The Gesellschaft zur Verbreitung wissenschaftlicher Kenntnisse (Society for the dissemination of scientific knowledge) was an association, founded 17 June 1954 in the Cultural Centre of the VEB Oberspree cable factory in East Berlin, which existed until 1990 in the German Democratic Republic (GDR), and whose objective was to enlighten the GDR population, particularly in the fields of science, technology, medicine, economics and other areas of social sciences.
In his opening address he referred the long-established and valuable traditions of the popularization of science and technology and mentioned as forerunners Ernst Moritz Arndt, the brothers Grimm, Ernst Haeckel, Alexander von Humboldt, Robert Koch, Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels.
He called for more scientists and practitioners to become members, to ensure a good supply of lectures and essays in the newly founded popular science magazines published by the Society.
[2] The society worked primarily for a comprehensible dissemination of scientific knowledge and new technologies, and the popularization of science.
The main publications of the associated Urania-Verlag, which was based first in Berlin and in 1963 in Leipzig, were the series "Urania universe", the magazine "Wissen und Leben" ("knowledge and life") as well as the magazine "Urania", published jointly with the Cultural Association of the GDR.