A new exhibition at the Frauenmuseum Bonn focuses on young Hungarian Jewish women whose lives were fundamentally altered by the introduction of the so-called “Numerus Clausus law” in 1920. Based on family memories, historical documents and photographs, the exhibition brings to life the fates and achievements of women born in the first quarter of the twentieth century. It also shows the influence the law had on the women's movement and Jewish assimilation. The exhibition is a cooperation with the Cluster of Excellence Bonn Center for Dependency and Slavery Studies (BCDSS) at the University of Bonn. It runs from 20 November to 22 December 2022. To take part in the opening, please register by 18 November to: events@dependency.uni-bonn.de
Humanitarian protection and support for victims of war and armed violence, that is the goal of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). The symbol of the Red Cross is intended to protect aid workers from attack during their missions. Can this symbol also be used for the digital world - and what opportunities and risks are associated with it?
The Forum Internationale Wissenschaft (FIW) celebrated its tenth anniversary yesterday. The evening opened with a brief look back over the history of the institution, which was instigated and founded by Jürgen Fohrmann—a former Rector of the University, who was among the guests yesterday. The speakers, who included four researchers and group leaders at the FIW, then moved on to diagnosing some of the current problems facing global society. Prof. Kristina Großmann from the Department of Oriental and Asian Studies at the University of Bonn had been invited to the event as a commentator and also joined in the subsequent panel discussion.
The German Research Foundation (DFG) is establishing a new Research Training Group (RTG) at the University of Bonn to further strengthen young scientists. The goal of the RTG " Tools and Drugs of the Future" is to modernize medicinal chemistry and train a new generation of medicinal chemists and researchers at the interface with interconnected disciplines. In addition, the projects are intended to contribute to the development of new drug substances. The funding amounts to almost 6.3 million euros over five years. Eleven new Research Training Groups will be funded throughout Germany from spring 2023.
The human genome harbors large segments that offer no obvious benefit and can potentially even cause disease. Nevertheless, these areas are copied and maintained every time a cell divides, which means a considerable effort and energy cost for the body. What is the evolutionary advantage of preserving these areas? This is the question that virologist and immunologist Prof. Rayk Behrendt from the Cluster of Excellence ImmunoSensation2 at the University of Bonn is addressing. For his research, he now receives the prestigious Consolidator Grant of the European Research Council (ERC). The selected project of the Bonn professor will be funded with about 2 million euros.
Patients with nasopharyngeal cancer are often treated with drugs that activate their immune system against the tumor. Until now, it was feared that vaccination against Covid-19 could reduce the success of cancer treatment or cause severe side effects. A recent study by the Universities of Bonn and Shanxi in the People's Republic of China now gives the all-clear in this regard. According to the study, the cancer drugs actually worked better after vaccination with the Chinese vaccine SinoVac than in unvaccinated patients. The results are published as a "Letter to the editor" in the journal Annals of Oncology, but are already available online.
Team NimbRo from the University of Bonn has won the grand prize of five million US dollars at the ANA Avatar XPRIZE competition in Long Beach (USA). The final of the competition, sponsored by the Japanese airline All Nippon Airways (ANA) and hosted by the XPRIZE Foundation, featured 17 teams from ten countries who were selected from 99 registered research groups in a multi-stage qualification process. With a total of ten million US dollars in prize money, the ANA Avatar XPRIZE competition was the most highly endowed robotics competition to date.
Rare gene mutations can significantly increase the risk of severe COVID-19 disease. An international research team with significant contribution of the University of Bonn compared the genetic material of 5,085 people with severe COVID-19 and more than 570,000 controls. The results showed that alterations in the gene TLR7, which is important for the immune defense in humans, lead to infections with a severe course. The findings have now been published in the journal PLOS GENETICS.