uni.news

» Published on 14. November 2012

Grasshoppers change their tune to stay tuned over traffic noise

Grasshoppers are having to change their song – one of the iconic sounds of summer – to make themselves heard above the din of road traffic, ecologists have discovered. The study, published in the British Ecological Society's journal Functional Ecology, is the first to show that man-made noise affects natural insect populations.

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» Published on 12. November 2012

Smartphone app helps mentally ill persons

New application from scientists at Bielefeld University and international partners monitors mood changes in patients

“On top of the world, or in the depths of despair” describes what doctors denote as Bipolar Disorder. Patients’ moods change between episodes of depression and mania. The Cluster of Excellence “Cognitive Interaction Technology” (CITEC) at Bielefeld University presents an application at the world’s largest medical fair “Medica” in Düsseldorf, Germany, from 14 to 17 November: Smartphone-embedded sensors monitor mood changes in Bipolar Disorder patients and send data to the consulting doctors. The presentation is part of the common booth of the State Government of North-Rhine Westphalia, Germany (Hall 3, booth D81).

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» Published on 7. November 2012

Synthetic biofilter wins through to the top ‘Sweet Sixteen’ in Boston

Bielefeld students on a par with teams from international elite universities

Months of painstaking work in the laboratory at Bielefeld University‘s Center for Biotechnology (CeBiTec) have paid off: the 15 students participating in this year’s ‘international Genetically Engineered Machine competition’ (iGEM) at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have good reason to celebrate.

The goal of their project was to develop a biological filter that removes estrogen from drinking water. It was a success: they managed to produce enzymes that break down the hormone. On Monday 5 November, the competition finals came to a close in Boston. From 190 teams throughout the world, Bielefeld’s students made it through to the ‘Sweet Sixteen’, the selection of the 16 best teams in the company of teams from such prestigious universities as Stanford University (USA), the Canadian University of Calgary, and Jiaotong University in Shanghai, China.

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» Published on 25. Oktober 2012

Unique doctoral training programme of the highest level

Mathematicians, physicists and economists open Bielefeld Graduate School in Theoretical Sciences

Bielefeld University’s Faculties of Mathematics, Physics and Business Administration and Economics along with the Institute of Mathematical Economics are expanding their collaboration: they are training doctoral students together. Their PhD candidates will be supervised by prestigious scientists from all three disciplines. What is special is that the doctoral students can receive interdisciplinary training. The opening ceremony of the new Bielefeld Graduate School in Theoretical Sciences (BGTS) will take place on Friday, 2 November, at 4 pm in lecture hall H2 of Bielefeld University.

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» Published on 22. Oktober 2012

Bielefeld Chemist receives top EU science award

Professor Dr Achim Müller awarded Advanced Grant by the European Research Council

Dr Achim Müller, Professor at Bielefeld University's Faculty of Chemistry, has received the European Union’s most prestigious science award. The European Research Council has honoured him with an Advanced Grant under the 2012 funding scheme. Müller is one of the world’s leading scientists in nanochemistry and the ERC will support his scientific work with €1.2 million for three years. “We are proud that this highly prestigious prize has been awarded for the first time to a Bielefeld scientist and congratulate Professor Müller on this fabulous result," says Professor Dr-Ing. Gerhard Sagerer, Rektor of Bielefeld University.

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» Published on 16. August 2012

Burning passion for science

Professor Dr. Kohse-Höinghaus elected first woman president of the international Combustion Institute

Bielefeld’s Professor Dr. Katharina Kohse-Höinghaus has been elected to the

Presidency of the International Combustion Institute. This makes her not only the first woman President but also the first European President of this international association for combustion research. After a series of almost exclusively American presidents, the Board of Directors elected her to a 4-year term of office during their meeting in Warsaw at the beginning of August. Professor Kohse-Höinghaus has already been Vice President of the Institute since 2008.

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» Published on 25. Juli 2012

Cyberbullying: one in two victims suffer from the distribution of embarrassing photos and videos

Researchers at Bielefeld University questioned schoolchildren on cyberbullying attacks through the Internet and by mobile phone

Embarrassing personal photos and videos circulating in the Internet: researchers at Bielefeld University have discovered that young people who fall victim to cyberbullying or cyber harassment suffer most when fellow pupils make them objects of ridicule by distributing photographic material. According to an online survey published on Thursday, 19 July, about half of the victims feel very distressed or severely distressed by this type of behaviour. 1,881 schoolchildren living in Germany took part in the survey conducted by the Institute for Interdisciplinary Research on Conflict and Violence (IKG) and commented on their experiences with cyberbullying as a victim, offender or witness.

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» Published on 25. Juni 2012

Removing estrogen from drinking water

Bielefeld University students participating in MIT competition

A biological filter to remove estrogens from waste water and drinking water. The 15 Bielefeld students submitting this project to the ‘international Genetically Engineered Machine competition’ (iGEM) at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Boston, USA are setting their sights high. They are persuading internationally active companies and associations in the biotechnology and chemistry sector to contribute several ten thousands of Euros to cover the costs of entering this rapidly expanding global competition in synthetic biology. Since May, they have been spending their free time in the laboratory making new DNA building blocks, reproducing them, and producing enzymes. First results give reason for optimism.

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» Published on 11. Juni 2012

Researchers discover hereditary enzyme deficiency

The Bielefeld biochemist Thomas Dierks and his team establish the cause and develop a treatment concept

An international research team headed by Professor Dr. Thomas Dierks at Bielefeld University has discovered a hereditary enzyme deficiency. It is a subform of the mucopolysaccharidosis syndrome and has been termed MPS IIIE or – after its discoverer – ‘Dierks’s disorder’. It leads to a progressive loss of mental abilities in mice, particularly to learning and coordination difficulties along with forgetfulness. The biochemist Dierks and his team have not only identified the disorder but also developed a treatment concept. Their findings are being published this week (CW 24) in the renowned journal ‘Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA‘ (PNAS).  

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» Published on 11. Juni 2012

Heisenberg fellowship for the physicist Dr. Andrey Turchanin

Promoting graphene research

Privatdozent [senior lecturer] Dr. Andrey Turchanin, a member of the Physics of Supermolecular Systems and Surfaces research group at Bielefeld University’s Faculty of Physics, has been awarded a Heisenberg fellowship from the German Research Foundation (DFG). The physicist Andrey Turchanin is engaged in research on the new two-dimensional carbon material graphene. Among its many potential applications, this new material could well revolutionize computer technology, because it can be used to manufacture components that are many times faster. With Heisenberg fellowships, the DFG supports young academics who are already qualified for professorships and have proven themselves by carrying out particularly outstanding research. The fellowship will initially enable the physicist to pursue his research freely for 3 years with Bielefeld University providing the infrastructure. The DFG awards about 50 scholarships each year, each paying 4,500 Euro per month.

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