Welcome to our Magazine Sections

Discover new things in our magazine

Here we provide orientation, classify and inspire. We show ways and possibilities in which we at Neocosmo and with our partners digitize administration. We report on how our colleagues are mastering the challenges and what successes they are celebrating. We make you want to deal with our topics and stories.

Engineering Sciences

Let’s tackle micropollutants

The civil engineer Henning Knerr is refining technologies for wastewater treatment plants that can remove environmentally hazardous synthetic substances – such as painkillers or X-ray contrast agents – from sewage.

Fabian Jirasek uses artificial intelligence to predict the properties of pure substances and mixtures. The goal is to help the industry develop new active ingredients and chemicals more sustainably in the future.

All Articles

Social Sciences

Reinventing cities

When a region undergoes structural change, it often leads to job losses, vacant buildings, and declining tax revenues. Over time, the remaining residents may begin to feel cut off from the rest of the world. Researchers are now exploring what shrinking cities can learn from one another – and how they might be revitalized.

Election campaigns on television

In front of millions of viewers, the leading candidates faced off in six televised debates in the run-up to the 2025 federal elections. Researchers at the RPTU took a close look at the impact of the performances - with the help of many viewers who rated the candidates using a smartphone app.

All Articles

Educational Sciences

More languages – more language skills

Multilingualism is not the exception in this country, but rather the norm. However, while English and French are considered lingua franca, other foreign languages are less widely accepted. This could be a mistake – also in terms of developing language skills in school.

Raising awareness of sustainability

In 2015, the United Nations (UN) adopted Agenda 2030 with 17 goals for social, economically, and environmentally sustainable development. But how can the topic of sustainability be brought into school and thus into society at large?

All Articles

Environmental Sciences

Life underground

Groundwater is our most important source of drinking water and crucial to the water cycle. At the same time, it is an ecosystem with a diverse community of organisms. The organisms living there contribute to drinking water quality through material and energy cycles.

Microplastics in the world's oceans – a problem that concerns many environmentally conscious people. What many do not know is that the same plastics are also found in our soil. It is estimated that five to twenty times more plastic is found on land than in water. What does all this mean for the environment – and ultimately for our health? RPTU researchers are working on answers and solutions.

All Articles

STEM

AI troubleshooting: detecting anomalies

Whether in chemistry or technical systems, even the smallest deviations can be dangerous. Deep learning, a method of artificial intelligence (AI), helps to detect such anomalies at an early stage: using large amounts of data, it identifies patterns that often remain invisible to humans.

Will quantum effects soon make our lives faster and better – or are many of the promises still just science fiction?How can we even begin to imagine quantum phenomena, given that the behavior of the tiniest particles involved is so difficult to grasp? Physics professor Artur Widera explains the fundamental laws and significance of the quantum world.

When Farming Meets Climate Change

Heat, drought, and even unexpected frosts during an unusually warm spring – the effects of climate change are increasingly taking a toll on agriculture. Researchers and plant breeders around the world are analyzing ways to counter these challenges. One approach: genetically modifying crops so that they can withstand drought, high temperatures, and other changing environmental conditions.

All Articles

Psychology

Equally qualified, unequally treated? Recognizing discrimination

Are sexual minorities and people with a migrant background discriminated against in application processes – simply because there people are prejudiced against them? This is exactly what psychologists are investigating using various research approaches.

Parties in constant conflict, a sense of crisis in society – trust in politics is crumbling. Two media researchers explain the role of social media in this process

All Articles