A physicist in Portugal emailed me about this Deutsche Welle News report: "German top research institution 'Max Planck Society' accused of abuse and institutional silence" by Deutsche Welle News.
"by speaking out he hopes he can improve things for others." says this report about a computational physicist. Compare with my torture because I wrote that email: HTTP://Forum.Bolseiros.org/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=1132 about that still unanswered letter: HTTP://Gloucester.Insomnia247.NL/Evil_Slandering_Arseholes/parasite_Paolo_Donzelli_demanded_time_travel.pdf about that unworthy pretender: HTTP://Gloucester.Insomnia247.NL/Ariane-501-explosion_waste_of_taxes/Portugal_protects_deliberate_ineptness_which_destroyed_years_of_work.HTM
"This is a small world [. . .] all the lying" says Dr. Daniel Leising via this Deutsche Welle News report. Compare with the multiple warnings by the first lawyer whom I paid who warns me that the scientific World is a small world such that she expects all witnesses except myself to lie to protect themselves from my former PhD so-called tutor. So Physicist Dr. John Alexander Hewitt said to me that he is sorry that "I agree with your lawyer."
THE NAVIGATOR TRILOGY
BOOK THREE
THE CUCKOO PARADOX
DISCOVER WHY MIGRANT BIRDS CANNOT USE COMPASSES TO NAVIGAT
by Ted Gerrard is a good book about scientific fraudster Professor Dr.
Peter Berthold (
HTTPS://de.Wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_Berthold
).
“A few of you may recall the ridiculous excuses put forward by John Maddox on Scifraud (5th Oct 1995) following accusations of unethical behaviour as Editor of NATURE by [. . .] and myself.
Subsequently as a direct result of Maddox's dishonesty I was wrongfully accused of defaming a Max Plank director and placed under house arrest in Portugal for over 5 years whilst awaiting the outcome of 3 consecutive court cases. I was acquitted [. . .] and then re-charged and acquitted [. . .]. I announced this result on Scifraud and repeated my accusations (11th August 1999) and once again provided proof that the MPI director had knowingly published false data in a NATURE article; and of Maddox's connivance. I was promptly re-arrested and re-charged but again acquitted [. . .]
I shall not be attending the funeral of Sir John Maddox F.R.S (hon).” says Ted Gerrard since 15/04/2009.
Ted Gerrard had warned myself to stay away from Portugal before Portugal has tortured me in 2013 by court order granting immunities from prosecutions to the persons who tortured me.
"German top research institution 'Max Planck Society' accused of abuse and institutional silence" by Deutsche Welle News. showed 5900 thumbs up and 927 comments. . .
A comment which this webpage quotes alleges:
"Also recording secretly is illegal in Germany even if it's for your safety, so it is impossible to get good proof in many instances..."
Contrast with: “UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS
[…]
Article 10
Everyone is entitled in full equality to a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal, in the determination of his rights and obligations and of any criminal charge against him.
Article 11
1. Everyone charged with a penal offence has the right to be presumed innocent until proved guilty according to law in a public trial at which he has had all the guarantees necessary for his defence.
2. No one shall be held guilty of any penal offence on account of any act or omission which did not constitute a penal offence, under national or international law, at the time when it was committed. Nor shall a heavier penalty be imposed than the one that was applicable at the time the penal offence was committed.
[…]
Article 19
Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.”(UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS, 1948)
Cf.:
“Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms
Rome, 4.XI.1950
[…]
ARTICLE 6
Right to a fair trial
1. In the determination of his civil rights and obligations or of any criminal charge against him, everyone is entitled to a fair and public hearing within a reasonable time by an independent and impartial tribunal established by law. […]
[…]
ARTICLE 10
Freedom of expression
1. Everyone has the right to freedom of expression. This right shall include freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart information and ideas without interference by public authority and regardless of frontiers.”(Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, 1950)
Cf.:
“26.10.2012 | EN | Official Journal of the European Union | C 326/391
CHARTER OF FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS OF THE EUROPEAN UNION
2012/C 326/02
[…]
Article 11
Freedom of expression and information
1. Everyone has the right to freedom of expression. This right shall include freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart information and ideas without interference by public authority and regardless of frontiers.
2. The freedom and pluralism of the media shall be respected.
[…]
Article 47
Right to an effective remedy and to a fair trial
Everyone whose rights and freedoms guaranteed by the law of the Union are violated has the right to an effective remedy before a tribunal in compliance with the conditions laid down in this Article.
Everyone is entitled to a fair and public hearing within a reasonable time by an independent and impartial tribunal previously established by law. Everyone shall have the possibility of being advised, defended and represented.”(CHARTER OF FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, 2012)
Cf. HTTP://Gloucester.Insomnia247.NL/drochdhliodoiri/mun/Phortagail/Sandra_Roxo/taifead_dlithiuil.2017-06-29.htm and HTTP://Gloucester.Insomnia247.NL/drochdhliodoiri/mun/Phortagail/Sandra_Roxo/without_Truth_there_is_no_Justice/
Less than 1% of these YouTube comments that I read are bad. Such bad comments seem to be by non-scientists who do not appreciate how difficult scientific works are and how many years it takes to produce a single indicator of scientific productivity when slagging off Dr. Computational Physicist Gabriel Lando. Furthermore these abusive YouTubers do not appreciate that almost any interesting computation is intractable.
Dr. Gabriel Lando departed from the Max-Planck-Institut für Physik komplexer Systeme: Dresden, Sachsen in 2021 but this does not mean that he did not work there in the first year he used to be there. Bear in mind that he did his work for Tobias Heldt, Jonathan Dubois, Paul Birk, Gergana D. Borisova, Gabriel M. Lando, Christian Ott, and Thomas Pfeifer, "Attosecond Real-Time Observation of Recolliding Electron Trajectories in Helium at Low Laser Intensities", PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS 130, 183201 (2023) in his first (and second) (i.e. 2020 and 2021) year there, but the Max-Planck-Institut für Physik komplexer Systeme: Dresden, Sachsen did not bother to submit this work to this journal until a year after he departed! Cf. "(Received 30 September 2022; revised 20 February 2023; accepted 16 March 2023; published 5 May 2023)" says Tobias Heldt, Jonathan Dubois, Paul Birk, Gergana D. Borisova, Gabriel M. Lando, Christian Ott, and Thomas Pfeifer, "Attosecond Real-Time Observation of Recolliding Electron Trajectories in Helium at Low Laser Intensities", PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS 130, 183201 (2023)!
@a.allenharvey9005
4 hours ago
I was told once by a senior citizen that there are advantages and disadvantages of being in Germany and a foreigner can surmount the negative aspects only through hard working, diligent being and moral values and supporting others at sheer will. I mean this is common sense and almost works everywhere in life. However, the summary of today's Germany makes me disconnect from this belief. When it comes to bureaucracy, schooling, admission to different things in the country, they portray such an utopia as if when you pass their exams and processes, adapt yourself and become a naturalized & culturally neutral person; you will be a model human being setting example to the rest of the world.
In reality, you can find questioning yourself for the choices you have made in life once you witness in some situation how uncivilized, immoral, and wild behaviors they exhibit against those that were not born there or that were born there but not from "them" originally. There is always some "Us versus them" attitude.
I do not know what causes this much hate and fear to accumulate in them and reflect all of that on innocent people that have nothing to do with those.
My comments may seem subjective but unfortunately the amount of people experiencing these have skyrocketed and no longer considered minority/exceptional/sided group of individuals.
The scaring part is, people are proud of all this and find nothing wrong about it. The only response you can receive from even the most educated and mature over the average age person is "If you don't like it why don't you leave fhen, jaa?"
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@Abigail-nc6in
4 hours ago
I'm 100% with you!! Thank you.
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@MichaelRainboy
5 hours ago
Wow! I am so very much surprised! I cannot believe this could happen in such a sophisticated scientific institution! Like it hasn't been known to be happening for centuries!!! Wow!!
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@CloverMind
41 minutes ago
Is there a reaction/response video from Dr. Sabine Hossenfelder yet.
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@Killer_Kovacs
2 hours ago
You guys make it sound like rape.
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@Amir_arash6384
3 hours ago
In comparison with other research centers in different countries they are paradise despite these complains, there are countries with a least attention to novelty!!
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@Abigail-nc6in
6 minutes ago
First off, thank you so much to everyone who spoke about their experiences of discrimination, bullying and silencing. I really hope that there will be some consequences for this and that we will start seeing changes in German academia. I am doubtful but I can hope. My experiences are quite similar. I have worked as a lecturer at 4 renowned German universities and have little but bullying, back-stabbing and silencing to show for it. Unfortunately my experiences working as a teacher in German schools proved no better. Please excuse me for mentioning this here, but last year I wrote a book aimed at foreigners and expats in Germany which outlines what I've experienced and goes some way to describe the German mentality. It's called "Swallow the Toad: from Britain to Germany". I see this as solidarity with all those who have suffered here, and a tool which may prove useful to those who wish to move here. It wasn't easy writing, but necessary as I too was sick of suffering in silence.
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@vitorflavio3641
13 minutes ago
I drove an aquintance to the airport , who left germany also because of that.
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@SkyaRuna
12 minutes ago
Well, many problems in academia are not reported because many PhD students are being gaslighted into thinking this is normal and it’s futile to even try changing the status quo.
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@Sebasimionatto
38 minutes ago
In my place is the same.
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@greatcesari
3 hours ago
I began a master program in Potsdam, Germany. My professor was so narcissistic, abusive and toxic that I had to quit. Unfortunately, for non German citizens whose Visas are tied to the program, they have to continue to put up with this. I was shocked to find out that there’s no proper complaint system and that professors have unlimited power as long as they don’t commit any crimes. Academia is broken
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@Abigail-nc6in
45 minutes ago
It is. I'm sorry to hear about your experiences. I hope you have since found something rewading.
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@ramr7051
6 minutes ago
Last comment: i admire Gabriels Courage. Thank you.
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@ramr7051
7 minutes ago
Thanks again for reporting on this. Hopefully there'll be some improvements.
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@ramr7051
8 minutes ago
Thank you for reporting this, DW. academia is sadly full of abuse, as if it were a different world, a different time.
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@nahidtaheri2271
11 minutes ago
I was a phd student at Max Plank of Psychiatry, and LMU, I experienced sexual harassment, power abuse, and plagiarism. Authorities kept distance from me after speaking up , I am now struggling with submission of my thesis because of the obstacles in paperworks, and I faced serious financial problems although I was a Marie Curie Fellow. My research can help many patients for early diagnosis and it can be published in a top rank journal but I don’t get support for submitting
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@summumbonum1619
16 minutes ago
It’s so gross the situation in Germany. My son wants to go to this gymnasium in trier Marx plank next year.. they said they are full… should I be glad? I am Mexican
@Rajivkumariitkgp
2 hours ago
The problem lies with the Fund, which is only available for three years. Consequently, the PI would check the new employee, and then the abuse began.
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@UnderTheSummerSun
4 hours ago
I started my career as a PhD student not in Germany but in Austria. Very quickly I noticed that working in academia meant 80% politics and 20% research. People were fighting to get a permanent position but those are reserved for favorite ones and mostly for locals. So the others were forced to move to another university, city, country at the end of the 3 years contract. After I finished my PhD I was lucky enough to get into industry and I never looked back ever since. My advice to everyone is, don’t waste your time in academia.
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@andreselectrico
7 hours ago
It's not only at Max Plank, it pervades the entire German academia. And this is how this country bleeds knowledge and qualified workers.
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@Abigail-nc6in
12 hours ago
Thank you so much for saying this. It is exactly what I have experienced working at 3 prestigious german universities and in German schools.
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@luisluiscunha
8 hours ago (edited)
Truth always comes to the top. Brave Gabriel.
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@ivonekowalczyk5823
10 hours ago
All funding should be suspended pending investigations. Stop giving the Institute money until you can root out the problem. People have this funny way of suddenly paying attention when their money is at stake.
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@fabio.1
10 hours ago (edited)
I hope it's an isolated issue and the institute deals with it properly. My other comment here was removed for no reason.
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@HR-yd5ib
11 hours ago (edited)
Worked at a MPI near Munich and did the PhD at a MPI in Berlin ... there was not more or less misconduct than at any larger institution or company. Absurd to single out the MPG. This is life. If you don't get along with your boss you will have a problem and likely to leave as in any other job.
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@sardicsaba9010
11 hours ago
Boycott Germany!!!
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@lifephilic
vor 2 Minuten
It is everywhere in India.
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@jacquespictet5363
vor 23 Minuten
Nothing surprising here. Like any institution, competition - natural or pushed byond that - is the norm, and some people are ready to do what it takes to win it. Better to look at it like feudal entities.
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@mayarosana_md
vor 1 Stunde
It’s not surprising to hear
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@abdurrezzakefe5308
vor 1 Stunde
I have two close friends who went to msc.'s under two of the mentined unis in the video in Germany and their social life is gone. They are depressed, fed up but cannot talk about it. I hope we can somehow solve this dark side of academia because if we cannot, there is no hope for scientific progress at the hand of good people.
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@MindBody9339Soul
vor 2 Stunden
that's life in academia unfortunately, I left my PhD program because I found myself in a lab like that. There are no actual protection from toxic, fraudulent, and threatening research group, you just have to keep quiet else you'll be pushed out of academia because it's always regarded as the student fault.
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@EvgenyTalantsev
vor 3 Stunden
Not only for Germany.
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@Solscapes.
vor 3 Stunden
This kind of stuff is why I don't believe in the Plank Length. That and the assumptions with a complete lack of evidence.
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@akashbala5123
vor 6 Stunden
They always blame developing and 3rd world countries,,,now look ,,who are the monsters!!!
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@vinaychandratre4188
vor 13 Stunden
It rampant in most of research institute in Germany. But Germans on the street are wonderful people.
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@kamartaylor2902
vor 13 Stunden
So his boss wanted him to work harder?? 😢
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@steveking7719
vor 15 Stunden
Everybody thinks the science research community is all chatty and happy.... not so. There are huge egos so large it unbelievable ... where I've seen two PhD's who had disagreement literally yelling at each other in a conference room. More than once. It's not all bonding and happiness.
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@John-ol5vk
vor 16 Stunden
The Scientific Community has gotten worse over the years!! I am sure that Elite Scientists like Max Planck, Albert Einstein, and many others would be very disappointed at the direction that Scientific Research is heading! This is probably why Scientific Discoveries have grown stagnant over the years!! Something needs to be changed soon!!
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@Olukser
vor 18 Stunden
that's so sad
you can even study psychology there an learn how bad it is 😅
it's almost a joke
people know it's wrong but since everyone ia doing it, they'll just keep at it
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@MauroRincon
vor 19 Stunden
Interesting. The problem goes both ways, though (yes, I understand the mismatch of power, but hear me out). The flexibility Academia offers is also abused by many postdocs. I've personally had incredible postdocs, but have also had people who completely disappeared for weeks, did not know what they said they knew, did not comply with their 35 hours work week consistently and a total impossibility to fire them before the contract (sometimes 2 or 3 years) was over. I think the best option is taking 1 or 1.5 years contracts with the possibility of extension, so both parties can make informed decisions if there is a good match. There absolutely is abuse, no denying that. However, compared to what I saw in industry during my experience there, there is certainly more civility in Academia.
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@filelist692
vor 19 Stunden
Check across the fence at EMBL also
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@maciekleszczynski8414
vor 19 Stunden
What a bunch of crybabies. They wouldn't last long in normal job where you are being abused almost every day.
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@attenberg
vor 20 Stunden
So, did the guy from the video deliver actual research or was his angry superior correct in his assessment of the situation?
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@Chuy1988
vor 21 Stunden
In the world of science we have impartial rules and axioms, but in the human world we have discrimination and humans that don't like other humans😢
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@lisaj5769
vor 22 Stunden
i lived in germany for 3 years from 2018-2021 and while i was there, i heard many stories from acquaintances and friends about them being treated in a similar manner at their work. Maybe this kind of work culture is something that is tolerated in germany or considered norm? not that it's ok, but what that brazilian post doc guy was saying just sounded like the stuff i used to get told all the time when i was there,.
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1 reply
@Abigail-nc6in
12 hours ago
I think this is largely the norm in Germany. At least it correlates with my 12 years of work experience.
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@egonkirchof
vor 23 Stunden
Public sector. Private sector. Academia. Same sh*ty dynamics everywhere.
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@MaryKroll
vor 23 Stunden
copied from an open note on Linkdin
Autocracies offer several advantages over democracies. Chief among them is the ability of a fair and all-powerful leader to implement decisions quickly and efficiently, without delays caused by consultation with superfluous advisors.
If such statement sounds potentially dangerous, that's because it is. History has repeatedly shown that a lack of accountability harms societies, organizations and individuals alike. Nowhere is this lesson more evident than in Germany, which has built one of the most well-developed democratic systems in the world. It prioritizes deliberate, democratic decision-making over the risks of unchecked power, precisely to prevent the dangers of oversight and abuse.
Why, then, do many institutions under the Max Planck Society still operate under a structure reminiscent of the old German Empire?
Letting aside Nobel Prizes and honors, the absolute power of Max Planck directors has long been an open secret. In physics, we have all heard about harassment, trauma, and young researchers suffering under toxic leadership. Some leave needing therapy or medication. Most leave Academia for good.
Now, thanks to a group of talented journalists and a massive number of brave victims, the general public can finally witness a small part of what young researchers endure in Germany, particularly at Max Planck Institutes. Having been a postdoctoral researcher in one of these institutes, I witnessed this firsthand. Though my experience was brief, it left its mark. I can only admire the strength and resilience of PhD students who endured years of abusive supervision... I couldn't last even one. In the documentary below, my voice and face are mere references to the people who had a much harder time than I did, and were and are much stronger persons than I am.
This story is a testament to the outstanding work of Lewis Sanders, Esther Felden, Kristin Haug, and many others at Deutsche Welle and Der Spiegel. My hope is that it will encourage young researchers and postdocs to believe that change is on the horizon--not just in the Max Planck Society, but maybe across German academia as a whole. Given the overwhelming response (countless comments, emails, people reaching out to DW, sending me messages of gratitude, etc) it seems that momentum is building.
I am not an optimist, but I have a feeling that big changes are coming!
Paired with this documentary, Der Spiegel has also published an article (in German), which I will attach in the comments. It provides more details for what is currently going on in the Finite Systems division of the Max Planck Institute for the Physics of Complex Systems.
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@sriram_raghavan
vor 1 Tag
Unfortunately it is true all over the world and it cannot be spoke about. Good that DW is documenting it.
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@PhilipiCenataro
vor 1 Tag
Le hecking
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@CuratedScienceAI
vor 1 Tag
Stop crying, let me replace your position. More are willingly follow and work hard.
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@HeyHelloWello1234
vor 1 Tag
I think this happens in all counts with similar research societies and structure of academia
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@MartinGeorgiev-zp6nm
vor 32 Minuten
The same happens in Japan. I advise everyone to leave their program, if they are in an abusive environment and not to wait the program to end because otherwise you will be traumatized for the rest of your life. Nothing is more worthy than your own wellbeing
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@TarekMaza
vor 1 Stunde
They're right! If you're there to research you need to produce results.
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@Remotetraderathome
vor 1 Stunde
This is nothing lol
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@justineTar-j9e
vor 1 Stunde (bearbeitet)
It's so alarming how many victims in academia are starting talking about this.
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@Justwhereamgoing
vor 3 Stunden
This is hilarious 😂 not because verbal abuse is funny, but because DW journalists are so disconnected with the reality of academia. The violence is also systemic, in the lack of jobs for everyone, and corruption exists at all levels.
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@KhushalBadhan
vor 4 Stunden
9:16 true, I almost quit research because of power abuse.
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@KhushalBadhan
vor 4 Stunden
At the university of Lux. I was discouraged from pursuing prestigious projects, because of racist professor who favoured someone else. I was told, "don't come here in Europe". While on my first day in Lux. in EU, I was asked from bribe by a university accommodation staff.
Another friend of mine who was doing his PhD in statistical Physics was called "Monkey" by his racist supervisor at the same university in Luxembourg. And another of his PhD student was was often asked to sweep office floors of this professor.
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@KhushalBadhan
vor 5 Stunden
Alot of positions are paid 75% but are asked to work 100%.
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@ici70yz49
vor 7 Stunden
Some scientists think they will win Nobel price and they keep pushing PhD students and postdoctoral to do huge effort to compete with other scientists . There is huge competition and animosity among researchers worldwide, politics is strong in scientific community . It is cliquish society .
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@sa34zo5em
vor 9 Stunden
Any Tuesday in Turkish universities
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Standardprofilfoto
Kommentar hinzufügen…
@paleoinformatician
vor 38 Minuten (bearbeitet)
So, now what is the result? Which "big bosses/professor" lost their job as many young scientists did?
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@kirof6811
vor 4 Stunden
Welcome to the private sector 😂
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@astroboy01
vor 4 Stunden
It’s not about gender inequality. It’s about the pervasive system in academia that damages students and aspiring scientists. The problem can be found worldwide.
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@quiztestuz
vor 4 Stunden
Unfortunately , untill this video I had dream to do research in German top universities , after that I came to the idea to do business instead of doing rrsearch work
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@zeromangahunter
vor 5 Stunden
As an academic, I confirm that this is not uncommon, unfortunately. And of course, this is not a "German" problem, it happens everywhere in the world.
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@DrAtomics
vor 5 Stunden (bearbeitet)
I had extremely abusive behavior from a German Phd Advisor who was at NCSU who went to MPI for his PhD. No wonder he was so abusive. He drove me out of his lab after just one semester. My department head said “he doesn’t have a mean bone in his body “ when I went to report these abusive issues well before I was driven out.
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@abc_ratio
vor 5 Stunden (bearbeitet)
Omg after watching this video, I vomited. My heart is palpating so much. I think it revealed some of my traumas regarding topic.
I am not sure but this act could be the biggest harassment. These traumas in academia is creating permanent damage on young people.
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@krama2420
vor 6 Stunden
Sounds like German bosses
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@abc_ratio
vor 6 Stunden
It’s all just to get a Nobel prize. But if they continue like this, they will never have!
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@nessolson
vor 7 Stunden
Seems like the German way to me 😅
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@ledasdaughter_
vor 8 Stunden
German universities next, please!
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1 reply
@Abigail-nc6in
12 hours ago
I've written about that in my recent book! Awful experiences I had there.
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@andrewryanwasright
vor 8 Stunden
I wonder if Professor Dave is going to apologize to Sabine Hossenfelder for talking about this. Or just double down that academia isn’t corrupt.
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@mrtienphysics666
vor 8 Stunden
is there evidence?
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@Nova-n0v4
vor 8 Stunden
Horrible. Thank you for speaking up.
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@jiayu7448
vor 8 Stunden (bearbeitet)
Thanks to my near five years of service at MPI as an early career researcher, I lost most of my motivation in scientific research and now I personally have very strong opinions against sciences, even though I used to be very proud to be one of the memebers sharing this beautiful Minerva totem.Yes in MPG you are surrounded by either so many talents or restless workaholic people, but you also realise that you have to survive in a sterile working environment with little humanity. You know personally your colleagues are nice people, but with stressed and unhappy facial expressions all the time. Most of the young researchers are just part of the big factories and heavily overworked for their PIs' big scopes or plans but gained very little, sometimes their contributions are just neglected. To them, science is no fun at all, but only their temporary job, because very simply they have been long trained with some very specific skills.
It is common in academia that young researchers are so vulnerable in their careers because of so much uncertainties, namely the contracts. However, what I saw and also experienced at MPI was something more stressful: people are only offered a 3-6 months contract for extension to wrap up or to plan something bigger. But there's never an 'end' of a study, so many people just renewed their contracts for a few months again and again.... It's not just a a torture for early career scientists who are struggling to find their own pathways, but it's even worse for the researchers who are not from the EU (because they need a fairly long wait for new 'Vertragsdokumente' to get new visas). Does the whole MPG really care about these? Probably they will only send you a huge pdf with all fancy numbers about what the whole MPI system achieved in the past year.
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@visheshdeep9
vor 8 Stunden
This is at every level in Academia in Higher Education, from UG courses to all the way to Research & Internship.
All these institutes, whether popular or not, hardly teach anything in qualitativr manner, which is a ridiculous thing, as the studies get harder, the teaching aim should be to simplify more and more, but the Ego is attatched to it and even students like it bcz they want to feel like "I did it on my own" or something.
This leads to students going for Pvt courses, which is again costly, and only with rich background make it through top grades, many with great conceptual understanding & critical thinking still don't make it bcz they didn't follow the system which is highly unorganised and student exploitative.
All these institutes, I like to call them, are just "Testing Agencies" ... While many cringe people on social media make loads of money, these students with research aptitude suffer and get so much humiliation...
I myself submitted a Thesis, where in the first session, they didn't give any topics, you'd to take on your own and work... I did it and that Prof was generous and understood it very well and accepted it.
The next time they didn't notify that you couldn't take topics on your own and when I went on... (I continued research on the same topic from last time and some new chapters in it) ... I was humiliated like crazy.
Although the thesis was submitted, but the humiliatioj causes so much... I mean, when we do research, nobody is there to support, no guidance at all, but to reject it, they take just a glimpse and pass judgements like they knew about us from a very long time.
Accusing of Plagiarism and that you people just make thesis by giving it to a third party, which is actually a popular case in my country, but they generalise it.
Seeing that all these things are happening in top institutes as well, this is just so horrible, bcz so many hard working and actually passionate people, who cut themselves off from the world, for all this, suffer financial loss, as many of them are too smart and could actually do wage jobs in Pvt and Public industries, but choosing to contribute into the human knowledge and understanding has become such a place where there are hurdles all around, people with Power can threaten you, destroy your image and the worst, make you so miserable that you start to even loose the passion for your subject, bcz it was never the fault of the subject, but many quit bcz they can't continue in this toxicity.
Reforms are a must, support these students, please!
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@AlessandroZir
vor 8 Stunden
thank you so much for showing this!!!
people shouldn't think that public institutions, including supposedly high level ones in education and research are necessarily any better than private predatory ones: they can be worse; this is a real problem for people simply wanting to get rid of neoliberalism by relying on state bureaucracy;
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@dhirajk5457
vor 9 Stunden
I love DW news reporting it without partiality
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@shubhadakulkarni4605
vor 9 Stunden
This is true. And not just in Germany but worldwide in academia. I remember my ex-boss saying "Married women in my lab don't work long hours like men"!
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@rubna6726
vor 9 Stunden
I was just starting the application process for PhD in MPIDS. 😭😭😭
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@Ellen-Monet
vor 10 Stunden (bearbeitet)
Abuse in academia, underpaid work with unpaid overtimes, even illegally high accommodation rent - everywhere is an exploitation of a foreigner who’s often scared to lose their visa if they complain and lose those jobs, study places or end up with no place to stay at all if it’s the case of rentals
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@marcoathayde42
vor 10 Stunden
DW didnt hear the other side. Thats disturbing, but thats DW...
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@zrmsraggot
vor 10 Stunden
Power is a liability, weak people can't handle it
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@marcoathayde42
vor 10 Stunden
The fact is that the Institute presents results, Nobel Prizes. Thats important
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@joshuawang9401
vor 11 Stunden
I think it is dictatorship. why no one dares to say that?
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@trusttheyoga8303
vor 11 Stunden
Thank god they didn’t select me for admission.
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@sofialara9837
vor 12 Stunden
Hello. We should create a group in social media to make visible the abuse. A group called "love to science respect your PhD student". We could help other PhD students.
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@davidheilbron
vor 13 Stunden
Nerds dictatorship. I guess being smart is not everything after all...
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@ot8479
vor 13 Stunden
THESE ARE RESULTS OF TENURE!!!!
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@saeedkhabaz4761
vor 13 Stunden
Lol you should hear what foreign employees in all German companies have to say.
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1 reply
@Abigail-nc6in
12 hours ago
Yes; this is another massive problem.
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@ot8479
vor 13 Stunden (bearbeitet)
It's pver 14 years that this goes on. ALL 'elite' universities have serious issues with abuses, sexual harassment and even rapes, and nepotism. THIS US WHY TENURE IS A MEDIEVAL ROLE THAT MUST BE REMOVED.
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@archananagarajan4540
vor 13 Stunden
Given the way what happened at university in USA how students were allowed by the univ to go on about protests. It begs to ask us questions on neutrality of the universities that follows or is it based on the funding from ?
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@archananagarajan4540
vor 13 Stunden
It begs to check on the professors background, their race, their ethnicity, their ancestral roots and correlate to the students with whom they collaborate and pretty much gain some insight to the data.
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@katharinaweber7604
vor 14 Stunden
As Daniel Leising mentioned the abusive Professors are well connected with each other, but at the same time the nice professors that no doubt exist too are well connected also with the problematic PIs and I daresay often are aware of the behaviour of their abusive colleagues. So how can it be that they just keep quiet too?
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@blackMZworld
vor 3 Stunden
I can't explain it either. Sure, nice professors exist. I have good friends among them. Sure, they see what is going on and disapprove of it. However, they are afraid of speaking up as it might cost them their positions. Thus, their disapproval remains 'kitchen talk'.
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@katharinaweber7604
vor 14 Stunden
I hope the MPI will respond to this and not let Rost keep his position. If the Max Planck Society ignores an article like this they really are a lost cause and at this point do not deserve the all public funding. In my opinion the fact that MPIs receive tons of public funding makes it even more crucial that they are adequately supervised by someone external and also force them to have better internal structures.
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@blackMZworld
vor 3 Stunden
Professors are employed by the states (Länder), not by the universities/research institute s. It makes it almost impossible to get rid of them.
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@sarderfakhrulabedin5784
vor 14 Stunden (bearbeitet)
In certain top Swedish research institutes and prominent Swedish universities, a small circle of entrenched individuals continues to secure the bulk of available funding by rehashing outdated ideas. Many of these self-styled AI “experts” have never written a single line of AI code or have technical depth or even surprisingly not know how AI actually works, yet they excel at presenting themselves as pioneers—often by taking credit for the work of others and repackaging it under the banner of “innovation.”
This pattern is further perpetuated by fierce lobbying efforts at both EU and national levels, where promises of high Technology Readiness Levels (TRL 7 or 8) often lead to generous grants. Sometimes, these applicants have direct ties to the grant evaluators, benefitting from personal relationships rather than the merit proposal. In practice, however, these funds are frequently used to showcase superficial or “toy” projects rather than deliver the impactful advancements that were originally pledged. At least, this has been my experience for more than a decade of involvement in the field, including the past five years working in Sweden. What a waste of taxpayer money.
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@tribhuvanpp
vor 14 Stunden
I was a post doc at mpi Halle it was fine for me. Then I returned to India as a faculty and I faced these kind of problems in indian institutes. On e you open up your mouth your carrier as a scientist is finished.
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@vladimirmuzyka6156
vor 15 Stunden
Bullcrap
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@MegasSalavatis
vor 15 Stunden
Germans are racist? Impossible. We have seen no evidence of that.
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@Abraham_Tarekegn
vor 15 Stunden
DW seeking the truth; is it becoming far-right. From Africa.
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@OmarBenjumea
vor 16 Stunden
Nobel prize is not synonymous with "good".
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@timbarrel3499
vor 16 Stunden
The ombudsman also tried to hide it. The system is broken.
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@jatintjoseph4659
vor 17 Stunden
There should be a law that prevents people from discrimination and abuse in workplaces even consulates and embassies.
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@titanhondo
vor 17 Stunden
It's not an exclusive problem of these societies, also general universities (fully state funded) have these problems. Filing complaints as a PhD student is lengthy and always has some backlash and you're better to suck it up for the remaining year and leave afterwards
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@s_singh_
vor 19 Stunden
My friend's elder sister went through a challenging time with her supervisor during her PhD elsewhere in Europe. The problem is certainly a larger one, not just in academia but industry etc. However we do expect gold standard institution to do better. I hope things can change.
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@VichetAng-u8s
vor 20 Stunden
almost all scholarship in singapore demand candidate to attach at least 2 referees in application. and the most worse is that they demand to send link directly to the referees for secretely and personally fill in the link of recommendation statement. why singapore academia demand such useless requirement. how if the referees are the same in the video above, how those candidates can apply for your scholarship or research position. i suggest singapore recruitment process to delete such useless
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@AkosuaBiggles
vor 1 Tag (bearbeitet)
Nearly, applied to this institute. Thank God I got a faculty job in China 🇨🇳. I always told my friends the grass is always not greener at the other side when they are always compare Europe academia to other countries.Academia is toxic but getting into faculty is way better. No postdoc stress. I suffered in my PhD years taking me 8 years to complete, leaving me broke. I am now paying all my debts.
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@sandunranasinghe3444
vor 1 Tag
Germany. The land of stealing ideas 😂
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@codeengineer10
vor 1 Tag
Nice to see people speaking up for unhealthy behaviors .
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@arminho5429
vor 1 Tag (bearbeitet)
I remember a couple of years ago, when I was finishing my bachelor of Physics, that I managed to get an internship with a biophysics group in order to know whether I wanted to pursue that area for my PhD.
One day, the entire research group went out for lunch, and the lead professor belittled everyone at the table (everyone that worked under him), by saying similar things as to how other students were much better… at that moment I knew I was not going to be part of his research group for 6 years… major red flag.
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@verimaunier8761
vor 1 Tag
Thank you so much for this report!! I also heard the same and worse things about Max Planck institute in Munich at the German conference for women in physics. These professors and advisors need to face consequences like in every other field too, if you abuse your power you should be able to lose your job
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@vidyas1044
vor 1 Tag
I was at LMU, and it's no different! I faced bullying, scientific misconduct, and isolation from my research group with little to no support at all! It was so extremely exhausting and traumatic that my therapist suggested that the only way to save myself is to leave that place. I quit in my 2nd year PhD. and moved to my old lab in the UK, but I am still struggling with depression self-doubt and contemplating whether academia is worth it!
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1 reply
@Abigail-nc6in
12 hours ago
Best of luck!
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@Swanicorn
vor 1 Tag
Sabine exposed it months ago and experienced it for quite a while herself.
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@ruyasude
vor 1 Tag
Uni student in France here. You’d be surprised by the amount of racism, psychological abuse and inappropriate behavior here. Academia needs to be controlled more !
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@MaryKroll
vor 1 Tag
My director at MPI was such a nasty dictator that I nearly lost my faith in human, let alone the science and academia. Few years of therapy and good working environments later, I am just able to talk about it.
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@Jan96106
vor 1 Tag
Sounds like graduate school in general.
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@vevasam
vor 1 Tag
I have experienced this not just at my university but experience discrimination quite often in Germany. Non-inclusiveness, passive aggression are the most common that immigrants face here. Such things are quite hard to complain as well. It's sad I've gotten used to it and doesn't do anything about it as I'm also to fulfill the needs of my family. I feel very bad for Gabriel and others who experiene work place bullying, discrimination and harassment. I highly appreciate him speaking up.
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1 reply
@Abigail-nc6in
12 hours ago
I have experienced the same things as you and I write about them in my recent book. I hope things will get better for you!
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@clankb2o5
vor 1 Tag
It's a good thing that professors are held accountable for their actions more and more. As a PhD candidate myself, this makes me more likely to report unacceptable behaviour if it happened to me.
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@ye333
vor 1 Tag
All those jargons in the beginning tell us all we need to know.
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@tulenik71
vor 1 Tag
Likewise...
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@sandbll8952
vor 1 Tag
It’s sad because this happends everywhere little ones and big institutes and universyties.
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@asjadazeez
vor 1 Tag
germany is now controlled and weakened by israile
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@chrisb.5104
vor 1 Tag
This happend everywhere in Germany... almost imposible to live and work here... German Personality still the same as in 1939...
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@chinmayswami9358
vor 1 Tag
Kudos to Germans for bringing this to light. Academia is corrupted by faculty members with god complex. US is same, maybe even worst. I have suffered at the hands of 2 toxic advisors and departments did nothing even in the presence of several testimonials. Departments generally work like mafia and gang up on the students/post-docs.
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@rrrajlive
vor 1 Tag
It's still 100X better than Indian PhD and post doc system. You can't recover from it within 1 year.
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@narniadan
vor 1 Tag
It sounds just like DW; abuse, silence and human rights abuse.
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@FermatWiles
vor 1 Tag
This is essentially an open secret within the German science community. I've seen that community from the inside, it's toxic and driven by incompetent people.
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@ladzerty
vor 1 Tag
German guys abusing power??? What a surprise....nope😂😂😂😂
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@josephk4932
vor 1 Tag
What is your ethnicity?
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@BrassAmbassador
vor 1 Tag
Ah yes, here comes the woke wave against the universities. No big loss on this case, they are all rotten to the core worldwide.
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@CollectiveAction664
vor 1 Tag
It's such a pity that researchers goes through in Germany. A doc program position in top universities in Germany pays about 1.800€ net salary, when a 60qm apartment in Berlin rent costs is about 1.200€. And they have to manage with abuse aggression and oppression while leaving in poverty. It's a real struggle to pursue an academic career here. We have to stop accepting this organised aggression 😢
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@user-hd8yv2mg7b
vor 1 Tag
People of color have to have the names of white colleagues on their publications even though they may not have contributed
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@chetanbangarvader
vor 1 Tag
The way i remember any movie which i watch related to science there comes professors where they think highly of them all over world this problem is not, related to germany only and having studied in highly reputed institutions this is true
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@mynameis251
vor 1 Tag
Finally someone speaking about this 👏
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@SirojiddinBoboqulov
vor 1 Tag
This should not be the case. Scientists are not rich like businessmen and in most cases they sacrifice a lot for the greater good of the humanity. But such cases discourage young people from pursuing a career in this already troublesome area.
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@bruhpang
vor 1 Tag
I heard that it was somehow well known within academic society...it is time to change it.
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@HeatherRussak
vor 1 Tag
"Over stating your own contributions and undermining others is a common practice" 🥲 As a female postdoc, I can't resonate more with this statement 😭
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@try.to.think.
vor 1 Tag
Such as saying that such issues persist so much even in environments of science
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@dzsman
vor 1 Tag
Look at UCL in the UK too
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@drjagadishdasari2294
vor 1 Tag
This is true everywhere ....these profs need research papers on top of that they dont know anything they just act ...God please save
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@ThePinkVillain
vor 1 Tag
This is horrible, politics and optics are all that matters nowadays and the psychos of the world are a reflection of how much evil is allowed in the world… it looks like alot is allowed.
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@spacemeter3001
vor 1 Tag
Remember: This is "the science" they told you to trust.
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@luckybarrel7829
vor 1 Tag
Same problem here in Ireland, Trinity College Dublin
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@TheFarrukhzain
vor 1 Tag
This is Finally coming to light. My brother went there as doctoral fellow two years ago and left within six months, he is a brilliant scientist and he was crushed by his supervisor, some Bert guy and after leaving MPI he is finally recovering and enjoying his work again. These places are so toxic and one of the main reasons Europe is left behind in any conceivable matrix of scientific research. Thankyou for making me understand more of what he went thru.
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@Dessloch
vor 1 Tag (bearbeitet)
Unfortunately, this is not only an issue in Germany. Toxic scientific workplace environments are also an issue in other countries. Sometimes those of us working in science tend to think that academia is like an "island" and these issues do not happen here, but that's not true. Highly competitive environments can be nasty, and abusive people can be found anywhere. Thank you for bringing attention towards this, and thank you Gabriel for publicly denouncing it.
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@flohandyacc6127
vor 1 Tag
Thats not only in germany but everywhere
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@Keithyt3962
vor 1 Tag (bearbeitet)
Academia is a playground of the elite among the elite and not a noble job for the advancement of humanity!! And pursuit of knowledge!! I have read very great articles in philosophy from Non academics. The elites want more and more to do science so that they can profit for it and also people do not think much about their material and spiritual conditions!!
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@AbhishekChaudhary-uq4xo
vor 1 Tag
It's 2025 and women scientists are still denied their share of appreciation and credit. That too at one of the top most institutions in the world. Just pathetic and shameful.
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@Rahul_Pramod-jy3xz
vor 1 Tag
Nothing new....
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@HabibArebu
vor 1 Tag
I will have a plan to apply to this university. But Now I will never and ever come to Germany to study!!!
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@milayalcin7567
vor 1 Tag
This is usual german Management style
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@jacquesenboit6351
vor 1 Tag
Sabrina Hossenfelder the physicist turn YTber shared her bad experience in her YT too. And many commenting viewers share their firstchand experience of getting abused. German society is actually far more sick than this, from first-hand experience multiple times. Fundamentally, German culture doesn't seem to have moral scruples to hold its people back by individual conscience.
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@madwid7938
vor 1 Tag
Really hard hitting reporting by DW
🤣
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@mohammadinamullah9380
vor 1 Tag
That is why china is getting advantage. Chinese are attracting post doctoral scholars in china.
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@MohamedSamyAlRabbani
vor 1 Tag
He got yelled at, man up!
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@rav_ku
vor 2 Tagen
I have seen this too 😂 I did my master's in Germany, and later dropped out of my PhD for variety of reasons including but not limited to my current business ... I am doing well in life, but I first hand witnessed the amount of mental torture and credit stealing some professors inflict on grad and post grad students... Also, it directly related to immigration status of the students for logical reasons... You can't complain to anyone without jeopardizing your career so toomany students keep quite and suffer alone and quietly.... They have to put up with verbal and bureaucratic harassment also which is very hard to prove... Also recording secretly is illegal in Germany even if it's for your safety, so it is impossible to get good proof in many instances... 😢😢
I'll add that the harassment is not only done by Germans, and not necessarily racism... I have seen it done by professors of South America, Asia, etc doing to other immigrant students too... But they usually don't do it German students... It's very complicated, but I am happy that DW at least using their reputation in Europe to bring this thing to surface because Europeans will not accept other media easily.... 🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉❤❤❤❤❤
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@rubygoldfish4706
vor 2 Tagen
I thought it was only in india but it happens everywhere....good luck to all of us in academia ❤
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@francoisperrin7397
vor 2 Tagen
The big problem in Science is that there are far more demands than offers so the scientists on permanent positions abuse on the ones who are on contract-based. That's the sad reality. As a former scientist, I went through the same abuses. I have seen talented people being abused and expelled. You wanna do science? Be prepared to lose it all.
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@danielreiss-cy4zr
vor 2 Tagen
Max Planck Gesellschaft? It's called Institute in English.
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@wash_out
vor 2 Tagen (bearbeitet)
Academia and research in Germany is broken in general. It’s a road to nowhere. Precarious and not worth it anymore. And on top of this you get THIS. A sad truth for a while now.
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@soubhagyaranjansahu6404
vor 2 Tagen
I am a science student from a not so good background I dreamt of going to Germany as I believe it is the epicenter of modern science, I am absolutely devastated by hearing this
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@tapoprasadjena3139
vor 3 Stunden (bearbeitet)
Same😢.
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@tortoisetraveler5815
vor 2 Tagen
Please do an investigation in India's IITs.......
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@sardonic81scream76
vor 2 Tagen
Same experience here!
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@AbcDef-jh7rw
vor 2 Tagen
Ive heard stories that go into this direction. A friend is working 60hrs per week on a 25hr contract. Sometimes hes not even on the paper he wrote on his own.
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@mr04r32
vor 2 Tagen
Hahaha. Bro thats normal in Germany and Companies. People do not quit Jobs. They quit the Boss.
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@mattlab5289
vor 2 Tagen
The same in France
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@BudFox575
vor 2 Tagen
They always protect their own. No accountability.
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@tejasrigopi7368
vor 2 Tagen
Imagine working your socks off and doing two people’s work with one salary. A salary that won’t see an increment or bonus for years together .. I’d still be scared to go and complain only cuz of the fear that I need the recommendations from my current work place!
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@SiddharthPednekar-sk6nb
vor 2 Tagen
Research should be independently conducted without depending on approval of single person we need to change system of phd
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@pdannysan13
vor 2 Tagen
Can't wait for Sabine's video on this!
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@nakulgote
vor 2 Tagen
Sad to hear this is happening in TUD, my uni.
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@phanindrakumar3221
vor 2 Tagen
Same problem in indian institute 9f technology luckily i left the toxic group amd now i am under a best guide
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@crick__1127
vor 2 Tagen
This is just the tip of the iceberg... Here in the U.S., many postdocs are facing similar problems. It’s a small world. Your professor’s words are often taken more seriously when they speak to colleagues, deans, or even the president. I was intimidated by my advisor, who claimed to have spoken to higher-ups, and I ended up being accused of "misconduct" rather than addressing his toxic behavior, without any opportunity for discussion.
At the end of the day, if you want to apply for a professor position, you need reference letters from your former advisors. Speaking out against the toxicity of your advisor negatively affect or even ruin your career. I’ve seen cases where just a reference letter alone has ended someone’s career. This is how the modern scientific "slave" system works.
I am truly impressed by Gabriel’s courage to speak out on this serious issue. I am in your back.
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@SuperRocky1223
vor 2 Tagen
Racism is an incurable virus...world would have advanced more in technology and science if PHD student's research are fairly evaluated and funded without discrimination.
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@VichetAng-u8s
vor 2 Tagen (bearbeitet)
Shame on the toxic scientists👎👎. Remember the more famous your supervisor is, the more toxic behaviour he/she is. Thanks DW News for uncovering the elephant in the room, you deserve my subscription 👍👍👍👍
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@AdityaPandey-cr5xy
vor 2 Tagen
Academia has this problem. Issue is that coming from a developing country, it is further problematic as almost half of age gets passed.
Then, job opportunities become further shallow. Many of our friends committed suicide.
I always share and say to many colleagues and friends,
Academics is fine, but become more powerful politically. Only then can one survive in academia today.
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@AlokSharma1
vor 2 Tagen
I was looking forward to come there but I am reevaluating
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@AdityaPandey-cr5xy
vor 2 Tagen
Same here in India.
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@robertpagen2770
vor 2 Tagen
His boss yelled at him 😮. Poor baby
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@oscaruzielcruz5538
vor 2 Tagen
That's the same thing Germans did with the enabling act of 1933...
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@RogEsCo
vor 2 Tagen (bearbeitet)
In 2017 I went to a PhD recruitment event from them, great experience but fortunately, didn't get to the final stages. I remember, there was an old professor at that time who made very rude comments demeriting my previous work, saying I could not have done it. This lines up. Bullying in Academia is quite common anyway, and PhD students are dismissed all the time.
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@frozen8477
vor 2 Tagen
Leave academia, its scam. They do not track your working hours!
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@elijahogolah1497
vor 2 Tagen
Academia is known for allowing smart people to be mean and get away with it - Dr. Monica Cox.
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@alexanderyendell995
vor 2 Tagen
This is very normal not only at MPI. All Universities in Germany suffer from toxic professor's.
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@ehsaneftekhari-zadeh3145
vor 2 Tagen
Great taboo topic to be openly investigated and followed up by DW. As a former PhD and currently postdoc in Germany, I have observed many bullying cases in nearly all universities from supervisors to students.
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@averyphallichat8779
vor 2 Tagen
The first interviewee described his superior as saying "you arrived here almost a year ago, you have done [...] s**t, you're not working at all, you're f**ing useless" while slamming his table and frothing at the mouth. I kind of get the impression there's more to the story here? I mean if you have a doctoral degree, are hired at a prestigious institution like this, and then waste time and resources doing nothing for an entire year (if that's actually what happened, which he doesn't explicitly deny) I can see why some people might be enraged, that is totally unacceptable. Of course you should try to be civil but everyone's human and people lose their temper.
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@ginnan-1gt
vor 2 Tagen (bearbeitet)
Totally true. And it had been going on for a while now. I have worked in 3 different countries before coming to Germany, and did not have any issues. Here I was bullied in both working places: Charite Virchow and FLI in Jena. I have left Academia after that in 2012. Many people are trapped, though. Thank you DW for bringing it up!
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@asifjeckyl
vor 2 Tagen
I’ve worked in research institutions in 3 different countries, and the MPI was by far the worst environment for blatant sexism and abuse of power. From my experience I knew I needed to leave the country if I wanted to continue to do research.
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@ZeenatJunaid-zt1gk
vor 2 Tagen
This also happens amongst doctors and with medicine professors during mündliche Staatsexamen. Very subjective, biased, and often the results are based on personal favoritism.
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@sauvikchakraborty1432
vor 2 Tagen
Yelling to the point of spitting sounds like the 1940s german leader
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@Rebofan
vor 2 Tagen
🎉
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@johnnyheq
vor 2 Tagen
Most of Ph.D. candidates finish their program taking pills to keep going. Unfortunately, academia became a very toxic environment.
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@Marcellina-l8p
vor 2 Tagen
I'm sorry but what exactly does this abuse consist of? Yelling and snobbing students? Really?
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@annetteannette3808
vor 2 Tagen
UNPROFESIONAL SCHOLARS
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@gunnu-p4v
vor 2 Tagen
Does canada has this too?
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@Mnm-c4x
vor 2 Tagen
I'm shocked to see that so many people knew about the issue but no one spoke up until now, or may be they didn't have a platform.
Glad DW and Gabriel took the initiative.
I was planning to apply for MP PhD position but not anymore.
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@2mrvamshi
vor 2 Tagen
Even my wife faced huge discrimination during her master's thesis by her professor in Germany. The companies or universities should stop giving more weightage to reference letters from professors and give attention and more time in conducting interviewing the individual directly and to know them as person and their technical skills through interview and not to depend on professors reference
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@minhan.893
vor 1 Tag
Totally agree 💯... They shouldn't ask for reference letters at all as they're always biased...
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@L_Y_R_A
vor 2 Tagen
As an undergrad at a State school (UTM) Lemaster demanded me to perform outrageous tasks that were not feasible for anyone other than certain large corporations. About like "build the Brooklyn Bridge...build the Hoover Dam". The courts gave him and the school legal immunity then dismissed my case.
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@Carl-Ernst-Otto-Kunze
vor 2 Tagen
pco2,paco2,co,Co2 mining as old as time, to the Point of toxicology or so called "histology" itself, affecting every fg atom on this planet.
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@TheMasteRTheo
vor 2 Tagen
What innovations has Gabriel introduced during his time in this research institution?
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@goulnazgalieva3121
vor 2 Tagen
I had a case where my work was stolen and i was gaslighted at the university in my country. I also heard where a female student took several years to report sexual harassment from a German university in Bonn from a friend who was furious when ahe found out. And ehile it was being investigated,the guy kept working there
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@salonisaxena2820
vor 2 Tagen
I was a postdoc at the Max Planck Institute for the Physics of Complex Systems from November 2021 to January 2024. It was a dream opportunity and I thought it would make my career. Instead I was repeatedly humiliated in group meetings, not allowed to speak about my own project and ignored completely. Requests to meet and work on a publication were ignored. After my contract ran out and I left, I tried to communicate with my supervisors to get the paper done and submitted. I never heard from them again. Not having a paper ruined my chances in academia. My mental health is permanently damaged to the point where I cannot apply for other jobs. The people I worked with are Marko Popovic and Frank Julicher. I'm naming names because they're probably not going to read this.
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@sonali20386
vor 2 Tagen
You should be unafraid to name names even if they do read it. That is the whole point of having accountability and a system that holds them accountable
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@wuestenfuchs1
vor 2 Tagen
I'm really sorry. The way our country treats foreigners and minorities is a real disgrace. I wish Germans were more open minded and empathetic.
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@AlokSharma1
vor 2 Tagen
Ma’am you are phd from iisc?
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@albertomelo803
vor 1 Tag
complex system with R Golestanian?
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@gondala
vor 1 Tag
same with my experience in Taiwan... It was NCKU university.
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@puneettripathi740
vor 1 Tag
bro u r much more capable than u think, dont lose hope, u were born for greatness n not to perish by all this suffering u will do great trust urself
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@Smsl-nh9sl
vor 1 Tag
I think this is not the place to name people. It's an allegation. It's easy to denounce people on the internet who can't respond to the allegations. Contact a complaints office and seek professional help. Incidentally, you could be charged (üble Nachrede, Rufschädigung etc.)
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@francookie9353
vor 1 Tag
@Smsl-nh9sl Aber wahrscheinlich nicht wegen eines YT Kommentars.
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@francookie9353
vor 1 Tag
Du schaffst das schon! Du kannst auch außerhalb der akademischen Welt glücklich werden! ❤
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@katharinaweber7604
vor 1 Tag
thank you for naming them!
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@lilducha
vor 22 Stunden
@Smsl-nh9sl how well does that work when the place is accused of institutional silence? meaning people have come forward and been ignored already? also, seeking professional help probably costs money, money someone who lost out on a spot du to this simple does not have means to provide. on top of all that "you could be charged for being public when potentially damaged by public organisations" pretty much gives blanket cover for all corruption forever.
looking at your user name you're probably a bot, just commenting this in hopes no one agrees with you on this
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@swrnr1551
vor 12 Stunden
Dear Saloni, I am sorry to hear that you are struggling from your experience at the PKS. My personal experience with Frank (who was my PhD supervisor) and Marko (who was a fellow PhD student at that time) is completely different and I have never experienced them showing abusive behavior. In fact, I remember Marko as very caring. Certainly, every group leader in this environment has an insane workload and notoriously a shortage of time (e.g. Frank puts emphasis on supervising his PhD students but expects a lot of independence from Postdocs). Thus, I can imaging that if somebody is struggling on a personal level, it might stay unnoticed. While I don't recall any personally insulting comments in scientific discussions, these discussions were typically very direct and not sugar-coated content-wise and this can be quite stressful. (Especially in the beginning, I was always tense when I needed to present anything to Frank as I knew he might take it apart. Yet, this is very different from the portrayal of J-M Rost in the video.) Nevertheless, mental struggles should never result from an employment (despite that it probably happens a lot). So, if you feel like it helps, don't hesitate to contact me - yet, I don't think you should drop these names here, especially if you expect them not to read it and thus not to have any chance to tell their side of the story.
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@ZeckeGegenRechts
vor 12 Stunden
@swrnr1551 Just because you didn’t have this experience doesn’t mean someone else didn’t. Naming names holds people accountable for their actions. Keeping abuse hush protects perpetrators and enables future abuse.
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@swrnr1551
vor 11 Stunden
@ZeckeGegenRechts First, I believe I know both people rather well, having spent a lot of time with them during my 4 years at PKS. Second, just dropping names without given them the chance to respond to the allegations is highly problematic. It doesn't even have to be that there are bad intentions from either side but a different perception of the case. For example, maybe one side expected to get more help and guidance and felt neglected, while the other side expected more independence. You already assume you know who is to blame (without even knowing any of the involved people), while I have actually a first-hand experience and still tried to understand the case openly and even offered help (which I likely would have done, even without the names being dropped).
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@quantumbrick1671
vor 4 Stunden
I strongly agree with @swrnr1551 here. It is very dangerous to make allegations without giving the other side the right to reply. The documentary does offer the possibility of fighting the allegations back, and one can see that MPG and J-M Rost reply extremely poorly. The large number of victims in the documentary also shows that it's not only a single person's experience, but something corroborated by a lot of people. Individual comments like this one that openly name people without evidence, investigations or corroboration, are extremely dangerous and akin to vigilante justice: They might work a couple of times, but on average they unleash chaos and bring more evil than good. They also make it harder for people to take the subject seriously in the future. I'm really sorry for your experience in PKS, but the way to go is probably to contact the DW helpline, tell them your story, and see if it helps them in subsequent investigations. This comment, however, should be erased by DW's moderation team.
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@husel4125
vor 1 Stunde
may god bless you
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@ryanmaloney5519
vor 1 Stunde
@wuestenfuchs1 it's not just Germany!
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@BallBustersFC
vor 35 Minuten
@swrnr1551 why is this comment the only contribution from this profile?
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@ZeckeGegenRechts
2 days ago
@swrnr1551 I highly doubt that the issue is a lack of guidance or help. It sounds to me like that person has been traumatized to the point that they are no longer able to work. If he is unable to find work in that field because of those people and their bad-mouthing, why isn’t he allowed to do the same? People in power are allowed to destroy someone’s reputation, but the person affected isn’t allowed to retaliate—especially when pursuing justice publicly in a court of law is bound to fail due to the hurdles in place to protect abusers.
I think the person is doing the right thing by naming names. It’s the only option left. If the court is doing nothing and the university is doing nothing, then the only thing left is to publicly shame them.
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@swrnr1551
1 day ago
@BallBustersFC What do you mean?
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@marydroid5801
1 day ago
Complaint office? You just don't get it...
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@marydroid5801
1 day ago
How is he by the way? R Golestanian? What kind of a director?
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@ms4749-r4o
1 day ago
I can imagine how discouraging it must be when your collaborators don’t prioritize you. However, I wouldn’t consider what you describe as abusive behavior. I also worked at MPIPKS and heard plenty of accounts about the three directors. I never heard anything from Frank Jülicher that seemed unprofessional. Honestly, I think he’s a pretty exceptional case. Despite his power, he doesn’t seem to have much of an ego, which is rare. As for Marko Popovic, he is a kind person, and while he has more power than a postdoc as a group leader, he doesn’t have the final say, and his career still depends on the director.
Did they ever raise their voices, scream at you, or use inappropriate language, either orally or in writing? Did they ever meddle in your personal life or make assumptions that affected your professional or financial situation? I have been the target of such behaviors at times during my academic career. Maybe your expectations were too high? I get why you’re frustrated, though. If you complain, you’re seen as difficult. If you stay quiet, no one pays attention. You can’t be too bold or you seem defiant, but if you’re too nice, you seem apologetic. And if you’re a woman, it’s even worse.
However, on a larger scale, this is just one symptom of academia’s deep dysfunction. The system is fundamentally flawed from every angle. It forces us to waste time on grant applications and publishing irrelevant papers rather than focusing on meaningful science. It fosters competition instead of collaboration, self-interest over mentorship, and prevents us from prioritizing what truly matters.
In short, you are not alone in your suffering. My advice: give yourself permission to move on. This is not worth your life.
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@Solscapes.
1 day ago
I never got as far as you, but I feel a kinship. My education was sabotaged by similar behavior/systemic problems. I was in pre-algebra in 4th grade, then I moved, and they wanted to try me out in pre-algebra at the new school and let me go ahead with algebra 1 after a year, at which point we moved again, (military brat) to a place that didn't offer algebra 1 in 6th grade. 7th grade, new school again, same story as 5th grade; they wanted me to take another year of pre-algebra to see how smart I really was.
By the time I got into 8th at the next school, I hadn't learned any new math in three years, and I got my first A- in the subject. Then, geometry was almost beyond me. Trig absolutely was.
But the worst part wasn't the neglect by the schools or the behavior of teachers who saw correcting their math as insult or the lost opportunities and prospects of being a mathematician. It was the neglect of my family, who let it happen and destroyed my mental and physical health long before I entered school, setting me up as a target for bullies and narcissistic exploitation.
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@steveking7719
16 hours ago
You are not alone.
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@upupina90
14 hours ago
mental health cannot be permanently damaged by mobbing or things like that, you can recover :)
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@ragas2845
8 hours ago
@wuestenfuchs1 But the name Marco Popovic doesn't sound German to me. I think he is either Serbian or Croatian.
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@ragas2845
8 hours ago
@Smsl-nh9sl You are either one of the perpetrators disguised as someone else or you are their sycophants. Tell me which one is it?
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@arzuevelioglu-kulavuz8496
vor 2 Tagen (bearbeitet)
Benide - Almanya'da
23 sene sonra işden attılar Türk ve Sünni oldum için Alman Yahudi Textil şirketi holding Yönetim işden attılar Türk ve Sünni oldum için 23 sene sonra - problem yapan - kisi Dresden den gelen doğu Alman Dresden geliyordu -
2015 ve 2019 = 8 tane büyük Alman şirketinde çalıştım ve 10 tane iş bıraktım -
Almanlar faschist, almanlar kendilerini beğenmiş bir toplum - ve Türk konsolosluğu yardım etmedi
Türk konsolosluğu Alman faschist lerle beraber sadece kahve içiyor lar!.
Türk konsolosluğu yardım etmedi.
Ben tek - satıcı elamanı olarak çalıştım- sektöründe çalıştım -.
10 tane alman avukatına gidmek mecburunda kaldım - 7 Tane almsn avukatı - 3 türk avukatı= hepsi - 5 para etmez.
2 mahkeme kapısı gösterdi Alman' Yahudi Textil şirketi holding Yönetim yüzünden gördüm.
Ve kimse bana - hakkımı anlatamadı.
Netflix International televizyon sayesinde öğrendim - Compliance rechtliche Richtlinien - Charta der Diversität -
Böyle konuları.
Alman Arbeitsamt - bile - faschist ve ırkçılık yaptılar tavırları var - 8 kere Almanya'da Sanktion verdiler bana ırkçılık yaparak.100% Sanktion verdiler Almanlar- hep bana.
Almanlar
Faschist ve ırkçılık yapıyor.
Birde Alman Headhunter ( Asker) mobbing de yaptı - almanlar ırkçılık yapan bir irk.
Üniversiteye gidenler - onlarda anlatıyor - bazi - zaman - mobbing ve ırkçılık ve dışlanmak la ilgili konular 2013 duyorum.
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@Indyariya
vor 2 Tagen
YouTuber physicist Sabine hossenfelder had made a video why she quit academy. The reasons were same as mentioned. She said she can’t get a place or job in the institute because she is woman and should get a scholarship. Her superior mandated postgraduate students to write chapters of books in which she declined. And this prof chased her out of office !!!!
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@Abdulstolemyjob
vor 2 Tagen
Germans abusing power...................................................
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@OytunT-v7y
vor 2 Tagen (bearbeitet)
It isn't just the institutions mentioned, but also the universities. For the same reasons, I had to leave my PhD. When I left, six others had also departed from the group over the past year, all for the same reasons. We collectively went to the workers' council of the university to file a complaint, but nothing came of it.
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@DostKhanable
vor 2 Tagen
Racism is second name of Germany
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@supriyaverma3364
vor 2 Tagen
Unfortunately, most of the German universities have that…
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@wanderlust_adventurer384
vor 2 Tagen (bearbeitet)
This happened to me first hand at another research institute in Potsdam with my “mentor” who was my direct supervisor, while my PhD advisor did get me away from him, he went out of his way to cover it up - his words were he wanted him to “save face”. And my PhD supervisor projected a brand of high integrity and empathy. So gross.
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@sailesteele4372
vor 2 Tagen (bearbeitet)
This is everywhere in academia: I have worked in Italy, Holland, UK and India. Same everywhere, especially India and Holland.
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@kayolmayer1621
vor 2 Tagen
Something similar is happening to my wife in the MPI CEC, in Mülheim. 😔
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@SanalMG
vor 2 Tagen
There should not be abuse, but there should be mechanisms in place to make sure productivity is maintained and standards are maintained (through open evaluations), which can be even posted on YouTube to gather larger audiences and experts across the world!
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@gym5959
vor 2 Tagen
This is what i hate about universities , if you complain about teaching or harassment, you get even more harassed and abused. universities are not a place to learn but a place where one competes over another to see who is more intelligent, a place where professors abuse their power to feel better about themselves, teach without a care in the world, and continue doing their research for more money.
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@distrologic2925
vor 2 Tagen
It takes pressure to make diamonds.
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@distrologic2925
vor 2 Tagen
Its not a problem, its a feature.
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@distrologic2925
vor 2 Tagen
Great, now highest research has to become woke too
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@wanderlust_adventurer384
vor 2 Tagen
This happened to me first hand at another research institute in Potsdam with my “mentor” who was my direct supervisor, while my PhD advisor did get me away from him, he went out of his way to cover it up - his words were he wanted him to “save face”. And my PhD supervisor projected a brand of high integrity and empathy and he followed Buddhist teachings. So gross.
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@alainmarceux6817
vor 2 Tagen
God , I'm already applieng for a couple of institutes ,as scientist with 5 years experience in the zoonotice diseases and one health concept , that report shocked me and made me paranoid , i left my home country for descrimination and abuse of powers and corruption and direspect for qualified and scientists and doctors !!and you would say the same $h!t here tooo , devestating ...
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@CSmaniac10012
vor 2 Tagen
PhDs are always treated as a cheap labour across academia
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@Lena333-c3m
vor 3 Tagen
Also in Fraunhofer, one of the chiefs is abusive and he is protected by the management, although everyone knows his toxic. The only possibility for the employees is leaving
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@Toannguyen-hi3sf
vor 3 Tagen
to be honset , if some german dont bring their grumpiness and just work , it would help themself a lot.
Instead of yelling the person why not finding a solution ? isnt this faster ,to do it together then yell at employees and make them figure it out themself ?
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@monkcers
vor 3 Tagen
About time it was known how full of psychopaths the academia world is
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@JoséFerreira-h9b4c
vor 3 Tagen
This is not a problem of Max Planck Institute, this is a generalized problem of Academia and how the whole system is built. Its a corrupt power system built to benefit the ones at the top of the pyramid.
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@karljiks
vor 3 Tagen
I saw a report of such bullying by an international student at TU Leiden as well.
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@ataraxico1
vor 3 Tagen
Geneva Graduate Institute
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@dreznik
vor 3 Tagen (bearbeitet)
i think i understand the dynamic, at least in some cases.
- professor is successful, with broad experience
- he expects his protégé to work at the same quality level and directed focus (intensity is worthless if misdirected)
- he sees the student utterly failing his expectations
- instead of investing his time on reorienting the student both in focus and working method, he explodes.
what u get out of your less experienced employee is proportional to the amount of time you helped him correct course and work in the format u expect. u need to monitor him on a weekly basis. to obtain quality from an underling requires a lot of time.investment, patience, and kindness.
professors could be trained on those aspects.
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@monikashukla5257
vor 3 Tagen
Supervisor think themselves as god and researchers as his slaves.
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@ashleigh3021
vor 3 Tagen
This is hardly uncommon and specific to Germany though, I’ve heard the same thing happens in Dutch universities and elsewhere.
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@914home
vor 3 Tagen
Such top institutions like the Max Planck Society should stand as an example to the academic world. As a former PhD student (who could not graduate despite completing my dissertation) from one of the MPIs, I'm glad these kinds of issues are coming to limelight. Kudos to DW.
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@kaushikiyer4881
vor 3 Tagen
This is interesting because are there no union protections for phds and postdocs?
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@ktinxx
vor 3 Tagen
Why am I not surprised... 😔
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@igorlitvin1779
vor 3 Tagen (bearbeitet)
I have 20 years of experience in physics. This is happening all over Germany. I worked in another country before and never felt this. I have been in Germany for 6 years and have been depressed all these years. The main problem that turns a scientist into a slave is contracts. You work like a slave to renew your contract. You came to this country and wanted the best and will work a lot. They take advantage of this. There is another problem. The lack of connection between production and science. You are engaged in science and do not see where they will take you to work next. This leads to deep depression. There must be a real connection. For example, all my friends who are physicists in Germany went to work in a bank or consulting. This is not true of course. Physicists should work in production. Why does no one do this and offer physicists work in production after graduation or when the contract ends? This is of course very bad.
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@pseudotatsuya
vor 3 Tagen
These abuses are conducted by money from taxpayers.
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@handle_it798
vor 3 Tagen
Power imbalance is one of the main problems. Empower PhD. students and postdocs.
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@DipankarNath
vor 3 Tagen
Welcome to academia!
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@fs_spds
vor 3 Tagen
exactly ma case.. i have become unemployable..
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@Himanshu12468
vor 3 Tagen
alright....so its happening everywhere
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@knight3481
vor 3 Tagen
I thought this was common knowledge for research institutes.
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@botschlars629
vor 3 Tagen
Don't just accuse. Let the accused present their side of the story
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@falcon010216
vor 3 Tagen
It is a problem worldwide.
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@Ash-bc8vw
vor 3 Tagen
Physics department is the worst
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@anasb.8681
vor 3 Tagen
Well the supervisor is correct. If you are paid you have to deliver or you are out.
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@NerdyNerdUHeard
vor 3 Tagen
Well, German universities.
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@el_lahw__el_khafi
vor 3 Tagen
ضربونا يا بوحة
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@AlmaFuentes2516
vor 3 Tagen
ACADEMIA IT'S A MAFIA, IT'S RACISM, IT'S AN ELITE THAT WANTS TO CONTROL ALL THE BUDGET, THE PRIZES, ETC.
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@MasterZeustastic
vor 3 Tagen
Speaking from experience as an Indian scientist, be it India or Germany, abuse in academia is universal and rarely spoken about.
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@i4Lx8D
vor 3 Tagen
Thanks u just saved all people behind you
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@sannah1916
vor 3 Tagen
Sabina hossenfielder has been speaking about this for such a long time. Finally it comes out in the world
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@vinestervega19
vor 3 Tagen
Nice, I am here in the US and have faced similar issues.
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@leonardodias2750
vor 3 Tagen
The same happen on the Fraunhofer Institute!
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@tiajin248
vor 3 Tagen
Even in hospitals , Uniklinik or non Uniklinik there is HUGE discriminaion and mistreatment for doctors even at the Level of attending physician.
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@yukito6624
vor 3 Tagen
The academia is collapsing.
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@godblessCL
vor 3 Tagen
Max plank society of neurotics
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@jlsamsung5392
vor 3 Tagen
Unfortunately, this behaviour is not just in this institution, but in many others as well.
The paternalistic structure in research institutions, where a PhD supervisor is called "Doktorvater" places too much power in one person's hands, unfortunately.
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@rabiulsikder4569
vor 3 Tagen
It is the story of every PhD student all over the world. Not only in Germany.
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@dianecripps204
vor 3 Tagen
The PI in my lab at a US university was not only extremely abusive, he was also a lousy scientist. When everyone in the lab united we found someone in HR who listened, and he was disciplined. I left research not long afterward. Recently I looked online and found he is now a director at the NIH. Young people, beware when going into science. You don't need a nervous breakdown.
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@freezepaladin
vor 3 Tagen (bearbeitet)
Ideally STEM working environment must be separated from political bu**s**t and that includes people with political mindset. Imagine how much technological advances we could have achieved without all this c**p.
The truth is this is common practice everywhere. If they expand their investigations to other institutes/companies, they will absolutely find similar c**p that probably have been going since as far back as the start of those institutes/companies. Many people with STEM background, especially those who sit in high positions at STEM institutes/companies, are better suited to be politicians and don't actually have the technical knowledge. Integrity is something that most companies brag about but practically almost non-existent.
I'm not just saying opinions here but speaking from experience.
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@aa54f68
vor 3 Tagen
I am at NTNU norway, and it is much worst here, one international PhD lost the only thing he had on earth in 2014. I am at the same situation.
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@7thlady
vor 4 Tagen
[The Professor] ". . . cannot confirm that he made the statements." Uh huh.
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@alhamzaabu-ragheef8286
vor 4 Tagen
that's all bullsh*t, maybe it's just what so called "young scientists" are not meeting the required high standards. so what if a professor was shouting that some work is as good as it's supposed to be !! how could that be considered as abuse or sexism!!!!
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@souvikchakraborty3620
vor 4 Tagen
The power dynamics in academia is literally skewed.
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@AprilLi.11
vor 4 Tagen
Same situation at the Max Planck Institute for Human Development—gaslighting, micro-controlling... When you report this to HR, you only find out that they are on the same side. So shameful for German academia.
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@maritzafigueroa3197
vor 4 Tagen
Kudos to all the brave scientists speaking out! And to Dr. Gabriel .. wow the only one speaking on this reporting!
This systemic problem it will take time and more brave people to be addressed.. Thanks DW for your investigation!
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@ManuelGonzalez-ee1gx
vor 4 Tagen
Netherlands academia as well. Yes I mean Maastricht University at human Biology departament. Subtle but equally harmful and damaging to PhD students. I was lucky to finish but there were health consequences I had to endure. If somebody asks I can say the name.
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@jeevaprakashdr
vor 4 Tagen (bearbeitet)
In the short time me being in Germany, I can clearly identify and say this is very common in German Academia. Germany is a science fairy land. If one is lucky can get into a good lab/project where people are supportive in various levels. If not it’s unstructured abusive environment where there is least accountability.
There is a clear gap in knowledge where many people are uneducated about what is abuse, where one is crossing the limits of discrimination.
On the other side the bureaucracy is very hard for people.
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@striker44
vor 4 Tagen
The so called top listed British universities are similar.
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@reza310
vor 4 Tagen
The university is horrible ! We dont get paid full time, we work full time and even weekends, the professor is no where to be find and when they are there they are just demanding stuff without considering its feasibility !
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@anughosh
vor 4 Tagen
My husband suffered at Adelaide University, but nothing was done. He suffered immensely.
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@RajeshSapkota07
vor 4 Tagen
I am shocked to see DW is covering this news.
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@Andrew-qs9fw
vor 4 Tagen
Doing my masters degree in Germany is one of my biggest regrets in life. Very sketchy grading system and possibly discriminatory.
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@cc-pv6ep
vor 4 Tagen
Thank you for reporting on this and I hope this can finally get the attention it deserves and the changes that are needed
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@riturao6565
vor 4 Tagen
There is a silent racism also in big companies in Germany, it is so subtle that you cannot present a Proof.
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@tfrtrouble
vor 4 Tagen
This is absolutely not a Max Planck issue; this is an academic research issue. I've seen all of these issues at other prestigious research intuitions (in several countries). Like the interviewees say: there is such a huge power imbalance and top academics operate with no meaningful oversight and there are no consequences when they abuse their power (or commit different kinds of misconduct like research fraud); their institute just closes ranks to protect them.
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@L278-b7z
vor 4 Tagen
For every young student reading this: read Robert Green 48 laws of power to understand how your PI and lab mates work.
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@Thj33
vor 4 Tagen
The effects: triggered just by watching this
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@vincentmokinu308
vor 4 Tagen
Utter woke nonsense
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@alisen4123
vor 4 Tagen
I personally experienced severe academic abuse in Germany. My supervisor sabotaged my career by removing my name from research I worked on, belittling my contributions, and threatening me with legal action when I confronted him. He made sure I would not secure another position, leaving me financially and professionally devastated. For months, I had no stable place to live and no way to fight back in a system that protects abusers.
German academia is completely broken and pathetic. It functions through outdated bureaucracy, unchecked academic abuse, and a toxic research culture that stifles real talent. It can only attract people with mediocre ideas and abilities because anyone with true intellectual ambition will eventually leave or be pushed out.
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@sardonic81scream76
vor 3 Tagen
True!
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@LeonhardEgillieh
vor 2 Tagen
True!
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@argfasdfgadfgasdfgsdfgsdfg6351
vor 1 Tag
'Abuse' is a really strong word. Can you elaborate?
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@alisen4123
vor 1 Tag
@argfasdfgadfgasdfgsdfgsdfg6351 You are right that ‘abuse’ is a strong word, but unfortunately, it is the only accurate way to describe what I experienced in German academia. Abuse is not just physical or verbal aggression—it includes professional sabotage, exploitation, and the misuse of power to control or destroy someone’s career. Here is what my former supervisor did to me:
1. Intellectual Theft: He removed my name from a research paper I had significantly contributed to, falsely claiming sole authorship.
2. Threats & Intimidation: When I confronted him, he threatened me with legal action instead of addressing the issue fairly.
3. Career Sabotage: He actively blocked my chances of securing a future position, including interfering in job applications and discouraging my research efforts.
4. Belittling & Psychological Manipulation: He mocked my work, dismissed my research, and undermined my confidence, making it clear that I was "working for him, not with him."
5. Financial Precarity as a Tool of Control: I was left in an extremely vulnerable position, including periods where I had nowhere stable to live after my contract ended, while he refused to acknowledge the systemic difficulties I faced.
6. Isolation & Exclusion: He ensured that I was excluded from academic circles, leaving me without meaningful integration in my department, despite my efforts.
This is not just ‘bad mentorship’ or ‘a difficult boss’—this is academic abuse. It is the use of institutional power to exploit, silence, and sabotage an early-career researcher, and the worst part is that the system enables people like him to act without consequences. Many foreign academics experience similar treatment in Germany, and that is why this issue needs more visibility.
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@alisen4123
vor 1 Tag
@argfasdfgadfgasdfgsdfgsdfg6351 During my time in German academia, I experienced systematic sabotage, intellectual theft, and professional exclusion at the hands of a senior academic. My name was removed from a research paper I had significantly contributed to, with sole authorship falsely claimed by someone else. An IPR contract was weaponized against me to justify the theft, leaving me without credit for my own work. When I confronted the issue, I was met with legal threats instead of professional integrity. My research was repeatedly belittled, my lack of publications was mocked, and I was reminded that I was ‘working for’ my superior, not ‘with’ them. My job applications were actively undermined, my career prospects were discouraged, and no institutional support was provided when I faced financial instability. I was left in professional limbo, isolated from academic networks, and discouraged from citing my own research. At every turn, power was used to suppress my contributions rather than foster my growth. This was not ‘tough mentoring’—it was systematic academic abuse, designed to strip me of credit, confidence, and opportunities while protecting those in power. Unfortunately, my case is not unique. Many early-career researchers, especially foreign scholars in Germany, face similar exploitation with no real accountability for those who abuse the system.
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@alisen4123
vor 1 Tag
@argfasdfgadfgasdfgsdfgsdfg6351 In my experience in German academia, I faced actions that went beyond difficult supervision and crossed into deliberate harm. My name was removed from a research paper I had significantly contributed to, stripping me of credit for my own work. When I questioned this, I was met with legal threats instead of professional discussion. My job prospects were actively undermined, my applications were interfered with, and I was repeatedly belittled for my lack of publications—despite working under conditions that made publishing difficult. At a time when I was financially vulnerable, no institutional support was provided, leaving me in an unstable situation.
This is not just a case of ‘strict mentoring’ or ‘tough academia.’ It is a systemic issue where power is misused to block, intimidate, and exclude researchers, especially foreign scholars, with no accountability. That is why I use the word ‘abuse’—because when senior academics exploit, threaten, or sabotage early-career researchers, it is more than just difficult working conditions; it is deliberate harm that affects careers and lives.
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@alisen4123
vor 1 Tag
@ I have written many replies, but YouTube has removed all of them.
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@Abigail-nc6in
9 hours ago
I hope things are better for you now! I agree and can relate to everything you say.
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@alisen4123
4 hours ago
@Abigail-nc6in Thank you so much! Things are slowly improving, but it has been a difficult journey. It is sad that so many of us can relate to this. Sharing our experiences is important, and I hope things are getting better for you too!
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@olesianitsovych4632
vor 4 Tagen
Thank you Gabriel, it is also happened to me in RWTH Aachen. I am not gonna mention names.
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@rakeshdubey6750
vor 4 Tagen
Its everywhere
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@joshuamokwuah
vor 4 Tagen
Call in Doge!
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@danieldavidy5357
vor 4 Tagen
Unfortunately, these sorts of behaviors are widespread in scientific communities. The main reason for that is the unlimited power of the PIs and no one can question them. If they will be evaluated during their career every several years, those misbehaviors won't happen. I knew two people that were facing similar issues in Max Planck Society. Those institutes are government-funded, and they have to be forced to answer those allegations.
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@avi4francis
vor 4 Tagen
I left a Like so that stories like this are covered more often
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@pinakisahoo5413
vor 4 Tagen
Same in MPI
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@rora8503
vor 4 Tagen
Of course there is abuse in academia! The fact that people think there isn't is just naive. Large organisations with steep power dynamics, power abuse in there is a (sad) given.
I have head from women beeing misstreated at our university more than once. And they aren't speaking up. What is even worse that one of the female professors I know doesn't listen to the PhD students who told her (almost the entire work group) that on of the PhD students is completely disrespectfull and doesn't doesn't do the lab maintainances that everyone has to share (he also haresses other female students and has abused at least one, though they didn't speak up, so she doesn't know) She prelonged his contact anyway for another year. Sometimes the complaint office people are best friends at the Professors the abusers or are afraid of them that too. My PhD supervisor was shopked when I told him that there is sexism and abuse happening on campus. Sometimes nice white men can be quite naive, never having faced any difficulty.
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@commonsense126
vor 4 Tagen
Welcome to academia!!
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@janee321
vor 4 Tagen (bearbeitet)
This happens in universities across the globe.
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@archanagautam2525
vor 4 Tagen
Its worldwide deeprooted issue. Reasons are many , but one of them is that people highly value science and scientific community which let these institions and societies have unequestioned power and accountability. When things start getting worshipped, rotting comes into play.
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@aradhita1
vor 4 Tagen
It gets worse for people with visas as losing the job generally means going back to their home country sometimes having spent a fortune
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@D.M.S.
vor 4 Tagen
It is everywhere in the German sciences. Every discipline! Every institute! Every clinic! NOT JUST THE MPI!
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@isatousarr7044
vor 4 Tagen
Toxic power dynamics in research institutions are a significant issue that can hinder progress, well-being, and the overall effectiveness of academic and scientific endeavors. In these environments, hierarchical structures often lead to the concentration of power in the hands of a few individuals, which can create a toxic culture where manipulation, exploitation, and inequality thrive. This dynamic is often reinforced by traditional systems that prioritize seniority and position over merit, fostering environments where younger or less powerful researchers, students, and staff may feel silenced, unsupported, or even discriminated against.
One of the most damaging aspects of toxic power dynamics is the exploitation of junior researchers and students. These individuals often depend on the approval and mentorship of senior faculty members for career advancement, funding, and publications. In such environments, they may be subjected to unreasonable demands, bullying, or even ethical violations, with little recourse for addressing their concerns. This power imbalance can prevent open, honest communication and create an atmosphere of fear, discouraging collaboration and innovation.
Furthermore, diversity and inclusion efforts often struggle in environments with toxic power dynamics. The concentration of power in the hands of a small group can lead to a lack of diverse perspectives, where marginalized groups may be overlooked, underrepresented, or oppressed. This can stifle creativity, limit access to opportunities, and perpetuate discriminatory practices, ultimately affecting the quality and breadth of research.
Addressing toxic power dynamics requires a cultural shift in how research institutions operate. It involves prioritizing mentorship, transparency, and accountability over hierarchy, creating spaces where voices from all levels of the institution can be heard and respected. Institutions must focus on building a culture of respect and equality, where individuals are valued based on their contributions rather than their rank, and where feedback and criticism are handled constructively and respectfully.
By addressing these issues, research institutions can foster a more collaborative, supportive, and productive environment that promotes creativity, ethical behavior, and the well-being of everyone involved in the research process. Reducing toxic power dynamics will not only improve the quality of research but also ensure that future generations of scholars can thrive in a system that values fairness, integrity, and mutual respect.
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@bimDe2024
vor 4 Tagen
Thanks dw for bringing this unfortunate event to light. Please investigate deeper, in every university, in every researxh group, the professors or group leaders are abusing their power and breaking the code of conduct. The normal people do not know it, because research world is totally discrete to them. I hope german govt will take proper steps to stop this misconduct
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@ferretsays
vor 4 Tagen
Reality of Academia
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@Wilbyfan
vor 4 Tagen
This is common for Phd level students at EVERY German university, the power professors have is ridiculous. It is the norm that junior research is stolen and presented as the professor's own. You cannot complain, because they are your boss AND they decide about your degree - you are completely dependent. If your professor is angry at you and decides to drop you after 5 years of research, good luck finding somebody new in your field. As it is hard to find a job in academia anyway, you will be left with nothing, if you leave without a degree. If you are a woman who decides to have children, you often will be excluded from "serious" research programmes. It is common to be called by professors late at night, at the weekend, during holidays and it is common to be personally attacked if you choose to speak up. There are cases where the whole university knows how badly certain profs treat their students and yet nothing happens.
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@SadeghomanijehSadeghomanijeh
vor 4 Tagen
I have seen this happen in academia. Some professors insult and yell at students, making them feel worthless. This leads to stress, depression, insomnia, and many other problems. In these institutions, professors have too much power, and it feels very unfair. Students don’t speak up because it could result in losing support for their future careers. Others blame them, saying they were probably not smart enough for academia. They are afraid of being judged. 😢 Many leave academia in silence, while others endure the pressure.
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@regulus8518
vor 4 Tagen
this is where people go wrong .... never do a post doc
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@am4261-b7o
vor 4 Tagen (bearbeitet)
Thank you so much for bringing this out..but it is not only in max planck but other institutions too
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@nostalgia545
vor 4 Tagen
People with phds are crazy. It takes a special crazy type of person to want to do a PhD.
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@YoYoutube11
vor 4 Tagen
If you are Indian and reading this comment, remember you are paid well, and abuse in India can be worst, remeber our corrupt govt., broken system, and worst part is your PhD in India may be a plagiarism or not original as most universities do not have funding, quality of your PhD research will be like you cannot publish it in good journals. REMEMBER where you have come from. Put your head down and work. Relax outside and enjoy. Do not take this documentry seriously. Life is not fair anywhere. Be tough and get through it. Focus on aim, not hurdles. We are poor, we need money, and most importantly we need QUALITY education and PhD. So, don't focus on negatives. Complete your PhD and get out of there. 🙏
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@Nationalist21
vor 4 Tagen
What if they never approve the PhD ? Whst if they steal your ideas. How many years it took to complete your PhD
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@Cutest1TheGame
vor 4 Tagen
The issue I had when I sued Panasonic Avionics in Germany for bullying is that HR & German society doesn’t consider emotional and verbal abuse as serious enough to be „bullying“ - they have to hit you and you have to have proof. German society will also gaslight you and tell you it’s not bullying if it’s only coming from 1 person. I had to sue for something different that I did have proof for and I won - but guess what you win in Germany - two weeks salary if you worked there for only 1-3 years.
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@Cutest1TheGame
vor 4 Tagen
The issue I had when I sued Panasonic Avionics in Germany for bullying is that HR & German society doesn’t consider emotional and verbal abuse as serious enough to be „bullying“ - they have to hit you and you have to have proof. German society will also gaslight you and tell you it’s not bullying if it’s only coming from 1 person. I had to sue for something different that I did have proof for and I won - but guess what you win in Germany - two weeks salary if you worked there for only 1-3 years.
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@alipasha9898
vor 4 Tagen
Not all bosses are leaders, this is an important point to consider.
On the other hand, the temporary contracts for young scientists in Germany can increase the tension and stress of having to manage a large workload in a couple of years, etc.
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@Cutest1TheGame
vor 4 Tagen
This happens everywhere, not just at the Max Planck Institute. It happened to me at Panasonic Avionics, very often at the HafenCity University by professors and other students, at the HAW, and at Balzac Coffee Shop (luckily no longer exists). I am female and a foreigner.
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@solemndivinity3
vor 4 Tagen
In Germany an institution is a tribe. You dont follow the tribe, you will suffer.
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@MsNeither
vor 4 Tagen
To have the liberty for to think freely doesn’t mean they, the so called 'scientists', have the freedom to humiliate and misstreatening whoever they want.
Same happens in México every now and then and we’re not even talking about top worldwide research’s institutions.
The problem is within academia itself.
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@BieelsZaitsev
vor 4 Tagen
crazy stuff
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@anshumansahu1087
vor 4 Tagen (bearbeitet)
I wanted to apply here in the area of infectious diseases. But when Gabriel broke down, a very scary thought dawned upon me. Going to another country millions of miles away where you have nobody to back you is a scary proposition indeed.
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@michaelshannon9169
vor 4 Tagen
Every organization has it's phases: abuse, toxic behaviour, bullying, then addressing it, then it manifesting again, and so on on.
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@mullerm3010
vor 4 Tagen
Finally, this is coming to light ... What I can add here is that this is not a recent problem, it was already there at least 15 years ago.
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@Shilling_Larping_Services_LLC
vor 4 Tagen
This is common worldwide. It is a consequence of big publishers and the incentives they foster, amongst other related factors.
Sadly, cutthroat work environments are currently the norm in modern academia.
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@twistinmysobriety-x2h
vor 4 Tagen
They only talk about sexism and sexual abuse but they should also talk about racism. It is very common in Germany and all of its institutions. No one address this issue
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@ragas2845
8 hours ago
I agree
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@twistinmysobriety-x2h
vor 4 Tagen
Not surprised.
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@roollamora
vor 4 Tagen (bearbeitet)
And still the racism is left out of the title and in a report on discrimination despite multiple complaints 🤡
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@міг-ш4й
vor 4 Tagen
They are not going to find many who will speak out.
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@polielie
vor 4 Tagen
This is just the tip of the iceberg. What was done to me at the MPI-IS was unbelievable.
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@thesilkpainter
vor 4 Tagen
Oh, sure. I’m beginning to believe this must be another discovery from Mr Vance and co.
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@maneshipocrates
vor 4 Tagen
I am trying to recover from this too. Incredible that anyone even highlighted this issue. Crooked professors have destroyed people in Germany. Add racism to this and it is total destruction.
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@starpiet
vor 4 Tagen
Great this is coming to the surface. In my experience working for smaller companies/organizations, it has happened over and over again dealing with people in leadership and power causing burnout time and time again
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@mael5097
vor 4 Tagen
Strength to Gabriel for coming forward. Peace to all the victims.
On another note, it’s time to decentralize research.
$BIO
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@simonekussatzfreelancejour1215
vor 4 Tagen
I'm so glad they’ve finally addressed the abuse of power in highly regarded institutions in Germany. I found working in Germany difficult on many levels. I had a student job at OTIS, where my boss, who knew I studied psychology, once commented, "Can I come to your home and put my head on your lap to be analyzed?" I was then assigned tasks that didn’t require any skills, like filing papers in the basement, while other women, who weren't educated, made international calls with their less-than-flattering English. (This happened in the 1990s)
Then, I had a colleague at a prestigious cultural institute ask me what my siblings were doing. I told her that my younger sibling wasn’t doing anything because he had a severe intellectual disability (he stayed in the developmental stage of a toddler) and a medically resistant type of epilepsy, so he spent most of his time at home. To my horror, my colleague asked, 'Wouldn't it be better for him to die?' I was absolutely appalled by this question, and surprised that I didn’t receive any support from within the institution, only from its guests. These are just two examples, but unfortunately, abuse in institutions can be found beyond Germany as well. (This happened in 2000)
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@sassanmoradi1586
vor 4 Tagen
what is the solution?
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@erhaveas
vor 4 Tagen
This is a universal problem. It is a product of the continuation of a medieval structure of apprenticeship called PhD. We all definitely need research-based academic program above and beyond the masters program. But medieval system of apprenticeship will ALWAYS be abusive. So we all need to update this archaic apprenticeship based PhD model that is very conducive to abuse. We need a new system for advanced research program so that we can avoid abuse and prevent toxic work environment in academic setups all over the world.
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@jfdez1595
vor 4 Tagen
Huge admiration to those who air this sort of issues! Unfortunately, many people develop Stockholm's syndrome and don't dare to speak a word and it's their own collegues who will disencourage the abuse revelation...
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@preethi1057
vor 5 Tagen (bearbeitet)
As a former PhD student myself from the MPI, I am in complete support of this video. Many might argue that this is a common issue across academia. However, when it involves an institution as prestigious as the Max Planck Society such misconduct becomes even more unacceptable. As a result, this issue attracts greater attention. Prestigious institutions like these should not only uphold the highest standards but also set a powerful example for the rest of the academic world.
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@BadAss_691
vor 4 Tagen
Which subject did you do your PhD in? What was your background? For us researchers in India, MPI is the epitome of excellence and innovation .
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@AlokSharma1
vor 3 Tagen (bearbeitet)
What is MPI?
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@pilarherrerae.193
vor 2 Tagen
@AlokSharma1 Max Planck Institute
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@umar990
vor 2 Tagen
Max Planck Institute @AlokSharma1
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@TopeshMitter
vor 1 Tag
Why did you go to Germany?? In India the condition is much worse .
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@KhushalBadhan
vor 1 Tag
@TopeshMitter and in Afghanistan it is even worse than India, do you want Germany to now become like Afghanistan and then only you will agree that problem exists?
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@AlokSharma1
vor 1 Tag
@TopeshMitter you answered yourself
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@AnnaZakrisson
vor 5 Tagen
I was at Max-Planck. I recognize this a lot. I absolutely hated my time there and left after a year for another institution. This was 20 years ago and I still remember my time there with a shudder.
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@bxwei6454
vor 5 Tagen
A common and long lasting problem in academia worldwide. To make things worse it's not just postgraduates being abused but undergraduates can also be ignored and bullied, despite the fact that they pay for the education service on loans. This is especially severe in science where females are scarce and narcissists are so common that non-narcissists are singled out. Academia is a toxic environment in general.
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@stancyk1480
vor 5 Tagen
It is not a Max Planck, but an academia problem. Research group leaders have near absolutist power over their PhD student's fate, that makes the system susceptible to bullying and abuse. That said, it is good that this topic receives attention. If scientists do not have an intrinsic motivation to kindly support their subordinates to become better versions of themselves, then at least they should be afraid of not treating them with respect.
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@elisabetepedrosa7155
vor 5 Tagen
Thank you DW. This is indeed a problem in many other universities and institutions. I have also experienced sexism and bullying. I saw institutes where the women work in the lab and the offices are full of men that take all the credit. I also had problems with panic attacks and also complained to the institute's administration. Had the same options, find a way to live with him or leave. He even bullied me in front of them, i had emails to prove it all. I had a network of other scientists: the men defend the men and one female scientist in a higher position just said "oh, that never happened to me" as if I was the problem. Anyhow, I am also out of academia now for lack of support and being pushed away. But I found ways to contribute to scientific development outside of academia. So, if you are now suffering from this, you are not alone. Find a network of people that can help you outside. Make a complaint to the administration. They don't do much but they may at least keep the bully away for a while. Good luck.
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@evemuhia2
vor 5 Tagen
Evil
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@yasincilingir809
vor 5 Tagen
Please make also some news about working conditions for doctors. Especially for foreign doctors in germany
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@donnelljohanson5912
vor 5 Tagen
I wish that he will settle well in South Korea.
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@musicfanBRA
vor 5 Tagen
How can a country progress in science if they discourage young scientists in such a violent manner? I guess professors behave like this bc they get money from the gov. , they are not accountable to shareholders and supporters, like in private business. A shame! What happened to ethics?
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@MuhammadAdnan-ti9nj
vor 5 Tagen
There must be a research institute which only focus on research institutes.
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@anapenteado7227
vor 5 Tagen
A professor friend of mine does not send any of his students to the Maz Palnck institute.
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@SaltyRamen.
vor 5 Tagen
I applaud the person standing up. Respectable and honorable. Abuse is so prevalent everywhere it seems and the system seems to cover it with optic programs and allow it to fester
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@ramarmele2039
vor 5 Tagen
Oh God, this dramatic language! How about this: some people are AHs, regardless their intelligence. Plus, I don't think people are screened for social skills and leadaership abilities before they are given a group leader position.
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@mrbalci0762
vor 5 Tagen
It's really a shame for educational institutions. I got really nervous while watching this and other documentaries. I felt really sorry for the scientists there.
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@slawikus1982
vor 5 Tagen
Many here have mentioned that it’s a problem of country or institution. But it’s not. As usually it boils down to people. There are profs who are jerks, probably they have made their name with their scientific achievements, but they cannot deal with other human beings who are “less smart” then they are. Being marginal, it’s still terrible to see that those pros are anyhow are associated with Max Plank or Helmholtz societies which are driving the science further, but those bad sheeps in a family are casting the shadow to organizations which are doing such a great job
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@ariel_monaco
vor 5 Tagen
I worked in Germany for many years through different companies. And I can confirm I lived more than a dozen weird experiences, directly or indirectly. Power abuse, discrimination, incompetency, religious segregation, etc. This is something that happens no only in the private sector but a lot in the public sector, including the academic domain.
If you actually think about it, this is the reflection of what is happening in Germany (and Europe, and the World) at the society level. It's funny though that Germany which is supposedly to be held at high standards in all they do, seem to be one of the worst behind the scenes.
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@songchen3670
vor 5 Tagen
A few years ago there is a report in Spiegel about Max Planck Institute in Garching Professor sexual harassment students. And it is well known in the community such that other Professors stop sending female students to his group
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@openworldforeveryone
vor 5 Tagen
Quite common in TUM sadly
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@drsamjhanastha4932
vor 5 Tagen
You are brave Gabriel. I wish for your best career in South Korea. Kudos 👏
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@WorkAndRelaxHaHaHa
vor 5 Tagen
Unfortuantly, they reach a trivial limitation of human being, sleeping in success and power, while forgetting that they can just be lifted up in expense of push down others. 😢
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@Keithyt3962
vor 5 Tagen
Congratulations dw that they talked about it!! No one in my nations talks about such things after so many sui** es!! I hope Germany doesn't gets singled out in this
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@marisolnavarro6307
vor 5 Tagen
It's great to see this issue getting media attention. Unfortunately, academic abuse is all too common worldwide, and it's disheartening that it keeps happening even when we recognize it. I really appreciate DW's interest in the topic! Hopefully, they can follow up with some solutions or examples of action to address this discouraging situation
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@keepingitclassy443
vor 5 Tagen
As many of the comments have stated, this is prevalent across all of German academia, not just the Max Planck Institutes. I experienced it first-hand as a PhD student at the University of Tübingen more than two decades ago, and I'm sad to see that nothing has changed.
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@Abigail-nc6in
10 hours ago
I experienced it recently too having worked at 4 German universities (until 2022). It hasn't changed.
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@mnemonija
vor 5 Tagen
So… may i offer a contrarian view. Studies have shown that while investments in universities have never been higher, actual scientific advances produced have been hard to come by. Im not talking about the number of papers, but actual improvements reported within. Likely low hanging fruit was already picked some time ago and maybe not everyone is creative enough to make a new leap in science. The conversation this guy had with his supervisor was maybe not polite, but it was straight forward. He produced nothing in a year. Maybe he was coming to work and doing something, generally accepted to look like the science work, but if he had produced something he could have easily rebutted his supervisor with measurable results. The supervisor is also on the hook to generate the expected historical output for the institute, but progress is getting harder. At any rate, it is not worth lulling people into feeling they belong somewhere, you need to tell them their output is not enough. Its tough. They need to understand that something is not working. Maybe this is not the work for them, they could be happier building online shopping experience for amazon, or something else. Or if they really want to pursue this career, they need to double down and find what they need to improve. They have a chance to succeed, they don’t want to waste the little time they have to prove themselves, because time is a gift.
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@mnemonija
vor 5 Tagen
So… may i offer a contrarian view. Studies have shown that while investments in universities have never been higher, actual scientific advances produced have been hard to come by. Im not talking about the number of papers, but actual improvements reported within. Likely low hanging fruit was already picked some time ago and maybe not everyone is creative enough to make a new leap in science. The conversation this guy had with his supervisor was maybe not polite, but it was straight forward. He produced nothing in a year. Maybe he was coming to work and doing something, generally accepted to look like the science work, but if he had produced something he could have easily rebutted his supervisor with measurable results. The supervisor is also on the hook to generate the expected historical output for the institute, but progress is getting harder. At any rate, it is not worth lulling people into feeling they belong somewhere, you need to tell them their output is not enough. Its tough. They need to understand that something is not working. Maybe this is not the work for them, they could be happier building online shopping experience for amazon, or something else. Or if they really want to pursue this career, they need to double down and find what they need to improve. They have a chance to succeed, they don’t want to waste the little time they have to prove themselves, because time is a gift.
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@charleskristiansson1296
vor 5 Tagen
This is unacceptable. There must be a full independent investigation. Otherwise the Max Planck Institute IS guilty.
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@montecrucis7247
vor 5 Tagen
... this is actually still very common in all workplaces in Germany.
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@ev.c6
vor 5 Tagen
Didn’t Sabrina (from the physics channel) studied there? I bet she has a lot to say.
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@binishbatool248
vor 5 Tagen
I thought of the same.
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@SalesforceUSA
vor 5 Tagen
I was at TU Berlin. Professors treated me like garbage
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@alexrediger2099
vor 5 Tagen
Bravo to Gabriel for coming forward
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@maximus6884
vor 5 Tagen (bearbeitet)
Please take a look at top SG's universites as well. The students are overworked to extremel levels.
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@birsenva
vor 5 Tagen
The sole name Plank evoke the science highest. . . he was Einstein 's boss . . . any person going there faces annihilation. . . You could wear a T-shirt that reads: "I got annihilated at MAX PLANK INSTITUTE" . . . Glorious. . .
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@iljackb
vor 5 Tagen
crazy to hear this. I've heard from close colleagues they had very bad experiences there but they'd never talk about why.
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@n_utd
vor 6 Tagen
welcome to "democracy"
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@bolivar1789
vor 6 Tagen
Bravo Gabriel!! I am terribly sorry that you had to endure such humiliation. But it is really admirable that you have found the courage in you to expose the bully!! By showing your face, you not only prove to every young scientist that they can claim their power, but you also put the shame where it belongs: to the perpetrator and to the entire institute that failed to protect you. I am sure many scientists will benefit from your efforts. You didn't suffer in vain.
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@Kai-o2b
vor 6 Tagen
That's a real problem! Germany needs good scientists. Let's hope this gets more attention so that something changes!
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@Itsallconnected_ShaneOrtega
vor 6 Tagen
This is the cause of generational trauma from older generations who have not confronted the shadows of not only WW II, but also the deep roots of colonialism. The accountability deflection is a huge wound of hypermasculinity in society. The real downfall of Western society is lack of empathy. Not only for others but also so disconnected from themselves. This is why I choose not to pursue my PhD at universities such as LMU.
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@mayapapaya89
vor 4 Tagen
Unfortunately it’s just a part of the human psychology to become corrupted when you have power
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@althyk
vor 6 Tagen
These are sociopaths that need to be jailed.
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vor 6 Tagen
What happened in the 1930s is repeating again. German society has this inherent problem. Violence, bigotry, racism, subjugation of weak....all this is a par for the course throughout German history. Even Austro-Hungarian society was one of the most brutal in Europe. Military might was valued so much because with that came impunity to do whatever you want to do to others.
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@sohaibahmad6594
vor 6 Tagen
I, myself, at TUM faced such remarks from certain professors I deem as completely racist and prideful. They are good for nothing for this society, No wonder, Germany is lacking in all fields.
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@TrinkeFanta
vor 6 Tagen
Thats pretty much happening in every other workplace, supervisors on power trips (mostly people who are absolut loosers outside of the company and got bullied in school) now they think its their turn. No money in the world can replace your mental / physical health. Stop wasting your life working for others. You would not believe whats possible if you work 40+ hours a week for yourself and on your own ideas instead. F them.
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@govindankandasamy1662
vor 6 Tagen
It's such a scourge that is inflicting institutes of high profile. Such academic institutes should refrain from bias , discrimination and
racial parody and maintain the standards achieved by hundreds or thousands of excellent researchers who toiled relentlessly to achieve the goals and targets they sought to prove. In this era of ambition for material gains , the reputation and excellence built by researchers, Scientists over the years are being dashed to the ground by unscrupulous stalwarts.This is disgraceful and a shame , should places of high learning stoop low and pander to low taste. Please wake up institutes of high repute , please heed to the plea and far cries of victims of your academic injustice and redress your role and standing in the eyes of God and Godliness.
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@notyourbusiness5488
vor 6 Tagen
This is common in universities in germany. Unfortunately, most international researchers are afraid to speak out.
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@katharina1439
vor 6 Tagen
I really don't understand why foreigners come to Germany. It's such a hostile country. 😬 people all over the world are much nicer. I live in the schwabenland🙈. Before i lived in nrw - which was much nicer
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@anhbaoconnecticut3128
vor 6 Tagen
DW is decades late in reporting this. I spent 3 years doing research in one of the many MPI institutions. Fortunately my scientific advisor was great. However I heard many horrible stories from other groups.
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@karlscher5170
vor 5 Tagen
So how many news stations did you contact to uncover this?
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@anhbaoconnecticut3128
vor 5 Tagen
@ it’s a common knowledge in academia. If you speak up, no body in your fields wants to hire you. PhD students and postdoctoral researchers are referred as slaves while their researcher advisors answer only to god!
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@Chrisie19
vor 6 Tagen
Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg anyone 🥲
We are a team of scientists that have been going through a similar (if not worse) situation.
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@cellofcells
vor 6 Tagen
As the problem is all out, what will be the solution? Will there be a step forward from this?
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@Sara-k6y4h
vor 6 Tagen
If the professors at Max Plank Society are so abusive to their assistants and to their students, even to the point of stealing the work of the latter, it makes one wonder if the results of the research at their institution are occasionally fudged, just to keep grants coming. It is usually the case, when a person is dishonest in one thing, they are also dishonest in everything they do.
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@turingalan4679
vor 6 Tagen
Academia is getting corrupt and toxic everywhere, last year alone scandals in harvard social science department and Stanford cancer research institute... young researchers are signaling bad atmosphere everywhere. Academia isn't about science anymore
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@rakheesivnath8804
vor 6 Tagen
Its also at the Child protection office and ride at the Family courts
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@treesart6914
vor 6 Tagen
Thanks for doing an investigation into this!
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@galanthuman2157
vor 6 Tagen
Intresting, my two positive comments of my time at MPI were deleted. I wonder why, did it not fit the narrative.
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@heykiddo23
vor 6 Tagen
My boss fell in love with a PhD student from Taiwan. He hired her so she could come to Germany to work with him. After she joined, he began ignoring everyone else in the research group. Every day, he held endless meetings with this Taiwanese woman in his office, with the door closed. In just a few years, she has accumulated an astonishing number of publications—far more than her peers.
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@bijukrishnan7792
vor 4 Tagen
You should have installed a hidden camera in his room.
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@TheGamingg33k
vor 3 Tagen
Similar case but supervisor is ultra supportive of a very pretty Iranian student. She is now publishing papers before the older students.
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@Swp-j6n
vor 3 Tagen
It could also be honey trap :)
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@pandawan4
vor 2 Tagen
That is such awful abuse of power. That poor woman can't even stop him because her career and visa will be jeopardized
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@onceuponatimetherewasalongname
vor 2 Tagen
@pandawan4 I think it's both abuse of power as well as abuse of appearance.
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@pandawan4
vor 2 Tagen
@onceuponatimetherewasalongname dude it's not her fault if some guy approaches her. I'm speaking from my own experience when a manager kept trying to date me and go out with me. I did nothing to encourage him, I just existed, and this man threatened my career if I didn't go out with him. Even if she's pretty, it's 100% on the professor/ authority figure to maintain his professional boundaries. Immigrants in particular are quite vulnerable since their visa depends on the boss and he's clearly abusing his power
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@Stephanie-xz7qd
vor 2 Tagen
The only problem is that you're assuming she doesn't want this treatment/likes him too. Of course it's an issue if one sided, but we're missing information
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@onceuponatimetherewasalongname
vor 2 Tagen
@pandawan4 You're right and I apologise if my comment offended you. I only said that because I have come across such behaviour many times by both genders. Wish you a happy week
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@Voodoo_Robot
vor 2 Tagen
@pandawan4 and why would you jump to "poor woman" immediatelly? It's more probable she is using him as much as he is using her.
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@stephenvincent9757
vor 6 Tagen
Bro thats the rule of the jungle
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@thorebergmann1986
vor 6 Tagen
It's just the tip of the iceberg...
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@cesars7909
vor 6 Tagen
This is a worldwide problem in research, not only in Germany
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@lauragraham1122
vor 6 Tagen
There's also large power imbalances in Opera houses at the top toward people with lifelong artistic careers. It's a systemic problem. In my former work place, there were quite a few cases of abuse. Some people stood up against it. It's not easy in such a large workplace.
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@nezgi8220
vor 6 Tagen
Kudos to Gabriel, he has such a heart and courage to speak out. Thanks man! Thanks to other who came forward and at least tried reporting
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@jakov98
vor 6 Tagen
You would not last a week in Balkan faculty
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@khan88-l1z
vor 6 Tagen
I came to Germany and face the same problem in my university research Institute for my PhD. I am shock and my career and mental health is at stake. The Institution is powerful and now I seek a court support. Is here DW tv or some one can help? I will be grateful ❤
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@sararkh
vor 6 Tagen
I can't believe I finally see this issue covered by a German media 😢
I am a former student/postdoc at a Max Planck institute... I can't even start explaining what I went through in that place... got my ideas stolen, harassed, abused and gaslighted, and when I complained to higher channels I was told that I'm being inappropriate!
I don't have words to describe what I went through; sickleaves, nightmares, therapy... and in the end I left academia...
I just hope reports like this protect the future hopeful young scientists not to have their dreams shattered...
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31 replies
@dorawa2419
6 days ago
Did you have to work for free, i.e. without salary?
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@Eboprofen
6 days ago
@dorawa2419 never as phd candidate or post doc
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@dorawa2419
6 days ago
@Eboprofen Good.
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@mnemonija
6 days ago
Stealing of ideas is terrible, academic honesty is incredibly important, and most institutions would not look kindly on it. However, it is also difficult to figure out whose idea was something when you are discussing a problem in a group. Idea can have different seeds coming from different bits in a discussion, the most fair approach would be to just put everyone present on a paper. If you came up with an idea on your own, had notes about it in your notebook, well this is exactly the stuff that patent office uses to decide who came up with it first, and your academic institution would use to expel or reprimand whoever stole it from you. But its probably different if you just echoed an idea into ether and someone else went to create and run a bunch of experiments to prove it. In that case the best you can do is not collaborate with that person any more. Or at least do not share any more important ideas with them, because they should have included you in the work under the common ownership principle from above. But also, welcome to the grownups world. You need to be strong.
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@sanjaykarkee3337
6 days ago
Same here...in the midst of it. Cant say more they are very likely reading this.
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@elisabetepedrosa7155
6 days ago
Really sorry you had to go through that😢
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@sassanmoradi1586
6 days ago
This behavior is everywhere. Unfortunately, it happens everywhere in the world.
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@arnab83
5 days ago
@mnemonija do you realise that most people are not born litigants? That is to say, young, bright ones do not come prepared to face idea theft, and ready with an army of lawyers to litigate. And most affected ones are not rich to litigate. Speaking from personal experience.
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@mnemonija
5 days ago
@ i may have come off as insensitive, sorry. I think this is probably a discussion that needs to take place in every research group. This news story could be a nice opportunity to have this discussion about who owns ideas that come up during discussion in meetings. People need to be aware that multiple people may leave the meeting believing it was their own original idea, or that the specific twist they added makes it unique and their own. Sometimes it’s grey area. That said, ideas are a dime a dozen, its who acts on them and creates results that matters, too. If someone disappoints you and steals your idea, dont work with them except when you absolutely must, but don’t let it break you, its neither the last nor the best idea that you will ever have. Just keep producing results, and as insurance, document your ideas first, and don’t share them with those that don’t respect you. If you have evidence, institutions will (hopefully) protect you, but if they don’t, maybe its better to move on somewhere else sooner rather than later. Company that does not treat employees fairly will see their best ones leave and will fail, those stock options will not be worth anything in the end. I imagine the same is true of research institutions, systematic problems will not have them thrive, best people will leave.
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@AlChemist-235
5 days ago
This are zhe people who now blame D.T. & E.M. for kicking Out e.g. climate "researchers" etc.😅
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@L278-b7z
5 days ago
Not at Max Planck but I lost my PhD position because of supervisor retaliation and politics. Nobody helped they just got rid of the problem by making me quit under threats cause you can't fire people in Germany. So it's not just Max Planck it's all academia and actually in all competitive jobs.
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@L278-b7z
5 days ago
@sanjaykarkee3337 If it's happening now, because of this report you have a chance to win. I would suggest to contact the media and tell your story.
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@dianecripps204
5 days ago
I had to check my instrumentation constantly because some would sabotage it.
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@Ash-bc8vw
5 days ago
My frnd faces the same issues.
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@anthill1510
5 days ago (edited)
A friend of mine worked at Max Planck in Dresden. They were all expected to work at least 2 hours unpaid overtime each day and were treated badly in general.
I worked minimum wage in a warehouse (in Germany) at the time and was treated ten times better at that job than she was treated. Nobody would have even dared to ask us to work a minute unpaid overtime, it`s against the law. Why are these laws not enforced at universities, or hospitals for that matter?
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@MynameisBrianZX
4 days ago
@anthill1510 The state is more reluctant to take action against important institutions and powerful people, and that has a chilling effect on any lower level worker protections.
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@crick__1127
4 days ago
I've known many friends left academia due to such toxic culture. That is so often hidden within the lab and never be spoken openly, as people know that will just negatively affect their own career.
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@TheMorena
4 days ago
@mnemonija Suggesting that victims should just be more careful with whom they share ideas, ignores the reality that they often don’t have a choice, especially in hierarchical environments like academia. The whole point here is that many institutions protect senior researchers rather than addressing misconduct fairly.
Instead of placing the burden on victims to ‘just be strong’ or ‘be more careful’ or ‘just move on’ why not focus on changing the culture that allows these abuses to happen in the first place and protect researchers from abuse and exploitation?
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@mnemonija
3 days ago
@TheMorena i didn’t say only that, i also said document your ideas first. And that ideas are not much if you don’t work on them, don’t overvalue it. Also, you need to discuss in your group what happens with ideas you come up together while brainstorming. But in the end, if none of that works, life is short, find a better job. I cant solve it for you.
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@albertomelo803
3 days ago
thanks for share, 😢😢 im going to start my postdoc i hope donot fall in toxic behavior
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@albertomelo803
3 days ago
@L278-b7z and in many cases are low payments
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@lewiji
3 days ago
@anthill1510 it's a problem in a lot of jobs of "passion", for example, I'm a software engineer and get treated well working on enterprise software, whereas someone working in the games industry is treated comparatively very badly. It seems any industry where you're expected to feel grateful that you're pursuing your passion - research science, game development, nursing - that feeling can be exploited. No one is (or very few are) passionate about enterprise software or warehouse work, so people tolerate less exploitation.
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@sardicsaba9010
3 days ago
Germans.
.all the same
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@argfasdfgadfgasdfgsdfgsdfg6351
2 days ago
Abused? Really?
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@sardicsaba9010
2 days ago
@argfasdfgadfgasdfgsdfgsdfg6351 o believe him. Only attending a simple german course there made me sick after seeing the way germsgranies conduct their classes.
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@ywtcc
2 days ago (edited)
That's not behavior that's isolated to public institutions, unfortunately.
The private sector thinks that kind of abuse, harassment and theft is good business, and it's their right to do so!
Broaden the conversation beyond the most transparent of institutions, and I think you'll find more allies.
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@sardicsaba9010
2 days ago
@ywtcc Theodore N Kaufman was right.
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@KitagumaIgen
2 days ago
People that steals other's ideas are the sorriest excuse of a researcher. Also they've clearly failed to understand the fable about the goose that lay golden eggs...
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@sararkh
2 days ago
@albertomelo803 good luck!
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@ABHISHEKKUMAR-s3u7d
2 days ago
after reading your article I am completely drop my idea to do higher study's.
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@ragas2845
8 hours ago
I'm observing a common pattern here. Most of the complaints here if not all are coming from students outside of Europe. India, iran, south America, Africa and other parts of Asia. Maybe this has got something to do with r@cism and the superiority complex from them.
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@dorawa2419
vor 6 Tagen
Academia world-wide has those problem. Dominated mostly by men, underfunded, lack of transparency, following wrong incentives encouraged by uneducated politicians.
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@debdaspaul
vor 6 Tagen
I have been through this at MPI and also in Leibniz. DW should also investigate other institutes as well.
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@YTantirungrotechai
vor 6 Tagen
it is everywhere, not just in academia from a single country.
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@honestea
vor 6 Tagen
😅
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@James-z3x2n
vor 6 Tagen
Typical German institute, racism is a German value
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@dorawa2419
vor 6 Tagen
Racism is a world-wide problem
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@DelDavid-m8k
vor 6 Tagen
This isn't just a German problem. The toxic power dynamics described in this video are unfortunately prevalent in many elite research institutions and universities. I myself was a victim of this at a prominent research institute and associated university in Belgium. The culture there was shockingly similar, with extreme discouragement aimed at PhD students. It was a traumatizing experience. Instead of fostering learning, I witnessed researchers belittling PhD students and dismissing their work. It's crucial to expose these issues and demand change across the entire scientific community.
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@karlscher5170
vor 6 Tagen
Autists in leadership position
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@schurkas2610
vor 3 Tagen
It's now everywhere in education. I'm someone who is apparently asking too many questions outside of the given curriculum at university by professors. I've been told that what I was giving is more than insufficient to pass exams why I'm searching for more literature 😅
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@Mariajbh2
vor 3 Tagen
In Germany is worst
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@bhavinuttekar2283
2 hours ago (edited)
Asian and American bosses are not compared yet.
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@blah163
vor 6 Tagen
This is especially problematic in Germany because 1) PhD candidates are often employed by their PhD supervisors. This creates a conflict of interest (delaying the PhD in order to keep an employee) and worsens the power imbalance, as the supervisor now controls the PhD, the paycheck, and future references. and 2) because this is common practice, in order for professors and lab bosses to compete with others, they must build a large stable of students/candidates/post-grads and exploit them. Professors won't succeed if they don't push their people hard. and 3) professors are totally overworked and underpaid. The best people leave and those who are left are burned out and behave badly.
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@xy4669
vor 3 Tagen
Well put. This "ownership" of a professor over the student's career, graduation, etc. Makes no sense and needs to stop
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@thiagolucena4366
vor 6 Tagen (bearbeitet)
I cant believe they are surprised. As a postdoc in Germany, I gotta say thst the German academia is the most toxic I have ever seen. The power structure is very vertical and army like, and hirings are mostly based on networking and recommendation letters. I go through abuse constantly and two other postdocs left our group due to abuse... Fun fact, my supervisor was also the head of the PhD and postdoc psychological support team.
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@dorawa2419
vor 6 Tagen
Go to Sweden. There is even more pressure, you can stay only 3 years as a postdoc. It is even worse. Hidden racism, hidden networks, intransparency are highly problematic there.
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@mediumflow
vor 6 Tagen
I am SO glad that this is finally out in the open. This is absolutely no surprise to anyone who has been around various of the more toxic research environments in German academia. Such behavior has been considered appropriate by too many of the older male patriarchs for too long. This has only recently and only punctually begun to change with much more diverse teams and leadership - at least in some selected departments. It is time for those patriarchs to face significant consequences.
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@funandfun-xy4ez
vor 6 Tagen
Immigrants I guess is worse
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@Astrocomment
vor 6 Tagen
The academic system is outdated and became unhealthy for everyone. It must be redesigned. I am a postdoc in the Netherlands and here there are issues as well. Nobody has time and everybody is overloaded, overstressed. It is pitty that the educational systems from top to bottom became redundant.
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@funandfun-xy4ez
vor 6 Tagen
That is why I choose not to do any PhD after my master.
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@dorawa2419
vor 6 Tagen
Exactly, you see this in France, UK, Sweden, Denmark, Germany.
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@susanne5803
vor 6 Tagen
It is the worldwide problem of:
– overcoming old hierarchical structures
– encouraging fact based whistleblowing
– setting up controls that are truly outside of the controlled areas. (Currently the people controlling teachers are usually teachers or ex teachers, people controlling professors are professors ...)
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@oosidewalkoo
vor 6 Tagen (bearbeitet)
Same happens at the University of Lorraine in Metz, France.
Here is a DEI-like issue – wondering why the Director and the Deputy-Director were both gay and got their positions the same year !?
Besides just that Woke Agenda that the extreme / alt-right capitalized so many votes from...
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@brunosousa9264
vor 6 Tagen (bearbeitet)
I live in munich and know people that work/worked that. Everyone knows whats going on there. It's not a secret.
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@dorawa2419
vor 6 Tagen
Why should tax payer fund such a mess? In that sense, Sabine Hossenfelder is right. Tax payers money should be use only for reproducible, high quality science. And with high quality, I don't mean 1 single paper with highest impact factor. We need other output, reproducible code, publication of failed experiments, sustainability.
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@dorawa2419
vor 6 Tagen
Third party funding is a drug. This drug leads to power abuse, " piranha academic cliques", in-transparency. There is also a lack of real quality control. Publications are not reproducible, but everybody needs to pretend their science is the best. Overselling is key with wrong metrics. Wrong incentives push science in the wrong direction.
Not only at MPG, but also at other non-university science institutions is abuse present, also at universities, and also in other countries. Academia exploits people. If you are poor, female, or belonging to a minority, choose wisely if you want to remain in this field. You won't get help and your mental health will suffer, you family as well.
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@scoruja
vor 6 Tagen
Don’t attend prestigious institutions
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@georgiospassas7498
vor 6 Tagen (bearbeitet)
Research institutions are dysfunctional.. lots of EU funding wasted by piranha academic cliques.. no output.. a youth wasteland.. I moved to the industry when I was 35 years old after two years of unemployment and I will never forget my miserable years in academia.. I had believed in science but actually all these books you read at high school is a total different reality.. they only push you to the mouth of the wolf..
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@dorawa2419
vor 6 Tagen
In academia only one person get professorship, the rest disappears. In industry, you habe to work as a team.
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@georgiospassas7498
vor 6 Tagen (bearbeitet)
@ yes and in the industry the job market is free, while in academia it is impossible to follow an independent career path..
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@teddyshamia4327
vor 6 Tagen
work culture in Germany is a culture of abuse, stress, injustice and lack of accountability everywhere, i am confident that even in DW you could find similar abuse.
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@teddyshamia4327
vor 6 Tagen
these abuses could be found in every firm/organization in Germany, and the law is skewed to protect the Arbetigeber rather than workers, so i am not sure what the big deal is?
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@Mouse_Metal
vor 6 Tagen
I expected this video to be about animal abuse in research institutions.
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@wardeggerrobertmarius144
vor 6 Tagen
It's not just Germany, it's not just the academy... It's world wide and it goes to jobs too and other areas... It's generalized 🤷
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@sta1055
vor 6 Tagen
This is also the case in IT. Most companies know they can get away with paying foreigners less. Much lesser than what Germans with far less qualifications get.
Their reasoning almost always is that if they have to pay that much, they'd rather hire a German.
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@kaiseraugustus1393
vor 6 Tagen
Abusing power....wait there is something more important than from people of research institutions... first look at the polititians from Germany and the EU itself, this is corruption and abuse of power worth a documentation, not this bs, this is in mostlikely in every company
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@moonallure508
vor 6 Tagen
Thank you for bringing up this issue ! ❤
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@Aryakanta
vor 6 Tagen
So Prevalent in academia. Men with anti social personality disorders are placated, pushed up, pushed sideways, or off to one side but allowed to carry on , and take on subordinates only for them to be abused because it is easier to dole out money to a complainant, get an NDA rather than deal with the problem.
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@laksh1412
vor 6 Tagen
The problem is with Academia all over the world. Think of the situation in India. Research people are severely underpaid and treated very badly. Only God knows when this will stop
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@crimsonhunter
vor 6 Tagen
It's a shame this is the reality in a science oriented field. People should compete yes, but with science not by politically abusing others.
It's the very same problem across every company out there. As soon as power is involved, only the most selfish make it to the top. Capitalism in its current form is hurting the vast majority incl. humanity as a whole. This needs to change.
We need to relearn how to be kind, compassionate and work together towards a common goal.
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@julianlaycock1753
vor 6 Tagen
Does this surprise anyone? Check the Consulting industry in Germany, I have worked both in academia and consulting and, frankly speaking, the problem in the latter is generally magnified by 10. I speak from my own and my colleagues' experience. Wish they would shed light on this as well.
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@mistefash3357
vor 6 Tagen
When I was studying at a Emden Hochschule, a friend and me did a project and submitted it. We had to beg the professor just to get our notes even if the project was a failure. At that time all the students got their notes before 3 months and thag professor was replying to the emails of German students or European students always but we had to send 3 emails and wait 3 months to get our results
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@testing-q8k
vor 6 Tagen
@DW News next time get a talking head that at least can read?
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@yavarjn2055
vor 6 Tagen
Grrmans always want to teach everybodyelse about human morals and always end up like this
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@jamesnnamdi8022
vor 6 Tagen
Very true. Foreign researchers are the most affected. They are simply Leaving Germany. A huge disappointment.
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@igelisa_medinag223
vor 6 Tagen
It sadly happens everywhere… at any university…
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@shazia5342
vor 6 Tagen (bearbeitet)
What the postdoc and PhD student in the interview are describing is really awful. Max Planck and related institutions should be investigated. Academic research is a hostile and a very competitive environment, and the driving force for this is fighting for the limited research funding available. Personally, I was based in non-German research universities (in Europe), and I experienced a fair share of discrimination and sometimes bullying from my colleagues. Thankfully, my research supervisors for my PhD and postdocs were mostly supportive and they never said such things to me. Nevertheless, I left academic research because I was really unwell as a result of stress. Big changes are required to make academic research environment a better place, and this will in turn produce more positive research outputs to help the societies across the world.
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@L278-b7z
vor 4 Tagen
Yeah it makes it easier if the don't yell, but they still use these bullying techniques that are so subtle you can't even document and question yourself the whole time if you imagined it or not. It's incredibly damaging to the psyche even if they don't yell.
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@fardinbehboudi2410
vor 6 Tagen
I have the same experience at Fraunhofer , bullying, being ignored and this is not by one boss ,the whole hierarchy works like this and after me many people (100% of them were Ausländer !!) and they all left. It is time to break the Taboo of calling this racism out
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@VishalVerma-u8z
vor 6 Tagen
We should stop going to Germany for MS/PhD. They are abusing the immigrant status of the students.
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@iamhamzaabdullah
vor 6 Tagen
It had always been on my wishlist to get into Max Planck, but seeing this made me drop it from my wishlist, leaving me disappointed.
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@Bananaaa_Bread
vor 6 Tagen
Please cover the public media industrie in Germany on this matter!
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@NovaNomad-z1e
vor 6 Tagen
It is true! Look at research center Juelich as well. I am a victim myself. After 3 years it is still hunting me.
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@kiki40159
vor 6 Tagen
There is absolutely no support system in place for students there. Only departments labeled as supportive for students exist in name only.
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@tilak231
vor 6 Tagen
Come to ANY Indian MEDICAL COLLEGE and you'll see a totally different world!
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@osamaafridi5
vor 6 Tagen
It's actually a problem within Academia every where especially in elite schools.
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@ansiemartin7280
vor 6 Tagen (bearbeitet)
This happens a lot in academia all over.. India. France as well. supervisors just abuse mentally and do not give due credit . It's months.. Years of hard work and isolation to work long hours in labs on unstructured projects.. That's like somebody's vanity project.. No clear goals.. Just waste of time, effort.. resource in the name of basic science. At the end ur only validation is a publication and often even that doesn't happen because your boss clearly plays favoritisms.. And without a support network as an expat.. The whole experience has been horrible.. Depressing.. And really waste of time.
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@mouctechy
vor 6 Tagen
It's a common pattern in almost all academic institutions not only in Germany!
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@Everything_Golden
vor 6 Tagen (bearbeitet)
A victim here too. One of my professors did not grade a paper even after repeated requests reducing my overall grade below 3.5.
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@raily9713
vor 6 Tagen
Academia carries out a precise selection of sociopath or abusive individuals... To the point only the more toxic ones reach the positions of power, and normal people literally escape towards other sectors
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@Rated_Koenig
vor 6 Tagen
It is not just Max Planck institute, the power abuse happens in almost every German university. Add RPTU Kaiserslautern to the list. The professors use PhD candidates as contract workers, keep getting research funding by showing man power, but have zero care for the future or vision of the candidates. There is no accountability, and they literally play with the future and career of the candidates. People give up the dream of PhD after spending 6-7 quality years. Their confidence and mental health take a blow. Horrible system.
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@smanpreet2612
vor 6 Tagen
Same thing happened to my friend in University of Kiel. He was also psychologically ill because of that. I told him to complain but he didn't want to.
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@leoniep9231
vor 6 Tagen
I am enrolled at Uni Kiel currently! Do you know what field, or would you rather not disclose? Some things have happened to me, too, but not directly at Uni Kiel (so far)... It's good to be vigilant, though!
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@medhap8067
vor 6 Tagen
This news has not even made it to the German news channels and their websites.. A country so passionate about their language never watches English news. This news has zero impact on the ground.
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@densiooo
vor 6 Tagen
Racism as well, check all MPIs and all other research institutes with "Grundfinanzierung"
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@shivanin8708
vor 6 Tagen
The sexist behaviour is so true. They do it almost subconsciously.
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@akIndia10
vor 6 Tagen
Are you from India pursuing PhD or post doc research in Germany. Could you please give a little explanation regarding their supremacist behavior against fellow countryman.
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@winterhudehhjvmv1651
vor 6 Tagen
This is a problem in Academics EVERYWHERE
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@tiajin248
vor 4 Tagen
No it is not everywhere, there are other countries where their academic atmosphere is much fairer, don't generalize this easily.
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@MrPAuan
vor 6 Tagen
Funny enough, it's in the law that in germany you can not insult, discriminate other people which devalues the person's human dignity. And what exactly happened is that.
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@zzip0
vor 6 Tagen
It is not only Germany, it is global. Research and academia are broken.
Germany however is in the lead of some problems. German academia is a closed mafia-like organization with extremely dubious academic appointments and structured to exploit the young. It is not this or that professor, it is the whole structure.
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@Merkw
vor 6 Tagen (bearbeitet)
It's a problem of academia worldwide. Good thing a big news media made this kind of documentary. Now they have to make a series uncovering this madness in the whole world.
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@ArcticMindfulnessRetreat-sx8nl
vor 6 Tagen
In my experience one problem is that the professors and other scientists are not hired because of their character or social skills. Super good scientist can be a horrible person, or just lacking any social skills. And of course power corrupts everyone..
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@liang8255
vor 6 Tagen
This is quite common in many countries amoung academics, many institut
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@thorewidderich2797
vor 6 Tagen
Shocking, but sadly not surprising.
Similar issues at the University of Hamburg—fraud, sexual abuse, and institutional silence.
When will these elite institutions be held accountable?
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@jaquelinejunge8805
vor 6 Tagen
Film : ' Ein verborgenes Leben ' 2019
Nothing really changed. 😭🫣
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@kshiray
vor 6 Tagen
Very disappointing to hear this.
One would think people involved in the pursuit of science and knowledge in a reputed institute would be more logical, ethical, and kinder than a typical corporate office.
Especially sad for me in an underdeveloped unethical society to see similar unethical behavior being neglected and protected even in a developed society like Germany.
Be careful and take measures to protect your society's values. They're very delicate. Once you lose them, you may never get them back and end up like us.
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@AP-qb2xn
vor 6 Tagen
That's academia in the 21st century for you
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@subhamdaslovesraptor99
vor 6 Tagen
The higher the nation is in ranking in terms of research breakthroughs, the more the system rigging and power abuse. This is the understatement.
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@Thor110
vor 6 Tagen
What do you expect from Capitalism and a species that built itself off of stealing or fighting over land and power, nothing but. Exactly this. Everywhere.
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@subhamdaslovesraptor99
vor 6 Tagen
"If you truly want to test a man's character, the give him power."----- Marcus Aurelius (The True Roman Emperor). This statement rings today more than it ever did. Weaponization of the justice system and the academic system will surely bring downfall for the foreseeable future. This is a clear politicization of the issues faced by the students at this research center.
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@jdmmg4904
vor 6 Tagen
❤👍🏽
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@ALhajrasAlgdiry
vor 6 Tagen
yes, science requires hard work and can be stressful, but remember the best scientists were motivated by curiosity and passion not fear and discouragement.
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@Nationalist21
vor 4 Tagen
If institutional discouragement happens, then how can good academic research thrive? Those who are destined to encourage research are doing the opposite. The only solution for this problem is removing the reference and advisory role of these professors. They should be made just guides as any new information found out by the researchers are stealed by their professors. Anyone who got unchecked power will use it against the career and life of the powerless. That's human psychology. So, the only solution is removing the ultimate power to decide their authority to publish these researches
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@Chill-jplt
vor 6 Tagen (bearbeitet)
My friends/colleagues and I worked at Germany's Ulm University for almost 3 decades and bullying & Co. are not only within these Max Planck institutes, but it's a common misconduct of leading professors, and such behaviour is tolerated and even supported by the lady who is the head of HR. If you don't comply to their lies and distorted rules, then you easily get a warning from the HR without fair discussion, while they try making you rethink thru their gaslighting.
In this university, you have to tell a lie all the time if you want to look good and survive the abusive upper-ups.
Professors and scientists are but humans who think that they are something better, they even think that they have the better air to breath in the same room.
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@DrGlynnWix
vor 6 Tagen
Color me completely unsurprised. All of academia is pretty rife with abuse of power. It's practically to be expected in a competitive, hierarchical structure, where the people at the top have no accountability or any oversight. If you are a professor, no one has authority to tell you not to do something. You might want to get along with your colleagues, but none of them can censure you, much less fire you.
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@conorstapleton3183
vor 6 Tagen
The tip of the tip of the iceberg.
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@sdgdasgupta8858
vor 6 Tagen (bearbeitet)
If the abuser as well as the supervisory people ( HR, psychologist, legal coordinators etc.) belong to the same umbrella organisation, it is a massive problem. The supervisory body should be independent and students/ scientists should have representation through worker's council (like IG Metall, Ver.di etc.) IMO.
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@arlenehutchinson9259
vor 6 Tagen
The "response " from the institute and the Prof says it all. They KNOW. They are OK with it.
Solution must come from outside.
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@agalva100
vor 6 Tagen (bearbeitet)
This isn't a surprise, honestly. Absolutely, this isn't MPI exclusive. It is so SO common. You have foreign students, young people, and these untouchable professors. You can guess how things usually go 💁🏼♀️
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@y.p.735
vor 6 Tagen
It is "the Left". Those People are extremely disturbed and destroy our Society.
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@georgemburu4177
vor 6 Tagen
United States is the best place for research. The culture is way tolerant to divergent views, opinions and perspectives
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@yar3333
vor 5 Tagen
What about woke sexism?
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@cosmashono7665
vor 6 Tagen
This is why I like DW. They address issues within the German society that you will hardly see on other traditional German TV platforms. The ones that 90% of their content is mostly holidays, food, talk shows and programs that have no bearing on the stack challenges that Germany faces. They’ll rather project a “la la la” society.
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@誰-c3p
vor 5 Tagen
after usaid/ned stop paying dw...
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@vornamenachnahme
vor 4 Tagen
You need to look at the news format within the public channels. Not their whole program can be news. That would most likely very depressing. I like Deutschlandfunk the most.
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@Ellen-Monet
vor 2 Tagen
I second, not only within the German society but also across the world, they have brilliant documentaries about modern slavery and other global issues
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@kkon5ti
vor 2 Stunden
@誰-c3p bruh USAID never, NEVER paid DW (in any significant form or amount). DW is mostly government funded by the federal government of Germany, and also fund itself to a small degree by advertising and sponsorships.
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@Blubkopf98
3 hours ago
I also think that I read something like this topic in the Tagesschau app.
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@flin4557
vor 6 Tagen
All to familier with my experience at the MP, happening everyday in garching
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@wawrzynieckoodziej6664
vor 6 Tagen
Sabine Hossenfelder talked about it ....
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@nicholaswoollhead6830
vor 6 Tagen
Really impressive work, DW.
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@THUND3RS0W
vor 6 Tagen
lol academia
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@substance90
vor 6 Tagen
Newsflash: it’s exactly the same at Uni Hospitals. Young doctors abused beyond belief by their superiors
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@KalingTamut-m6g
vor 6 Tagen
Academic corruption, discrimination and abuse in Universities and other similar institutes needs to be attended properly.
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@JMTheologicallyMotivated
vor 6 Tagen
Thank you, DW, for bringing this kind of discrimination, which is happening in the German academia. It 100% true.
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@dilipmv6546
vor 6 Tagen
This is a huge problem in academia, not just in Germany but across the world. The lab head has a lot of power over lab members. If you want to apply elsewhere, you NEED a reference from your lab head. This makes it an ideal place for exploitation. The only solution is that the system of reference should be removed.
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@L278-b7z
vor 4 Tagen
Agreed! And also the thing with temporary contracts.
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@IcariumClimbs
vor 4 Tagen
Yeah I talked to this lab head recently who had this reputation for toxicity. I wanted to do a project under him. Was sceptical about what I heard from other people. But when I interviewed him, he boasted about the fact how he denied lor's of certain master students. He threatened me if I don't work hard under him, I won't get any lor from him.
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@erichstocker8358
4 hours ago
@IcariumClimbs For me this is all troubling to hear. I work in an agency that funds academic research. I work with a scientific discipline that encourages its PhD students to get involved, mentors them, gives them the opportunity to present papers and assists in getting papers published. I can't tell you the number of times that advisors have gone out of their way to support their student in getting teaching and research positions in universities and public agencies. I have seen some of the other side in other disciplines where ad hominem attacks can get quite abusive. Fortunately, in my interactions both reviewing grants, applications and university interactions in this discipline, I have not encountered the abusive outlined in the report and comments. Given the level of effort necessary for PhD work and research work, I can only imagine the psychological impact such abuse has. I extend even more my thanks to my colleagues who have supported their students and researchers. This report makes the value of such professors even more important.
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@jjsc4396
vor 6 Tagen
Gee, you're JUST discovering this NOW?!? 😂 It's been endemic in academic and research institutes for DECADES. And repeatedly reported. You just haven't been watching OR listening. And especially, governments do NOTHING. Because you have an OBVIOUS political leader 🔄 academia/research institute revolving door.
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@Mattbrazilian
vor 6 Tagen
This is just the ice cube tip of the iceberg
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@buggi666
vor 6 Tagen
Maybe Gabriel choose the wrong job?
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@DefinitelyWave
vor 6 Tagen (bearbeitet)
It sounds like Gabriel put more effort going to the news than listening to what the professor told him. Useless fks are universal after all! This interview might be the most work Gabriel has done all year by the sounds of it !😂 Just my 2 American cents lol
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@sokundavannchriv3967
vor 6 Tagen
All of these professor should be ashamed of themselves. If they cannot support student, what are they going to do to improve the situation ?
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@Nimbu_Pani-k1v
vor 6 Tagen
When you admit activists for students whose sole objective is woke research.
Nebulous allegations out of perceived hurt are their forte.
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@sumayyamols5158
vor 6 Tagen
My daughter wishes to do her research in Germany. But now I am afraid. What shall we do?
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@yar3333
vor 5 Tagen
Learn your prof in advance. He may be a good person.
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@jbookvoxx
vor 6 Tagen
Right until today, I refer East Germany as DDR.
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@ImranKhan-t2n8s
vor 6 Tagen
this is not only in this all europe , all senior professor miss your thier post doc and researcher
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@hchallenator
vor 6 Tagen (bearbeitet)
Yes, it's true that many principal investigators fail to provide a supportive work environment. As a former grad student and postdoc I have witnessed everything from blatant abuse to subtle threats. But let me say that I have seen professors successfully modify their behavior in a positive way, particularly when the pressure of making tenure is alleviated! But a department head or director should absolutely lead with a far better example! Toxic!
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@melbournewolf
vor 6 Tagen
Power imbalances are endemic in human systems. Age, sex, gender, seniority, qualifications, position of standing (community, business, political, societal), connections, networks...all structures that were built in to our dealings with each other, in Western societies at least, over millennia.
This is why absolute equality & equity of choice & process with absolute transparency is necessary...but if course, perfect systems are machines, not humans nor humanity treating itself with kindness.
Utopia is unobtainable in any practical sense but the idea can still properly us to be better and joiner with each other; especially as we discover that the "survival of the first" is a cooperative endeavour, not solely competitive and should never be combative or violent.
I can dream...
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@mptw
vor 6 Tagen
Academia is a dog eat dog world.
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@chestuntin
vor 6 Tagen
Go outside of academia it is the same lol
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@ragas2845
vor 6 Tagen
In 2015, a professor from Leipzig University who goes by the name Prof Annette Beck Sickinger openly denied an internship to a male student from India citing the rape problem in India. She said I will not accept male students from India to work under her. If this is not racism and discrimination, what is? This incident sparked a huge controversy in India and the German ambassador to India had to intervene and finally she had to publicly apologize. She was never suspended or fired for her discriminatory behaviour but in fact got several awards in 2023. Evil people like her should never be allowed in academia and research.
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@Aiuto-vk5tq
14 hours ago
Well in that time there were two people from India working in her lab and it she was officially cleared after two higher ups saw the whole email discussion and she didn’t deny him because of the “rape-society”, it was part of a bigger discussion that only started after provocation of that student. But everybody can researched that quite quickly
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@ragas2845
10 hours ago
@Aiuto-vk5tq Stop defending and justifying a racist. There are a lot of people like her in Germany in the academic industry, housing market and job sector who indulge in passive racism and flat out deny Indian students. They have some sort of irrational hate towards Indians especially men.
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@kr4536
vor 6 Tagen
This behavior isn't limited to the scientific community. Across the board, people in positions of management will bully their employees. It's almost like bullies gravitate to positions of management and then are given those positions either out of fear or admiration. We see it happen on the world stage.
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@L278-b7z
vor 5 Tagen
It's not just bullies it's the people with dark triad traits.
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@jul4173
vor 4 Tagen
I agree. However, in academia it is worst because it is a quite small world and you cannot just leave or change a job. You will ruin your career forever. You get a bad PhD supervisor, your dreams of working as researcher are ruined, you get on a wrong foot with your supervisor you will get a bad reference letter, you will not find a job afterwards. Everyone knows everyone.
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@ghostrich3948
vor 6 Tagen
I think it would be good to prepare people coming to an institution that there might be behavior like this so that they can brace themselves, become more resilient and see it from a more objective point of view.
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@patrickgz
vor 6 Tagen
accountability? what big meaningless words we learn tday
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@kamranb04
vor 6 Tagen
The reported issues could be valid and are not limited to the Max Planck Society but reflect broader problems across academia. It feels unfair to single out the Max Planck Institutes.
I work at a Max plank institute.
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@wasifulalam1393
vor 6 Tagen
I would like to report for Czech Technical. Some thing exactly same happening here
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@wasifulalam1393
vor 6 Tagen
Same in Czech Technical University
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@MuhammadUsman-nz8pv
vor 6 Tagen
This isn’t just limited to germany. I also left academia due to such behaviors. This is happening all across the domain.
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@vivr670
vor 6 Tagen (bearbeitet)
I worked with a German team before. How Gabriel describes his German boss is exactly how the German Coordinator I worked with behaved. Very condescending. You cannot thrive in an environment filled with fear.
Could it be cultural?
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@benjaminmurphy9114
vor 6 Tagen
Definitely.
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@j.j.4262
vor 6 Tagen
I’m sorry to hear you had a negative experience like this. I am troubled by your comment though. While certainly possible and potentially part of what contributes, this is a report about cases in specifically Germany that have come to light now. You have one personal experience with another German. Why would you assume based on that small and limited data set that it’s a cultural problem and not a broader systematic issues of unchecked power structures? I just want you to be aware of your implicative phrasing not just potentially simplifying this matter, but being practical “othering” by finger point-ing at “German culture” as a whole. We need to be aware of when our biases potentially cloud our reasoning and judgement, especially in today’s society having to face divisive influences. Again, likely a contributing factor, but maybe not the core issue.
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@renren2740
vor 6 Tagen
Especially if you are from non-European countries but have western education or mixed background and even western given name that for many German people surprisingly not a “code name” like many non-european people
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@dorawa2419
vor 6 Tagen
No. You will find it in other countries too. Just move around.
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@kavigarrib
vor 6 Tagen
@j.j.4262 I rate this comment at 100%, in terms of being polite/respectful, but still carrying the message clearly. Also agree with the message, I have worked with a few Germans and found them to be as diverse in perspective and personality as every other nationality.
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@dorawa2419
vor 6 Tagen
You are mistaken. Managers of non-German origin behave like this as well in German academia. Managers are only promoted into their positions because they were once just lucky, they lack people management skills.
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@ariel_monaco
vor 5 Tagen
Yes. See my comment. I think this is a cultural pattern
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@hommedesvoyages7296
vor 3 Tagen
@j.j.4262 In several instances Germans can band together to create a certain unjust reality against competitors or others whom they feel threatened or insecure about while propping up themselves. This is a fact. Other nationalities may do this too but probably none as effective as Germans.
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@selmahare
vor 6 Tagen (bearbeitet)
Wow to think that I once applied for a research doctorate there. Happy to have been declined. This seems to be a problem with academia in general, everywhere.
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@sushilapatel2127
vor 6 Tagen (bearbeitet)
It’s true in almost all university and research institute all over the world
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@GEMINDIGO
vor 6 Tagen (bearbeitet)
There is serious abuse and misconduct right across the scientific sector due to political bias,economic greed and industry infiltration.Anybody with an open mind has been able to see this for years.The world needs to go down a path of spirituality,strong sustainability and international cooperation.
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@tongdijamir8541
vor 6 Tagen
Mental harassment is experienced in most of the University around the world especially those doing PhD and Post Doctoral....
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@behzadnourani3195
vor 6 Tagen
Vert serious and very true
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@Patrick-ee4fl
vor 6 Tagen
cough cough RF Berlin
cough cough UCL
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@tomhenry897
vor 6 Tagen
And complain about trump
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@mohammedsahal3268
vor 6 Tagen
These young talented European people doing advanced research are welcome to US. No abuse here through hard language. Very polite language is preferred in US.
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@krazy11-YT
vor 6 Tagen
Its the norm in India.
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@runcycleskixc
vor 6 Tagen
He is lucky to have stopped dreaming about this after a year.
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@markg3169
vor 6 Tagen
This is not newsworthy. Are we going to start looking DW performance reviews next?
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@Brina.-gb6ib
vor 6 Tagen
So glade this is talked about! The problem is when you're alone (or feel alone) there's no one you can turn to. Reports like this are essential!
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@PP-py
vor 6 Tagen
Not surprised at all
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@swz-pq1jt
vor 6 Tagen (bearbeitet)
Unfortunately the truth is in Germany it is daily routine that you get discriminated, sexually harassed and degraded. Its a cultural thing
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@user-user-rxtxpxdx
vor 6 Tagen
I guess it spreads throughout almost all the German institutes...
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@maytecalipso
vor 6 Tagen (bearbeitet)
Completly true!!!! I was one of the subjects of the power abuse at Udine's University. One professor from psychology used to made sexists comments and expected women to laught, he shout to the team, and used gaslighting as manipulation technique. All this while he was never at the lab, and always travelling with her girlfriend .
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@kemada89
vor 6 Tagen (bearbeitet)
happens everywhere in every lab in the USA, specially for Latino PhD students and many foreigners... Even if you report, everything stays in house, I have faced the same in public universities in NY
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@quasarsupernova9643
vor 6 Tagen
I don't get it. Sternly warning students for non performance is not disrespect. Using foul language while regrettable is just an expression of frustration....
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@infostations
vor 6 Tagen
Although that is unprofessional ... that man seems soft
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@Ambient_Scenes
vor 6 Tagen
I'm not surprised at all. Academia is often toxic.
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@mr.zimtus5231
vor 6 Tagen
But but but capitalism good....
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@infostations
vor 6 Tagen
Institutional Silence .... the German pastime
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@L278-b7z
vor 5 Tagen
It's not even Germany, it's everywhere and it happens in all competitive fields.
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@tfrtrouble
vor 5 Tagen
Lol I've seen much worse in the US. I think what you meant was: Institutional silence... the academic pastime.
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@L278-b7z
vor 5 Tagen
@tfrtrouble Trust me even institutions outside of academia have this.
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@tfrtrouble
vor 5 Tagen
@L278-b7z That's sad to hear. People suck sometimes.
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@mattlawson4727
vor 6 Tagen
Welcome to corporate culture, bottom line and spreadsheets
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@VimalkumarChawda
vor 6 Tagen (bearbeitet)
at 5:30 you ask why it is diffucult ? Ask me , I file absue of power by professor leibniz uni TU9 but judge was also pass out from the same university pass out. She judge didnot mention all in the final judgement which I gave them as proof.
The examination is not check by appointed person from examination office, his assistant confirm that its dont matter if professor explain or not during lecture . so mostly foreign students are targeted. please ask details of case 6A 491/21 and 6A 491/22.
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@DavidSmall-z5e
vor 6 Tagen
Yes, this problem is common all around the world, not just Germany. The problem stems from the pressure that laboratory heads and department heads are under these days to bring in money. This pressure can make them abusive to both postdoctoral fellows and students. There is no excuse for this behaviour of course. Things need to change not only at the laboratory/department level, but also at the federal level. The pressure on funding is too acute. Changes in the USA are only going to make this worse. Compounding the problem is the competitive nature of current scientific research. Collegiality is a thing of the past apparently.
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@stephan1752
vor 6 Tagen
Why does this sound so typically... German? Perhaps is was just the image of a hysterical German beating on a table with his fist, spitting while yelling at the top of his lungs.
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@mohammadiftekharalam3966
vor 6 Tagen
Thanks to DW for uncover the issue. This is how, German Institute will become more competitive in the world as the authority will work on the issue.
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@abuzarghaffari9268
vor 6 Tagen
Macht spiel ist überall ebenfalls in den Firmen, in der Gesellschaft und an der Unis.
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@emilieshin
vor 6 Tagen
Innovation?! 😂😂😂😂😂
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@habil8324
vor 6 Tagen
Haha you it’s also in Hospitals 😂😂😂😔😔😔
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@luiscobos123
vor 6 Tagen
All those cultures from central and eastern Europe. They are happy to be "Direct" but they are not happy when you are direct to them. And if you do well as the last seconds of the video says manipulation and mob manipulation
Happens in southern countries like Spain as well, but in a subtle, non action, push to isolation
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@kiki40159
vor 6 Tagen
And rudeness is masked as directness.
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@ila9063
vor 5 Tagen
Germany is a Western European country. Let’s not pretend it’s just central and Eastern Europeans that are the problem.
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@ishi450
vor 4 Tagen
Finally, someone said it. I thought only I felt this.
Flaunting and being proud of their directness, and yet you can't do the same with them or else you get banished. What a backwards way of thinking.
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@danielkotorman5780
vor 6 Tagen
😮
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@zarafrz5798
vor 6 Tagen
I'm so glad DW made this report. I should say it's the same in US.
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@inxsgoat
vor 6 Tagen
Really? I thought it'd be quite strict there.
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@HDas-i9q
vor 6 Tagen
It's worse here 🇺🇸
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@BoosterShot1010
vor 6 Tagen
People are broken and their deeds are also broken!
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@AndItsAllRelative
vor 6 Tagen
Thanks to DW!!!
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@AndItsAllRelative
vor 6 Tagen (bearbeitet)
Dresden. leipzig and Mittweida are the hells, I have been there. I left my job just because of people behaviour and scratches on my car everyday. One day a guy threw wine bottle on my boss car because he picked me from the station and Germans standing over there hating me that why an international guy is here with a long coat and a laptop in his hand and his boss came to pick him in Porsche. My boss told me to do home office for 3 months after watching it and told me not to leave home after 7 in the evening.
Its in their blood, Its in their history. Germany cant be USA, because in USA there is no ausländer and in Germany a guy who pays 43% tax from last 14 years is still ausländer.
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@shannonhalford3507
vor 6 Tagen
Good God, what the hXll has happened to our beautiful Germany??? These blithering Heads of Corporations/Institutes in Germany, need a reality check.....talk about stagnating intellectual growth and creativity.....I'm NY Toms very British/Brazilian future wife MD, Veteran, Iraq, Afghanistan and Cont. of Africa
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@V.I.P205
vor 6 Tagen (bearbeitet)
Wow, sounds like a typical Singapore workplace. "Discuss my project behind my back and claim credit for my work" welcome to Singapore. But over here it is young people driving toxicity. It's almost as though it is a competition
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@sofialara9837
vor 6 Tagen
In Switzerland also happend. I have to go thorough it. I do not feel motivated to continue with research.
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@biochem2024
vor 2 Tagen
I feel so sad about this beautiful country. I also dream of doing a PhD in Switzerland but unfortunately I didn't get the opportunity. Now I am still trying to secure a PhD position because without it our master's in biochemistry nothing. 😞
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@ot8479
vor 2 Tagen
❤❤❤❤ DON'T GIVE UP ON SCIENCE BECAUSE OF ABUSIVE AS...LES!!!
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@sofialara9837
vor 2 Tagen
@ot8479 So sweet❤. Maybe I will find a better environment
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@aidivina25
vor 2 Tagen
@biochem2024 Try again maybe in other countries. don't let go :)
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@biochem2024
vor 1 Tag (bearbeitet)
@aidivina25 I tried many max planck institutes but didn't get positive response. I searched about the Switzerland PhD position but in those positions I need recommendations from the professor for taking all responsibility for me. The thing is that I don't know anyone from Switzerland. And I don't understand the actual issue in my application. 😓
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@aidivina25
vor 1 Tag
I see. there are other countries beside germany or switzerland where you can apply. have you tried ? france/netherlands/spain/UK/sweden
etc..
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@nightowl6260
vor 6 Tagen
Bravo for the courage to cover such a difficult topic.
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@nightowl6260
vor 6 Tagen
In medical training in the US, it was made clear that "somehow " it would be reflected in your reference letters when you were trying to transfer to another program or when you were ready to look for a job. This may be part of what he may be describing "That it will hurt your career."
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@mdtaifurrahman2020
vor 6 Tagen
I left academia after several years of working in Japan, Singapore and the UK for a simple reason: it is no longer for producing knowledge rather crunching papers and abusing tax payers' money for solving "imaginary" problem with "useless" solutions. I am not saying it is happening everywhere but sadly 70% of academic reseach is simply waste of money and time. Please STOP it.
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@persiathiest1963
vor 6 Tagen
Germany is the most overrated European country
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@AndrewHay-u1k
vor 6 Tagen
I don't speak your language, but this sounds like a load of steirscheiße to me 😉 It's probably an attempt at character assassination and to deconstruct your institutions.
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@Flickvids100
vor 6 Tagen
Not expecting less from a country that punishes saying "free Palestine".
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@Natty_kitty
vor 6 Tagen
Sadly this behavior is commonplace in academic institutions which l why l chose to leave after two postdocs
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@martytube821
vor 6 Tagen
Humans are flawed and there is no utopia where it won't be!
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@Seyi.O
vor 7 Tagen
Well said 👏
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@baroodi100
vor 6 Tagen
Wirecard, Max Planck ….. corruption in German institutions!!
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@Seyi.O
vor 7 Tagen
Corruption is everywhere
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@pbk-varma
vor 6 Tagen
Unfortunately this is not limited to Germany, this is equally prevalent in UK top institutions as well. Many post doc’s have to give up their dreams and ambitions for life and need to switch careers. Quiet often they cannot complain and remain in silent or just quit because of power of the supervisor. Mentorship has long gone for a toss.
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@sayedkhalilullahmonib3363
vor 6 Tagen
Even Germany research center is full of racism
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@Seyi.O
vor 7 Tagen
Stop exaggerating.
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@Seyi.O
vor 6 Tagen
Academia in Germany is highly competitive and you must fight for your ideas. Germany in general is not for the weak—you must have mental strength.
Some professors misuse their power. A friend of mine was struggling with anxiety throughout her PhD program due to a toxic professor that is known to be difficult in TÜ. I also heard a Professor slapped a student at an MPI in BW.
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@mellosays
vor 6 Tagen
It happens everywhere. I once worked for a PI who was abusive, but I went straight to the department’s director and he sorted her out. To work in a lab environment you have to be strong minded, but abusive is unacceptable. The job is already stressful as it is.
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@helenapeictukuljac70
vor 7 Tagen
'... HE sorted HER out...' - no surprise there
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@wallysonthomas
vor 6 Tagen
OK, everyone knows the problem, and how to act, but till now no results and researchers till suffering. I am still suffering. Pity!😢
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@Arya-cf7vu
vor 6 Tagen
This is routine HR and management behaviour in ALL organisations and private business that allow and enable bullying.
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@Maximusinteruptus
vor 6 Tagen
even all TU9s must be investigated.
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@myspace5671
vor 6 Tagen
one is lazy one is rude
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@jan-kim-moon
vor 6 Tagen
:(
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@lawrenceokanda7674
vor 6 Tagen
This is normalised in Germany, abusive behaviour is part of their culture.... Everywhere including schools, and the system encourages that
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@thecount1001
vor 7 Tagen
why? as a dumb Canadian, i thought Germany was a highly educated, egalitarian, progressive society. this is new and shocking to me.
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@Seyi.O
vor 7 Tagen
@lawrenceokanda7674 Abusive behaviour is not part of the culture. This happens everywhere where there is competition and especially evident when multi cultures collaborate.
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@NicolasHaufe
vor 7 Tagen
You mistook africa for Germany buddy
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@saraaltom2826
vor 7 Tagen
@NicolasHaufe lol. This is what you are good at, bringing Africa to feel you might be better 😂, but everyone is watching, the video the comments, it is GERMANY read it louder until you have headache or something but it is 😂
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@yar3333
vor 6 Tagen
@thecount1001 Germany is the leading racist country in Europe according to polls.
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@kinngrimm
vor 6 Tagen
Pretty much any hierarchical structures with no built in safe guards against people on a power trip will eventually have the same issues seen here. Doesn't matter if its government, corporation, religious or whichever, human nature needs checks and balances.
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@heartsofiron4ever
vor 7 Tagen
So ist es nun
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@LittleExplorer875
vor 7 Tagen
These stories could be told by 90% of young scientists who went through Max Planck. The problem is everywhere in academia, but Max Planck is especially problematic because directors get millions of euros for their research from the tax payers money without having to compete/apply for it (“Grund Finanzierung“) and completely without accountability of how money are used. Other institutions do not have that power and privileges, professors at universities still need to compete for money and write grants. At least they need to put in some effort and are somehow more accountable
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@Seyi.O
vor 7 Tagen
Right! I remember submitting unnecessary equipment orders just because any money from allocated budget not spent is forgone.
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@katrinam6795
vor 6 Tagen
I am working in a university 100% dependent on grant funding for research. That creates it's own problems, but it does ensure less absuive practices. Though once you starr your PhD, you become way more dependent on your Prof
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@LittleExplorer875
vor 6 Tagen
@katrinam6795 at uni I had to write my thesis on unemployment because my phd advisor had no more money to pay me as a big grant was ending. He told me less than 2 months before my contract was ending. At Max Planck I was told “we do not write grants in this group” because they had so much money from the regular financing. Two very different situations, both very problematic unfortunately
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@Ash-bc8vw
vor 5 Tagen
True, Max Planck is the worst
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@pedrob3953
vor 3 Tagen
Nothing but little fiefdoms and kingdoms where Herr Direktor is lord and master.
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@filippo8189
vor 7 Tagen
We’re all in therapy, medicated and leaving en masse.
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@kinngrimm
vor 7 Tagen
Since when do we bleep foule language in Germany? Is it because of youtube?
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1 Antwort
@DralhaEureka
vor 7 Tagen
Since this is the English version, it has to be bleeped for US consumption, or the video will be demonetized.
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@hermitcrabinavan7244
vor 7 Tagen
All the progress I made with the help of psychotherapy was wiped out when I return to university to study psychology
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@thorebergmann1986
vor 6 Tagen
That's the irony. But it's sounds 100% true xD
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@omaranwar9459
vor 7 Tagen
Having worked at one of the Institutes I had to go through a social behavior workshop.
Very strange.
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@donjohn2239
vor 7 Tagen
These guys should work in India. Lol. I know its still abuse but this is nothing comparatively.
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@evansnyamesah1755
vor 7 Tagen
Same with Africa. Insults doesn't equate insults it's a f up situation
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@qRT-PCR
vor 7 Tagen
And what exactly do we gain from comparing struggles? They’re both abuse, they’re both wrong, they both shouldn’t happen in the first place.
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@AdH-vk9dt
vor 7 Tagen
Accused of? Still denying the facts!
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@Peppercorn5
vor 7 Tagen
I am a postdoc in US. Don’t get me started! 🙏🏽💀🙌🏽
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@redalert2834
vor 7 Tagen
This civilisation has been slow to legislate against many forms of white collar crimes.
In particular, criminality is rife within academic institutions and academic journals.
With no prospect of reform in sight, this eventually triggered external intervetion.
It took the form of the Covid pandemic. If these problems are not fixed, expect much worse next time.
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@nancyparker9137
vor 7 Tagen
Actually Max Planck is over 50% international including directors and abuses like this are seldom, less than 1% if even that. It also has top notch support system and mentoring in place and I would say majority of students are quite satisfied with their training there. This report cherry picked a handful of cases and uses a broad stroke to make inferences. It is exactly what bigots and racist do, make broad generalization based on a few examples. Think about it.
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@qRT-PCR
vor 7 Tagen
Is that you Jan-Michael Rost? 🤭
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@ChoddguruLive-nj8ly
vor 7 Tagen
My physics profession used to measure my a—hole using verniers calipers. He said this is for science
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@michaelburggraf2822
vor 7 Tagen
In academia people advance in their careers rather by scietific achievements than by good leadership. Possibly people on an academic career path rarely get any training in leadership or coaching skills. The operations of institutes and faculties essentially follow well trodden paths of old procedures and traditions. What was good enough in the past is expected to be good enough for today - ignoring that conditions, surroundings and expectations about science have changed significantly during the past 5 or 6 decades.
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@gislainelee3181
vor 7 Tagen
It happens in many organisations
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@zs3137
vor 7 Tagen
My cousin is in medical school and she said the same thing, she said she is extremely depressed from the toxic environment!
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@richardv9648
vor 7 Tagen
This needs to be reported in the Indian media.
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@joh8379
vor 7 Tagen
What exactly is it about the environment you describe as toxic?
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@AlokSharma1
vor 4 Tagen
@richardv9648 dude
Do you really think Indian media has time for this??
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@redalert2834
vor 7 Tagen
Academic publishing is a disgrace. There was a time when it merely obstructed scientific progress. Now it operates much as an extortion racket. Uncorrected problems dating back to the 1930s eventually triggered the Covid pandemic. It can be shown that the virus was introduced at the Wuhan Institute of Virology following US funding.
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@VRSCHOOL398
vor 7 Tagen
China and Russia are working like soldier and Europe is indulged in like those issues Europe will be lagging behind soon, even what we hear in the video is a problem
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@themeanmachine84
vor 7 Tagen
I think we all know how this will end sooner or later, right? You know, people like those bosses will suddenly have accidents on their way to work or home? Cause sooner or later there will be that one someone who just doesn't give a f... anymore.
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@recklesstoboggan
vor 7 Tagen
Welcome to academia.
These issues are common and world-wide in higher-academia and research institutes.
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@dvoravithanovsky6902
vor 7 Tagen
Hardly surprising. An open secret decades ago that a talented female academic will be stopped sooner or later in any german institute
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@johnvif
vor 7 Tagen (bearbeitet)
I suffered the same which led me to quit and break the power trip. Didn't finish my MSc studies and went directly to the industry knowing there wont be a "dynasty" as in Universities. Half work done and undocumented on purpose. Would not let take advantage of me by undiagnosed toxic people.
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@L278-b7z
vor 5 Tagen
But isn't industry the same? I think it's everywhere and in all fields not only science. That's how the world is.
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@xxxyyyzzzaaa565
vor 7 Tagen
This is basically problem developed due to upbringing , failed to addressed during their childhood. I have experienced in so many places.. Workplace mobbing seems a culture. Mobbing done by employees along some group. But I also got good experience with some germans.
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1 Antwort
@KingShaka-x7n
vor 7 Tagen
It's rather a power balance problem..the i stitutions give power to professors over researchers.
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@FoundMyOnePiece
vor 7 Tagen
I have personally met Max Plank and he was a nice guy
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@FoundMyOnePiece
vor 7 Tagen
I learnt about his theories
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@gregor-samsa
vor 7 Tagen
Ach, die Kaiser Wilhelm Gesellschaft wurde umbenannt?
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@tentimetex
vor 7 Tagen (bearbeitet)
What the young man is describing @1:20 is typical Narcissistic behavior. There are different types of narcissism, Professors tend to very often be what are called cerebral narcissists. Narcissistic behavior can be extremely psychologically abusive and traumatizing. It is deliberate emotional abuse, with the goal of breaking down the victim to better dominate them and control them, thus giving the narcissist a sense of domination. Minimizing the contributions of others, stealing research, re-framing, blame shifting, manipulation, bullying....all narcissistic behavioral traits. Sadly, it is these very traits that enable narcissists to rise to the top of organizations and institutions such as Max Planck, but also corporations. Secondly, organizations, as ''legal entities'', are themselves sociopathic, so an institution like Planck will do everything to reject and deflect accountability. Narcissists in positions of power in organizations are protected by the organization itself. Indeed, a very difficult problem.
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@Arya-cf7vu
vor 7 Tagen
Very well said!!!
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@pallavshrestha5698
vor 7 Tagen (bearbeitet)
I couldn’t have given a better explanation.
While reflection oriented therapy seems to be the obvious solution to narcissist persons, in this case research group leaders, I heard it’s an impossible task. A psychology professor has concluded that the only solution with narcissists is to avoid them.
Therefore, there needs to be mechanisms at place at organisations such as MaxPlank to avoid such persons at leadership positions and keep a check on existing leaders. I strongly believe if any country can implement this, it is Germany.
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@CoffeenSpice
vor 7 Tagen
Institutional silence what is that? We again at inventing new ideas?
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@qRT-PCR
vor 7 Tagen
@CoffeenSpice No it’s not inventing a new idea. It’s been there, we just came up with a name for it.
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@Theravadinbuto
vor 7 Tagen
Hardly a new name for it, either.
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@ragas2845
vor 7 Tagen
In 2015, a professor from Leipzig University who goes by the name Prof Annette Beck Sickinger openly denied an internship to a male student from India citing the rape problem in India. She said I will not accept male students from India to work under her. If this is not racism and discrimination, what is? This incident sparked a huge controversy in India and the German ambassador to India had to intervene and finally she had to publicly apologize. She was never suspended or fired for her discriminatory behaviour but in fact got several awards in 2023. Evil people like her should never be allowed in academia and research.
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@karlscher5170
vor 6 Tagen
What about autism?
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@yar3333
vor 6 Tagen
No, he could also be a psychopath. Do you study psychology? Otherwise it's better not to give people diagnoses.
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@humairabasit6345
vor 5 Tagen
Overall behavior .
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@L278-b7z
vor 5 Tagen
People that aim at high positions of power usually are high in narcissistic, anti-social and machiavelian traits. That's why we ended up with psychopaths leading our world.
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@disbelief3911
vor 1 Tag
A colleague was targeted by a narcissist in group therapy(!). He had to fight to get this behavior recognized. No wonder they slip right through in other settings.
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@marygee3981
vor 1 Tag
❤You have described the Behavior of many US professors at publuc Universities!! Sick people are 'teaching ' and abusing our children.😮
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@nbhawat
vor 7 Tagen
yeah Welcome ! surely its not unique, and i had my share of it many more of my previous colleagues too.
Not at Max Planck though, regardless if male or female professors !
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@kiki40159
vor 7 Tagen
Women can outperform men in evil in male-dominated environments.
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@batosato
vor 7 Tagen (bearbeitet)
This is not just an issue in Germany. It is a problem with most European countries. I used to work in academia and I personally witnessed my department head favor some while discouraging other researchers.
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@ThangPVan_
vor 3 Tagen
It has been happening in prestigious vietnamese universities too.
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@Han-d5j
vor 7 Tagen
Same in Helmholtz Zentrum.... and let me tell you something in Berlin they abusing the green deal and they are collecting only left wing extremist people into the company. Their members sharing Palestinian and hamas oriented videos everyday in their personal account. Huge left wing extremist ideology destroying lot of people. Either you think like professor or you lost your job harrasment and bullying from the project managers are hardcore staying there. I am writing that as a former member. Academia is just a money fraud from tax payer. They also missusing Women empowerment. Instead of empowerment they are doing Femmenazi there.
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@brandX15
vor 7 Tagen
Yes, the world is a terrible place and so this institute too. They hurt peoples feelings.
Point us to any institution where there is no one complaining.
You want everyone to be happy....Good luck
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@qRT-PCR
vor 7 Tagen
Did you even watch the video? Shouting profanity at a staff member is neither normal nor professional behavior. Please learn the difference between insulting and constructive criticism.
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@brandX15
vor 6 Tagen
@qRT-PCR Yes, I did watch the video. And there were 2 people with different views on an interaction. You have to choose who you believe. I choose to believe that you are innocent until proven guilty. It is a wise cause of action.
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@iska788
vor 7 Tagen
Such important topic! While it is true that academia is a toxic place, I would argue that continental Europe is the worst. I did my PhD in France and the way I was treated would be unthinkable in the US.
I am also sure that problem exists in Germany .
The thing is when the supervisor doesn’t depend with his income on you, he can treat you like in an abominable way . And that is what they often do.
I would not be surprised if there are many suicides that happened because of the abuse of a supervisor .
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@KingShaka-x7n
vor 7 Tagen
Spot on, in the US, Canada and the UK students are treated like customers unlike in mainland Europe where u uveristies gives immense power to the professors over their students. Glad I did my Msc in the UK
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@iska788
vor 7 Tagen
@
I tell you, every time I have to do with academics from the US, I’m always taken aback about how nice they are. Like I’m sure there are issues in American academia as well, but in no way the kind of abuse that I had to go through and almost all of my friends during our PhD.
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@breathlessMay
vor 7 Tagen
The problem is universal in academia; it's great that somewhere someone is speaking up, and there is a media outlet that is paying attention. Many more people and institutions need to be called out.
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@mishasnoep4726
vor 7 Tagen
Yes, i learned this during my internship as a lab technician both at ubc in Canada and max plank in Golm. Never experienced it myself but heard the stories.
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@ragas2845
vor 7 Tagen
In 2015, a professor from Leipzig University who goes by the name Prof Annette Beck Sickinger openly denied an internship to a male student from India citing the rape problem in India. She said I will not accept male students from India to work under her. If this is not racism and discrimination, what is? This incident sparked a huge controversy in India and the German ambassador to India had to intervene and finally she had to publicly apologize. She was never suspended or fired for her discriminatory behaviour but in fact got several awards in 2023. Evil people like her should never be allowed in academia and research.
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@IllustratedTheory
vor 6 Tagen
Indeed. I hope this sets off a wave of more people from all over to step forward and expose misconduct, abuse of authority etc. in academic institutions.
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@ginnan-1gt
vor 4 Tagen
Yes and no. I have worked in several labs in 4 different countries before coming to Germany. Not a single problem anywhere before Germany. Here - problems in both workplaces. I had had enough and quit Academia after that.
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@wesleydeng71
vor 7 Tagen
There is power, there is abuse of power.
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@ThanksALott
vor 7 Tagen
Sure, but the problem is that the environment prevents you from taking action against that abuse in several different ways.
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@erickvelazquez3777
vor 7 Tagen
I had a very similar experience at Potsdam university. I reported it and their answer was, because the professor in question brings moment, it’s ok…. Ok I am oversimplifying the answer but it was around it. I am so disappointed because I had no one who could help me.
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@Jessie_1996
vor 7 Tagen
What's your major? Which departmant? I'm going to study there😥
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@erickvelazquez3777
vor 7 Tagen
@ I work as a postdoc, so I was not a student. I think it is a good university and I think the environment for the students is quite good.
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@Tashmikerr
vor 7 Tagen
UK, Germany, Belgium, USA, South Africa, Netherlands....it's everywhere!
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@erickgomez7775
vor 6 Tagen
Pas en France !
2
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@johanvonliebert4812
vor 5 Tagen
Emmmmmmmmmm tu es sûre !! @erickgomez7775
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@pseudotatsuya
vor 5 Tagen
Japan too....
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@KhushalBadhan
vor 2 Tagen
In Netherlands, they pay 100% for 100% position and have time limit for PhD. In Germany, they employ at 75% position and are overworked to 100% and have no time limit on years.
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@Taump-f5o
vor 2 Tagen
Brazil 😢
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@DmytryNikolaienko
vor 7 Tagen
Yes. Huge corruption. Not in Germany only. That is problem of scientific society Europe in general. Prof Dmitry Nikolaenko
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1 Antwort
@peacewillprevail
vor 7 Tagen
Rather a power imbalance and abuse was discussed. Or do you mean favoritism and retaliation against critics as aspects of corrupt behaviour?
1
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@CocoAzul-m1x
vor 7 Tagen
"People don't quit jobs, people quit bosses." Bill Nye "The science guy."
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1 Antwort
2 replies
@ragas2845
vor 7 Tagen
In 2015, a professor from Leipzig University who goes by the name Prof Annette Beck Sickinger openly denied an internship to a male student from India citing the rape problem in India. She said I will not accept male students from India to work under her. If this is not racism and discrimination, what is? This incident sparked a huge controversy in India and the German ambassador to India had to intervene and finally she had to publicly apologize. She was never suspended or fired for her discriminatory behaviour but in fact got several awards in 2023. Evil people like her should never be allowed in academia and research.
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@berlinisvictorious
5 hours ago
BILL BILL BILL
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@user-ph3uw8tk4y
vor 7 Tagen (bearbeitet)
Typical, german behaviour: success over other peoples bodies.
Thankfully not all are so competitive. In fact the real efficient colleagues are not competitive at all. Rather cooperative. Lovely people.
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@Ibra-ks8wr
vor 7 Tagen
Don't even make me start with the abuse in the health care system especially targeting workers from foreign background , it's levels above ... literally bullying ..sometimes up to a sadistic level.
2
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@muflon77
vor 7 Tagen (bearbeitet)
Another 500 euro fee to my German neighbor after DW block my account for 24h 😂
Danke 😂 germans must pay every time my free speach is attack 💪
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@MarvelStudios-p3y
vor 7 Tagen
Germans will be Germans they will never change 😂
4
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@adrianceferino-sb7lv
vor 7 Tagen
Its really really great news that Deutsche Welle makes this sort of 20mins reports about power abuse in academia!!! Not many media inform about such issues! which I find a real pity given how damaging it is to science in Europe... People should know the truth about how science is being conducted!
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@arofhoof
vor 7 Tagen
Research is deeply broken worldwide
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@rorytribbet6424
vor 7 Tagen
It’s broken but not for these reasons. Stuff like this is a smokescreen that fits certain narratives and that people think is helpful to society when it’s really not.
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@redalert2834
vor 7 Tagen
Academic "science" now revolves around the principle of unaccountable censorship and the manufacture of wayward academic dogma, even to the point that there is no prospect of correcting mistakes. There are by now some VERY SERIOUS mistakes dating back well over 50 years.
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@saravana3061987
vor 7 Tagen
Researcher too😢
1
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@olesianitsovych4632
vor 5 Tagen
in germany it is a toxic culture of life in general
5
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@sardonic81scream76
vor 4 Tagen
I just kicked out from the project I’ve been working in the “institute” in Germany… now I see, I am not alone. No academic freedom!!!! And human rights!!!
3
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@abc-db4nu
vor 7 Tagen
this is so true
5
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@iheartphysicsgb
vor 7 Tagen
For sure, Academia treats graduate students like slaves.
The person complaining on camera specialized in "theoretical" physics, which is science fiction. It is totally made up and therefore has no value. So, his adviser may have been both inappropriate and factually correct.
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1 Antwort
@MrRandom2456
vor 7 Tagen
Stephen Hawkins was a "Theoretical" Scientist. Yeah he is certainly one of the smartest people of all time, but still. Theoretical physics has laid the groundwork for many important technologies we use today. Gps, Computers, Nuclear Power just to name a few. To abandon that sector is to abandon the chance of future prosperity
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@Elo-hv3fw
vor 7 Tagen
In memory of Liese Meitner, who was kicked out of Germany on gunpoint.
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@Michaelfrikkie
vor 7 Tagen
Good luck going more woke while you also promise to reindustrialise and build an actual security deterrence!
1
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@qRT-PCR
vor 7 Tagen
What on earth are you talking about? Right wing parties are getting more seats in Germany. People are not going more woke.
1
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@AlexT-g7p
vor 7 Tagen (bearbeitet)
@Michaelfrikkie Well Karens gonna complain until the bitter end, hope Germany will be free from Karenocracy one day, lol
1
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@ryanbudney3356
vor 7 Tagen
I spent a year at a Max Planck Institute and thought it was great. If there was any abuse or nefarious behaviour of any kind, it was not obvious. But my MPI hasn't been mentioned in this article. There are an enormous amount over Europe.
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1 Antwort
@DeclanDavie
vor 7 Tagen
It varies between institutes and even across departments within the same institute. While there are many instances of abuse of power, there are also many kind and brilliant scientists there, I would say that luckily they are the majority.
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@gallardoo9
vor 7 Tagen
getting yelled at for not doing anything is bad? He never said if he was behind on his studies or the yelling was not justified..so much missing here, I got yelled at by my professors for not keeping up, because I wasnt, it motivated me to work harder and smarter and I did just my 2c
1
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@bullpup1337
vor 7 Tagen
Yes, getting yelled at for ANY reason is bad. It is unprofessional, childish, and malicious. There is no place for this behavior in the workplace.
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@qRT-PCR
vor 7 Tagen
@bullpup1337 well said. Boggles my mind how people normalize screaming at other people in the workplace. How unprofessional.
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@findaxelfoley8106
vor 7 Tagen
Toxic Power Dynamics? In Germany? Really? I wonder if there is a history of that in Germany? Hmmm, we might want to take a deep dive into this.... 😂
8
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@DrYalem
vor 7 Tagen
Unfortunately, this is true. Discrimination, disrespect and mistreatment...also occur at other universities😢 Thank you DW for bringing this up!
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@joh8379
vor 7 Tagen
Can you name cases, or is this just something you concluded? 🙂
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@giakolou2876
vor 7 Tagen
Bristol and Cambridge are ones
5
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@user-wg5ul6ib4e
vor 6 Tagen
@joh8379 lots of universities, i’ve seen many cases myself working in this field.
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@arnab83
vor 5 Tagen
@joh8379 : I can name cases but, why is that important?
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@marcoathayde42
vor 2 Tagen
Were you there to make this statement?
1
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@ehloos
vor 1 Tag
True
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@Solscapes.
vor 1 Tag
It's every institution. Name a place where people hold power over others, the people in charge are people who are there for the power, not for the power to help anyone but themselves.
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@Vedurin
vor 1 Tag
@arnab83 yes, exactly. Why does this matter? Let's just believe whatever some person wrote in a comment on YouTube. That's an awesome way of living. Irony off!
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@B_Y92
vor 7 Tagen
It’s not just Max Planck! It’s also TU München, LMU, and many other places!!! And everywhere students are discouraged from issuing a complaint, even in informal discussions by Studentenwerk psychotherapist, saying that professors have a lot of power and students can do nothing effectively about that!
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26 replies
@PP-py
vor 7 Tagen
In other words, Germany
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@leanderbarreto980
vor 7 Tagen
It's worldwide actually
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@agalva100
vor 7 Tagen (bearbeitet)
Indeed. I was in LMU. That was the end of my career. I and colleagues complained and were told there was nothing to do. None of us is in academia now.
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@subhamdaslovesraptor99
vor 7 Tagen
@leanderbarreto980 More prominent in German work-culture. Honestly !
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@Chill-jplt
vor 7 Tagen
Look into Ulm University, where complaints about a professor's bullying or any misconduct would rather be punished than being openly discussed to solve the problem.
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@electric7309
vor 7 Tagen
TU Delft in Netherlands too
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@joh8379
vor 7 Tagen
Can you point us to actually cases or are you talking about hear-say?
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@MrPink8000
vor 7 Tagen
It's the whole academia. It's my profession of architecture. It's how the world of classical music world. It's how the whole world, how people work. It is a power struggle. Max Planck is no outlier.
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@akIndia10
vor 6 Tagen
This misconduct is not just in Germany but in also India same scenario 😂😂.
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@B_Y92
vor 6 Tagen
@akIndia10 it’s not just misconduct! It’s abuse, bullying, mobbing, harassment, etc.
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@dorawa2419
vor 6 Tagen (bearbeitet)
It is not only Germany, it happens in whole Europe, US etc. Lack of information on power abusive professors. You only find out when it is too late and you're stuck with those people due to precarious conditions . Everywhere, HR and other professors are protecting those abusive managers. Their behaviour has not consequences. In Germany it takes years, before a university can get rid of such people.
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@wasifulalam1393
vor 6 Tagen (bearbeitet)
@B_Y92 I have recently been a victim of this currently looking for another institute to transfer
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@arnab83
vor 5 Tagen (bearbeitet)
@joh8379 are you trolling everyone to hear stories (schaulustig)? You are asking every person with a story about naming names. Despicable.
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@alecaceres4426
vor 5 Tagen
I was a PhD student at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München and saw a lot of racism and toxicity during my time there
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@B_Y92
vor 5 Tagen
@ Indeed there’s a lot if racism and toxicity at LMU and TUM! It’s really terrible!
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@distrologic2925
vor 4 Tagen
Thats how it is all around the world! They are professors for a reason! And students are students!
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@BuenasIntenciones2
vor 4 Tagen
It surprises me to hear this. As a foreigner that studied at TUM I only have good things to say about the professors involved in my program. I guess as there are some great professors leading good chairs, there could be opposite cases too.
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@distrologic2925
vor 4 Tagen
@B_Y92 Media overrepresents the negative.
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@wasifulalam1393
vor 3 Tagen
@B_Y92 same in cvut
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@Protactinyum
vor 3 Tagen
Add TU Darmstadt to the list please!
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@Protactinyum
vor 3 Tagen
@distrologic2925 so what you say? It s like this all around the world and take it like that? I was lucky enough to make it to the US after my studies in Germany witnessing sexism and unfair treatment and I can say it is way better in here! Of course there are issues here as well but minimal compared to Germany. Plus, how many times did you see reports about German education system to say that it is overrepresenting???
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@saygtuna9924
vor 3 Tagen
Bavaria in general maybe? While people around, they are kind. Else, those scholars are who they are
1
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@udaykumarravada8820
vor 3 Tagen
Ulm is good university..they take these issues very seriously
1
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@sciencefliestothemoon2305
vor 3 Tagen
@PP-py
The UK has similar problems
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@BBsdemos04
vor 1 Tag
Studentenwerk is an UTTER DISGRACE
1
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@jspace1764
vor 1 Tag
You all pretend thats only the case in germany... perfect way to set up a series of rumors
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@Abigail-nc6in
10 minutes ago
@PP-py Yes!
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@SharifulIslam-iq2xs
vor 7 Tagen
I am also a victim of such professor and Phd Researcher, from Europa University Viadrina (Frankfurt-Oder)
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@MiaMizuno
vor 4 Tagen
One of my family members work in Munich.
The person is not personally involved, but knows colleagues who have faced this!
1
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@SharifulIslam-iq2xs
vor 4 Tagen
@ Just go through with the comments section, there are many victims in whole Germany 🇩🇪, the authorities don't have any care for this.
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@somename774
vor 7 Tagen (bearbeitet)
This institution is very prominent scientifically, and to keep it this way, it should conduct its own policies. Any external interference will make this prestigious place look like a communist labor union that will just strike and show rainbows.
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@tobias41641
vor 7 Tagen
Happens in schools, universities all over germany since always. Problem, our governments, no matter CDU or SPD do not reform it.
Made the experiences he did in school already, know so many who report from all levels of education.
But the german mentality of "What doesnt kill you makes you harder" will continue to create suffering, fill psych wards and lead to emigration.
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1 Antwort
@Seyi.O
vor 7 Tagen
I disagree with you. That saying is found in most societies and it actually works but perhaps not for everyone. I’m a testament! It depends on the perspective you hold. It’s not only a German problem. I know Asians, Africans who excelled in such difficult environments because they’ve built resilience from their experiences or the culture has nurtured them to be resilient.
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@kazomazo6646
vor 7 Tagen (bearbeitet)
All who are envolved in this must be stands accountable and all the high level scientists if we can still call them that! Need to be legally stopped and prosecuted and that super bully guy
Jan Michael Rost
Must get dismissed un honorably and face jail time.
The Lawyer firm that refuses to help the young scientists and try to cover this up need also to pay for this horrific acts!
What a shock that this happens in Germany in one of the most prestigious scientific places what a shame!
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1 Antwort
@Seyi.O
vor 7 Tagen (bearbeitet)
Please take a sit! Society improves when we take reformative steps. Clamouring for dismissal is not needed. We need oversight boards that can address such matters.
You don’t even sound like you’re in Germany to understand how things work
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@alexalexiye9791
vor 7 Tagen
This exists on so many levels in many institutions in Germany, from academia to healthcare
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8 replies
@Indihamburger
vor 7 Tagen
That’s reality
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@kinngrimm
vor 7 Tagen
claiming without proving anything, isn't that slander
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@alexalexiye9791
vor 7 Tagen
@kinngrimm Oh give me a break. Do you think that people who are foreign students like here or any foreign worker who is tied to a visa or a permit is going to report so easily and without any fear for their work. And those who comit these acts know that veeerryyy well. Thankfully, there are journalists who are not afraid to bring this topic up. And regarding your comment in particular, sounds like someone who might have something to hide.
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@kinngrimm
vor 7 Tagen
@ sure sure, still doesn't invalidate what i wrote
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@alexalexiye9791
vor 7 Tagen
@kinngrimm Just because you got used to living with a broken window, does not mean the others want to live like that too
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@notarealperson9709
vor 7 Tagen
to Industry.
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@deddyharsono6056
vor 7 Tagen
None of Germany’s universities is in the top 50 worldwide. This report confirms the rot.
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@Tendrilrion
vor 7 Tagen
Therefore is not slanders as is a knlwn phenomenon. Denying it is like denying the existance of political corruption @kinngrimm
1
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@Abigail-nc6in
7 minutes ago
It does indeed!! I wish I could "love" your comment.
Reply
@imjai345
vor 7 Tagen
Science academia is a toxic field worldwide.
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@bartelgrant
vor 7 Tagen (bearbeitet)
This is very, very common in academia and not just a German problem. But I have to say for foreign students the German bureaucracy and the language are additional burdens. And when it comes to Germany structures like the one at the MPI are quite rigid and very hierarchical. I studied in the UK, and there were many similar issues. I think I was dealt a bad advisor but when I heard what other people went through I must consider myself lucky. In the US, bullying is also quite prevalent and the pressure to publish is even higher there. But many US institutions at least had some sort of reporting procedure. And the people I met in the UK who left their old advisor actually ended up in a better place with a different advisor. So there seems to be some control mechanism. But overall these power abuse situations are super hard to manage and to address. Like what are you to do if the person overseeing the investigation is your advisor - the very person you have an issue with - for example?
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@KingShaka-x7n
vor 7 Tagen
The UK and US student pay fees and they are treated like customers hence the customer is always right.
1
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@tinkerbell1120
vor 7 Tagen
These topics are very important!!
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@Homerisnude
vor 7 Tagen (bearbeitet)
Germany should not be singled out here, its a problem within Academics worldwide.
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33 replies
@EnhancedNightmare
vor 7 Tagen
True
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@nishensemble
vor 7 Tagen
Uh what? When it's the US or UK or India or whatever, we don't see these kinds of apologist comments. They should be focused upon, but so should Germany when it's their turn too.
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@DeclanDavie
vor 7 Tagen
While this is indeed not unique to Germany and it is rather common in the academic world, it is way worse in institutes like MP and other similar institutes in Germany, where the directors have too much power. In addition, the strong hierarchy is fully embedded in the culture and people feel they can do whatever they want and power abuse is commonplace.
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@porecemusnox8805
vor 7 Tagen
It is paramount to seperate human misbehavior from the scientific aspect. We want/need a flourishing academic environment - especially in a day and age when science is under attack by bad actors, globally.
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@ratulotron
vor 7 Tagen
Uh, professor, is that you?
14
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@ariisaac5111
vor 7 Tagen
What are you talking about? In the US workplace harassment is against the law and lawyers routinely Sue big companies and win millions of dollars when there's harassment especially on females or minorities.
1
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@PedroPrego
vor 7 Tagen (bearbeitet)
I've lived this in an us university. Me and basically all the students from specific tenured professors. Everyone just accepted it as the price to pay for having such a reputable name as PhD advisor.
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@smilyboy2005
vor 7 Tagen
Atleast not in most of Nordic Universities. In Nordic Universities there is balance between social nd academic life and never observed any toxic environment
5
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@mayankexodus
vor 7 Tagen
White universities bullying Foreign students.... can't tolerate that others can also be equally talented😡
1
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@AshesOfTheKing
vor 7 Tagen
I didn’t experience that in the US. The one time a peer and I experienced that, the faculty came down hard on the abuser and he behaved after that.
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@thiagolucena4366
vor 6 Tagen
@DeclanDavie you nailed it, both academia and even society itself in Germany are quite hierarchic, somewhat resembling an army. This is the most toxic part of it.
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@dorawa2419
vor 6 Tagen
I heard of cases in UK where deans protected abusive professors. Reason: They still brought more money in. On the back of their PhD students who were traumatised or left academia. Well done.
Why is the tax payer allowing such behaviour? One day, it could be your child.
Quality of science does not increase with such abusive behaviour.
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@treesart6914
vor 6 Tagen
Ah, so maybe it is worse in Germany, yes, the culture makes a pretty rigid hierarchical impression, this is true, and there's an extra diploma needed, aren't there? @DeclanDavie
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@treesart6914
vor 6 Tagen
@porecemusnox8805 Yes, so the bad actors need to be rooted out somehow or the system needs a revision, but we have to be careful not to let this be a reason for activists of whatever ilk to break down science and education.
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@treesart6914
vor 6 Tagen
@smilyboy2005 good to know :)
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vor 6 Tagen
LOL😀
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@iljackb
vor 6 Tagen
this is DW and the story just broke about Max Plank, in Germany, that's the topic...
It doesn't have any lessening of the realities of similar instances elsewhere.
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@maribelpilpinto
vor 6 Tagen
So true I just experienced this in Bhutan as well
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@sassanmoradi1586
vor 5 Tagen
yes.
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@arnab83
vor 5 Tagen
@Homerisnude actually, it is well known worldwide that Germany has some of the weakest Whistleblower protection, which was further weakened last year. No one is intentionally bullying up on Germany; we comment because most of us live and work in Germany and pay taxes here, or have had these experiences here. It is not constructive to accept the unacceptable, just because it happens in other countries as well. That is a lazy argument.
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@Ash-bc8vw
vor 5 Tagen
Racism and helping only male German students is prevaliant in Max Planck
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@Mariajbh2
vor 3 Tagen
In Germany is worst
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@5kamon
vor 3 Tagen (bearbeitet)
@porecemusnox8805 academia is attacked from outside, a lot for made up reasons, but it has intrinsic problems that come from strict hiararchy and favouritism, unsustainable workloads, zero job/career security and perverse incentives that encourage fraud and exploitation.
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@sunway1374
vor 3 Tagen (bearbeitet)
Every country should be singled out. But the original video is only 20 mins long and made by a German company. It is reasonable they focus on just one group of institutes in Germany.
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@kbaafi
vor 3 Tagen
I think this is a problem in any "creative" field.
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@lucasc1212
vor 2 Tagen
aahahahahahaha "Germany should not be singled out here"...because is it inappropriate, professor?
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@sunway1374
vor 2 Tagen (bearbeitet)
@smilyboy2005 I observed plenty of toxic environments in a Nordic country and a friend working in another Nordic country experienced worse.
Nordic people do things in a more subtle way and behind the scene. Passive agressive. So it's less obvious.
But when you learn that you are sidelined, ignored, not included in projects, meetings, organising of events, conferences, etc, you realise you are a victim of discrimination as well.
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@albertomelo803
vor 1 Tag
@thiagolucena4366 i remember one comment about they behave very prusian
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@HR-yd5ib
vor 23 Stunden
Its life! If you don't get along with your boss you have a problem no matter where and how.
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@HR-yd5ib
vor 23 Stunden (bearbeitet)
@DeclanDavie that's just BS. I worked at two MPIs. No abuse, no misconduct. If you don't get along with your boss then no matter where you work you will have a problem and likely have to leave.
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@andreselectrico
vor 19 Stunden
While it is true that academia sucks almost everywhere, German academia should be signed out. This is the European country that has the largest number of sick leaves. All of them may not be from academia, but the later certainly contributes a lot.
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@HR-yd5ib
vor 18 Stunden
@andreselectrico if harsh treatment were the cause then the sick leave numbers should have been much higher in the past. The real reason is that Germany has long lost its famous virtues. Country is falling apart in record time with people not willing to work hard anymore just being one of many many reasons.
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@ragas2845
vor 7 Stunden
Ok professor. First tell me which institute do you work for?
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@Abigail-nc6in
12 minutes ago
@DeclanDavie Indeed. This strong, untouchable hierarchy is a key element.
Reply
@emc3000
vor 7 Tagen
Yeah I mean no shock. Public universities let professors repeatedly violate human subject experimental ethics and even international law.
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By the night that I have read 927 comments on HTTPS://WWW.YouTube.com/watch?v=PENgEeT66sA that YouTube webpage boasted "914 [i.e. fewer] Comments" and I had read comments which alleged that YouTube had deleted comments. So if you want me to archive deleted comments on this webpage or on USENET, or if you want me to add other contents to this website or to USENET, then let me know! Contact details are reported by HTTP://Gloucester.Insomnia247.NL/Glosters_Impressum_fuer_Deutschland.htm
More than 99% of these comments are good. If you think that it is bad to also publicly archive bad comments, then please indicate to me what bad comments I should disable!
Sorry if I did not archive each thing! YouTube deliberately enacts frustrations against archives!
I know Daniela Petrovski. She complains about a different discussion on YouTube since 26th September 2025:
|
"Canadian media is the most complicit from all developed countries [. . .] [. . .] The media doesn't talk about it and you tube keeps deleting this comment "[. . .]" YouTube got a lot of money recently (in addition to that before) to support". |
So I wrote to her on 27th September 2025:
|
"Dear Daniela Petrovski, This is not the first allegation that YouTube
(Google) deletes/hides comments by ethical scientists. I used to work with
Marcin Olak. He became a Google employee after we went to different
companies. "To Marcin Olak,
I noticed today that you recently disconnected from me on LinkedIn. Money
means more than to you than space science. Shame on you! SSETI is
unsuccessful because of persons who are not committed. They include you.
Contrarily, Liar Michael Kruijff wrote about you: He[Liar Michael Kruijff] enslaved me. You falsely wrote about him: ... The 2nd Young Engineers' Satellite is a major failure because of his persistence against details and honesty. He asked me why I obeyed a rule. He got Doctor Andrew Hyslop deported. He forced Paying Tenant Andrew Hyslop out of his home for him to have sex, so I let Andrew Hyslop be a gueest for gratis where I resided. Mike Kruijff has recommended me to illegally violate an immigatrion law after he had gotten Andrew Hyslop deported! ... You ignored the YES2 coding standard that you used to be employed to enforce! You are never a European-Space-Agency employee! (Lucky you!) Did you lie on a C.V. to Google or any ex-employer?" say I to him since 24/09/2025." |
So Daniela Petrovski responded on 28th September 2025:
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"Paul Colin Gloster Wow, [. . .] type of work of what Google
employees do. [. . .] Thank you for sharing that. I could see in real time on Google how they deleted my comments on these links. I tried to put them again & liked them, but they deleted them. They were ok me talking against UN, but not against the [. . .] (who is a Cdn representative in UN). 
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