Max Planck Institute for Astronomy - Annual Report 2005

The Road Ahead for the School Project
There is certainly a lot more to be done for all those
involved. The future of the project depends on a lively
exchange of views with teachers and pupils in order to
tailor our offer to the physics curricula for the senior
grades as precisely as possible. And we should extend
our offer to the grades of junior high: all teachers were
thoroughly convinced that in most cases, the interest of
young people in »hard« sciences stabilizes – or fades
– as early as at the junior high level. Therefore, it is of
great importance to make lessons interesting early on,
for instance by using examples and applications from
V.11 Hanno and Ruth Roelin Prize for Popular Science Writers
At the 2005 annual meeting of the Astronomical
Society in Cologne, the newly founded prize was awarded
for the first time. The first prizewinner is Thomas
Bührke.
Mr. and Mrs. Roelin from Essen had tried for years to
find an appropriate way to realize their idea of a foundation
when they happened to meet Jakob Staude. Wanting
to honor the work of astronomers and cosmologists and
the results of their work, the Roelins were willing to
show their appreciation by donating a considerable sum
to award scientists or science journalists who have been
particularly successful in imparting new findings in astronomy,
space research, and cosmology to the general
public. Presentations written with didactic-educational
intentions and publications of every kind (print, radio,
television, internet, etc.) were also to be admitted to the
competition.
To maintain its honorable intention – so important
for the whole astronomical community – it was necessary
to win the support of several authorities to protect
the foundation from the usual economic vagaries.
The Max Planck Society was persuaded to provide
free management of the endowment. The prize is
awarded by the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy,
Heidelberg. For this purpose, a jury is summoned
together each year, made up in part of scientists and
in part of science journalists. The presentation of
the prize takes place at the annual meeting of the
Astronomical Society, thus attracting the necessary
attention of the general public. The expenses incurred
by the work of the jury are covered by the publishing
company Spektrum der Wissenschaft. In this way,
theoretical and observational astronomical research. This
didactic transfer work cannot be accomplished by each
teacher alone. Thanks to the internet, however, it need
only be done once and in an optimum way, immediately
available to all those interested.
An important aspect of the project is the strong motivating
effect our journal has on the pupils. Teachers
benefit from this motivation sparked by the didactic materials
coordinated with the subject matters of the journal.
The didactic materials can be found under: http://www.
wissenschaft-schulen.de.
(Jakob Staude)
a sum of 3000 euros could be allocated for the first
presentation of the prize in 2005. The prize will be
awarded every two years.
The first prizewinner
When the prize was advertised in early 2005, more
than twenty applications came in. The jury agreed on
awarding the first Hanno and Ruth Roelin Prize for
Science Journalism to Thomas Bührke. After achieving
a university degree in physics, a doctorate in astronomy,
and doing active astronomical research for some
years, Bührke (48) became editor of the »Physikalische
Blätter«. Since 1990 he has been an editor of the journal
»Physik in unserer Zeit«. The main emphasis of
his work, though, is the presentation of astronomical
subjects as a freelance journalist and author. Thomas
Bührke had submitted his book »Albert Einstein« as
well as his comprehensive presentations of current
astronomical topics published in 2004/2005 in the
»Süddeutsche Zeitung«, the »Welt«, the »Berliner
Zeitung« and in »Spektrum der Wissenschaft« and
»Bild der Wissenschaft« with his application for the
Hanno and Ruth Roelin Prize.
»Albert Einstein« (dtv portrait, Munich 2004; 3 rd
edition) had already been reviewed in SuW with the following
words: »The book is a vivid biography in which
Bührke skillfully connects Einstein’s life, his scientific
thinking, and the turbulent circumstances of his time together.
Einstein’s discoveries are graphically described
and put into the context of contemporary physics. The
astronomical relations, particularly to cosmology, are
accentuated in detail. E � m c 2 remains the only formula
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