Exceptionally good news for the University of Bremen and another visible endorsement of the excellence of its researchers: the German Research Foundation (DFG) has prolonged its funding of three Collaborative Research Centers [Sonderforschungsbereichen (SFBs)] for a further four years. The SFBs in question are SFB/TR 8 “Spatial Cognition: Reasoning – Action – Interaction“ (computer sciences), which is run in cooperation with the University of Freiburg, SFB 747 “Micro-Cold Forming – Processes, Characterization, Optimization“ (engineering sciences), and SFB 597 “Transformation of the State“ (social sciences), which also involves Jacobs University Bremen and the University of Oldenburg. The amount of follow-up financing for all three SFBs comes to €33 million. This decision on the part of the most important extra-university provider of research funding in Germany is based on the recommendations of independent reviews. The panels of experts carried out on-the-spot reviews and were clearly convinced of the excellence of research in the collaborative research centers at the University of Bremen. Altogether, the University hosts six collaborative research centers.
In the interdisciplinary collaborative research center SFB/TR 8 “Spatial Cognition: Reasoning – Action – Interaction“ a team of more than 70 computer scientists, psychologists and linguists are investigating how humans and robots acquire and process knowledge of their spatial environment, how they find their way about in their surroundings, and how they are able to exchange information on the space around them.
The research focus of the collaborative research center in the field of engineering, SFB 747 “Micro-Cold Forming - Processes, Characterization, Optimization“ is on how to manufacture minute metal components (no bigger than a grain of rice) at a reasonable cost. The SFB encompasses some 70 researchers from the Faculties of Production Engineering, Physics/Electronics and Mathematics/Computer Science, and now an additional post has been created within the context of promoting young researchers.
The allocation of a four-year follow-up financing for the collaborative research center entitled “Transformation of the State“ makes history: it the very first collaborative research center in the field of political science to receive funding for the maximum possible funding period of twelve years. The prolongation will enable 50 or so young researchers of the University of Bremen, Jacobs University and the University of Oldenburg to work for a further four years on investigating the highly topical research issues surrounding transformation processes and their impact on the State.
