
Anthropologist from Mainz becomes a Ghanaian chief
It was the first time that the title of "maalu naa" had been awarded in Nandom, in Ghana’s Upper West Region – and it was bestowed on Professor Carola Lentz from the Department of Anthropology and African Studies at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU). The title makes her a kind of chief, or, to be more precise, a "development chief" of a district that encompasses some 100 settlements with around 50,000 inhabitants.

Overcoming barriers in order to scrutinize limits
The new research training group 'Life Sciences, Life Writing: Extreme Experiences of Human Life between Biomedical Explanations and Life Experiences" attempts to bridge the gap between the natural-medical sciences and the humanities. The German Research Foundation is providing almost EUR 2 million to support this unusual project at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU).

Pharmacy in role-play
The training pharmacy at the Institute of Pharmacy and Biochemistry at Mainz University gives students the opportunity to practice dealing with customers. It’s all about practical application. The aspiring pharmacists learn what it will be like later in their professional lives.

Hunting neutrinos in the Antarctic
Over the past three years, the IceCube neutrino observatory at the South Pole has managed to detect extreme high energy neutrinos originating from the depths of the universe. Even experts doubted for a long time whether the idea would work, but reports of success came in 2013. Professor Lutz Köpke of the Institute of Physics at Mainz University and his work group are involved in the international research project.

The world of Turkic peoples epitomized in books held in Mainz
There is almost no other university that can boast such a treasure: The library for Turkic Studies of the Department of Oriental Studies at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) has an enormous variety of works covering the languages and cultures of the Turkic peoples; some 50,000 volumes are available. Junior Professor László Károly knows it well. He guides through the labyrinth of bookcases to where some remarkable volumes are kept.

When the life awakener was used to fight arthritis
There is a small but fine collection of various historical medical objects in the library of the Institute of History, Philosophy, and Ethics of Medicine of the Mainz University Medical Center. Professor Norbert W. Paul knows his way around here. The Director of the Institute tells some of the stories that lie behind the exhibits.

Cattle, milk, and Europeans
With their ar ticle on "The milk Revolution," Professor Joachim Burger and his work group at the Institute of Anthropology at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) managed to catapult themselves into the media headlines. But milk in fact only represents an incidental aspect of their research. Their real concern is the history of the settlement of Europe.

Library without books
Research publications should be freely accessible online – this is the idea behind the 'open access' concept. The university library at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) has been an active supporter of this trend for years. Library director Dr. Andreas Brandtner explains where things are headed.

A journey through 470 million years of plant history
There is hardly any other place at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) that is as inviting to relax or take a stroll as the Botanic Garden. However, it is much more than simply a recreational facility. The garden is a place of research and teaching while it also provides a storehouse of rare plants, which is the largest of all the collections present on campus.