Editorial Dear Friends of »Matters of Activity«,

It has been a busy first month of 2020 with lots of events, lectures and presentations. During the 1st Cluster Day the projects defined what's ahead in 2020 and we are very much looking forward to it. In this issue, you will find some information on past and future conferences and workshops, calls as well as job offers at the Management Office.

Happy reading,
Your Science Communication Team
Antje Nestler, Eva Schmidt and Franziska Wegener

Cutting On February 3rd the → Cutting project team went to visit the Studio 7.5 in Charlottenburg (Berlin). → Carola Zwick and Burkhart Schmitz told them about the birth of their studio, the development of their signature chairs, the relationship that they have built with the leading furniture company Herman Miller, and the role of materiality and prototype building in their creative process.

Follow the ↗ link to read the whole ethnographic story.

Event | Symbolic Material | Weaving The symposium took the ongoing revolution in the understanding of matter in the natural sciences and the question of activity as its starting point, but focused on the answers of the humanities. The event on February 7th was jointly organised by the projects »Symbolic Material« and »Weaving«. A summary of the symposium, written by Michael Friedman and Karin Krauthausen, is available in German. → more

Fariba Noorizadeh

Fariba Noorizadeh Vahed Dehkordi has been a PhD Candidate in the project → Weaving since February 2020.

She received her B.Sc. from Shahrekord University and her M.Sc. in Computer Science from the Institute for Advanced Studies in Basic Sciences, Zanjan, Iran.

Fariba has experiences of research in Algorithm, Computational Geometry, Motion Planning, Graph Theory and some applications in Wireless Sensor Network. Her MSc thesis is on Minimum Constraint Removal, the minimum number of obstacles that should be removed to have a collision free path between two points.

In her PhD Thesis she is working on how to analyze different types of weaving structures in space. → more

Event Dr. Orly Lewis is a Research Fellow at The Martin Buber Society of Fellows in the Humanities and Social Sciences at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem. She gave a talk at the Cluster on Febuary 19th, 10:00 am, about the relation between scientific (anatomical) phenomena and textual and visual depictions of the phenomena, in particular: the methods and challenges in designing and recreating 2D and 3D visualisations of Greco-Roman anatomical ideas based on the ancient textual descriptions. → more

Call Postdoctoral Candidates and Junior Professors with limited-term contracts at an early stage of their academic careers as well as holders of comparable qualification professorships are eligible to apply. Click ↗ here to find out more about the call. Draft proposals must be submitted in English via email by February 19th. Further information on the DFG’s strategic funding initiative in the field of artificial intelligence and the call for research and junior research groups can be found ↗ here.

Event | For Members The aim of this workshop was to share techniques and tools to overcome the obstacles that occur in academic writing, and in particular that of the dissertation. It allowed early-career-stage researchers to initiate an investigation into the journey of text making, and toward a sustainable balance that will contribute to a good quality of life and a high quality of writing. As a follow-up, »Shut Up and Write« sessions as well as thematic trainings will be offered within the Cluster. → more

News As part of the Excellence Strategy, the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin once again awards »Humboldt Research Track Scholarships«.

The six-months scholarship aims at outstanding Master's students as well as graduates who plan to pursue a doctorate and helps recipients to prepare for their doctoral thesis. It provides a funding of 800€ per month. To enable more prospective Doctoral Candidates with disabilities or chronic illnesses to prepare for a doctorate, applications from this target group will be given particular consideration.

The current application period runs until February 29th, 2020 for funding starting May 1st, 2020. For more information on bridging funds, please visit the following website of the ↗ Humboldt Research Track Scholarship.

Event The registration for the 3DMM2O Conference 2020 (March 29th – April 2nd, 2020, Schöntal Monastery) is open until February 29th, 2020. Take part in the first iteration of the annual conference on topics surrounding 3D Additive Manufacturing organized by the Cluster of Excellence »3D Matter Made to Order« (3DMM2O). Renowned international speakers will present their research on 3D bioprinting, tissue engineering, neuronal organoids, development and physiology of the retina.

Register and send in your abstract now: www.future3DAM.org.

Event ↗ Soapbox Science is a novel public outreach platform for promoting female scientists and the science they do. Their events transform public areas into an arena for public learning and scientific debate. Soapbox Science will come to Berlin on June 27th, 2020 and registration is now open. Apply ↗ here until March 2nd to speak at Soapbox Science 2020.

News | Cutting | Publication Machine learning classification of 90 patients reveals distinct reorganization pattern in aphasic patients. Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation allows to non-invasively and transiently disrupt local neuronal functioning. Its potential for mapping of language function is currently explored. → more

job The EXC »Matters of Activity« is looking for a Research Assistant from the field of Cultural History and Theory to support the project Material Form Function and the Deputy Director Prof. Dr. Claudia Mareis → more

job The Management Office of the Cluster is looking for an employee in the administration as a language assistant. → more