Science presented in an entertaining and understandable way

Julian Eckert jumped on stage on behalf of Weihenstephan-Triesdorf University of Applied Sciences (HSWT) and took the audience on an exciting journey into the world of magic microbes. The young HSWT scientist won the internal preliminary decision at the HSWT's first Science Slam as part of the Science Day in spring and thus represented the HSWT in this competition at the beginning of November in the Lindenkeller in Freising.

Kim Ludwig-Petsch from the organiser curiocity gGmbH, who has also been a staff member of the HSWT since the beginning of November, hosted the evening. The science slammers skilfully combined scientific precision and creative presentation in their performances in front of around 240 guests in the sold-out Lindenkeller. The event was jointly organised by the Weihenstephan-Triesdorf University of Applied Sciences (HSWT), the Technical University of Munich (TUM), the Bavarian Institute of Agriculture (LfL), the Fraunhofer Institute for Process Engineering and Packaging (Fraunhofer IVV) and the Leibniz Institute for Food Systems Biology at TUM (Leibniz-LSB@TUM). In addition to organiser curiocity gGmbH, the city of Freising was a cooperation partner.

The fascinating world of flavours, microbes and the immune system

Dr Klaas Reglitz from Leibniz-LSB@TUM opened with the topic „A variety of flavours in a glass: the secret of craft beers“. He told the story of an Australian friend who sold his beer to an Indonesian supermarket chain. After the negative response, Reglitz began to investigate the causes. He discussed the most important requirements for a craft beer, above all that it must be stored in a cool place and consumed quickly.

Making „scents“ of it: I smell something you can't see - with this slogan, Helen Haug from the Fraunhofer IVV introduced the audience to the importance of flavours and odorous substances: small, important molecules that people perceive every day. She also explained the use of modern technologies to analyse them.

Julian Eckert from HSWT emphasised the potential of microorganisms for the biodegradation of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in his presentation „Magic microbes - little artists on a big mission“. These „little magicians“ would transform the VOCs into valuable products such as biomass. As a special gag, he had the „magic microbes“ dance to an AI-generated song while the guests applauded to the beat. Eckert was delighted: „It was a great experience for me to present my research to such a large audience and also to get to know the people behind every research institution in Freising.“

In her „Virus Detect“ science slam, Tunaiye Uapingene from the LfL explained the connection between viruses and the PCR test in a relaxed manner. There are „hidden“ plant diseases and not all viruses can always be identified with the same test.

Simone Göppert from the TUM Chair of Protein Modelling spoke about the „Kitchen secrets of the immune system: How does the cell recognise viruses?“ She compared the immune system to an organised kitchen in which not all cells are infected. Some bacteria „sacrifice“ themselves to protect others and proteins can be described as „cellular powerhouses“.

An evening full of enthusiasm and prospects for more

All the slammers were very entertaining in their own way, but at the end of the competition, the audience had to decide on a winner. Mayor Tobias Eschenbacher monitored the so-called „applausometer“, which recorded the volume of the applause. In the end, Helen Haug was chosen as the winner in this way. Kim Ludwig-Petsch thanked all the speakers and the organising team and ended the official part of the evening with the prospect of further Freising Science Slams, which was enthusiastically received by the audience.

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