Science for everyone
Citizen scientists are playing an ever more pivotal role. They collect data, decipher old manuscripts and more – an invaluable resource. Read more
Genealogy research for science
Isa Brähler and Joachim Hassel are gathering data from old church records as part of a citizen science project. Their efforts form the basis of the work being done by researchers at MLU to find out more about the marriages of 19th-century families in Halle. Their aim is to better understand social class structure at the time. Read more
Perceptual pitfalls
Data from citizen science projects are of great value for research but can potentially lead to skewed results. This was the finding of a study done in collaboration with the University of Halle. What does this mean for such projects? A conversation with co-author Professor Jonathan Chase and Dr Sabrina Träger, who coordinates the German part of a citizen science project on cowslip. Read more
What is allowed in citizen science?
Citizen science projects enrich science - but a clear legal framework has yet to be established. Therapy-oriented initiatives particularly need a defined ethical and legal research framework. Biologist and lawyer Dr Timo Faltus is currently working to establish this. Read more
Hunt for the eagle killer
For decades, the cause of eagle deaths in the U.S. remained a mystery. With the help of Professor Timo Niedermeyer and his team, the crime story-like case was finally solved. In March, it became the cover story of the journal “Science”. Read more
Genius? Plagiarist? Or both?
Georg Friedrich Handel based his compositions on the works of other artists more than almost any other musician of his era. Although such practices are often rejected as “plagiarism” or “forgery” in the modern world, they should be studied carefully in Handel’s case. The musicologist Professor Wolfgang Hirschmann reviews the research carried out so far. Read more
Maturity instead of playing with marbles
If we want to talk about the great philosophers of the Enlightenment, we can’t forget Immanuel Kant. A project run by the Philosophy Department at the University of Halle is aiming to explore “Kant in all his glory” and shed light on the less critiqued aspects of his philosophy. An interview with project leader Professor Heiner Klemme Read more
Time travel
Research presented in an unusual way: A graphic novel depicts how the dinosaur Europasaurus lived 154 million years ago. The book is also based on excavations by a scientist from the University of Halle. Read more
Living on a prehistoric island
Palaeontologist Dr Oliver Wings has been conducting research for years in a quarry in Lower Saxony, where bones of the giant dinosaur Europasaurus were first found in 1998. The results of this scientific work are now available in an unusual format: as a graphic novel. Read more