The development and implementation of human rights is an amazing process. But even today, not all people can rely on their rights being respected. For this reason and in view of the worsening political situation worldwide, the Studium Generale has dedicated itself to the topic of human rights in its lecture series of the summer semester 2017.  The new volume summarises the papers of speakers from different disciplines.

In what way is the common European foreign and security policy affected by the Brexit referendum? How does Russia look at Europe? And isn’t it about time to found a new Europe altogether? The authors of the new volume to the lecture series Studium Generale of the University of Heidelberg shed light on major challenges and open up new perspectives.

Einstein's theory of general relativity is still the valid theory of gravity, built upon simple principles and relating the geometry of space-time to its matter-energy content. These lecture notes by Matthias Bartelmann firstly introduce the reader to the underlying physical principles and the necessary mathematical tools taken from differential geometry. The subsequent discussion of cosmological models and black holes is concluded by two applications of general relativity to astrophysics.

Heinrich Zoepfl, Heidelberg Professor of Legal History and Constitutional Law, worked in the turbulent times of "Vormärz", the "German Revolution" of 1848/49 and the foundation of the Reich in 1870/71. The volume "Heinrich Zoepfl (1807-1877). Heidelberger Universitätsprofessor und Rechtsgutachter", edited by Dorothee Mußgnug and Michael Stolleis, is dedicated to the life and work of the legal expert who has almost fallen into oblivion today.

„Latin and Arabic: Entangled Histories“, volume 5 in the series „Heidelberg Studies in Transculturality“, explores the many dimensions and ramifications of Latin-Arabic interrelations both from macro-historical as well as from micro-historical perspectives. Visions of history marked by the binary opposition of “Islam” and “the West” tend to ignore these important facets of Euromediterranean interrelations, as do historical studies that explain complex transcultural processes without giving attention to their linguistic dimension.

The fourth issue of the heiEDUCATION Journal brings together a variety of contributions that address the topic of ‘teaching as a practice’ through either a hands-on, empirical, or theoretical perspective. In line with the topic’s current relevance for teacher education, the volume offers an insight into the broad spectrum of research in this field that touches on issues concerning the subject disciplines, their didactics, educational sciences, or a combination of these.