The projects in this research area analyze how knowledge systems structure different spheres of human activity, in which they are simultaneously (re)produced. In particular, they analyze the change as well as the impact of different forms of knowledge in politics and the economy. Examining contemporary history as a whole, they place specigif emphasis on the importance of scientific knowledge for the transformation of worldviews and modes of action. In addition, they reflect upon the effects of past knowledge systems on historical scholarship and historiography.

Since the Second World War – and with an accelerating speed since the 1970s and again the 1990 – transnational economic interdependencies increased.  How did entrepreneurial and business decisions as well national and international economic policies influence this process, which is often referred to as globalization? And which consequences did it have for business and politics? How did historical actors react to ensuing crises, structural changes and new political circumstances?

In the field of science, image research has steadily increased in scope and importance since the mid-1980s. Photography played a key role here. Unlike textual sources, it offers an immediate view - of people and things, of cities, landscapes and interiors. Up until now, the visual history itself often focused on the pictures themselves. But who produces them, who chooses them and distributes them?

With the advent of digital technologies in the 20th century, our lives and work environments have undergone fundamental changes. This research area analyzes the profound societal changes associated with the rise of computers and digital information and communication technologies. The research projects contrast technological utopias with the economic, social, and cultural consequences of computerization and trace the visions of a “digital society” associated with these new technologies.

Since the late nineteenth century, modern mass media have increasingly shaped European societies. Whether politics, economics, or culture - there is hardly an area of social life that has not been changed by the disseminationhe of the press and radio, as well as film and television. The projects of this study area examine this process by analysing the interdependencies between the proliferation and transformation of media on the one hand and social changes on the other hand.