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The winners of the Separation Science Slam (Photo: KNAUER)
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The participants and members of the jury (Photo KNAUER)
The Separation Science Slam held by laboratory instrument manufacturer KNAUER with the support of The Analytical Scientist magazine on June 19 at the HPLC Conference 2023 in Düsseldorf, Germany, was a great success!
The combination of science and entertainment impressed the audience and the eight-member jury. From captivating presentations that made you laugh to enthusiastic participants, this science slam exceeded all expectations!
Five young scientists had passed the pre-selection as finalists. On Monday evening, they stepped onto the big stage of the Congress Center Düsseldorf with their work for the competition and faced the more than 500 conference participants who were able to get a place.
They all presented their work in their unique way. For example, while Simona Feletti from Italy rewrote Hamlet into a drama about a prince of chromatography, Jelle Verdonck from Belgium talked about how the wolf in sheep's clothing "chromium(VI)" was unmasked. Ina Varfaj from Italy used the funny characteristics of Germans and Italians to make everyone laugh about the challenges of analyzing new psychoactive substances. Mimi den Uijl from the Netherlands, took the auditorium on a journey to an "unsolvable" task in the fairy tale world of Rumpelstitskin in the manner of the "GriMimi" brothers. Szymon Ulenberg from Poland, wearing a leather jacket and sunglasses, demonstrated how 3D printing can be used to "break the law" in the lab.
It was inspiring to see how science communication works in this format, as the presenters conveyed complex concepts in an engaging and accessible way. They brought science to life!
In the end there were three winners:
- Winner "Gold" – 1500 €: Dr. Ina Varfaj, Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Perugia, Italy with "Chirality and NPS: Mamma mia!"
- "Silver" – 1000 €: Dr. Mimi den Uijl, Analytical Chemistry, University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands with “A Scientific take on Rumpelstiltskin by Brothers GriMimi”
- "Bronze" – 500 €: Dr. Simona Felletti, Chemical, Pharmaceutical and Agricultural Sciences, University of Ferrara, Italy with "Dr. Hamlet, the prince of chromatography"
HPLC system manufacturer KNAUER, which was also represented at the conference with technical posters, a workshop and an exhibition booth, had launched the Separation Science Slam format at HPLC 2019 in Milano. KNAUER produces laboratory instruments for the life science, pharmaceutical, biotechnology, chemical, environmental and food industries. The company is best known for liquid chromatography systems and components, but also played a key role in the production of lipid nanoparticles for mRNA corona vaccines with its newly developed equipment. Company owner Alexandra Knauer manages the family business together with Carsten Losch. Both are committed to sustainable and responsible corporate governance with a focus on the users, the 190 employees and society. More about KNAUER at www.knauer.net
A short video gives an impression of this great evening. https://youtu.be/70YZZtgkP-c
KNAUER Wissenschaftliche Geräte GmbH, Hegauer Weg 38, 14163 Berlin, Germany
+49 30 809727-0, +49 30 8015010 (Fax), info@knauer.net, www.knauer.net
Press contact: Oliver Gültzow, gueltzow@knauer.net, +49 30 809727-43
