The Cluster of Excellence Physics of Life (PoL) once again opened its doors to the public for the Dresden Science Night (Lange Nacht der Wissenschaft), the city's largest science communication event. Hosted at the Center for Molecular and Cellular Bioengineering (CMCB), PoL researchers engaged with over 2,200 visitors, showcasing their cutting edge research and turning complex biophysics concepts into interactive activities for all ages.
This year, PoL reached a new level of dedication to the event, with over 50 volunteers from 6 different research groups contributing their time and enthusiasm. Staff from the groups of Ellen Adams, Adele Doyle, Elias Barriga, Jan Bruguès, Marcus Jahnel, and Xingbo Yang took part. Visitors enjoyed a diverse range of hands-on activities and exhibitions from 5 PM until midnight. A major highlight was the Apple Vision Pro devices, offering an immersive virtual reality experience, with exciting microscopy images provided by the Bruguès and Yang groups. In addition, over 200 of the highly popular ‘PoL comics’ were handed out to visitors at the PoL stand. To showcase the comics to visitors, six large banners displaying different episodes of the comics were displayed to catch the attention of attendees. PoL also participated in the popular CMCB "Schnitzeljagd" (treasure hunt), challenging visitors to learn about surface tension and discover research at PoL in the process.
This year's Dresden Science Night was a resounding success for PoL, culminating in a winning streak at the annual Science Slam competition. This exciting science communication contest challenges researchers to explain their chosen topic in five minutes to a general audience. Fathima Hisana K Ferosh (Sana), a PhD student in the group of Marcus Jahnel (a joint group leader at PoL and BIOTEC), took home the top prize for her talk, "Love Story 2025: Y B (al)ONE?". Her hilarious and insightful presentation humanized three biomolecules – a protein known as YB1/YBX1, an RNA molecule, and microtubules – turning her PhD research into a "dating game" acted out by student volunteers.
"My slam aimed to break down how proteins interact with their partners inside human cells—something scientists study a lot, but that most people find hard to relate to," said Sana. “I wanted to help the audience reimagine these complex interactions in a simple, familiar way. So, I compared the behavior of a disordered human protein—YB1/YBX1—and its interaction with RNA and microtubules to the struggles of modern dating in 2025.”
Ferosh's innovative approach and engaging delivery earned her the prize for best talk, decided by a live audience vote. Following her success, Simon Doll, another PhD student in the Jahnel lab, received the jury prize, chosen by esteemed science storyteller Thomas Frei. This marks a continued winning streak for PoL at the Science Slam, as Marina Marchenko, a PhD student in the Ebisuya lab, also won the competition in 2024.
The Dresden Science Night continues to be a crucial platform for science communication, fostering curiosity and engagement with the public. This year's event attracted an impressive 46,000 visitors across Dresden, with over 670 events and more than 200,000 cumulative social media views. PoL is proud to be a part of this initiative, bringing cutting-edge research to the community in an exciting and accessible way.
Thank you to all of our volunteers, visitors, and to the CMCB for hosting us!