Lichtgedanken 02

Editorial 3 02 | LICHT GEDANKEN PUBLISHER: Central Communications/Press Office on behalf of the President of the Friedrich Schiller University Jena EDITORIAL AND DESIGN: Dr. Ute Schönfelder, Juliane Dölitzsch, Stephan Laudien, Axel Burchardt (re- sponsible under German press legislation), Liana Franke, Kai Friedrich, Monika Paschwitz (editorial assistant) and Kerstin Apel (secretariat) GRAPHIC DESIGN: Timespin – Digital Communication GmbH, Sophienstraße 1, D-07743 Jena ADDRESS: Friedrich Schiller University Jena Fürstengraben 1, D-07743 Jena Phone: ++49 3641/9-31040, Fax: ++49 3641/9-31032, Email: presse@uni-jena.de OVERALL PRODUCTION: Druckhaus Gera GmbH, Jacob-A.-Morand-Straße 16, D-07552 Gera TRANSLATI ON: BAKER & HARRISON, Fachü bersetzun- gen und Lektorat, Ferdinand-Maria-Straße 30, D-80639 München INTERNET: www.uni-jena.de/en/lichtgedanken ISSN: 2510-3849 PUBLICATION DATE: May 2017 PHOTOS: Kasper (1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 18, 23,  25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 32, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 44, 49,  50, 51, 52, 54, 55, 56, 57), AsÚ (5), Günther (6, 9, 13, 22, 31,  34, 43, 48, 55, 58), HKI (8), Szabó (9), P. Scheere (14), ThULB (14, 17), Stiftung Schloss Friedenstein (15), Landesarchiv Thüringen – Hauptstaatsarchiv Weimar (16), J. Scheere (20, 53), Wartburg-Stiftung (33), Christoph (46), Jandt (47), Apel (48), Harries (50), Voigt (58). Reproduction only permitted with approval. No liability is assumed for spontaneously submitted manuscripts, pho- tos or similar material. Articles carrying the name of the author do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher or the editorial team. The signatories are responsible for the content. In some places we have only used the male form in articles to improve their readability. The formulati- ons chosen denote men and women in equal measure. 2017 is a significant year for the Frie- drich Schiller University Jena (FSU). It is exactly 500 years since the Reforma- tion was set in motion in Wittenberg: a major European event that resulted in immense upheavals in many walks of life – and to which our university owes its foundation. This issue of our research magazine LICHT GEDANKEN is therefore de- dicated to the subject of the Reforma- tion. It offers insights into the diverse research on Martin Luther and the Re- formation conducted by FSU scientists in the last decade and in collaboration with numerous partners in Thuringia. The results of their research are avai- lable to the broad public – in publicati- ons and on the Internet (see p. 10 ff.). However, 2017 is also the year in which the FSU, like many other universities in Germany, is again competing for fun- ding as part of the »Excellence Strate- gy« pursued by the Federal and State governments. Success in the Excellence Strategy is an important step towards permanently sustaining the level hither- to attained in research and teaching. The FSU is participating in the Excellence Strategy with three proposals for re- search clusters (p. 8–9). One draft propo- sal with the title »Balance of the Micro- verse« builds on the successful graduate school »Jena School for Microbial Com- munication« and has been submitted by the FSU and its Jena partners. The sec- ond draft proposal, »Enlightening the Receptome: From Biophysics to Clinical Visible, sustainable and globally connected Applications«, originated in collaborati- onwith the University of Würzburg. The planned cluster pools the special exper- tise on receptor research established at both universities. The third draft propo- sal, entitled »Dialectics of the Global«, was jointly submitted by the well-estab- lished university alliance of Halle – Jena – Leipzig. Collaborating across Federal States, the three universities have joined forces with further partners to conduct research on the processes of globaliza- tion. I would like to thank all scientists involved for their great commitment in preparing and completing the draft proposals. Excellent research at the University of Jena is, however, not limited to the cluster proposals submitted. Scien- tists are working at the highest level in many – also small – areas, and connect with research partners all around the world. In this issue of LICHT GEDAN- KEN , we present some of the resear- chers with their latest research topics. I wish you a stimulating read. We will be happy to receive your suggestions or criticisms on the current issue. You can reach the editorial team by email at: presse@uni-jena.de . Prof. Dr Walter Rosenthal President of Friedrich Schiller University Jena Jena, May 2017