Would I enjoy studying biology? At the first "Night of the Bio-LKs (biology classes)" on June 30th, school students had the opportunity to get a little closer to the answer to this question. From gripping lectures from everyday research, exciting hands-on stations and amazing insights in personal conversations, find more about this recent event at our department here!

Dr. Niklas Kästner | Dr. Lena Dehnen

The event kicked off with a series of taster lectures: What makes deciphering molecular structures so exciting, and why is it important? Why can some animals regenerate limbs and others cannot? What is synthetic biology, anyway? And how can we make scientific statements about how mice feel? In short, entertaining talks, Prof. Arne Möller, Prof. Kerstin Bartscherer, Prof. Nico Dissmeyer and Prof. Chadi Touma provided answers to these questions - and an insight into their research. Afterwards, Prof. Achim Paululat provided information about career opportunities after finishing your studies and gave tips for career planning.

© Dr. Niklas Kästner | Osnabrück University

Get a taste of the lecture hall - would studying biology be something for you?

After the lectures, the students were able to get active themselves - for example, at one of the booths that various Osnabrück biology working groups had set up in the foyer of Building 35. There, they had the opportunity to inspect plants, flatworms and fruit flies under a microscope, marvel at three-dimensional biomolecules with VR glasses and conduct behavioral tests with plush mice. During a guided tour of the CellNanOs research center, participants were also able to take a close look at state-of-the-art laboratory equipment such as fluorescence and electron microscopes.

© Dr. Niklas Kästner | Osnabrück University

Hands-on stations in the foyer show excerpts of daily scientific work in the lab.

In addition to the theoretical and practical impressions, the students had many opportunities to talk to students and researchers. And there was no shortage of fun either: they were able to demonstrate their skills in various laboratory activities at the "Lab Olympics".

We enjoyed the first "Night of the Bio-LKs" and were happy about the great interest of the participants. Maybe we will be able to welcome some of them as students at the department within the next years - we would be delighted!