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Maria Meier

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Outreach & Media

I believe that science is for everyone — and I enjoy making research accessible through public talks, media contributions, and visual science communication.

Science Communication

I believe that research should not only be conducted, but also communicated. In my science communication projects, I enjoy translating research findings for different audiences — from children and school students to public science events and social media communities.

Science communication for children and young audiences

For younger audiences, I enjoy translating research on stress, relaxation, and psychophysiology into accessible and engaging formats.

At the KinderCollege of the Duale Hochschule Baden-Württemberg in Karlsruhe, I gave the lecture »Alarm im Körper! Was bei Stress passiert und warum Entspannung wichtig ist.«


I also enjoy developing science communication formats for younger audiences. In 2022, I contributed a session on »Synchrony« for school-aged children as part of the Hegau Bodensee Seminar.

Open Science Slam

At the Open Science Slam at the University of Konstanz, researchers presented open science topics in a short, accessible, and entertaining format. In my contribution, I introduced open science practices in psychobiological research and used the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis as an example to show how transparent research practices can make complex processes easier to understand and reproduce.

RealScientists Takeovers

Through several RealScientists takeovers on BlueSky and Twitter/X, I shared my research with broader social media audiences. These formats offered a way to communicate scientific work beyond academic journals and conferences and to engage directly with an interested public.

Media Coverage

Communicating research beyond academic journals is an important part of my work. I enjoy discussing scientific findings with broader audiences and contributing to public conversations about stress, mental health, and well-being.

Skip the soda before your massage

In a study published in the International Journal of Psychophysiology in 2026, we investigated how glucose intake affects cardiac responses during relaxation. While all participants felt relaxed after a massage or rest period, those who had consumed a sugary drink showed sustained activation of the sympathetic nervous system. In other words, the body remained in a state of heightened arousal even though it felt calm. The findings suggest that avoiding sugar before relaxation exercises such as meditation or massage may help the body recover more effectively. The study was reported on in several German-language media outlets.

 

Die Zeit Online: »Signal ans Hirn: Chill!«

Research from our team was featured in Die Zeit Online in the article »Signal ans Hirn: Chill!«, bringing findings on stress and relaxation to a broader public audience.

Short relaxation techniques reduce stress

My research on brief relaxation interventions was featured in Forbes on 20 September 2020. The article discusses findings showing that short, easy-to-apply relaxation techniques can activate the body’s regenerative system and help reduce psychological and physiological stress responses.

Forbes New Study Shows Short Relaxation Techniques Reduce Mental And Physical Stress

Talks & Conferences

I regularly present my research at conferences, research colloquia, and invited talks, with a focus on stress, relaxation, psychophysiology, open science, and early life adversity.

Recent examples

  • On stress, energy and aging — CESH Research Colloquium, University of Montreal, 2025
  • Can we understand stress independent of relaxation? — Research Colloquium, University of Vienna, 2024
  • Der Einfluss von Zucker auf psychophysiologische Stress- und Entspannungsreaktionen — Research Colloquium, FAU Erlangen, 2024
  • Stresspuffereffekte: Wer oder was puffert Stress, wodurch, wann und wie lange? — Virtual talk, University of Trier, 2024

Interested in a talk, interview, or science communication format?

I welcome inquiries related to stress and relaxation, psychophysiology, metabolic influences on stress responses, open science, and the long-term consequences of early life adversity.

Contact me