uni.news

» Published on 2. November 2017

A Specialist in Sensory Integration

Dr. Christoph Kayser accepts professorship at Bielefeld University / 2 Million Euro Funding from European Research Council 

Whether it is the lively activity of a festival, the vibe at the beach, or the chaos at the scene of an accident, the brain classifies these situations at lightning speed. To do this, the brain continuously sorts and combines the information it receives through the eyes, ears, and other sensory organs. Professor Dr. Christoph Kayser, a biologist and mathematician, researches how, and where in the brain, sensory information is integrated. Prof. Dr. Kayser previously headed a research group at the University of Glasgow (Great Britain), and has now accepted a professorship in Cognitive Neuroscience at Bielefeld University. His research is well known internationally: the European Research Council (ERC) provides 2 million Euros to fund his work through 2020.

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» Published on 27. Oktober 2017

A Social Robot and Data Sonification in the Caring Apartment

Large-scale project at Cluster of Excellence CITEC nearing completion

What makes an intelligent apartment socially competent, allowing it to provide optimal support to its guests? Researchers at Bielefeld University’s Cluster of Excellence Cognitive Interaction Technology (CITEC) have been investigating this question in a large-scale project.  The main result of this project has been the creation of an intelligentapartment in the CITEC Building, which can be used around the clock as a research apartment. Among the innovations developed by the researchers include an “emotional” robot head, a sound-based energy consumption notification system, and a light signaling system in the kitchen. The project, called the “caring apartment,” will officially be concluded at the end of October. The researchers are presenting the results of their project this week at the international conference “Human Agent Interaction” (HAI), which is being held at CITEC. A new video gives a glimpse into the research on the cognitive robot service apartment.

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» Published on 27. Oktober 2017

New Sensor System Ensures a Safe Harvest

Cluster of Excellence CITEC and the company CLAAS introduce research

Tractors and combine harvesters are frequently operated on difficult terrain. Crops such as canola and corn grow at different densities; the field is sometimes muddy and is rocky at other times; and plants often obscure the view of potential impediments. In order to enable harvesting machinery to efficiently and safely harvest crops despite changing conditions, a new system for environment detection has been developed by Bielefeld University’s Cluster of Excellence Cognitive Interaction Technology (CITEC) and CLAAS, an agricultural machinery manufacturing corporation located in Harsewinkel, Germany. The joint project is being funded as an innovation project within the it’s OWL technology network. The results of the project have been presented on 24 October at a workshop in the CITEC Building.

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» Published on 27. Oktober 2017

2nd Place at International Business Competition

2nd Place  with cosmetic ingredients from renewable resources  

The budding start-up founded by one Master’s student and two doctoral researchers from Bielefeld University won the second place in the final round of G-BIB, the “Global Biobased Business Competition.”  Held in Campos do Jordão, Brazil, this international competition is focused on sustainable business ideas using renewable raw materials. Team Bicomer from Bielefeld uses bacteria for the production of personal care products for the cosmetics market.

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» Published on 23. Oktober 2017

Easing refugees’ trauma with psychotherapy

Psychologist at Bielefeld University presents successful treatment method

They are suffering from nightmares, flashbacks, depression, or anxiety disorders: refugees coming to Germany from conflict areas are frequently traumatized. ‘Realistic estimates state that up to 40 per cent of refugees have mental problems. Hence, for the period since 2015, we are talking about several hundred thousand people who are in real need of psychological support,’ says Professor Dr. Frank Neuner from Bielefeld University. The psychologist is one of the team responsible for developing ‘Narrative Exposure Therapy’ (NET]. It has been applied over the last 15 years in conflict zones from East Africa to Sri Lanka. What is special about this therapy is that it shows success after only a few sessions. In a new ‘research_tv’ programme at Bielefeld University, Frank Neuner talks about NET and explains the consequences of leaving refugees without treatment.

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» Published on 22. September 2017

Dancing electrons lose the race

Bielefeld physicists publish in the research journal ‘Science’

Atoms emit electrons when a material is irradiated with light at a sufficiently high frequency. Previously, physics had assumed that the motion of these photoelectrons is determined by the properties of the material. In a new study, physicists at Bielefeld University have shown that it is the interplay of the electrons within the atom that is decisive. ‘Dancing’ electrons orbit the nucleus of the atom and require more time than other electrons that shoot out in straight lines. The Bielefeld researchers are the first in the world to confirm the existence of this delay mechanism  in a solid. The study has been published this Friday (22.09.17) in the scientific journal ‘Science’.

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» Published on 14. September 2017

Filtering molecules from the water or air with nanomembranes

Bielefeld physicists producing and carrying out research on extra-thin foils

Free-standing  carbon membranes that are a millionth of a millimetre thin: these are a special research field of Professor Dr. Armin Gölzhäuser from Bielefeld University and his research group. The nanomembranes can serve as ultrafine filters and as a protective layer. The Bielefeld physicists have registered several patents for manufacturing such molecular foils. In their research, they are analysing which properties the nanomembranes possess – as a basis for future applications. In a new film produced by Bielefeld University’s ‘research_tv’, Armin Gölzhäuser explains what makes the membranes such multi-talents and assesses how significant they may become for the purification of water.  

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» Published on 13. September 2017

Bielefeld University signs the Magna Charta Universitatum

Vice-Rector Angelika Epple: ‘a logical step’

At the end of August, Angelika Epple, Vice-Rector for International Affairs and Diversity, signed the Magna Charta Universitatum on behalf of Bielefeld University during a festive ceremony in the Hungarian city of Pécs. The Magna Charta is a manifesto. By signing it, an institution agrees to abide by fundamental principles such as academic freedom and institutional autonomy. This year, eleven universities have signed; up to now, more than 800 universities have signed worldwide.

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» Published on 7. September 2017

Healthy aging: New EU project on the human liver

Bielefeld University to coordinate programme with partners from nine countries

At roughly 3.7 million Euros, the European Commission has now confirmed funding for a new programme in physics and biomedicine. Fourteen young scientists will be studying healthy aging under the microscope: They will be developing new optical procedures to study the liver with high-resolution microscopy. The goal is to find out how medical drugs affect the liver and how the organ changes with advancing age. The project DeLIVER, coordinated by Bielefeld University, will start in January 2018. This is now the seventh Marie Skłodowska-Curie Action (European training network for young academics) at Bielefeld University.

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» Published on 31. August 2017

Start of ‘Lehrkräfte Plus’: New perspectives for refugee teachers

Bielefeld University and the Bertelsmann Foundation offer the first ever programme of its kind in NRW

Twenty-five trained teachers who had to flee from their home countries have started the ‘Lehrkräfte Plus’ programme at Bielefeld University. Over the coming 12 months, 8 women and 17 men from Afghanistan, Armenia, Guinea, Iraq, Pakistan, and Syria will be gaining further qualifications that will potentially qualify them to work in schools in North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW). ‘Lehrkräfte Plus’ is a joint training programme at Bielefeld University in cooperation with the NRW Ministry of Education and Training and the State Coordination Office for Local Integration Centres in NRW. A further partner in the first ever programme of its kind in the federal state is the Bertelsmann Foundation.

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