Physics on a Saturday Morning: "Marburg Through the Centuries from the Perspective of Someone Interested in Physics"

A series of events from the Department of Physics, designed for anyone interested in physics—regardless of age. Engaging, accessible, tangible, and featuring experiments.

"New beginning– Transformation – Responsibility" are key concepts from the mission statement for the university’s 500th anniversary. The development of physics in Marburg can be examined through the lens of these terms. A "departure" is exemplified by the piston steam engine, which Denis Papin invented in Marburg around 1690. A radical "transformation" in our understanding of the Earth was brought about by the continental drift hypothesis, conceived by Alfred Wegener in Marburg starting in 1912. "Responsibility" was demonstrated by Eduard Grüneisen during his tenure as institute director (1927–1947); faced with extremely difficult circumstances, he succeeded in keeping Nazi ideology out of the institute’s daily life.