The CRC 1333 was represented in several ways at this year’s Forum Wissenschaftskommunikation:

• At the Universität Stuttgart booth, connecting with conference participants.
• Through a poster and talk by Yasemin Polikar, MBA, on engaging new target groups in SciComm, featuring our exhibition “Was kann Katalyse?” as a hands-on example.
• With an interactive workshop by Samuel Van Gele, in collaboration with Juliane Braig from the theatre group Kanonenfutter and Isabella Kessel from the Landeshauptstadt Stuttgart, exploring ImprovTheatre as an innovative approach to science communication.

We left the conference inspired, energized, and full of new ideas for future projects. Many thanks to everyone who made these two days a fantastic space for learning, networking, and collaboration!

Der Beitrag CRC 1333 at Forum Wissenschaftskommunikation erschien zuerst auf Collaborative Research Center 1333.

This year’s Forum Wissenschaftskommunikation (Dec 3 & 4, 2025) – the largest conference for science communication in the German-speaking world – will bring together experts from science communication and science marketing to discuss current trends, challenges, and developments in the field. Organized annually by Wissenschaft im Dialog (WiD), the event will be held in Stuttgart for the first time.

Der Beitrag Science on Stage at the Forum Wissenschaftskommunikation 2025 – Improvisational Theater Meets Quantum Physics erschien zuerst auf Collaborative Research Center 1333.

This year’s Forum Wissenschaftskommunikation (Dec 3 & 4, 2025) – the largest conference for science communication in the German-speaking world – will bring together experts from science communication and science marketing to discuss current trends, challenges, and developments in the field. Organized annually by Wissenschaft im Dialog (WiD), the event will be held in Stuttgart for the first time.

Der Beitrag CRC 1333 at the Forum Wissenschaftskommunikation 2025 in Stuttgart erschien zuerst auf Collaborative Research Center 1333.

The CRC 1333 had its own booth again this year, showcasing how our researchers are developing improved chemical catalysts, saving both energy and resources. 

Our researchers explained what a catalyst is by having the children experiment with a raw and a cooked potato. When a few drops of hydrogen peroxide were dripped on the potatoes, the raw potato showed a bubbling reaction caused by catalase, an enzyme and a natural catalyst in the potato, which broke down the hydrogen peroxide into oxygen and water. In the boiled potato, the enzyme was destroyed and no reaction took place.

Another every day example used to explain catalysis to our visitors was a contact lens case with a platinum catalyst. The solution used to clean the lenses is hydrogen peroxide, which does a good job of killing any microbes that may have stuck to the lenses, but it’s not very eye-friendly. The platinum catalyst in the lens case wheel is used to completely neutralize the solution by reducing the peroxide to oxygen and water.

Visitors could explore two interactive exhibits from our science exhibition “Was kann Katalyse?”:

In the Glovebox, visitors had the chance to work like a real scientist, manipulating objects with gloves in a sealed environment to experience how researchers handle sensitive materials in the lab.

The Mini Golf Exhibit offered a playful way to understand how catalysts and activitation energy work: with the right “shortcut” on the mini golf course, players could reach the goal faster and with less energy—just like catalysts enable chemical reactions to proceed more efficiently.

Both exhibits proved to be highly popular with visitors of all ages and demonstrated how complex research topics can be made tangible and fun.

It was a succesful and fun Science Day and we look forward to next year!

_{Photo Credit for all photos: Elisabeth Rüthlein, Universität Stuttgart}

Der Beitrag Tag der Wissenschaft / Science Day 2025 erschien zuerst auf Collaborative Research Center 1333.

The exhibition featured nine interactive displays spread across two floors, complemented by five double-sided lightboxes that provided deeper insights into the showcased concepts. Additionally, three video installations presented five distinct videos, offering valuable perspectives on catalysis, the future of catalysis, the process of catalytic hydrogenation, as well as an overview of CRC 1333 and the crucial role of Simulation & Theory in our research. Six banners, used both as backdrops for the exhibits and as standalone elements, further enriched the exhibition’s narrative.

Part of the exhibits were developed in-house, while others were created in collaboration with the agency VISUELL.The exhibits were all designed with a focus on interactivity, encouraging visitors to actively engage and experience firsthand how catalysis works, as well as gain insight into the work of a chemist.

 Designed with a focus on interactivity, these exhibits invite visitors to actively engage, experiencing firsthand how catalysis works and gaining insight into the role of a chemist.”

With a modular exhibit concept, “islands” were created, which, through floor coverings and large-scale banners, formed a scenography that evoked associations with chemistry labs. 

Two potential visitor groups were identified:

• school classes from grade 10 onwards and
• the general public with an interest in science.

Both groups were targeted through a comprehensive communication campaign, which included mailings to existing school distribution lists, social media outreach, outdoor advertising (such as pavement barriers and digital city ads), flyers and information to the local press.

The exhibition ran for two weeks and was truly a success: 

• 18 school groups were guided through the exhibition (307 students and 20 teachers) – from Stuttgart, Karlsruhe, Heilbronn, the Lake Constance region, and the Swabian Alb region.
• 34 participants attended the two open tours offered to the general public
• 58 attendees joined the evening lecture titled “CO2: Rohstoff für eine nachhaltige Zukunft?” by Jun.-Prof. Deven Estes, which included exciting live experiments with audience participation.

We are proud of the positive feedback we received and the meaningful connections made throughout the exhibition. It was a fantastic opportunity to engage with the public and raise awareness about the importance of catalysis in shaping a sustainable future as well as educating the society about our research.

Thank you to everyone who participated and helped make this event a memorable success!

Der Beitrag A look back on our CRC 1333 Science Exhibition “Was kann Katalyse?” erschien zuerst auf Collaborative Research Center 1333.

The exhibition was formaly opened on February 11, 2025 with a Vernissage at the Stuttgart Rathaus, featuring speeches by Ines Aufrecht, Head of Coordination Department S21/Rosenstein and Future Projects, Prof. Dr.-Ing. Manfred Bischoff, Prorector for Research and Sustainable Development at the University of Stuttgart and Prof. Dr. Michael R. Buchmeiser, Spokesperson of the CRC 1333. Their remarks set the tone for the exhibition’s focus on catalysis, the research work done within the CRC 1333 and its potential for society. The Vernissage was attended by around 180 guests, and the atmosphere was lively, with live music enhancing the experience.

Throughout the evening, visitors had the opportunity to explore and interact with our various exhibits, with the guidance of enthusiastic doctoral students from the CRC 1333. These interactive displays allowed guests to engage hands-on with the science behind catalysis and our research, making the event both educational and entertaining.

The Vernissage was a memorable evening, offering guests a unique opportunity to not only learn about the research but also to interact directly with the scientists behind it. Many guests took the opportunity to ask questions and delve deeper into the exhibits, guided by the doctoral students, whose enthusiasm brought the complex science of catalysis to life. This set the tone for the next two weeks, during which the focus was on guiding school classes and interested individuals from the local community through the exhibition to further enhance their understanding of catalysis and its potential.

Der Beitrag CRC 1333 Science Exhibition “Was kann Katalyse?” Opening Vernissage erschien zuerst auf Collaborative Research Center 1333.

Visitors were invited to explore not only the fascinating science but also the stories of the scientists behind the research. The exhibit’s striking images were selected through an internal photo contest, with two CRC members, Timo Manitz and Esengül Ciftci, contributing captivating pictures of MOFs (metal-organic frameworks) that brought the beauty of science into the heart of the city.

Der Beitrag Science is beautiful! Nanoscience photo exhibition in the Stuttgart City Hall erschien zuerst auf Collaborative Research Center 1333.

The CRC 1333 had its own booth again this year, and we showed our visitors our research for more sustainability: our researchers are developing improved chemical catalysts to save energy and resources in industrial manufacturing processes.

Our researchers explained what a catalyst is by having the children experiment with a raw and a cooked potato. When a few drops of hydrogen peroxide were dripped on the potatoes, the raw potato showed a bubbling reaction caused by catalase, an enzyme and a natural catalyst in the potato, which broke down the hydrogen peroxide into oxygen and water. In the boiled potato, the enzyme was destroyed and no reaction took place.

Another every day example used to explain catalysis to our visitors was a contact lens case with a platinum catalyst. The solution used to clean the lenses is hydrogen peroxide, which does a good job of killing any microbes that may have stuck to the lenses, but it’s not very eye-friendly. The platinum catalyst in the lens case wheel is used to completely neutralize the solution by reducing the peroxide to oxygen and water.

Children could also build their own metal-organic framework using a kit of octahedral nodes and linear pieces of tubing. The goal was to form a three-dimensional structure to visualize how the pores are formed and how they are accessible from all sides. A very popular activity and many great structures were built.

It was a succesful and fun Science Day and we look forward to next year.

Der Beitrag Tag der Wissenschaft / Science Day 2024 erschien zuerst auf Collaborative Research Center 1333.

After an overview of the basics of plastics production and processing along with some insights on the work done at the Universiy of Stuttgart by Prof. Dr. Michael Buchmeiser, the girls were met by three of our CRC 1333 doctoral students: Boshra Atwi, Patricia Sonnenberg and Patrick Probst. 

They showed the girls around in our different laboratories and hosted the hands-on part of our workshop.

After watching doctoral student Patrick Probst perform a cyclopolymerization experiment in the glove box, the girls were able to get a feel for the day-to-day work of a chemist by trying their hand at working in a glove box.

Doctoral student Boshra Atwi showed the girls how to make polyurethane foam by mixing polyol with water and then adding hexamethylene diisocyanate. The girls were able to stir the mixture with a wooden stick until the reaction started and after about ten seconds and the foam was created.

CRC 1333 doctoral student Patricia Sonnenberg showed the girls how to perform the “nylon thread trick” and make polyamide. Hexamethylene diamine, water, and phenolphthalein are mixed in a beaker. The solution is then carefully overlaid with a solution of sebacic acid dichloride in cyclohexane. The skin that forms at the phase boundary is removed with tweezers and attached to a glass rod. The girls were then able to wound a “nylon rope” onto the glass rod by twisting.

The day was rounded off with snacks and talks with our CRC 1333 doctoral students about the study programs at the Faculty of Chemistry and career opportunities. The day was a complete success and we would like to thank all participants for the great workshop.

We are already looking forward to Girls’ Day 2025!

Girls’ Day is an initiative to motivate female students (and those who identify as female) to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and/or mathematics (STEM) by giving them the opportunity to gain hands-on experience in these fields.

Der Beitrag Girls’ Day 2024 erschien zuerst auf Collaborative Research Center 1333.

After an initial online workshop in mid-June 2023, the members of the CRC 1333 team met on July 10, 2023 for a half-day, face-to-face creative workshop together with the science communication agency Sciencebirds. The goal was to explore these questions in more depth and work on the initial results from the online workshop. Finally, we wanted to develop exhibits for a first CRC 1333 Science Exhibition at the Stuttgart Rathaus in early 2025. 

Prof. Buchmeiser, spokesperson of CRC 1333, first gave a brief overview of the research concept of CRC 1333, followed by Prof. Joris van Slageren presenting the results of our mentimeter survey with the question:  “What can we do that no one else can?”

Thereby, we extracted key messages about the CRC 1333 that we want to present in the exhibition.

Subsequently, the participants worked on exhibit ideas in smaller groups, including the creation of some prototypes, which were presented at the end.

Thank you for the dedication and creativity of the CRC 1333 team members! It was a very successful and resourceful half-day workshop. The planning process for each exhibit is ongoing and will continue through further interviews and discussions.

Stay tuned for more information!

Der Beitrag CRC 1333 Science Exhibition Workshop erschien zuerst auf Collaborative Research Center 1333.