Among all forces of nature, earthquakes are considered one of the most devastating threats. They cause enormous human and structural losses worldwide. Even though analysis and measurement methods have been further developed over the past decades, reliable predictions are still not possible today. Although many indications of an increased earthquake probability are known, they do not allow an exact prediction of the location and time of catastrophic earthquakes. Over the next four years, the research group at the Frankfurt Institute for Advanced Studies (FIAS), headed by Dr. Nishtha Srivastava will be funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BmBF) with more than 1.6 million euros as part of the "Promotion of female AI junior scientists" program. Nishtha Srivastava will use methods of artificial intelligence (AI), the application of which in the geosciences, especially in seismology, is still in an early stage of research, to expand our understanding of the origin of earthquakes and improve predictions.

The search for a suitable vaccine is a central research area in the fight against the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. An important step towards this is to understand how the virus penetrates the cells. The protein responsible for this is the SARS-CoV-2 spike (S) protein on the virus surface which allows the virus to enter the host cell.

Thomas Sokolowski joined the FIAS in April 2020 as part of the LOEWE focus CMMS. In an interview he explains how he uses stochastic methods and fundamental physical laws to describe complicated biochemical processes on the cell and tissue level efficiently and as accurately as possible.

Prof. Dr. Enrico Schleiff, Senior Fellow and Chairman of the Board of the FIAS was elected President of the Goethe University by the extended Senate on Wednesday (July 8). The term of office is six years and will begin on January 1, 2021, following his appointment by the University Council. The former Vice President and Professor of Molecular Cell Biology of Plants at Goethe University was elected by an absolute majority of 18 votes out of the 34 members of the Senate.

The FAIR and GSI high-performance computing center developed in cooperation with FIAS is particularly energy-efficient thanks to its special cooling system. This makes it the first computer center to be awarded the Federal Government's eco-label. With the Green IT Cube, one of the most powerful scientific computing centers in the world was built at the GSI Helmholtz Center for Heavy Ion Research in Darmstadt. The novel cooling technology was developed by FIAS board members Volker Lindenstruth and Horst Stöcker.

Prof. Thomas Lippert, expert for high-performance and quantum computing, is a new Senior Fellow at FIAS. The physicist and computer scientist will also occupy the newly created professorship for "Modular Supercomputing and Quantum Computing" at the Institute for Computer Science at Goethe University Frankfurt from August 1, 2020.

Within the new LOEWE focus "Center for Multiscale Modeling in Life Sciences" (CMMS), the FIAS was able to recruit three new group leaders as Fellows.

The Romanian Academy of Sciences (Academia Română) has appointed Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. mult. Horst Stöcker as honorary member in recognition of his work on hot, dense elementary matter in heavy ion research and astrophysics, as well as his many years of commitment to the international scientific community. He is thus one of 91 foreign scientists who are entitled to bear this title.

Using a new model, scientists from the Frankfurt Institute for Advanced Studies (FIAS) and Goethe University can explain the development of binocular vision, which is the joint vision of the right and left eye. In doing so, they show how amblyopic visual impairment can occur.

In connection with the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2), the Goethe University provides information on mobility and health care. We refer to recommendations of the Robert Koch Institute and the Federal Foreign Office.

​In October 2019, during the Sino-German Conference for Science, Technology, Innovation and Cooperation in Berlin, representatives of Xidian University and FIAS signed the founding documents of the XF-IJRC.

Numerous working groups at FIAS work with methods of machine learning. In order to intensify the scientific exchange between the many scientists involved, the FIAS PhD students and Postdocs have created an exchange platform on their own initiative with the installation of the Journal Club.

The FIAS and the Chinese Xidian University have confirmed the idea to establish a 'Joint Research Center' in AI research during a visit of the FIAS delegation under the leadership of the chairman of the FIAS board of directors, Prof. Dr. Enrico Schleiff.

With his article "Model Brain - Boundary Conditions for a Cognitive Architecture" FIAS Senior Fellow Christoph von der Malsburg has contributed a chapter to the book "Cognitive Computing - Theory, Technology and Practice" recently published by Springer Verlag.

Efficient power grids are an essential prerequisite for a successful conversion of the energy system. In order to support work on the power grids of the future, the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) is extending the funding of an interdisciplinary research project by three years, in which seven institutes, including the Frankfurt Institute for Advanced Studies with Professor Stefan Schramm, are involved. The joint project is funded by the BMBF with a total of 2.5 million euros.

FRANKFURT. How do neighboring synapses interact during learning? Frankfurt scientists have proposed a new mathematical model describing a competition of neighboring synapses for limited resources during learning. The scientists report their findings in the current issue of eLife.

How large is a neutron star? Previous estimates varied from eight to sixteen kilometres. Astrophysicists at the Goethe University Frankfurt and the FIAS have now succeeded in determining the size of neutron stars to within 1.5 kilometres by using an elaborate statistical approach supported by data from the measurement of gravitational waves. The researchers’ report appears in the current issue of Physical Review Letters.

Every year, the Friends of the University award prizes for the best PhD theses from various fields. The prize for the best scientific dissertation was awarded this year to former FIAS doctoral student Volodymyr Vovchenko.