The format is unique in Germany: live physics experiments, live singing, and live music – together they create a “phyusical.” The physics show team at the University of Bonn has already broken new ground with this innovative musical genre in recent years. Now, the team led by Prof. Herbert Dreiner and Dr. Jana Heysel from the Institute of Physics is going one step further: the next phyusical will not only be performed by students, but can also be replicated by schools on their own. The team is receiving €42,000 in funding for this project and is one of 15 projects being supported by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) as part of the “Science Year 2025 - Energy of the Future”.

Central administration of the University of Bonn has been in a process for several years now of progressively converting its vehicles into an e-mobility fleet. Three new electric vehicles have just been added to the fleet: an Opel Rocks-E micro car (with space for one plus cargo) and two ATX two-seater electric utility vehicles. These two vehicles by manufacturer Alkè are flexibly adaptable for any requirements, such as transporting garden tools, using a cage structure that goes on top of the cargo bed.

The global climate is in an imbalance. Potential "tipping elements " include the Greenland ice sheet, coral reefs, and the Amazon rainforest. Together they form a network that can collapse if just one individual component tips. Researchers from Bonn University Hospital (UKB) and the University of Bonn have now shed light on seemingly sudden and rare, often irreversible changes within a system, such as those that can be observed in the climate, the economy, social networks or even the human brain. They took a closer look at extreme events such as epileptic seizures. Their aim was to better understand the mechanisms underlying such changes in order to ultimately make predictions. The results of their work have now been published in the journal "Physical Review Research".

The University of Bonn is deeply saddened to learn of the passing of one of its members, Professor Bernhard Korte, who died last Saturday, April 26, aged 86.

More and more companies are leading the way: They are thinking about social and sustainable action and evaluating not only economic gains but also the benefits for society and the environment. The Bonn-Rhein-Sieg University of Applied Sciences, the University of Bonn, and Alanus University of Arts and Social Sciences are now jointly founding an Impact Start-Up Cluster that strengthens precisely such public-interest spin-offs and companies. The project “SoNaR – Social Start-ups, Sustainable Impact: Impact Cluster Bonn-Rhein-Sieg Region” is being funded with almost €1 million by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK). On May 22, 2025, starting at 3:30 p.m., the alliance invites you to a public kick-off event, “Future Founders – Networking for a Better Future,” at the Digitalhub Bonn. Registration is requested.

What did babies eat 1500 years ago? International researchers led by the University of Bonn and the Nova University of Lisbon reconstructed the diet of children in Roman and medieval Portugal using state-of-the-art isotope methods to answer this question. The results have been published in the journal “Scientific Reports”. 

The members of the U7+ Alliance of World Universities, which include the University of Bonn, came together for their latest Presidential Summit, entitled “The Role of Universities in Advancing AI.” The network is calling on the G7 to take specific action to enable the whole of society to benefit from artificial intelligence, including supporting universities in AI research, investing in AI training and establishing platforms for North-South collaboration.

Patients with spastic paraplegia type 15 develop movement disorders during adolescence that may ultimately require the use of a wheelchair. In the early stages of this rare hereditary disease the brain appears to play a major role by over-activating the immune system, as shown by a recent study published in the Journal of Experimental Medicine. The study was led by researchers at the University of Bonn and the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE). These findings could also be relevant for Alzheimer's disease and other neurodegenerative conditions.