Talent scouting - TU Dortmund University signs new cooperation agreement

TU Dortmund University signs talent scouting cooperation agreement with Peter-Weiss-School in Unna. The project "Talent scouting" was developed by the Westphalian University of Applied Sciences Gelsenkirchen in cooperation with the State of North Rhine-Westphalia. It aims at supporting equality in education. Talent scouts from universities go to select schools in order to identify talented pupils who would not necessarily consider going to university. Talent scouts support students and offer guidance during the transition from school to university. The State of North Rhine-Westphalia supports the project with 6.4 Mio. EUR evey year until 2020. Several universities in North Rhine-Westphalia - including two of our universities (TU Dortmund University & Ruhr-Universität Bochum) - participate in the program. You can read more about the project here (in German only).

Ruhr universities join forces for Germany's Excellence Strategy

Stronger together! TU Dortmund University, the University of Duisburg-Essen and Ruhr University Bochum join forces as UA Ruhr and apply for Germany's Excellence Initiative 2017 with its research cluster RESOLV. RESOLV (Ruhr Explores Solvation: EXC 1069) already receives 28 Mio. EUR in funding from the German Research Foundation (DFG) as part of Germany's funding program Excellence Initiative. The project commenced on November 1, 2012, and the funding period will end on October 31, 2017. Prof. Dr. Martina Havenith-Newen is the speaker and coordinator of RESOLV and the Ruhr University Bochum hosts the Cluster of Excellence. More. Photo: © RUB, Marquard 

Scientists from Ruhr University Bochum discover serious side effects in approved multiple sclerosis drug

Alemtuzumab, a substance used in the treatment of patients with severe multiple sclerosis, could possibly make the illness worse. A team of researchers at  Ruhr University Bochum under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Aiden Haghikia and Prof. Dr. Ralf Gold from the neurology department at St. Josef-Hospital in Bochum found out that the multiple sclerosis (MS) drug alemtuzumab can cause severe and unpredictable side effects. In the journal "Lancet Neurology" the scientists report of two patients, in whom alemtuzumab significantly increased symptoms. Furthermore, the team describes a possible therapy that can successfully mitigate the adverse side effects. More. 

New biofuel cell with energy storage

Efficiently producing and storing energy – such as for implanted medical systems – is a challenge for our society. A biocatalyst-polymer system could take on both tasks at once. Researchers have developed a hybrid of a fuel cell and capacitor on a biocatalytic basis. With the aid of enzymatic processes, what is known as a biosupercapacitor efficiently generates and stores energy. The trick: the enzymes are embedded in a stable polymer gel, which can store a large amount of energy. The scientists at RUB and the Swedish Malmö University describe their development in the journal “Angewandte Chemie”. More.

Prof. Dr. Metin Tolan receives prestigious Robert-Wichard-Pohl Award

Prof. Dr. Metin Tolan is a professor at the Department of Physics (Chair Experimental Physics I) at the TU Dortmund University. Since 2003 he is also a member of the Academy of Sciences of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia. He has published over 200 scientific articles and received numerous prizes. He was awarded with the "Communicator-Preis" by the German Research Foundation (DFG) and was named "Professor of the Year" by UNICUM, a national student magazine. He has also published several popular science books and lectures, in which he explains complex physical concepts by using everyday phenomena as examples. Making physics easier to understand and fun to learn about. More.

University of Duisburg-Essen only German university founding member of AURORA

The University of Duisburg-Essen is the only founding member among German universities of the new international university network AURORA. More (in German). About AURORA: AURORA is a network of European universities, united by the commitment to build a different kind of inclusive university community. We excel in producing internationally relevant research, but not at the expense of the education of our students. We are leaders in academic research, within the top 250 in the world. More.

"Pigeon" English

If you live in New York or any other big city, chances are you don't think very highly of pigeons. Now you have good reason to think again. Scientists from the Ruhr University Bochum (Germany) and the University of Otago (New Zealand) found out that although pigeons don't understand the meaning of words, they are able to distinguish real words from non-words by visually processing letter combinations. Although probably not quite ready to perform complex proof-reading tasks, pigeons can identify "GRRU" as perfect nonsense while recognizing "GREY" as a word. In fact, the pigeons did not simply memorize the visual patterns of those words but, instead, appeared to have learned some rules that determine the properties of words. More. 

Ruhr Fellows returned to the US

As part of the 2016 Ruhr Fellowship program, a group of 17 students from Harvard, Princeton, UC Berkeley and the University of Pennsylvania spent two months in the Ruhr area. Read about their experiences in Ruhr Fellow Kevin's blog.

High honor for Prof. Ursula Gather

TU Dortmund University's rector Ursula Gather was elected into the senate of Leopoldina, Germany's National Academy of Science. Founded in 1652, Leopoldina is one of the oldest science academies in the world with currently over 1,500 members who are experts in their respective field of research. Ursula Gather has served as rector of TU Dortmund University since 2008. In 2013, she was appointed head of the Alfried Krupp von Bohlen and Halbach Foundation. More about Leopoldina.

Prestigious award for math project

TU Dortmund University's project "Primarstufe Mathematik kompakt" (PriMakom) received this year's award "Excellent place in the land of ideas," an award that is part of the "Germany - Land of Ideas" initiative started in 2014 by Germany's Federal President Horst Köhler. Headed by Professor Christoph Selter, a team of experts developed an online platform that offers continuing education modules for math teachers at primary schools. PriMakom enables teachers to learn about how to use current scientific research in their classroom lessons. More (pdf download, in German)

UA Ruhr joins Scholars at Risk

UA Ruhr demonstrated its commitment to academic freedom by joining the Scholars at Risk network as an affiliate member. In addition, the University of Duisburg-Essen and Ruhr University Bochum will join the SAR network as institutional members. For more information about SAR, click here. 

Digital Ruhr:HUB

With a DWNRW:HUB in Essen, the Ruhr area will be home to one of six platforms in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia to support start-ups in the digital economy. Digital Ruhr:HUB provides individualzed advice and services tailored towards the specific needs and objectives of startups and emerging companies. More (in German)

Self-assessment tool "test tu do bci"

If you want to study biochemical and chemical engineering and would like to find out whether you have what it takes, you can now do an online self-assessment test. Developed by TU Dortmund University and RWTH Aachen University, "test tu do bci" is an assessment tool that guides potential future students through a series of questions in relevant subject areas. At the same time, users learn about different areas of research in biochemical and chemical engineering. More 

Ruhr area attracts top US students

A highly select group of 17 students from the US choose to spend their summer in the Ruhr area as part of the Ruhr Fellowship program made possible by the Initiativkreis Ruhr (IR) and the University Alliance Ruhr (UA Ruhr). The 2016 Ruhr Fellows are getting to know the area by participating in a summer program organized by the three major Ruhr area universities before embarking on an internship program at a local company. Read more here (press release in English, pdf download).

EU Project "CoPro" at TU Dortmund University

Professor Sebastian Engell (Biochemical and Chemical Engineering, TU Dortmund University) was successful in securing funding for CoPro, a research project on improved energy and resource efficiency by better coordination of production in the process industries. Involving industry partners, universities and research centers from eight European countries, CoPro will be launched in 2017 and gets funded as part of the European Horizon 2020 Programme. More about CoPro here (pdf download). More about Horizon 2020 here. 

Ruhr-Universität Bochum opens research building ZEMOS

With a total area of 3.891 square meters, the Center of Solvation Science (ZEMOS) will give space to about 100 scientists dedicated to the research field Solvation Science. ZEMOS will become an internationally leading institution for Solvation Science at the Ruhr-Universität Bochum. There will be three Core Facilities, each of which will provide a specific technology platform for the scientists. More

University Duisburg-Essen achieves high scores in latest CHE ranking

The CHE University Ranking, the most comprehensive and detailed ranking in the German-speaking world, assesses all subjects offered at more than 300 universities and universities of applied sciences. Each year, one third of all subjects are reassessed. In the latest ranking, the University of Duisburg-Essen received high scores in subject areas such as Materials Sciences, Biology, Chemistry, Romance Studies, German Studies and Educational Sciences. More 

Folding molecules like paper

Professor Nils Metzler-Nolte (Ruhr University Bochum) collaborated with a team of international researchers to develop methods of winding up molecules into screw-shaped structures. With the aid of artificial molecules, the researchers imitated the principles underlying the assigning a specific function to biomolecules in nature. Giving artificial molecules a specific helical shape has posed a considerable challenge, because it has been difficult to control if a molecule would wind up in the shape of a left-handed or right-handed screw. This is where the team made a breakthrough. More.

Two Architects from TU Dortmund University win European Architecture Award 

Ansgar and Benedikt Schulz, two professors for architecture at TU Dortmund University, won the 2016 Balthasar Neumann Award. The award recognizes how different disciplines have cooperated in an exemplary and innovative manner and far exceeding established engineering standards, to construct a building, which, as a result of this cooperation, exhibits extraordinary qualities in terms of architecture and engineering – entirely in line with Balthasar Neumann’s intentions. More. 

Britten's "Peter Grimes" online

Music journalism students at TU Dortmund University created an impressive multimedia website about Benjamin Britten's opera "Peter Grimes." The online project presents a wealth of materials including facts about the history of the opera, analyses of its score, music samples and much more. An absolute must for anyone interested in Britten and modern opera. More.

Health care in ageing societies

A new Leibniz ScienceCampus, a regional partnership with scientists from the University of Duisburg-Essen, the Rhein-Westfälisches Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung and five other partnering organizations, will conduct research on health care challenges in regions with declining and ageing populations. Leibniz ScienceCampi are cofunded by the Leibniz Association and promote cooperation on an equal footing between Leibniz institutions and universities in the form of thematically-focused, complementary regional partnerships. More.

EU project on trafficking

The European Commission just released a study on the gender dimension of trafficking in human beings. In the study, researchers from Lancaster University and the University of Duisburg-Essen look at what it means to be taking into account the gender perspective, present new data and make policy recommendations. More.

Teaching Across Cultures

With its new continuing education program "Teaching Across Cultures," Ruhr University Bochum offers a set of new classes for teachers who would like to improve their intercultural skills, develop their teaching methods in multilingual learning environments and hone their communication skills. More.

Team from Bochum at this year's Law Moot Court in Washington, DC

Five students from Ruhr University Bochum's law school students will participate in this year's "Jessup International Law Moot Court." Jessup is the largest moot court competition with participants from more than 550 law schools worldwide. For more information about Jessup, click here. For more information about the RUB team, click here.

Ruhr Fellow alumnus returns to Essen

Harvard graduate Matt Pasquini, one of the 2014 Ruhr Fellows, will return to the Ruhr area to start a job with ista International GmbH in Essen. More

2016 Annual Conference of the German Association for Teaching in Higher Education

“Recognizing, developing, and instituting successful teaching”
From September 21st to 23rd, the 45th Annual Conference of the German Association for Teaching in Higher Education (dghd16) will take place in Bochum, Germany. This year’s conference revolves around concepts of successful teaching and how it might be recognized, developed, and instituted. More (pdf download)

Ruhr University Bochum sets up eighth Research Department with a focus on 'Closed Carbon Cycle Economy'.

Even though the climate change conference in Paris achieved meaningful results, society still has a long way to go to rid itself of CO2 emissions. To get ahead on this way, it would help if carbon moved in closed cycles and, for example, would not leak into the atmosphere as carbon dioxide when fossil fuels are burned. Possible methods to accomplish this task are being researched by an interdisciplinary team at the newly-established Research Department “Closed Carbon Cycle Economy” at the Ruhr University Bochum (RUB). More

Stress weakens spatial perception

A new study on the impact of stress on the brain sheds new light on how the hippocampus works.
Neuroscientists at the Research Center 874 at the Ruhr University Bochum investigated the influence of stress on the perception of faces and landscapes. More

The Center for Mind, Brain and Cognitive Evolution announces fellowships for the academic year 2016/17

The Center for Mind, Brain and Cognitive Evolution at the Ruhr University Bochum is a cooperative platform that fosters interdisciplinary research projects and supports special MA programs at the intersection of philosophy, psychology, psychiatry and neuroscience. Our research projects integrate four methodological approaches: the philosophical analysis of mental phenomena (MIND), the investigation of physiological processes (BRAIN), the study of behavioral patterns including computational modeling and comparative studies of cognitive functions (Cognitive Evolution). The goal of our center is to develop a new understanding of cognition focusing on social cognition, self and action, concepts and categorization, and learning and memory.

We are pleased to announce senior and junior fellowships for the academic year 2016/2017. For details, please visit https://www.ruhr-uni-bochum.de/philosophy/mibra/ausschreibungen_en.html 

Deadline for applications: March 31st, 2016 

Germany Today 2016

DAAD invites representatives from universities, research institutions, and funding agencies in the US and Canada, as well as colleagues from the fields of education policy and politics to join them for the “Germany Today” Information Tour from June 12 to June 18, 2016. This year's topic will be German Higher Education Institutions and Their Training Strategies for a Changing Employment Market. More

Mischa Kuball receives the 2016 German Light Art Award

Düsseldorf based artist Mischa Kuball is this year’s recipient of Germany’s Light Art Award. Worth 10,000 EUR, the prize is awarded every two years by the Robert Simon Art Foundation. With the award, the foundation honors Kuball’s outstanding contributions to using light as a medium for public interaction. More 

The Materials Chain - from discovery to production

International Conference, May 30 - June 1, 2016

The Materials Chain is a strategic programme of the University Alliance Ruhr that will strengthen research in the broad field of materials science and technology at the three universities in the Ruhr area: Bochum, Dortmund, and Duisburg-Essen, and their partner institutions. The programme integrates the many areas of materials research into a focussed thrust for science and education – from basic research on materials to applied technology, from the discovery of new materials to their production, from the fundamental description of materials on the atomic scale to the properties of technical components. More

UDE and RUB researchers receive dissertation prizes

Kerim Kudo (University of Duisburg-Essen) receives this year's dissertation prize from the Essen Institute for Advanced Study in the Humanities (KWI). His disseration "Europäisierung und Islam in Bosnien-Herzegowina: Netzwerke und Identitätsdiskurse" (Europeanization and Islam in Bosnia and Herzegovina: networks and identity discourses) analyzes the extent to which national and religious discourses impede the europeanization process in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The second prize goes to Eleonora Rohland's (Ruhr University Bochum) work 'Hurricanes in New Orleans, 1718-1965 – A History of Adaptation'. The public award ceremony will take place on November 18, 2015 at the KWI. More

"Studienbrücke Deutschland": UA Ruhr hosts first participants

A select group of outstanding students from Russia, Ukraine, Georgia, and Kazakhstan are about to start their studies in Germany as part of "Studienbrücke Deutsch." The goal of this program is to enable highly qualified international students to study at a German university. UA Ruhr spearheads this pilot project that was originally initiated by the Goethe-Institute in Moscow. More

TU Łódź awards honorary doctorate to Dean of TU Dortmund University

During a celebratory hour, the senate of Technical University of Łódź awarded Ursula Gather an honorary doctorate for her achievements in the field of Mathematical Statistics, her mentoring work, and her engagement in strengthening international cooperation. The laudatory speech retraced several important steps in Gather's career, including the numerous prizes she received for her work. The TU Dortmund Dean thanked TU Łódź for this honor, calling it an appreciation for her academic work and the cooperation with Polish colleagues since the 1980s. More

Duisburg-Essen scientists in search of sensitive membranes

FLAG-ERA is a EU-funded program that brings together scientists from all over Europe. In one of its numerous projects, several physicians and chemists from the University of Duisburg-Essen participate are working on a program with the goal of developing new types of membranes to filter liquids, which can then be used in desalination for example. Recently, the German Research Foundation (DFG) has granted a fund for 440,000 Euro over the course of three years to support the project. More

Former Ruhr Fellowship student returns to Ruhr area to obtain Master's degree

Ashlee Anderson spent two months in Germany in the summer of 2014. She was part of the Ruhr Fellowship program, which brings together students from the universities of Berkeley, Harvard, MIT, Penn, and Princeton for a two-month stay in Germany's Ruhr area. Now, after graduating from University of Pennsylvania, she will come back to the Ruhr area to study Computational Engineering at Ruhr University Bochum. Read more about her experience in Germany and her decision to came back here.

Axel Schölmerich takes office as Ruhr University Bochum's new rector

Ruhr University Bochum (RUB) has a new rector. As of October 1, 2015, Prof. Dr. Axel Schölmerich leads the RUB. Schölmerich has been a professor at RUB since 1996, researching and lecturing in the field at Developmental Psychology. Prior to his position as a rector, he was a member of the senate at RUB. At his inauguration, Schölmerich also announced the appointment of three pro-rectors: Prof. Dr. Uta Hohn for Structural and Planning Affairs, Prof. Dr. Kornelia Freitag for Teaching and Continuing Education and Prof. Dr. Andreas Ostendorf for Research, Transfer, and Academic Talent Development. More.

University Duisburg-Essen presents world's fastest Laser for nanoparticle production

The "Pikosekundenlaser" from CENIDE institute at the University Duisburg-Essen is the fastest laser worldwide producing pure nanoparticles. These particles are ideal for applications in high-tech systems or in Medicine, for example in cancer treatment. But they are unusuable for broad application, since the laser can only produce few miligrams of particles per hour until now. The University Duisburg-Essen laser however will be able to produce several grams per hour. CENIDE will present the laser for the first time on September 30th at Campus Essen. More.

University Alliance Ruhr ranked fifth among top research institutions

German weekly DIE ZEIT calls the Ruhr area and its universities a "richtig heiße" (real hot) environment for research. The magazine cites the "Förderatlas 2015" (funding atlas), a publication by the German Research Foundation (DFG) that places the University Alliance Ruhr (UA Ruhr) at number 5 among German universities. The funding atlas examines the strength of German research institutions, especially focusing on the third-party funds the universities are acquiring. More.

TU Dortmund University achieves top placements in QS World University Rankings

The Engineering and Natural Sciences programs at TU Dortmund University are ranked in the upper third of Germany's universities. While the QS-Ranking places the Engineering program at TU Dortmund at number 11 of all German universities, its Natural Sciences program is ranked 26th. Worldwide, TU Dortmund remains in the club of the top 500 universities and is ranked 34th nationally. More.

TU Dortmund University research featured in the New York Times

In yesterday's science section of the New York Times, an article reports about Oliver Kayser's research on yeast that can produce THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), the main psychoactive compound of marijuana. A biochemist at TU Dortmund University, Kayser works on engineering a special kind of yeast that can eventually replicate the full THC-production pathway. This means that cultivating marijuana in order to get a steady supply of THC for medical purposes might soon be a thing of the past. Read more here.

Transatlantic Summer Workshop Brings Together Students and Faculty of CUNY’s Graduate Center and the Ruhr University Bochum in New York

The first Transatlantic Summer Workshop of the CUNY Graduate Center and the Ruhr University Bochum brought together 18 Ph.D. students and 4 faculty from the fields of history, sociology, political science, and economics to discuss their research on “Politics, Identities, and Conflicts in Europe and the United States, 1945-2015.” The mix of dissertation projects and approaches generated lively discussions that went beyond individual research interests and extended to ideas for future transnational and transatlantic cooperation. Press release (pdf download).

Turkish whistling makes asymmetries in the brain disappear

Researchers at the Ruhr-Universität Bochum have debunked the theory that the left brain hemisphere is dominant in the processing of all languages. To date, it has been assumed that that dominance is not determined by the physical structure of a given language. However, the biopsychologists have demonstrated that both hemispheres are equally involved in the perception of whistled Turkish. Onur Güntürkün, Monika Güntürkün and Constanze Hahn report in the journal “Current Biology." More here. The New York Times reported about this on August 17, 2015. More here. 

Three UDE researchers receive Best Paper Award 2015

With their paper on multi-sensor fusion for activity monitoring of industrial trucks, Cyril Alias, Çağdaş Özgür and Bernd Noche (all at UDE's Dept. of Transport Systems and Logistics) won the ASME Robert Fulton Systems Engineering, Information and Knowledge Management 2015 Best Paper Award at this year's International Design &Engineering Technical Conferences &Computers and Information in Engineering Conference IDETC/CIE. More.

The sweet smell of knowledge

As the world's first university, Ruhr University Bochum has just released its first very own fragrance. "Knowledge by RUB" was created by a team of RUB researchers and contains hints of musk, jasmine and wood. More.

Selfies as clues to territorial and cultural self-awareness

Students from the Department of Spatial Planning at TU Dortmund University analyzed more than 1,700 selfies in order to understand what these quick self-portraits tell us about how the Ruhr area residents view their region. The results are published here.

Researchers from the RUB receive funding for their advancements in safety technologies

IT security researchers at the Ruhr University Bochum will receive around 650, 000 Euros from the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology for their ground-breaking developments ensuring a future for wireless communication security. More.

TU Dortmund, winner of Steel Innovation Award 2015

Out of the 578 projects submitted in this year alone, Germany’s Minister of Education Prof. Johanna Wanka awarded TU Dortmund’s Institute of Forming Technology and Lightweight Construction the Steel innovation Award for 2015. They received the award for their research developments in working with high strength steels and combining them for flexible production. More

UDE students win awards in “University of Ideas” competition

Three bright students from the University of Duisburg-Essen win awards for their projects varying in mathematical modeling, literary forums, and quiz applications. They submitted their projects into the innovative competition “University of Ideas.” More

Research Explorer Ruhr - Exploring postdoc opportunities at Ruhr-Universität Bochum

With the Research Explorer Ruhr program, the interdisciplinary graduate school at Ruhr-Universität Bochum (RUB) offers scholarships for recent PhDs to explore postdoc opportunities from September 28th until October 9th, 2015. Candidates will meet experts in their fields of specialization, find out about RUB’s research facilities, and participate in a workshop on writing grant proposals with a view towards planning their postdoc position at RUB. The Research Explorer Ruhr scholarship includes travel, accommodation and visa fees. For more information about application procedures and profiles of RUB institutes looking to host a guest, click here. Application deadline: August 28, 2015

Art Girls

What happens when life starts imitating art? In a new experimental film by German director 

Robert Bramkamp, art enters into a fascinating alliance with science, producing unexpected results. For this film, Professor Susanne Weirich of the University of Duisburg-Essen created the art works, some of which bear an interesting resemblance to classic movies. More

Every step you take

... and every move you make can now be measured by "MoveMyDay," a new app developed by Katja Herrmanny from the PAnalytics group at the University of Duisburg-Essen. Available for Androids, MoveMyDay can be downloaded from Google's Play Store. The app not only keeps track of how many steps you take but also uses some of the data anonymously for a research project on healthy aging. More

Longer shifts, less sleep

As more businesses stay open around the clock, changing shifts and last-minute changes in schedules put workers in restaurants, coffee shops and on construction sites under increasing pressure. For many employees, finishing a shift at 11 pm and starting the next at 4 am the following day has become a reality. In his article in the New York Times, Steven Greenhouse sheds light on the situation for workers in the service sector here in the US and in Europe. One of the experts Greenhouse quotes is Gerhard Bosch, professor of sociology at the University of Duisburg-Essen. More

Sustainable mobility with SyncFuel

The future of electromobility largely depends on the availability of convenient and reliable charging stations, user-friendly billing options, and an expanding share of renewable energy. Enter SynFuel, a project whose aim it is to supply electric cars with energy that is generated by a photovoltaic system. Energy consumption will be recorded by a synchronized mobile smart meter (SMSM). Supported by the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastucture, the SyncFuel project is a collaboration of the institute ie3 at TU Dortmund University, the city of Dortmund, Westfälische Hochschule Gelsenkirchen, Klinkium Westfalen GmbH and Heidelberger Services AG. More.

Catching an elusive radical

Combustion reactions are more complex than they seem at first glance as the details of how all bonds break down and form in succession involve radicals that are hard to trace. An international team of scientists have now succeeded in observing a hydroperoxyalkyl radical (QOOH) and understanding its role during the combustion process. The team included Dr. Oliver Welz, University of Duisburg-Essen, as well as scientists from Sandia National Livermore Labs and the University of Berkeley. More

RUB turns 50

This year we are celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Ruhr University Bochum (RUB), the oldest of the three UA Ruhr universities. Between June 1 and June 12, RUB hosts numerous events including the first great Alumni Homecoming, an International Week, and BlauPause. Also make sure to check out “50 Years – 50 Faces,” short videos introducing you to some of the people who make the university what it is today. More

RUB Scientist awarded Federal Cross of Merit

For his groundbreaking research on AIDS and HIV, Prof. Norbert H. Brockmeyer received the Officer's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Feberal Republic of Germany. This accolade represents one of the most supreme distinctions that Germany can confer upon individuals. Brockmeyer is the head of the Center for Sexual Health at the university hospitals of the Ruhr University Bochum. More

Scientists at Essen's Tumor Research Center develop new therapy for lung cancer

For lung cancers with a particular genetic mutation, scientists from the hospital Essen created a new form of therapy that extends the average survival rate of patients by one year. According to Martin Schuler, the head of the research team, the new treatment is more targeted than conventional chemotherapy for the 12% to 15% of cancer patients who have a EGFR Exon 19 gene mutation.  The study was published in The Lancet Oncology. More

RUB engineers develop plasma-based coating processes

A common material for food packaging such as PET bottles and baby food containers, plastic materials are permeable to various gases and can thus pose serious health risks. Researchers at the Ruhr University Bochum (RUB) have now developed plasmas to apply wafer-thin layers on surfaces in order to make plastic more impervious. Peter Awakowicz, profesor at RUB, and his team have streamlined this coating process for PET bottles. Their research is part of the SFB/TR 87 project “Pulsed high power plasmas for the synthesis of nanostructural functional layers” funded by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy in Germany. More

Hans-Kilian Award goes to American psychoanalyst Jessica Benjamin

American psychoanalyst and social theorist Jessica Rachel Benjamin will receive the 2015 Hans-Kilian Award for the Research and Advancement of Metacultural Humanization. The award conferment ceremony will take place on April 24, 2015 at the Ruhr University Bochum on April 24, 2015. A professor at New York University, Benjamin receives the award for her outstanding contributions in the fields of psychoanalysis, theories of intersubjectivity, and gender studies and feminism. More

Clothes and social responsibility

Cheap clothes made in Asia are often associated with disastrous living and working conditions. Researchers at the University of Duisburg-Essen and the Ruhr University Bochum started a research projects that looks more closely at the textile industry in countries such as Bangladesh and Cambodia. Investigating how public and private values and standards interact, researchers hope to develop better forms of regulations and standards that benefit both workers and the environment. The project is financed by the Mercator Research Center Ruhr. More

Discourses of freedom in Russia’s intellectual history

At the Lotman Institute for Russian Culture at the Ruhr University Bochum, a group of researches launched a new project about discourses on freedom in Russia since the 18th century. Project director Dr. Nikolaj Plotnikov and his team will look at what political and cultural notions of freedom emerged in a time of authoritarian rule. The German Research Foundation (DFG) provides financial support for this project. More

TalentKolleg Ruhr

The University of Duisburg-Essen and the Universities of Applied Sciences in Dortmund and Gelsenkirchen have launched the TalentKolleg Ruhr, a new initiative that helps high-school students from traditionally non-academic backgrounds identify academic or vocational career paths. The first of its kind in Germany, TalentKolleg offers one- to two-year programs whose objective it is to recruit and prepare talented young people from diverse ethnic and social backgrounds for college careers or vocational programs. More

New study about working conditions in Germany

Analyzing the working conditions of blue collar and white collar employees in selected industries, researchers of the Institute for Work, Skills and Training (IAQ) at the University of Duisburg-Essen found significant differences in income, salaries and career opportunities. Compared to their blue collar counterparts, white collar employees usually work longer hours and, on average, earn higher salaries. At the same time, the number of union members is higher among blue collar employees. The study interprets these results and suggests new ways of organizing work. More

Improvement of educational equality in Germany

TU Dortmund University, the University of Jena and the Bertelsmann Foundation have published the study „Chancenspiegel“ about educational equality in Germany’s school system. While educational opportunities have improved overall, socially disadvantaged children and adults still face challenges such as significantly lower graduation rates. More

UDE researchers were awarded this year’s Rohstoffeffizienz-Preis

Dr. Klaus Opwis and Frank Grüning, both from the University of Duisburg-Essen, won the 2014 Rohstoffeffizienz-Preis. Awarded by Germany’s Federal Ministry of Economics, the prize recognizes particularly efficient and sustainable methods that significantly reduce the use of natural resources. Opwis and Grüning developed a material that can filter out metals such as gold, silver, platinum and palladium from industrial wastewater. More

DFG approves two Collaborative Research Centres in Dortmund 

The German Research Foundation (DFG) will support two Collaborative Research Centres at TU Dortmund University during the next four years. One of the centres, SFB/Transregio 160 „Coherent manipulation of interacting spin excitations in tailored semiconductors,“ is affiliated with the Department of Experimental Physics 2. Prof. Manfred Bayer and his team will cooperate with researchers from Russia's Ioffe Institute for Physics and Technology, St. Petersburg State University, Ruhr University Bochum and the University of Paderborn. The second project, SB 876 “Providing Informationby Resource-Constrained Data Analysis,” focuses on big data and has been in existence since 2010. More

Bunsentagung 2015 will take place at RUB

Bunsentagung, Germany’s largest conference for physical chemistry, will take place at Ruhr University Bochum from May 14-16, 2015. In collaboration with the German Bunsen Society for Physical Chemistry, the Cluster of Excellence RESOLV (Ruhr Explores Solvation) hosts next year's conference on the topic of  “Solvation Science,” an emerging research field that explores the interplay between solvents, molecules and materials. The organizers expect more than 600 participants from around the world. More

Interdisciplinary project “Enhancing Life” has been announced

The Universities of Bochum and Chicago announce the launch of a new project on “Enhancing Life."  Over two years, scientists aim to explore this dimension of human aspiration and social life, and increase knowledge so that life might be enriched. The project supports research projects of both senior and junior scholars. “Enhancing Life” engages interdisciplinary approaches from fields such as Theology and Philosophy, Social Sciences and Communications and Media Studies. Applications are accepted online. More

Call for applications for 2015 Käte Hamburger Fellowships

The Käte Hamburger Kolleg/Centre for Global Cooperation Research at the University of Duisburg-Essen invites applications for its fellowships beginning in October 2015 for a period of six to twelve months. Fellowships include a working space in fully equipped offices and a competitive stipend commensurate with the applicant’s level of experience. The Centre’s research focus in 2015 will be Micro-Politics and Patterns of Legitimation in International Negotiation Arenas. More

Ten years of successful cooperation

Even three years before the Ruhr University Bochum, the TU Dortmund University, and the University of Duisburg-Essen founded the University Alliance Ruhr (UA Ruhr) in 2007, a corporate office existed in New York. On November 3, 2014, the UA Ruhr celebrated its ten year anniversary at the Consulate General of the Federal Republic of Germany in New York. More

Award for international program at UDE

The employers’ association Initiativkreis Ruhr awarded Dr. Anna Katharina Jacob of the University of Duisburg-Essen with the “Talent Award Ruhr.” Jacob received the award for ProSALAMANDER, a program that she helped to create. ProSALAMANDER supports immigrants with academic degrees find work in Germany. More

Research group found mathematical model for determining disease states in depression

Neuroscientists from the Mercator Research Group "Structure of Memory" of the Ruhr University Bochum have developed a new approach in researching depression. Using computer-based models to study of depressive disorders, they show that chronic depression is triggered by a specific combination of internal and external factors. Their research findings were published in the journal PLoS ONE. More  

New funding opportunities

NFS, NIH and EDA have etablished new funding programs for topics like Neural and Coginitive Systems, Biometrical Big Data and Spur Regional Innovation. UA Ruhr has a short summary of every grant on its website. Details about each program can be found under Collaborative Projects.

UA Ruhr researcher receives Lifetime Achievement Award

A. Erman Tekkaya, professor at TU Dortmund University and director of the Institute of Forming Technology and Lightweight Construction (IUL), won the Lifetime Achievement Award of the 11^th International Conference for Technology of Plasticity in Nagoya-Kanayama, Japan. Tekkaya was honored for his achievements in process innovation, process characterization and international leadership. More

UA Ruhr research featured in Science

An international team of astrophysics that includes Wolfgang Rhode, TU Dortmund University’s Chair of Experimental Physics, has traced the unexpected rotation of a supermassive black hole at the radio galaxy IC 310. Obtained with the MAGIC telescopes, they found revealing variability with doubling time scales faster than 4.8 min. The journal Science has now published an article about the research made by Rhode and his team. They suggest that the emission is associated with pulsar-like particle acceleration by the electric field across a magnetospheric gap at the base of the radio jet. More

Ruhr University's research team featured in New York Times

The New York Times has published an article about the results of a research project at Ruhr University Bochum. Hanns Hatt and his team found that it is not only the human nose, but also the human skin that can smell, because the human skin is bristling with olfactory receptors. In the article “Smell Turns Up in Unexpected Places” the newspaper describes the results and consequences of Dr. Hatt’s research. They could lead to new treatments to promote recovery after physical trauma. More

UDE is founding member of Big Data Value Association

The Ruhr Institute for Software Technology (paluno) at the University of Duisburg-Essen is one of 23 founding members of the Big Data Value Association (BDVA). A non-for-profit industry-led organization initiated by the European Commission, BDVA supports big data development, research and innovation. UDE’s paluno institute helps to shape BDVA’s research agenda, focusing on the role of software engineering for big data and the professional training of data engineers. More

TU Dortmund University honored for its programs for students with special needs 

TU Dortmund University has won a prize for its engagement in developing programs for students with special needs. Professor Birgit Rothenberg and pedagogy student Vera Janhsen, both at TU Dortmund University, accepted the prize from the German Employers' Associations (BDA). For 35 years, TU Dortmund University has actively sought to include students and employees with disabilities. The prize amount of 10.000 Euros will go towards a new mentoring program for students. More

Research team from the University of Duisburg-Essen published article in Nature Biotechnology

Two researchers from the University of Duisburg-Essen, Erich Gulbins and Katrin Becker-Flegler, are part of an international team that published an article in the journal Nature Biotechnology. They found a new therapy against gram-positive bacterial pathogens by using artificial liposomes that sequest bacterial toxins. More

UDE presents new medical technology

Engineers and medical scientists from the University of Duisburg-Essen have developed two new medical systems that they are presenting at the World Forum for Medicine (Medica) in Düsseldorf, Germany, from November 12 – 15.  The first is a wireless and portable multi-exg-system to measure a patient’s heart, brain and muscle activities while the patient remains conscious. The second new technology is a minimally invasive process to treat particular forms of cardiac insufficiency. More

DAAD Prize for engineering student at TU Dortmund University

Esmeray Üstünyağız, a student in the international master’s degree program „Manufacturing Technology“ of the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering at TU Dortmund University, received this year’s DAAD Prize. She received the prize for her excellent academic performance and her social and intercultural engagement with her fellow students. More

Scientist from the Ruhr-Universität Bochum wins Longuet-Higgins Prize

Łukasz Walewski of the Ruhr University Bochum’s Center for Theoretical Chemistry received the Longuet-Higgins Young Author’s Prize. Awarded by the editors of the international journal Molecular Physics, the prize recognizes talented, young writers who have made significant contributions to a top quality paper published in the Journal. Waleswki won for his contributions to an article about the interaction-induced localization of protons in hydrogen bonds.  More 

TU Dortmund University research team published article in Nature

Manfred Bayer, Professor of Experimental Physics at TU Dortmund University, and his team published an article in the current issue of Nature, the most prestigious and internationally recognized journal of science. The article focuses on giant Rydberg excitons and the ways in which they interact in copper oxide. In addition to Bayer, Tomasz Kazimierczuk and Dietmar Fröhlich, both TU Dortmund University, as well as Stefan Scheel and Heinrich Stolz from the University of Rostock contributed to this article. More

LDC enters first collaboration with the Helmholtz Association

The Lead Discovery Center GmbH (LDC), a renowned translational research organization, and the Helmholtz Association,Germany’s biggest scientific organization, will be collaborating more closely in future. An initial pilot project in cooperation with Prof. Schulte’s research group at the DKTK partner site Essen/Dusseldorf has just been launched. Together with the LDC, they will be developing a novel cancer therapy approach with the aim of identifying new drug candidates for the treatment of neuroblastoma and other cancer  types. More

Andrzej Górak receives Emil Kirschbaum Medal

On September 30, 2014, Andrzej Górak, Professor at TU Dortmund University's Department of Biochemical and Chemical Engineering, was awarded the Emil Kirschbaum Medal for his work in the field of hybrid separation processes. The Emil Kirschbaum Medal is awarded in recognition of work that has contributed towards deepening and extending the fundamentals of thermal process engineering or to exemplary applications in industry. Priority is given to trend-setting experimental discoveries, exemplary modeling or theoretical developments in the scale-up of thermal processes. More

First RUHR SYMPOSIUM with a focus on functional materials