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Portal – One 2025: “Children”

Free play, imagination, curiosity, the pleasure of learning, and intense emotions such as joy or anger, as well as feelings of lightheartedness and timelessness, make childhood special – if not irretrievable. In this issue of the university magazine, we let scientists who study childhood share their insights. Whether in psychology, parenting, politics, language, education, literature, or sports, they discuss from different perspectives what children need to thrive, what their freedoms and rights are, and how we can protect them in an increasingly complex world.

Issue 1/2025

Cover story “Children”

Of Children and Their Parents

Developmental Psychologist Birgit Elsner and Education Scientist Nina Kolleck talk about childhood | Photo: AdobeStock/rarrarorro

Inside the Protestant Elementary School in Potsdam-Babelsberg.

All Power to the Children

Why politics is already important for the very young | Photo: M. Zimmermann

The US-American researcher Sudha Arunachalam

The Subtle Differences

Visiting researcher Sudha Arunachalam about linguistic research on infants | Photo: Thomas Roese

Hindernissparkour auf einem Spielplatz. Im Hintergrund sind Kinder zu sehen.

The Joy of Movement

How EMOTIKON examines children’s fitness | Photo: AdobeStock/matimix

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Katharina Scheiter während des Interviews.

Not Falling for Fake News

Psychologist Katharina Scheiter explains how to prepare children for dealing with media | Foto: T. Roese

A mountain made of books. There is a tree at the top.

Can Reading Give Us a Better Understanding of Nature?

Literary scholar Sabine Röttig researches ecological children’s literature | Foto: AdobeStock/Jorm Sangsorn

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Studies

Paulina Nitschke guides the georadar sled across the ground.

Looking Beneath the Surface

Geophysicists and students from the University of Potsdam are searching for traces of a Jewish cemetery in Lenzen, Brandenburg | Photo: S. Mikulla

18-year-old Anna Maria Weiß

Career Aspiration: Astrophysicist

Potsdam student Anna Maria Weiß has discovered a planet | Photo: Nura van Dongen

Timilehin Ogunnusi (li.) und Pascal Kienast bringen sich ins EDUC Think Lab ein.

Strengthening a Sense of Belonging

In the EDUC Think Lab, Students Develop Digital Tools for the European University Alliance | Photo: Thomas Roese

Der Musikdozent Jan Gerdes erkundet mit seinen Studierenden afrikanische Klaviermusik des 20. Jahrhunderts.

A Sound Window With a View to the South

Pianist and music lecturer Jan Gerdes brings contemporary piano music from Africa to the lecture hall | Photo: T. Roese

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Research

Spokespersons of the University Research Focuses and Emerging Fields receive their certificates at the beginning of the new funding period.

Profiled

New Research Focuses of the University of Potsdam | Photo: S. Engel

Research

You can find more articles about research at the University of Potsdam here. | Photo: AdobeStock/Icons-Studio

Society

Bust of David admiring himself in a mirror on a pink background. Symbolic representation of narcissism.

“Narcissism Has Many Faces”

Dr. Ramzi Fatfouta on the unknown aspects of a personality trait | Photo: AdobeStock/splitov27

Dr. Johannes Gurke

Illuminating

Johannes Gurke “Builds” New Materials for Medical Technologies with Light and 3D Printing | Photo: K. Ryl

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