forschen, forschte, geforscht: to do research
| Examples and Usage Notes | Mnemonics |
Examples and Usage Notes:
- forschen: describing the activity of doing research, not the subject of that research
- forschen in: specifying the location where one is performing one’s research, or a book whose contents one is investigating scientifically
- forschen nach: doing research in the sense of searching for something intensively
- erforschen: specifying the specific topic of one’s research
- stating the field or subject area in which one is doing research
“Forschen” can only be used to describe the activity of doing research, not the subject of that research:
| An der Universität Michigan wird viel geforscht. | A lot of research is done at the University of Michigan. |
| Von der Machtübernahme der Nazis 1933 bis zu seinem Tod 1955 forschte und lehrte Einstein an der Princeton University. | From the Nazi seizure of power in 1933 until his death in 1955, Einstein did research and taught at Princeton University. |
| Nach dem Physik-Nobelpreis 1903 forschte Marie Curie weiter und erhielt 1911 einen zweiten Nobelpreis, diesmal für Chemie. | After her 1903 Nobel Prize for Physics, Marie Curie continued doing research and received a second Nobel Prize in 1911, this time for Chemistry. |
“Forschen in” specifies the location where one is performing one’s research, or a book whose contents one is investigating scientifically:
| Wissenschaftler forschen normalerweise in einem Labor. | Scientists normally do (their) research in a lab. |
| Im ersten Weltkrieg forschte Einstein in Newtons Prinicpia. | During the First World War, Einstein researched Newton’s Prinicpia. |
“Forschen nach” means doing research in the sense of searching for something intensively:
| Die Wissenschaftler forschen nach der Ursache des Erdbebens. | The scientists are researching the cause of the earthquake. |
| Seit Jahren forschen Wissenschaftler nach einem Impfstoff gegen den AIDS-Virus. | For years scientists have been searching for a vaccine against the AIDS virus. |
| Louis Leakey forschte wie Darwin nach der Abstammung des Menschen. | Louis Leakey, like Darwin, researched the origins of man. |
| Newton interessierte sich für Bewegung. Einstein forschte nach dem, was gleich bleibt. |
Newton was interested in motion. Einstein’s research focused on finding what remained the same. |
“Forschen” is intransitive, i.e. cannot take an object. To specify the specific topic of your research, use the transitive version of the verb: “erforschen.” “Erforschen” can also mean “explore”:
| Das Raumschiff Enterprise erforscht den Weltraum. | The spaceship Enterprise explores space. |
|
Dian Fossey hat das Verhalten von Gorillas erforscht. [It’s also becoming acceptable to say: Dian Fossey forschte über Gorillas.] |
Dian Fossey researched the behavior of gorillas. |
To state the field or subject area in which one is doing research, one needs to use a phrase such as those given below:
| Ich forsche auf dem Gebiet der Biologie. | I am doing research in Biology. |
| Ich betreibe Biologieforschung. | I am doing research in Biology. |
| Ich arbeite in der biologischen Forschung. | I am doing biological research. |
| Ich arbeite in einem Biologielabor. | I am working in a biology lab. |
Mnemonics
- forschen, die Forschung, der/die Forscher(in)
- “Bringt Forschung uns vorwärts?”