Latest news from science communication

Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg

This year's Academic Freedom Index shows that eight of the countries included in the index have significantly higher academic freedom in 2024 than ten years ago, while scores have fallen in 34 countries or territories. Countries where the decline in academic freedom was statistically and substantially significant include several democracies, such as Argentina, Finland, Greece, Israel, Portugal and the United States, to name just a few examples. The decline in academic freedom was also measurable in Austria and Germany, but in both cases the decline remains small and is not yet substantially significant, according to the authors of the report. Although academic freedom is still much better protected in democracies than in autocracies, these examples illustrate that academic freedom can also come under pressure in democracies. This is why this year's Academic Freedom Index report focuses on countries where multiple parties are allowed to stand for election.

Imagine this: Your AI avatar wakes you up and together you divide up the day's appointments between you. Thought experiments like these are the starting point for the new podcast OUTATIME - Visions. Technology. Future, which can be heard on all common platforms from 11 February. The highlight: the hosts Prof Roman Dumitrescu and Tommy Falkowski are scientists at the Fraunhofer IEM (Paderborn). They put all visions to the test and invite you to think about the big questions of the future.

‘The future is a huge puzzle that has not yet been put together,’ says Prof Roman Dumitrescu, Director of Fraunhofer IEM and host of the podcast. ‘What seems like science fiction to us today could be reality tomorrow. That's why we spin groundbreaking visions that are nevertheless realistic. We want to inspire our listeners to think about the technologies that are changing our world - and consider how we can actively shape our future.’

Info: The OUTATIME podcast will be available on all popular platforms such as Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts from 11 February. Listeners can look forward to new episodes every second Tuesday. The following episodes are currently being planned: Unlimited Energy, Infinite Knowledge, The Intelligent Building and The Transparent Human.

Scientific contacts:
Roman Dumitrescu (roman.dumitrescu@iem.fraunhofer.de)
Tommy Falkowski (tommy.falkowski@iem.fraunhofer.de)

Further information:
Direct link to the podcast on all channels: https://lnk.to/outatime-fraunhofer
All information about the podcast can be found at www.outatime-podcast.de
The Instagram channel also provides exciting insights into future scenarios: Instagram
Future technologies on YouTube: Prof Dumitrescu Tech Talk Tech Talk - YouTube
Latest AI trends on YouTube: Insight AI with Tommy Falkowski Inside AI - YouTube

Fraunhofer Institute for Secure Information Technology (SIT) presents study ‘Ethics, law and security of digital afterlife’

New technologies such as AI make it possible to live on after death in the form of digital representations (avatars) or chatbots. The digital afterlife industry, which offers such possibilities, is considered a promising growth market. An interdisciplinary research team from the Fraunhofer Institute for Secure Information Technology SIT and the University of Tübingen has developed design proposals for dealing with avatars and summarised them in the study ‘Ethics, law and security of digital afterlife’. The study can be downloaded free of charge here: www.sit.fraunhofer.de/edilife-studie.

Klaus Becker Corporate Communications Center
Technical University of Munich
Source: Informationsdienst

Although the majority of 15-year-olds in Germany can easily find information on the Internet, they do not have the confidence to assess its quality. Young people rate their own skills worse than the average in OECD countries. They are also less likely to consider their teachers competent enough to use digital media in the classroom. This is shown by a new analysis of the latest PISA study.

Do young people feel able to distinguish trustworthy websites from fake online information? In the latest PISA study, 15-year-old students were asked how they rate their own ability to find and assess digital information. The study team in Germany has now analyzed this part of the survey separately. Most of the results had not yet been published in the main study.

Pupils often overwhelmed

The PISA study shows that young people in Germany feel competent when they want to find information on the Internet. More than two thirds (69%) of 15-year-olds state that they are able to do this without any problems. However, only less than half (47%) of pupils feel able to make a well-founded assessment of the quality of the information they find. On average across OECD countries, more pupils feel confident in doing this (51%). Only just under 60 percent of young people in Germany compare different sources. The OECD average is 72%. In addition, around a third of young people do not check whether online information is correct before sharing it on social media.

In the eighth PISA study (Program for International Student Assessment), the skills of around 6,100 representatively selected 15-year-old students at around 260 schools of all types were tested in Germany in 2022. The young people were also asked about their learning conditions and attitudes as well as their social background.

The research team also analyzed which factors influence the study results. There is a strong correlation with young people's self-efficacy, their interest in digital media and their socio-economic status. 15-year-olds who rate themselves more highly in these areas or have better qualifications rate their skills higher. Girls state more frequently that they check the accuracy of online information and consult various sources when researching.

The students were also asked about the digital skills of their teachers and their openness towards the use of digital media. Only just under half of young people think that teachers have the necessary skills to use digital devices in the classroom - significantly less than the OECD average (70%). Around 60% of 15-year-olds state that their teachers are open to using digital media in the classroom. This proportion is also well below the OECD average of 77%.

These perceptions of young people are also important because the study shows a correlation with their self-assessment of their skills. “Both the digital skills of teachers and their openness to digital media can have a positive influence on the development of pupils' digital information skills,” says Samuel Greiff. “Teachers should therefore be supported in integrating the use of information found online as a regular part of lessons in various subjects.”

Digital media often does not work reliably

The main “PISA 2022” study had already shown that teachers in Germany state that they use digital tools in their lessons and for homework less frequently than the OECD average. The majority of school heads reported in the survey that teachers do not have enough time to prepare lessons for the integration of digital media and that schools do not have enough qualified staff to provide technical support.

The new evaluation shows that only around 60 percent of young people say that digital media works reliably at their school. The OECD average is 71 percent. In addition, only 46% of pupils think that digital media is easily accessible in the classroom - significantly less than the OECD average of 67%.

Further information:

The PISA studies are coordinated by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). The German part of the study is managed by the Center for International Educational Comparison Studies (ZIB) on behalf of the Standing Conference of the Ministers of Education and Cultural Affairs and the Federal Ministry of Education and Research, in which the Leibniz Institute for Research and Information in Education (DIPF) and the Leibniz Institute for Science and Mathematics Education (IPN) are involved alongside TUM.

The results of PISA 2022 in mathematics, reading and science were published in December 2023, the results in creative thinking in June 2024.

Scientific contact persons:

Prof. Dr. Samuel Greiff
Center for International Educational Comparison Studies (ZIB) at the Technical University of Munich (TUM)
Chair of Educational Monitoring and Effectiveness

Original publication:

Tamara Kastorff, Maren Müller, Clievins Selva, Samuel Greiff, Stephanie Moser: Fake news or facts? How young people assess their digital information literacy and what role schools and teachers play in this - findings from PISA 2022. Münster 2025. DOI: 10.31244/9783830999935

https://www.waxmann.com/index.php?eID=download&buchnr=4993

Further information:

PISA 2022: https://www.pisa.tum.de/pisa/pisa-2022/

The Alfred Toepfer Stiftung F.V.S. and the Claussen-Simon-Stiftung, in cooperation with the Bundesverband Hochschulkommunikation, the National Institute for Science Communication, the Volkswagen Foundation and Wissenschaft im Dialog, offer 16 to 18 young communicators the opportunity to exchange their experiences, projects and expectations in the field of science communication over the course of a whole year.

Four modules

The “WissKomm-Kolleg”, which is divided into four modules, is not only intended to provide insights into different working methods and horizons of experience, but also to enable networking and professionalization. The WissKomm-Kolleg thus also strengthens young scientists who want to promote responsible science communication and give science a lasting impact in civil society and political discourse. The annual program is aimed at young scientists from universities and research institutions as well as science journalists.

Reflecting and discussing

The program of the college includes workshops, lectures, peer learning, case studies and networking. In particular, two four-day meetings at the seminar center of the Toepfer Foundation at Gut Siggen will contribute to “intensive reflection and discussion on good science communication in various roles and the associated responsibility”, as the organizers emphasize. 

A university degree (master's, diploma or equivalent qualifications) is required to apply. The application deadline is 19 February 2025, the program starts on 29 April 2025. All further information on the WissKomm-Kolleg can be found online at www.wisskomm-kolleg.de.

Together with European partner organisations, the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) is launching the ‘Supporting at-risk researchers with fellowships in Europe’ (SAFE) programme. In cooperation with Campus France, the Collège de France and the Mediterranean Universities Union (UNIMED), the DAAD is enabling up to 60 international academics at risk to continue their research in the EU (for more information, visit https://saferesearchers.eu/). The European Commission is providing around twelve million euros for this purpose until 2027. The DAAD, which is coordinating and funding the project, is looking for experts who can help with the selection process. The decision will be made following academic reviews. The experts not only evaluate the quality of the project applications, they also assess the risk of the people at risk, reports ZEIT.

Academic freedom under pressure

‘We are seeing worldwide that academic freedom is increasingly coming under pressure. This is why protection programmes for academics under threat are becoming increasingly important in the EU,’ explains DAAD President Prof. Dr Joybrato Mukherjee. ‘With the Hilde Domin Programme, we have already established a successful programme for threatened students and doctoral candidates in Germany. It is very pleasing that we can now expand this important European pillar of protection programmes for threatened or persecuted academics together with partner organisations from France and Italy.’

European cooperation for academics under threat

According to the Academic Freedom Index, academic freedom is now severely restricted in 27 countries. This means that around 3.6 billion people worldwide live without academic freedom. The SAFE programme therefore offers scientists who are at risk in their home countries a safe framework to continue their research at European universities or research institutions. In the pilot phase, up to 60 researchers will initially be placed at universities and research institutions in the EU and funded for two years. The European Commission is supporting the project with twelve million euros until 2027.

The programme will start at the beginning of September and the first researchers are expected to be in the EU from spring 2025. European universities can nominate researchers from countries outside the EU for the programme. Individual applications from researchers to the DAAD are not possible. Non-EU citizens who are already recognised as refugees in the EU can also be nominated for the programme via a university in the EU.

DAAD protection programmes

The DAAD already offers three programmes for the protection of vulnerable students or doctoral candidates: The Hilde Domin Programme is aimed at students and doctoral candidates at risk. The ‘Leadership for Africa’ programme enables refugees from West, East and Central Africa in particular to study safely in Germany. Both programmes are funded by the Federal Foreign Office. In addition, the ‘EU Mobility Programme for Myanmar’ offers students from Myanmar in the ASEAN region the opportunity to study at a university.

Scientific contact person:

The Alfred Toepfer Foundation F.V.S. and the Claussen Simon Foundation, in cooperation with the Volkswagen Foundation, are once again inviting applications for the one-year academy programme WissKomm-Kolleg. Applications from science communicators are possible from 9 December 2024 to 19 February 2025. Find out more on the Volkswagen Foundation website:

When scientists acknowledge the limits of their knowledge, people trust them more and are more likely to follow scientific recommendations.

An international team led by the University of Pittsburgh and with the participation of the University of Vienna has investigated mechanisms of trust in science. Using surveys and online experiments, they were ultimately able to show that “intellectual modesty” plays a central role. By this, the authors of the study mean, for example, the willingness of scientists to acknowledge the limits of their own knowledge and adapt to new, potentially contradictory findings. According to the new study, this modesty increases the trustworthiness of scientists in society. The results were recently published in the renowned journal Nature Human Behavior.

What mechanisms create such trust? The international team of psychologists, including Nina Vaupotič from the University of Vienna, investigated this question.

To this end, 2,000 participants in the USA were surveyed and involved in online experiments. In a survey, the psychologists tested various characteristics in relation to trust in science and identified “intellectual modesty” as a key mechanism. Several experiments were conducted to test this thesis.

The respondents were presented with scientific texts that were formulated either with “high intellectual modesty”, “low intellectual modesty” or without any special style (control group). For “high intellectual modesty”, formulations such as “Dr. Moore is not afraid to admit when she doesn't yet know something” or “Dr. Moore changes her position when opposing evidence arises” were used. The participants then assessed the trustworthiness of the scientists in the text, whether they trust the research results and whether they would follow recommendations based on them.

“Our experiments have shown that participants who read texts that were formulated with 'high intellectual modesty' also rated the scientists and their findings as more trustworthy and were more willing to follow the scientific recommendations or search for further information on the respective topic,” explains psychologist Nina Vaupotič from the University of Vienna. “Admitting the personal knowledge limits of scientists proved to be the most effective.”

Such “modesty” had a positive effect across various scientific fields such as medicine, climate and psychology. There was also a positive effect in every case for scientists of different genders and ethnic backgrounds.