Despite only being in its infancy, the Institute for Entrepreneurship has already made a name for itself as a driver of entrepreneurial spirit at the University of Bonn. Based at the Faculty of Agricultural, Nutritional, and Engineering Sciences, it combines interdisciplinary research, teaching and practice in three main areas: start-ups, innovation and transfer. The institute is headed by Professor Denise Fischer-Kreer and Professor David Antons, who are injecting fresh momentum into Bonn’s university landscape together with their team.

The research project “Gen-AIvatar – Universal creation of emotional and diverse avatars through generative AI” is receiving NEXT.IN.NRW funding of around 2 million euros. Scientists at the University of Bonn and TH Köln are working with MindPort GmbH to develop a novel, AI-supported solution for generating emotions for realistic avatars.

Julia Keuer and Simon Wiener, two comparative literature students at the University of Bonn, organized the 15th Comparative Literature Student Congress (Studierendenkongress der Komparatistik, or SKK)—the largest German-speaking conference for students of comparative literature—together with a team of fellow students. Entitled “Literatur und Grenzen” (“Literature and Borders/Boundaries”), it brought nearly 30 speakers and some 100 other participants together. In an interview and podcast, the pair discuss their challenges and successes—and why they would go through all the trouble all over again. 

Loads of written exams, deadlines for handing in term papers, not enough time—for many students, things can quickly become too much. There is unlikely to be anybody who knows how to learn more effectively and divide up their time better as does Kathrin Herrmann from the Central Study Advisory and Counseling Service at the University of Bonn. In her workshop, entitled “Learning Strategies and More,” she tells students how they can “learn to learn” and what strategies are out there.

For immune cells, the actin cytoskeleton is more than a structural scaffold. Immune cells can migrate to sites of infection or form precise, short-lived contacts with other cells, by constantly reshaping their actin cytoskeleton. Genetic errors in the molecular machinery controlling actin dynamics lead to impaired immunity, and often to autoimmunity and chronic inflammation. Prof. Kaan Boztug, recently appointed Clinical Director of Pediatric Immunology and Rheumatology at the University Hospital Bonn (UKB) and member of the ImmunoSensation2 Cluster of Excellence, has specialized in the characterization of inborn errors in immunity. An overview of the current state of research on immune-related actinopathies, prepared in cooperation with Loïc Dupré of the Toulouse Institute for Infectious and Inflammatory Diseases, Toulouse, and Irinka Castanon, senior researcher in the laboratory of Prof. Boztug, has now been published in Nature Reviews Immunology. 

Hurricanes, earthquakes, and floods cause devastating damage around the world. Space-based Earth observation, communication, and navigation systems can provide important assistance in warning of and managing disasters. Global capacity building for such peaceful uses of space technology should continue to advance. To this end, the University of Bonn, the International Peace Alliance (IPA Space) and the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA) have signed a partnership agreement for the next four years.

A surprising discovery has been made behind an inconspicuous hole in a wall at the Academic Museum of Art in Bonn: a roughly 200-year-old cornerstone dating back to the building’s construction. A lead plate concealed inside tells of the historic building’s origins.

Bonn Research Alliance (BORA) was initiated by the University of Bonn in 2018 to highlight and structurally strengthen its long-standing cooperation with numerous non-university research institutions in Bonn. The alliance currently comprises twelve non-university institutions in the region that belong to the four major national research communities: Fraunhofer, Helmholtz, Leibniz, and Max Planck, the regional Johannes Rau Research Community, and the United Nations University (UNU)