 Gatterer used the phrase "nexus rerum universalis" to represent "a universal connection of things in the world".His focus dealt largely with ancillary disciplines such as genealogy, heraldry, diplomatics, and physical geography, and he treated these subjects from a modern scientific viewpoint.Gatterer promoted his ideas on these subjects in the journals "Allgemeine historische Bibliothek" (1767–1771) and "Historisches Journal" (1772–1781).