Junior Research Group Research Articles

Andreas Marx

Andreas Marx

Composition of junior research groups and PhD completion rate: disciplinary differences and policy implications

This paper explores the link between the composition and the performance of junior research groups. The authors argue that the heterogeneity-performance link depends on the type of heterogeneity (cultural vs. study field) and on the disciplinary area. The authors test their hypotheses on a data set of 45 junior research groups and find a U-shaped relation between cultural heterogeneity and performance in the humanities and social sciences, but no link between the two in the natural sciences. The link between study field heterogeneity and performance in the natural sciences is negative, and in the humanities and social sciences study field heterogeneity and performance are not related. Interaction within the group helps reap the benefits of heterogeneity. The study results are derived in the context of junior research groups in Germany, but are generalizable to other countries and contexts where PhD education is taking part in groups.

Composition of Junior Research Groups and PhD Completion Rate: Disciplinary Differences and Policy Implications

This paper explores the link between the composition and the performance of junior research groups. We argue that the heterogeneity-performance link depends on the type of heterogeneity (cultural vs. study field) and on the disciplinary area. We test our hypotheses on a data set of 45 junior research groups and find a U-shaped relation between cultural heterogeneity and performance in the humanities and social sciences, but no link between the two in the natural sciences. The link between study field heterogeneity and performance in the natural sciences is negative, in the humanities and social sciences study field heterogeneity and performance are not related. Interaction within the group helps reap the benefits of heterogeneity. Our results are derived in the context of junior research groups in Germany, but are generalizable to other countries and contexts where PhD education is taking part in groups.

Twin-Roll-Casting and Hot Rolling of Magnesium Alloy WE43

Twin-Roll-Casting enables the production of magnesium strip and sheet material with advanced properties. In the course of a junior research group, supported by the Development Bank of Saxony as well as the European social fund, the magnesium alloy WE43 was successfully Twin-Roll-Cast for the first time. For this, a new developed casting system with a maximum width of 250 mm has been used. This system is part of the Twin-Roll-Casting pilot plant at the Institute of Metal Forming, which is used in collaboration with the MgF Magnesium Flachprodukte GmbH. Previously, differential scanning calorimetry was carried out in order to get more information about the solidification range of the WE43 alloy. Subsequent to Twin-Roll-Casting, the WE43 sheet was homogenized at different temperatures, and hot rolled to a final thickness of 2 mm. with a reduction per pass of 10% to 15%. After every second reduction stage an intermediate annealing was performed. The influence of temperature and time of the annealing on microstructure and mechanical properties has been investigated. Based on the results, conclusions for Twin-Roll-Casting and hot rolling of a WE43 alloy in industrial scale were made. Finally, a comparison between WE43 and AZ31 has been established.

New Members of the Editorial Board and International Advisory Board of Angewandte Chemie

New Members of the Editorial Board and International Advisory Board of <i>Angewandte Chemie</i>

Special Issue: Frontiers in Catalysis Research—The Catalysis Research Center of Technische Universität München

Special Issue: Frontiers in Catalysis Research—The Catalysis Research Center of Technische Universität München

Communicative Spaces

AbstractPeople with dementia often experience problems with orientation. To make everyday life easier for them, hospitals and nursing homes require architectural modification. Emmy Noether junior research group leader Dr. Gesine Marquardt is a pioneer in this area.

University Rankings Could Bias Funding

The News & Analysis story 'Brussels ranking' of universities off to a rocky start (T. Rabesandratana, 25 January, p. [383][1]) discusses a new plan for ranking universities called the U-Multirank, which rates universities according to their quality. This plan may lead to a polarization of research funding. The misuse of such a university ranking list may aggravate an existing bias in the review process: Research teams from well-rated universities, which in most cases already have good funding, have an advantage compared with research groups at low-rated universities when competing for funding resources ([ 1 ][2]). Ranking universities may also aggravate the already difficult access to financial support for junior research groups; senior research groups, with larger and well-funded laboratories ([ 2 ][3]), are more likely to be affiliated with well-rated universities. Ranking universities is not new (for example, the Academic Ranking of World Universities has existed for a decade), but emphasizing the importance of such lists, as seems to be the European Union's intent for the U-Multirank, may harm the research enterprise. If a university's rank is used to judge research proposals and allocate funding, high-quality and innovative research ideas proposed by researchers at low-rated universities may never see the light of day. 1. [↵][4] InterAcademy Council and IAP (The Global Network of Science Academies), Responsible conduct in the global research enterprise: A policy report (2012); [www.interacademies.net/10878/19787.aspx][5]. 2. [↵][6] 1. A. A. Hyman , Science 339, 119 (2013). [OpenUrl][7][Abstract/FREE Full Text][8] [1]: /lookup/doi/10.1126/science.339.6118.383 [2]: #ref-1 [3]: #ref-2 [4]: #xref-ref-1-1 View reference 1 in text [5]: http://www.interacademies.net/10878/19787.aspx [6]: #xref-ref-2-1 View reference 2 in text [7]: {openurl}?query=rft.jtitle%253DScience%26rft.stitle%253DScience%26rft.issn%253D0036-8075%26rft.aulast%253DHyman%26rft.auinit1%253DA.%2BA.%26rft.volume%253D339%26rft.issue%253D6116%26rft.spage%253D119%26rft.epage%253D119%26rft.atitle%253DFunding%2BInnovative%2BScience%26rft_id%253Dinfo%253Adoi%252F10.1126%252Fscience.1234741%26rft_id%253Dinfo%253Apmid%252F23307707%26rft.genre%253Darticle%26rft_val_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Ajournal%26ctx_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ver%253DZ39.88-2004%26url_ctx_fmt%253Dinfo%253Aofi%252Ffmt%253Akev%253Amtx%253Actx [8]: /lookup/ijlink/YTozOntzOjQ6InBhdGgiO3M6MTQ6Ii9sb29rdXAvaWpsaW5rIjtzOjU6InF1ZXJ5IjthOjQ6e3M6ODoibGlua1R5cGUiO3M6NDoiQUJTVCI7czoxMToiam91cm5hbENvZGUiO3M6Mzoic2NpIjtzOjU6InJlc2lkIjtzOjEyOiIzMzkvNjExNi8xMTkiO3M6NDoiYXRvbSI7czoyNToiL3NjaS8zMzkvNjEyNS8xMjc0LjMuYXRvbSI7fXM6ODoiZnJhZ21lbnQiO3M6MDoiIjt9

Funding Innovative Science

It is a well-known problem: a junior research group leader must somehow compete against the seniors, who have larger laboratories, good funding, and clout with the journals. Furthermore, in the normal grant system, preliminary data requirements make it hard to start new directions in research. Beginning scientists must build on their postdoctoral work, which forces them to continue along already-trodden paths. Once a laboratory has been established, it is reasonable for the reviewers of competitive grant applications to look for evidence of an investigator's likely success in the form of “preliminary results.” But beginning group leaders should be judged only by their demonstrated excellence and their creativity in finding new directions. Such a change would greatly stimulate innovation.

Salmonella vacuole maturation: PIKfyve leads the way

In this issue of The EMBO Journal, a study from Rohan Teasdale’s laboratory provides evidence that PIKfyve, a PtdIns D5-kinase, is required for maturation of Salmonellacontaining vacuole (SCV) and Salmonella replication. This report sheds light on a novel mechanism that mediates fusion of both macropinosomes and SCV with lysosomal/ late endosomal organelles.

Different — not just by label: research-oriented academic careers in Germany

The Emmy Noether Programme funding junior research group leaders is one of the most prestigious funding programmes for promoting excellent young postdoctoral researchers in Germany. While the traditional academic career path involved postdoctoral researchers working in research projects chosen usually by faculty members, this research group funding programme offers financial resources for a research project of personal choice. This provides a high degree of research autonomy for comparatively young and strongly performing postdoctoral researchers. This full autonomy and freedom of research contrasts sharply with substantial uncertainty concerning the status that this new category of academic staff has among teaching staff at the faculty. The paper investigates the relative advantages and disadvantages of such funding instruments by using and comparing various methods in a triangulation design. Copyright , Beech Tree Publishing.

FMRI correlates of the auditory 40-Hz steady-state response

The auditory 40-Hz steady-state response (SSR) is a stimulus-synchronized component of the auditory evoked fields and potentials. Source analysis studies suggest that the SSR shares its main generators in the primary auditory cortex with the middle latency response, and subcortical generators with the brainstem response. In this study, we adopted a paradigm previously used in positron emission tomography (PET) (Reyes et al, 2004, Hear. Res. 194(1–2):73–80) to evaluate functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) correlates of the SSR, and compare these results with the SSR recorded in Magnetoencephalography (MEG). 12 listeners participated in one fMRI and one MEG session. Listeners were presented with alternating 1-kHz sine and 40-Hz amplitude-modulated (AM) tones (modulation depth=100%). Both tones had a duration of 32 seconds and were presented binaurally at 75 dB SPL. We expected that the contrast of AM minus sine tones would serve as a reasonable estimate of SSR-related activity in fMRI, because both, AM and sine tones, evoke comparable long-latency responses in MEG, while the SSR is only evoked by the AM tones. FMRI results showed activity in multiple fields of the auditory cortex, for both, the sine tone and AM stimuli compared to silence. Stronger activity for the AM tones compared to the sine-tones was consistently found in medial Heschl's Gyrus, located medial to the activity observed for the tone versus silence contrasts. Moreover, enhanced activity for AM compared to sine tones was found in the inferior colliculus and the medial geniculate body. The time course of the difference response (AM minus sine tone) was sustained, and it was distinct from the transient BOLD responses observed at tone onset. These results suggest that a correlate of the SSR can be reliably studied by fMRI. The relative prominence of the related activity in fMRI compared to its small amplitude in MEG (compared e.g. to the sustained fields) adds to previous findings, which suggest that stimulus synchrony rather than response amplitude in MEG and EEG determine the relative contribution of an electrophysiological component to the BOLD response. Research supported by BMBF grant 01EV0712 (Junior Research Group Bioimaging)

FMRI correlates of the auditory 40-Hz steady-state response

The auditory 40-Hz steady-state response (SSR) is a stimulus-synchronized component of the auditory evoked fields and potentials. Source analysis studies suggest that the SSR shares its main generators in the primary auditory cortex with the middle latency response, and subcortical generators with the brainstem response. In this study, we adopted a paradigm previously used in positron emission tomography (PET) (Reyes et al, 2004, Hear. Res. 194(1–2):73–80) to evaluate functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) correlates of the SSR, and compare these results with the SSR recorded in Magnetoencephalography (MEG). 12 listeners participated in one fMRI and one MEG session. Listeners were presented with alternating 1-kHz sine and 40-Hz amplitude-modulated (AM) tones (modulation depth=100%). Both tones had a duration of 32 seconds and were presented binaurally at 75 dB SPL. We expected that the contrast of AM minus sine tones would serve as a reasonable estimate of SSR-related activity in fMRI, because both, AM and sine tones, evoke comparable long-latency responses in MEG, while the SSR is only evoked by the AM tones. FMRI results showed activity in multiple fields of the auditory cortex, for both, the sine tone and AM stimuli compared to silence. Stronger activity for the AM tones compared to the sine-tones was consistently found in medial Heschl's Gyrus, located medial to the activity observed for the tone versus silence contrasts. Moreover, enhanced activity for AM compared to sine tones was found in the inferior colliculus and the medial geniculate body. The time course of the difference response (AM minus sine tone) was sustained, and it was distinct from the transient BOLD responses observed at tone onset. These results suggest that a correlate of the SSR can be reliably studied by fMRI. The relative prominence of the related activity in fMRI compared to its small amplitude in MEG (compared e.g. to the sustained fields) adds to previous findings, which suggest that stimulus synchrony rather than response amplitude in MEG and EEG determine the relative contribution of an electrophysiological component to the BOLD response. Research supported by BMBF grant 01EV0712 (Junior Research Group Bioimaging)

Giving German Universities a Boost

Although well respected, German universities are no longer considered world class. Efforts to rejuvenate the German university system include a competition to confer elite status on the country's ten leading universities.

The German Center for Research on Aging at the University of Heidelberg: an interdisciplinary approach

In September 1995, the German Center for Research on Aging at the University of Heidelberg had been founded to become a leading national center of excellence with a clear interdisciplinary scope of ageing research activities. So far, three departments have been built up successively: the Department of Social and Environmental Gerontology (established in 1997, chair: Prof. Hans-Werner Wahl), the Department of Adult Development (established in 1998, provisional chair: Prof. Andreas Kruse), and the Department of Epidemiology (established in 2000, chair: Prof. Hermann Brenner). As one of the next steps, the disciplinary spectrum of the Center will be complemented by setting up several junior research groups in molecular ageing research. Within the few years of its existence, the Center has set up multiple large-scale, extramurally funded cross-sectional, case-control and longitudinal studies. These studies provide a unique common basis for interdisciplinary collaboration both within the Center and with the Center's numerous national and international research partners.

„Organizations, social inequality, and social justice“ Conference of the workgroup sociology of organizations, the Institute for Employment Research (IAB), Nuremberg, and the Junior Research Group „Interdisciplinary Social Justice Research“ Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, 23.–24. April 2004

„Organizations, social inequality, and social justice“ Conference of the workgroup sociology of organizations, the Institute for Employment Research (IAB), Nuremberg, and the Junior Research Group „Interdisciplinary Social Justice Research“ Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, 23.–24. April 2004

Call for papers: Organizations, social inequality, and social justice conference of the workgroup sociology of organizations, the Institute for Employment Research (IAB), Nuremberg, and the Junior Research Group „Interdisciplinary Social Justice Research“ at Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, April 23–24, 2004.

Call for papers: Organizations, social inequality, and social justice conference of the workgroup sociology of organizations, the Institute for Employment Research (IAB), Nuremberg, and the Junior Research Group „Interdisciplinary Social Justice Research“ at Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, April 23–24, 2004.