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Press releases

Whether it is new and groundbreaking research results, university topics or events – in our press releases you can find everything you need to know about the happenings at Ƭ. To subscribe, just send an email to ott@pvw.uni-frankfurt.de

Ƭ PR & Communication Department 

Theodor-W.-Adorno Platz 1
60323 Frankfurt 
presse@uni-frankfurt.de


 

Mar 3 2025
13:40

New study by Ƭ Frankfurt and Hamburg Police Academy starts today 

Survey: Who has experienced discrimination and racism by the police?

We read or hear about it time and time again: Some people are stopped by the police more often than others and complain about disrespectful or insulting behavior. Many of them believe this is related to their outward appearance or consider such manners as racial discrimination. A scientific study by Ƭ’s Prof. Tobias Singelnstein and Hamburg Police Academy’s Prof. Eva Gross will now shed empirical light on the situation: A survey of those affected will run from March 3 to April 3, 2025.

FRANKFURT. A recent representative survey by the Integration Barometer of Germany's Expert Council on Integration and Migration (SVR) shows that respondents who are perceived as “foreign” are checked by the police about twice as often as those who are not perceived as such. The non-representative "Afrozensus" report comes to similar conclusions. It is therefore not without reason that the actions of police officers are increasingly becoming part of the public discourse. “Beyond identity checks, we still know far too little about racism and discrimination in police work,” explains Professor Tobias Singelnstein, criminologist and criminal law expert at Ƭ Frankfurt. Together with Eva Gross, Professor of Criminology and Sociology at Akademie der Polizei Hamburg [Hamburg Police Academy], he has now launched a study to fill this knowledge gap. The survey is part of the three-year collaborative project “Experiences of Racism and Discrimination in Police Contact” (RaDiPol), which involves ten researchers and which has received around €630,000 in funding from the German Research Foundation (DFG). 

The representative population survey will take place from March 3 to April 3, 2025. It will involve 100,000 people randomly from the population registers of five major German cities (Berlin, Frankfurt a.M., Dresden, Hamburg, and Munich).  They will receive a letter with a link to an online questionnaire in which they can participate during the one-month survey period. “The more people who participate and provide us with their answers, the more accurate our assessment of this problematic situation becomes,” emphasizes Professor Eva Gross. The quantitative population survey will be complemented by 60 qualitative interviews with representatives of both the police and civil society groups, focusing on their different experiences and perspectives. Professor Tobias Singelnstein explains: “Our aim is to combine the results of the population survey with the assessments of the police officers who carry out state tasks in law enforcement or criminal investigations.” Most previous analyses have looked at the experiences of those affected and police perceptions separately. 

Further information
Prof. Dr. Tobias Singelnstein
Institute for Criminal Justice and the Philosophy of Law
Ƭ Frankfurt
Tel. +49 (0)69 798-34348
E-Mail singelnstein@jur.uni-frankfurt.de
Homepage

Prof. Dr. Eva Gross
Akademie der Polizei Hamburg
Tel. +49 (0)40 4286-24960
E-Mail Eva.Gross@poladium.de


Editor: Dr. Anke Sauter, Science Editor, PR & Communication Office, Tel: +49 (0)69 798-13066, Fax: +49 (0) 69 798-763 12531, sauter@pvw.uni-frankfurt.de

 

Mar 3 2025
10:46

Bluesky joins existing offer as a new channel featuring news about the university, research, science, the promotion of young talent and career opportunities

Ƭ explores new social media horizons 

Ƭ Frankfurt is expanding its digital presence and has now launched an account on the social media platform Bluesky. After leaving X (formerly Twitter) together with more than 60 other universities in January, the university is focusing on a transparent, science-friendly and decentralized alternative.

FRANKFURT. Ƭ's latest news on university life, research, science, the promotion of young talent and careers is now available on Bluesky. The university chose Bluesky as a new central social media communications channel because it considers the platform to be a forward-thinking alternative to X, and one that is becoming increasingly important to science and research. Bluesky's advantages over other platforms played a vital role in this decision:

  • Decentralized network: Bluesky offers more openness, transparency and participation, as well as a more even distribution of power than centrally organized networks such as X.
  • Familiar user interface: The platform's user interface is similar to that of X, making it easier for researchers, students and interested parties to switch.
  • More control for users:
    •  Since Bluesky users can customize their algorithms to personalize their feed, they have more control over the content they see.
    • Bluesky users can better determine which accounts they want to interact with.
    • Data protection and ID checks rest in the hands of Bluesky users
  • Transparent moderation systems and rules.
  • Open access: Bluesky has been open to anyone interested in joining the platform since February 2024 and now has more than 30 million users (according to its own data, as of January 2025).
  • Bluesky is ad-free (for now), which promotes authentic communication.

As part of a concerted move involving more than 60 German-speaking universities and research institutions, Ƭ Frankfurt in January announced its decision to discontinue its activities on X (formerly Twitter). Many more institutions of higher learning and research have since followed suit. The decision to leave X is based on changes in the platform's orientation, which increasingly favor the dissemination of fake news and disinformation, and constitute problematic communication practices. Ƭ core values such as academic freedom, diversity, democratic discourse and fact-based cooperation are no longer compatible with these platform developments. Beyond that, scientific topics no longer generate any significant reach on X.

Ƭ's central communication is now available on Bluesky at: 

Faculties, institutions and university members who would like to use Bluesky as an alternative or supplement to their existing social media activities can contact the PR and Communications Office with any questions. Ƭ's other central social communications channels include Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn and YouTube. 

Further links:


Images for download:  

Caption: Ƭ Frankfurt's Bluesky profile


Editor: Nina Ittermann, Social Media Manager | Online Communications, PR & Communications Office, Theodor-W.-Adorno-Platz 1, 60323 Frankfurt, Tel. +49 (0)69 798-12475, Ittermann@em.uni-frankfurt.de

 

Feb 24 2025
10:05

Country-wide survey conducted by Ƭ Frankfurt shows differences in rankings between degree programs

How important are the UN SDGs to students in Germany?

Students at universities in Germany have a consistently positive attitude towards the UN's 17 Sustainable Development Goals, but, depending on their subject of study, they rank the individual goals' importance differently. This is the result of a new country-wide online survey conducted by Ƭ Frankfurt. The poll also took into account students' personal connection to nature. The resulting study offers initial indications of how universities could better integrate the topic of sustainability into their courses in the future – including in the form of an interdisciplinary exchange.

FRANKFURT. Many of today's students will become tomorrow's decision-makers, taking on important roles in politics, business and society. As a result, they will also have a major influence on how sustainably society will act in the future, whether climate change will be consistently combated or nature adequately protected. But what attitudes do these future decision-makers have towards sustainability? Does it play a central role in their considerations or not? A Germany-wide study conducted by Ƭ Frankfurt provides new insights into these questions and more. The poll asked students from 18 different subjects about their connection to nature and how important they consider the 17 individual UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to be. The SDGs include clean water, no poverty, zero hunger, social justice and economic growth.

“We asked ourselves three research questions," says first author Viktoria Feucht from the Department of Didactics at Ƭ's Faculty of Biological Sciences: “Do students from different study programs diverge in their connection to nature? Do students on separate programs rate the individual sustainability goals differently? Is there a correlation between one's connection to nature and the assessment of the individual goals' importance?" 

Responses to the first question on “connection to nature" revealed that study programs that are thematically linked to nature – including geosciences and geo-ecology, but also architecture – had the highest values, while subjects such as business studies, chemistry and computer science had the lowest. The midfield included, among others, more human-oriented programs, including sociology and theology. “One interesting question to explore would be what causes these different levels of connection to nature," says Feucht, adding that “it could be the influence of the study program itself. Or it could be that the students were already influenced in one direction or another before starting their studies, by childhood experiences, for example."

The second question consisted of an evaluation of the UN sustainability goals, asking respondents to provide a ranking of 1 to 5 – i.e. unimportant to important. The responses show that the SDGs' individual ideas were rated as important – often even very important – across all subjects. The lowest subject-specific mean value stood at 3.5, the highest at 4.9, with at times significant differences according to the subject. As such, students of business studies ranked the economic SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure) much higher than students of geo-ecology. The latter and biology, on the other hand, assigned much greater importance to SDG 14 (Life Below Water) than the subjects of physics and computer science. An overarching trend was discernible for SDG 2 (Zero Hunger) and SDG 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation), both of which consistently received very high scores of 4.7 and above. Feucht interprets this as follows: “Food and drinking water are among the most basic human needs, and necessary for survival – something all respondents, regardless of their subject, consider to be very important."

As part of the third research question, the study's authors linked the mean values of respondents' connection to nature with their SDG ratings. “Since the UN goals also have the ecological dimension, we wanted to see whether personal connection to nature is reflected in some of the SDGs." This, however, was only the case for SDG 15 (Life on Land). The consistency of the values derived here shows that the more important a study program considers SDG 15 to be, the more connected to nature it is – and vice versa. “Of course, this does not prove causality, but it does show a correlation."

What conclusions can be drawn from the survey's results? “We have shown that students in Germany assign a high to very high level of importance to all 17 SDGs, regardless of their subject. The general attitude towards the SDGs is positive – a finding universities should use to train students from all subject areas more strongly in sustainability." One approach could be an analysis of the match between connection to nature and SDG 15. Study author Dr. Matthias Kleespies says: “Based on our results, we recommend a reflective and nature-oriented educational approach, as other studies have shown that such measures can improve the connection to nature."

It would also make sense to increasingly link subject-specific topics with sustainability aspects in lectures. “The UN goals are universal, which means many points of contact exist," says Feucht. That includes subjects in which sustainability aspects have not previously been a priority. One example Feucht points to is chemistry, which, like other subjects, holds great potential to initiate change. Topics like waste recycling and production processes, for instance, could be easily combined with sustainability issues. “We shouldn't categorically exclude any subject. Sustainability concerns all of us, which is why all study programs should address the topic in depth."

Inter- and transdisciplinarity is another promising approach. “Since every subject has its own inherent logic, an exchange between students from different subjects can help broaden the understanding of sustainability on both sides." Such an exchange would involve both common denominators as well as opposing attitudes, which could be a good thing, Feucht says: Once today's students become influential players in politics or business, they must also be able to reach common decisions – even if they may have contrary opinions on certain sustainability aspects. 

Publication: Viktoria Feucht, Paul Wilhelm Dierkes, Matthias Winfried Kleespies: Ranking our future: University students' prioritization of Sustainable Development Goals and their connection to nature. Sustainable Development (2024)

Picture download:

Caption: Experiencing nature during their studies: Students in the Ƭ Science Garden. Photo: Paul Dierkes

Further information
Ƭ Frankfurt
Department of Didactics in the Biological Sciences and Zoo Animal Biology
Professor Paul W. Dierkes
Tel: +49 (0)69 798-42273
dierkes@bio.uni-frankfurt.de

Viktoria Feucht
Tel: +49 (0)69 798 42276
Feucht@bio.uni-frankfurt.de

Dr. Matthias W. Kleespies 
Tel. +49 (0)69 798 42276
kleespies@em.uni-frankfurt.de

Bluesky: @goetheuni.bsky.social
Linkedin: @Goethe-Universität Frankfurt


Editor: Dr. Markus Bernards, Science Editor, PR & Communications Office, Theodor-W.-Adorno-Platz 1, 60323 Frankfurt, Tel: +49 (0) 69 798-12498, bernards@em.uni-frankfurt.de

 

Feb 6 2025
14:48

New gravitational wave simulation links post-merger signal to neutron star composition

Tuning forks in space: a final pure “tone” may reveal interior of neutron stars 

Scientists at Ƭ Frankfurt have identified a new way to probe the interior of neutron stars using gravitational waves from their collisions. By analyzing the "long ringdown" phase – a pure-tone signal emitted by the post-merger remnant – they have found a strong correlation between the signal’s properties and the equation of state of neutron-star matter. The results were recently published in Nature Communications.

FRANKFURT. Neutron stars, with a mass greater than that of the entire solar system confined within a nearly perfect sphere just a dozen kilometers in diameter, are among the most fascinating astrophysical objects known to humankind. Yet, the extreme conditions in their interiors make their composition and structure highly uncertain. The collision of two neutron stars, such as the one observed in 2017, provides a unique opportunity to uncover these mysteries. As binary neutron stars inspiral for millions of years, they emit gravitational waves, but the most intense emission occurs at and just milliseconds after the moment of merging. The post-merger remnant – a massive, rapidly rotating object formed by the collision – emits gravitational waves in a strong but narrow frequency range. This signal holds crucial information about the so-called "equation of state" of nuclear matter, which describes how matter behaves at extreme densities and pressures.

Prof. Luciano Rezzolla’s group at Ƭ Frankfurt now discovered that although the amplitude of the post-merger gravitational-wave signal diminishes over time, it becomes increasingly "pure"—tending toward a single frequency, much like a giant tuning fork resonating after being struck. They have termed this phase the "long ringdown" and identified a strong connection between its unique characteristics and the properties of the densest regions in neutron-star cores.

“Just like tuning forks of different material will have different pure tones, remnants described by different equations of state will ring down at different frequencies. The detection of this signal thus has the potential to reveal what neutron stars are made of,” says Rezzolla, adding, “I am particularly proud of this work as it constitutes exemplary evidence of the excellence of Frankfurt- and Darmstadt-based scientists in the study of neutron stars, which have been a central focus of the Hessian research cluster ELEMENTS.”

Using advanced general-relativistic simulations of merging neutron stars with carefully constructed equations of state, the researchers demonstrated that analyzing the long ringdown can significantly reduce uncertainties in the equation of state at very high densities – where no direct constraints are currently available. “Thanks to advances in statistical modeling and high-precision simulations on Germany’s most powerful supercomputers, we have discovered a new phase of the long ringdown in neutron star mergers,” says Dr. Christian Ecker, first author of the study, “It has the potential to provide new and stringent constraints on the state of matter in neutron stars. This finding paves the way for a better understanding of dense neutron star matter, especially as new events are observed in the future.”

Co-author Dr. Tyler Gorda adds: "By cleverly selecting a few equations of state, we were able to effectively simulate the results of a full statistical ensemble of matter models with considerably less effort. Not only does this result in less computer time and energy consumption, but it also gives us confidence that our results are robust and will be applicable to whatever equation of state actually occurs in nature."

While current gravitational-wave detectors have not yet observed the post-merger signal, scientists are optimistic that the next-generation detectors, such as the Einstein Telescope expected to become operational in Europe within the next decade, will make this long-awaited detection possible. When that happens, the long ringdown will serve as a powerful tool to probe the enigmatic interiors of neutron stars and reveal the secrets of matter at its most extreme.

Publication: Christian Ecker, Tyler Gorda, Aleksi Kurkela & Luciano Rezzolla: Constraining the equation of state in neutron-star cores via the long-ringdown signal. Nature Communications (2025)  

Picture download:  

Caption: The signal emitted by two merging neutron stars resembles that of a tuning fork (Credit: L. Rezzolla/pixabay). 

Further information
Dr. Christian Ecker
Institute of Theoretical Physics
Ƭ Frankfurt
Tel. +49 69 798-47886
ecker@itp.uni-frankfurt.de 


Editor: Dr. Phyllis Mania, Science Editor, PR & Communications Office, Theodor-W.-Adorno-Platz 1, 60323 Frankfurt, Tel: +49 (0) 69 798-13001, mania@physik.uni-frankfurt.de

 

Feb 6 2025
13:13

Ƭ Frankfurt and partners launch EXIST Women program.

New impetus for female founders 

FRANKFURT. In what can be considered an important milestone for the promotion of start-ups in the Rhine-Main region, Ƭ Frankfurt and its start-up center Goethe Unibator, together with TU Darmstadt and Darmstadt University of Applied Sciences, are delighted to have successfully applied for the renowned EXIST Women funding program. Aimed at supporting female founders, the initiative strengthens the cooperation between the Rhine-Main Universities (RMU) and Darmstadt University of Applied Sciences.

EXIST Women supports female students and researchers interested in founding their own company to either turn innovative ideas into their own start-ups, or to actively help shape start-up projects as co-founders. Participants benefit from individual coaching, mentoring and a strong network. At Ƭ, the program is known as females@Unibator.

“We need more female role models in the start-up scene. EXIST Women gives women the chance to confidently realize their ideas and actively shape the innovation scene. I am delighted to be part of this program as a mentor and to accompany female founders on their journey,” says Sally Schulze, successful founder and mentor at females@Unibator.

Program highlights

  • Developing entrepreneurial skills: Workshops and coaching sessions strengthen participants' personal and professional skills.
  • Mentoring and networking: Experienced mentors and a broad network offer support and valuable insights into the start-up world. 
  • Financial support: Participants receive a material budget of €2,000 as well as a three-month grant of up to €3,000 per month.

Participation in the program does not require a concrete start-up idea; instead, the decisive factors are entrepreneurial drive and a desire to explore new perspectives. Further information on the application process and the conditions of participation can be found on the Goethe Unibator website ().

EXIST Women 
The Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection’s EXIST Women program supports women at universities and research institutions who are interested in setting up their own business, especially with regard to developing their entrepreneurial personality and further refining their start-up idea.

Further information on EXIST Women is available at


Editor: Dr. Dirk Frank, Press Officer/ Deputy Press Spokesperson, PR & Communications Office, Theodor-W.-Adorno-Platz 1, 60323 Frankfurt am Main, Tel.: +49 (0)69/798-13753, frank@pvw.uni-frankfurt.de