cities – International exchange on the sustainability of human environments

Potsdam, 28.08.2017. The rapid pace of change around the world is presenting humankind and human environments with tremendous challenges. What …
Prof. Dr. Michael Hofreiter. Photo: Karla Fritze.

Fishing for DNA – A drilling core reveals the history of an entire ecosystem

How wild horses and chickens were bred thousands of years ago, which species were closely related to the long-extinct European straight-tusked …
Phot: Karla Fritze.

Using Mathematics to Improve Drug Therapies - The PhD program PharMetrX trains young scientists in pharmacometrics

Pharmaceutical research is changing: In addition to classical clinical trials, mathematical models are increasingly being used to extract new …
The drilling camp in Kenia. Photo: Annett Junginger.

The Archive of Humanization - Geoscientists read human evolution from sediment drill cores

East Africa is the “cradle of humanity,” where our ancestors lived some 60,000 years ago and where they began spreading throughout the world. In the …
Prof. Dr. Silke Leimkühler. Photo: Karla Fritze.

No Life Without Iron and Sulfur - Prof. Silke Leimkühler coordinates the DFG Priority Program “Iron-Sulfur for Life”

The strong presence of German working groups at international meetings on enzymes with metal centers gave Silke Leimkühler the idea to develop a …
The crispy dog treats look a bit like peanut puffs. Photo: Karla Fritze.

The Early Bird Catches the Worm - Nutritionists develop an insect-based dog treat

They are a healthy, protein-rich, and very common food in Asian and South American countries: Crickets, mealworms, and locusts enrich the daily diet …
Phewa Lake, an attraction of Pokhara city. The lake was dammed by rubble from the high Himalayas. Whether this was a consequence of major earthquakes in the Middle Ages is not yet clear. Photo: Oliver Korup

On Shaky Ground - Geoscientists analyze silent witnesses to historical natural disasters

The Himalayas are the tallest mountain range on Earth – and one of the most active, growing by about a centimeter a year, which regularly shakes the …
Prof. Dr. Elke Dittmann. Photo: Thomas Roese.

Old as the Hills and Still in Top Form – Cyanobacteria are survival specialists – and the research focus of Elke Dittmann

It could have all turned out differently. Looking back, Prof. Dr. Elke Dittmann attributes her success in becoming Professor of Microbiology at the …
Pamir Mountains in Tajikistan: The jagged canyon reveals sediment layers of former oceans. Photo: Guillaume Dupont-Nivet.

Looking into the past and the future - Geo-researchers investigate prehistoric climate changes

The poles had no ice caps, and the sea level was 100 meters higher than today. 66 million years ago, when the dinosaurs roamed the earth, most of the …