Digital media – a threat to democracy?

An AI-generated image of a cell phone on fire.

News

Digital media – a threat to democracy? The evidence is piling up

April 10, 2025

New replication study examines the influence of digital media on democracy

Microscopic view displaying blue-stained nuclei and yellow cellular formations within a dense tissue network.

Alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency: What protects the one – and not the other?

April 16, 2025

Artificial Intelligence Proteins

Researchers have used spatial Deep Visual Proteomics workflow to reveal why some patients with the hereditary disease remain healthy

Bonobos react negatively to inequity

April 16, 2025

Behavioral Biology

Bonobos refuse to participate when faced with unequal rewards, reinforcing the highly contentious debate about inequity aversion in animals

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Career

Full indoor shot of a large, dark-red robotic arm and a dark-red, dome-shaped object suspended from it, along with two people standing in the foreground. The arm is large and complex, with many dark-colored, flexible components and a dark-grey base. Steps and caution tape are visible on the floor around the base of the robotic arm. A dark-red, rounded object resembles a large head or helmet, suspended from the robotic arm, hanging over the scene. The material is smooth and appears to be some kind of composite. Two individuals are centrally positioned in front of the robotic apparatus. A man and a woman stand side-by-side, smiling, looking at the camera. Both wear casual clothing: the man wears a maroon-colored t-shirt and dark-colored pants, while the woman is wearing a teal-green sweater and dark-wash jeans. The background is mostly dark grey walls and a dark-grey floor surface. The walls appear to be made of brick-like or panelled material. The overall impression is of a technological or manufacturing environment, potentially a research lab or design studio. The image highlights a sophisticated piece of industrial machinery alongside human operators.

Innovative training programmes for Phd students

Talented German and foreign junior scientists are offered the opportunity to earn a doctorate under excellent research conditions

Max Planck Postdoc Program

The new Max Planck Postdoc Program offers top emerging talents a range of attractive measures and opportunities

Guest Residencies for Journalists (m/f/d) | Focus on the History, Philosophy, and Sociology of Science (2026)

Max Planck Institute for the History of Science, Berlin

April 17, 2025

Coordinator (m/f/d)

Max Planck Institute of Biochemistry, Martinsried, Munich

April 15, 2025

HPC Systems Engineer (m/f/d)

Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems, Tübingen site, Tübingen

April 15, 2025

to the JobBoard

Career

Topic Specials

Climate and transformation

In addition to climate forecasts, the consequences of climate change are increasingly becoming the focus of research at Max Planck Institutes

The brain

The human brain is the most complex organ that nature has ever produced: 100 billion nerve cells and many times more contact points give it capabilities that no supercomputer can match

Migration

The causes and consequences of human mobility and its history are central topics for research at Max Planck Institutes

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Cluster cosmology and mass calibration in KiDS-1000: methods for current and upcoming surveys

Apr 1, 2025 from 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM (Local Time Germany)

Towards more sustainable uses of rare earth elements - from an inorganic and biological perspective

Apr 1, 2025 from 04:00 PM to 05:00 PM (Local Time Germany)

ESG Intermediaries and Corporate Sustainability Convergence

Apr 8, 2025 from 05:00 PM to 06:15 PM (Local Time Germany)

Corals as a dumping ground? What research says about the threat of microplastics?

Apr 10, 2025 from 05:00 PM to 08:00 PM (Local Time Germany)

Consuming Modernism: Erich Mendelsohn, House Beautiful, and the Museum of Modern Art

Apr 14, 2025 from 06:00 PM to 07:30 PM (Local Time Germany)

Public event, registration open until April 13

National Security Law, Authoritarian Legacy, and Constitutional Courts

Apr 23, 2025 from 11:00 AM to 12:30 PM (Local Time Germany)

Political economy

Apr 25, 2025 from 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM (Local Time Germany)

Upcoming Events

National Security Law, Authoritarian Legacy, and Constitutional Courts

Apr 23, 2025 11:00 AM - 12:30 PM (Local Time Germany)

Political economy

Apr 25, 2025 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM (Local Time Germany)

Potsdam Science Day 2025

May 10, 2025 01:00 PM - 07:00 PM (Local Time Germany)

Potsdam Science Park

All Events

Publications

Evaluation - The procedures of the Max Planck Society

MaxPlanckResearch 4/2024: Focus: Do I have a choice?

Annual Report 2023 of the Max Planck Society

From the Institutes

MPI of Biophysics

April 17, 2025 Necroptosis Regulation: Balancing Life and Death more

MPI for Human Development

April 17, 2025 Verbal fluency in old age is an indicator of higher life expectancy more

MPI of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics

April 16, 2025 Metabolism shapes life more

MPI for Evolutionary Biology

April 14, 2025 Players Can Succeed with Less Memory in Game Settings more

Multimedia

Optogenetics | briefly explained

Video

Turning nerve cells on and off using pulses of light. Optogenetics is a relatively new field that uses light to control genetically modified cells. It is based on light-activated membrane proteins, such as bacteriorhodopsin or channelrhodopsin, that are built into nerve cells.

Unraveling Behavior

Podcast

A science podcast about the patterns driving human judgment and decision making. In each episode, Ana Sofia Morais sits down with a researcher to explore how people make decisions, how they handle risk, and how our surroundings and the online world shape our behavior.

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