ROOTS speaker Johannes Müller welcomes the new ROOTS PhD students. Photo: Jan Steffen, Cluster ROOTS

From the Neolithic through the Roman Empire to the early Middle Ages, from the spread of early metalworking technologies to ancient economic thinking and diplomacy in times past—the new doctoral students of the Cluster of Excellence ROOTS are dealing with a broad range of topics. A total of eleven students are starting their academic work in the Kiel research network this late summer. During a special introductory workshop, the first ones were already able to present their projects and receive information about the goals and organisation of the Cluster of Excellence.

At the beginning of the introductory workshop, ROOTS speaker Johannes Müller welcomed the new colleagues and emphasised the advantages of Kiel as a research hub: "From a German point of view, it may not always seem so, but Kiel is located in the centre of Europe. Even beyond the ROOTS core topics, several disciplines are represented at a very high level at the Kiel University. This promotes scientific exchange and helps to discover new perspectives for our research questions". In the further course, representatives of the six ROOTS subclusters and the ROOTS platforms presented their respective units.

Work on the PhD theses is essentially supervised by the ROOTS PIs, who also work together on an interdisciplinary basis. State-of-the-art laboratories for archaeobotanical or isotope chemical analysis, for example, are available, as well as rooms in which finds can be laid out.

The Young Academy of the Cluster of Excellence augments the supervision work with further activities. For example, beyond their actual theses, the new PhD students will be involved in an overarching publication on ROOTS topics, being responsible for all steps from planning the topic to editing and making arrangements with the printers. "Publications are part of the tools of the trade in science. That's why it makes sense to get to know the entire process," Dr Tim Kerig, spokesperson of the Young Academy, said.

In addition, the Young Academy offers further training for the young scientists that provides additional skills for a career within, but also outside of, academia.

The new doctoral students form the second cohort within the Cluster of Excellence, which has been funded by the German Research Foundation at Kiel University since the beginning of 2019.

https://www.cluster-roots.uni-kiel.de/en/about_roots/young-academy

Tim Kerig, speaker of the ROOTS Young Academy, presents additional training offers for PhD students within ROOTS. Photo: Jan Steffen, Cluster ROOTS

The PhD representatives Benjamin Claaßen and Benjamin Serbe welcome the new colleagues. Photo: Jan Steffen, Cluster ROOTS

A Venue with tradition: The "Kunsthalle zu Kiel" with Antiquities Collection of Kiel University. Photo: Jan Steffen, Cluster ROOTS

New ROOTS PhD candidates in September 2022 (from left to right): Laurenz Hillmann, Darja Jonjic, Gianluca Ricci, Fiona Walker-Friedrichs, Sarah Bockmeyer, Anna-Theres Andersen, Stefania Fiori, Henriette Brandt. In the background online: Anastasiia Kurgaeva, Florian Schwake.