Siegfried Scherer

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Siegfried Scherer (born April 7, 1955 in Oberndorf am Neckar ) has been Professor of Microbial Ecology at the Technical University of Munich in Freising - Weihenstephan and Managing Director of the Central Institute for Food and Nutrition Research (ZIEL) since 1991 . Until 2006 he was honorary chairman of the evangelical study community Word and Knowledge , which represents a doctrine of creation based on the Bible .

Life

Scherer studied biology , chemistry and physics at the University of Konstanz from 1974 to 1979 . In 1977 he passed the state examination in chemistry and physics, 1980 diploma and state examination in biology. In 1983 he received his doctorate in plant physiology . From 1983 to 1988 he was a working group leader at the Chair for Physiology and Biochemistry of Plants at the University of Konstanz, and in 1984 he received the Byk research award. In 1986 he had a research stay for field research in China and Mongolia at the Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Science, China, 1988–1989 he was a DAAD research fellow at the Department of Biochemistry at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg , USA . 1989–1991 he was a habilitation fellow from the DFG at the University of Konstanz. In 1990 he was offered a position at the Technical University of Munich . In 1991 he qualified as a professor at the Faculty of Biology at the University of Konstanz in the subjects of plant physiology and microbial ecology.

In 1991 he received an extraordinary position at the Technical University of Munich and was appointed director of the Institute for Microbiology at the Research Center for Milk and Food (FML) Weihenstephan. From 1997 he was managing director of FML Weihenstephan.

In 2002 he was offered a full professorship at the University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, and in 2003 he was appointed to the chair for microbial ecology at the Department for Fundamentals of Biosciences at the Weihenstephan Science Center at the Technical University of Munich.

In 2003 he received the chair for microbial ecology and was appointed managing director of the Central Institute for Nutrition and Food Research (ZIEL) at the Technical University of Munich. The Faculty of Life Sciences honored his long-term commitment to the students with a "good teaching award".

Scherer uses genetic engineering methods to research pathogens in food . His working group has developed a method to identify spoilage- causing microorganisms in food with an FT-IR spectrometer and for this he received the 2005 award from the "Otto von Guericke" working group of industrial research associations .

In 2016, the dairy industry association awarded the Milk Scientific Innovation Prize to recognize its research performance and its application in the process optimization of dairies.

Activism for belief in creation and creationism

Scherer is considered an influential spokesman for the creationists and openly professes to believe in creation . He admits to interpret scientific data in the context of "his" belief in creation, which represents "an ideological transgression, not natural science". Scherer understands all human beings as descendants of Adam and Eve and interprets death as a "consequence of the fall ".

Scherer described himself as "critical" of creationism, but was active in several creationist organizations. Until 2006 he was honorary chairman of the evangelical study group Word and Knowledge , one of the most important organizations of creationism in Germany. Until 2003 he was a Fellow of the Discovery Institute (Seattle), one of the leading institutions of the intelligent design movement .

Together with Reinhard Junker , he is the author of the controversial book Evolution - a critical textbook that received the “German Textbook Prize” from the association “Learning for the German and European Future” in 2002, which honors books “that give students awe of God, To convey charity, tolerance and the ability to dialogue on the basis of one's own ethically high Christian conviction. "

The then Thuringian Prime Minister Dieter Althaus praised “The Critical Textbook” and initiated an invitation to Siegfried Scherer to the “ Erfurt Dialogue ” in January 2006, which was only withdrawn after heavy public criticism. The criticism came, among other things, from the “AG Evolutionary Biology” of the Association of German Biologists , which “primarily deals with religiously motivated evolutionary criticism that comes from proven biologists and / or in the environment of organized fundamental Christian groups (e.g. . the study community word and knowledge ) is presented ", by the opposition in the Thuringian state parliament as well as critical reports in the media. On the occasion of the public outrage, Althaus finally distanced itself from both creationism and "intelligent design" and condemned the inclusion of the Christian biology textbook by the authors Scherer and Junker in the inventory of Thuringian school libraries.

Works

Monographs

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Biosciences awards prize for good teaching for the first time , TUM Corporate Communications Center, November 28, 2007
  2. ↑ Silvia Behr: "Fingerprint" transfers microbes - AiF awards Otto von Guericke Prize 2005 to Munich researchers , Science Information Service November 16, 2005
  3. ↑ Katja Bongardt: MIV honors microbiologists , Agrarzeitung , November 18, 2016
  4. ^ A b Siegfried Scherer: Creationism: "No need to worry!" , GEO
  5. ↑ a b Jörg Blech, Rafaela von Bredow, Johann Grolle: Darwin's work, God's contribution. A culture war escalates in the USA. 150 years after Darwin, the religious right is trying again to dismantle modern evolutionary biology and thereby remove the foundations from the enlightened society. The next target of the science enemies: Europe. In: spiegel.de. December 23, 2005, accessed August 15, 2020 .
  6. ↑ Thomas Junker : "The Critical Textbook" by Reinhard Junker and Siegfried Scherer (PDF) p. 336 u. 338. In: Martin Neukamm (Ed.): Evolution in the crosshairs of creationism . Göttingen, 2009, pp. 321–338
  7. ↑ Kath.net : Textbook Prize for Evolutionary Critics , November 20, 2002
  8. ↑ a b Stefan Schmitt: Papal Than the Pope , ZeitWissen 01/2006
  9. ↑ Evolutionary Biology Working Group in cooperation with the Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason & Science
personal data
SURNAME Scherer, Siegfried
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German biologist, professor of microbiologist, creationist
DATE OF BIRTH April 7, 1955
PLACE OF BIRTH Oberndorf am Neckar