Research News
A New ELBE in Dresden
Laser particle acceleration at the ELBE - Zentrum für Hochleistungs-Strahlenquellen (Centre for High Performance Radiation Sources) at the HZDR: in this chamber, the light beam of the high performance laser hits the electron beam of the ELBE accelerator. The aim is to generate brilliant X-ray radiation. Photo: HZDR/Frank BierstedtOn 28 February, Saxony's Minister-President Stanislaw Tillich and Dr Peter Michel, Head of Radiation Source ELBE at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR), launched the new ELBE with a joint push of the button. Yet in contrast to its namesake, the river, ELBE does not move water but electrons: it is a so-called "Electron Linear Accelerator for beams with high Brilliance and low Emittance". The acronym ELBE now denotes also the high performance radiation source centre at the HZDR. After...more
Fracking: Good or Bad?
Using hydraulic fracturing or fracking, for short, the USA extract natural gas contained in claystone (shale gas) and thus were able to significantly decrease the price of gas. In Germany, fracking has sparked an intensive and, in part, highly emotional debate. How dangerous is fracking really? Prof. Dietrich Borchardt from the Helmholtz Centre...more
Interdisciplinary Genome Research
In order to arrive at scientific insights, researchers have to delve deeply into their respective areas of expertise. Equally exiting is also the investigation of hitherto unexplored fields on the margins between well-established scientific disciplines. Using such an interdisciplinary approach, the working group of Leibniz Prize awardee Prof....more
Brain Research: EU vs US
Both aim at an improved understanding of the brain in its entirety: the European "Human Brain Project" and the planned US-American "Brain Activity Map" project. Our overview illustrates how both approaches very well augment each other.
Purpose
Human Brain Project
Detailed simulation of the human brain with all its component...more
