| Magdeburg, already in GDR times a renowned center for Neuroscience and re-invigorated after German reunification, is well established on the scientific map and thus is a place most suitable for this congress. On top the city of Magdeburg is of historical interest, not least because it was home to Otto the Great, first German Kaiser and to the scientist Otto von Guericke who performed his famous vacuum experiments in this town he was Mayor of during the 30-years War. Besides, numerous buildings of Romanesque architecture in this area give remarkable testimony to the Ottonean period around the turn of the last millenium. |  |
Detailed information on Magdeburg
1200-year old Cathedral City on the Elbe River
The former imperial city and today's capital of the federal state of Saxony-Anhalt
fascinates its visitors and guests with its almost 1200 years of history.
In its varied past Magdeburg experienced alternating times of heavy destruction
and prosperity which today shape the cityscape. Surviving architectural
monuments from all stylistic periods remind us of the city's former splendour
and wealth.
Not without reason a part of the Romanesque Road ("Straße der Romanik")
runs through Magdeburg. Besides the Romanesque monastery "Kloster Unser
Lieben Frauen" and different churches of that time, it is mainly
Magdeburg's cathedral - the city's landmark - which shapes the historical
cityscape.
Magdeburg has a lot to offer! Visitors looking for peace and quietness will find
a green city with numerous parks, a zoo and the wonderful exotic Gruson
greenhouses offering a lot of space to relax and dream. With the Elbe River and
its unique scenic floodplains the surrounding countryside is also a must for
every nature lover.
Tours
You can visit the oldest building of the city, the Monastery of Our Lady ("Kloster Unser Lieben Frauen"), or the cathedral, which is the oldest Gothic ecclesiastical building on German speaking soil. But you also can find remains of former fortifications. Furthermore, Magdeburg has a number of Baroque building lining the streets. "New Life, New Constructions" - the motto of the twenties - reflects the spirit of the architect Bruno Taut, whose style gave Magdeburg a colourful and striking townscape supported by the mayor Hermann Beims.
Famous persons who contributed to the glamour of the city on the Elbe generally are honoured by its inhabitants in a special way. So for example the Otto-von-Guericke-Universität and the Otto-von-Guericke-Gesellschaft successfully maintain and care for the inheritance of their namesake, the former physicist and mayor. In the "Lukasklause" they dedicate a permanent exhibition to the inventor of the vacuum pump - known as the Magdeburger Hemisphere Experiment.
The famous composer Georg Philipp Telemann, also born in Magdeburg, is honoured with monthly concerts in the concert hall named after him and situated in the Monastery of Our Lady ("Kloster Unser Lieben Frauen"). Every other year international artists meet here to perform at the Telemann Festival. Unforgotten is also the influence of the reformer Martin Luther, whose sermon in the St. John's Church in 1524 made eight churches of the town confess themselves to Protestantism.
Otto
von Guericke - a unviersal genius
In 2002, Magdeburg commemorates the 400th birthday of Otto von Guericke (1602 -
1686). Guericke, inventor of the air pump, is renowned for his world-famous
Magdeburg experiments such as the famous hemisphere experiment. The capital of
Saxony-Anhalt pays tribute to its greatest Lord Mayor with a special Guericke-Year
in 2002.
Guericke, Councillor and Lord Mayor of Magdeburg
Otto von Guericke, holder of a degree in law, dedicated his whole life and
research to his native town, Magdeburg, where he was born in 1602 and buried in
1686. From 1662 to 1678 Guericke was a member of the city council and he made a
name for himself as architect, engineer, treasurer, scholar and apothecary.
Active for more than 30 years as Lord Mayor, he deserves a special mention as
one of the four Lord Mayors of Magdeburg (1646 - 1676). Apart from his political
work, Guericke dedicated much of his time to intensive research in the field of
natural sciences.
Guericke, Architect of a Fortress
While he was a member of the city council of Magdeburg, Guericke also was
appointed as city architect. It was a position which was of great importance
during the Thirty Year War, as the city was considered one of the most important
strongholds along the river Elbe. From a strategic point of view, the fall and
destruction of Magdeburg had a strong influence on the war raging in Middle
Germany. In 1632, Guericke drew a map to scale for the reconstruction of the old
city centre of Magdeburg which included all the fortresses and buildings. The
map can still be admired today.
Guericke, European Diplomat
The fall of the old city of Magdeburg in 1631 also lead to the most important
city in Middle Germany losing its power. The city council put much effort in
diplomatic missions in order to regain lost or non-enforceable privileges. In
1642, Otto von Guericke became the most important political representative of
Magdeburg during the peace negotiations held in Münster and Osnabrück between
1643 and 1649, at the execution day of Nuremberg in 1649 and at the Imperial
Diet in Regensburg (1653/54). Even though he was not able to enforce Magdeburg's
claims for municipal autonomy, he succeeded in negotiating substantial
privileges at that time.
Guericke, Founder of Experimental Physics in Germany
Otto von Guericke became interested in the so-called new sciences while he was
studying at the University of Leiden. During his engineering studies in the old
city of Magdeburg, he began successfully implementing those sciences. Von
Guericke was the first German scientist to attach great importance to
experiments in connection with his research work which begun after 1645 in the
area of natural sciences. That is why all his experiments were published under
the name of "Magdeburger Experiments". Apart from the invention of the
air pump around 1650, the hemisphere experiment is his most important scientific
legacy to the world.
Guericke, Inventor of the Air Pump
After the invention of the air pump, the respective outlets and hollow spheres,
von Guericke was credited with being the founder of the vacuum technology. He
demonstrated that a vacuum could be created by pumping the air out of a closed
sphere of any size. After 1650, the engineer designed the first air pump. After
substantial improvements had been undertaken in terms of mechanics and quality,
three more types of pumps were to follow. At the Imperial Diet in Regensburg,
von Guericke performed the vacuum experiments for the first time in public.
Moreover, he invented a special method to determine barometric pressure. This
method is not only considered one of the most important physical experiments,
but it also served as a sound basis to improve vacuum technology for many
scientists to come.
Guericke and his "Magdeburger Experiments"
In 1656, Otto von Guericke began performing his "Old an New Magdeburger
Experiments" with a vacuum pump, which were described in detail in Gaspar
Schott's "Mechanica hydraulico pneumatica" in 1657 and "Technica
curiosa" in 1664. The scripts include, among others, the Magdeburg
experiments with small and large hemispheres, the Magdeburger thermometer and
the "Magdeburger Wettermännchen" (little weatherman).
Guericke and the Sulphur Globe / First Electrostatic Generator in the World
(1660)
Otto von Guericke was also interested in learning more about the phenomenon of
electricity. After having carried out experiments with a sulphur globe, he
invented the first electrostatic generator in 1660. He observed the phenomena we
know today as electrical attraction and repulsion. Moreover, he was the first
scientist to describe an electric Charge and has been considered the father of
static electricity ever since.
Guericke and the Beginning of Weather Forecasts
Otto von Guericke also made a name for himself with his contribution to the
beginning of weather forecasts. He designed, for example, a closed barometer
with a length of two metres, filled with water and used it in 1660 to make
barometric forecasts of the weather. Von Guericke was able to observe the
changes of atmospheric pressure with his barometer. He employed various
thermometers to measure the changes of air temperature and used his observations
to forecast the weather. The invented barometer was called the "Magdeburger
Wettermännchen" (little weatherman)