What does a cluster of excellence actually do?
At the end of the evening, three researchers from the Berlin clusters of excellence NeuroCure, MATH+, and the Center for Chiral Electronics provided insights into their current research—and demonstrated how understandable and lively science communication can be.
Hands-on research
In short presentations, the scientists explained what they are working on—and why their topics are highly relevant to society: They discussed brain cell communication, the importance of mathematical modeling for understanding opinion-forming processes, and new approaches to energy-efficient electronics.
Dr. Yangfan Peng (NeuroCure, Charité) used an interactive experiment to show how nerve cells communicate with each other, asking several members of the audience to use strings to simulate the flow of information in the brain. At NeuroCure, he conducts research on living brain cells, examining such processes under a microscope.
Prof. Dr. Piet Brouwer (Center for Chiral Electronics, FU Berlin) spoke about the increasing energy consumption of digital technologies such as artificial intelligence – and how the physical principle of chirality can help make electronic components significantly more energy-efficient. He proved that chirality is not that complicated with a simple example: our left and right hands.
Prof. Dr. Andrea Walther (spokesperson for MATH+, HU Berlin) reported on the work of her cluster, which specializes in application-oriented mathematics. She explained how mathematics helps to investigate complex social issues—for example: How are opinions formed? And how do they spread? Using a “Chinese whispers experiment,” she demonstrated how information is passed from person to person.
We would like to express our sincere thanks to all participants and the audience! See you in 2026.
That's how it was at the Long Night of Science 2024!
Photo credit: Berlin University Alliance / José Piña