1977, Doctorate in Biology. 1978-82, Postdoctoral Fellow/Expert Consultant, NIH. 1983-86, Director, Center for Molecular Biology, Heidelberg. Since 1986, Director, Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry. Since 2002, President, Max Planck Society. Member, Supervisory Board: Siemens; Munich Re; Actelion Pharmaceuticals. Recipient of awards and honours: Leibniz Prize (1994); Louis Jeantet Prize for Medicine (1995); Deutscher Zukunftspreis (1999); Lower Saxony State Prize (2004); National Award for International Science and Technology of the People's Republic of China (2007); Bundesverdienstkreuz erster Klasse (2009); Ellis Island Medal of Honor (2012); Bavarian Maximilian Order for Science and Art (2012).