Jugend forscht Program

As part of the national Jugend forscht (jufo) competition, up to three winning teams are awarded the WE-Heraeus Foundation’s special prize each year.

The prize consists of prize money and a scholarship for free participation in the next GDNÄ meeting. The jufo scholarship holders are invited to participate in certain formats of the student program, such as the Science Slam ‘Science in 5 Minutes’. Former scholarship holders of the jufo-GDNÄ program fondly remember ‘their’ GDNÄ meeting.

Nobel Prize winners with their feet on the ground’

Jochan Brede, Jannik Meyer, Lennart Resch and Enrico Richter reached the national finals of the ‘Jugend forscht’ competition. At the GDNÄ, they had the opportunity to talk to prominent scientists and Nobel Prize winners – an experience they would not have wanted to miss.

The four talented young scientists enjoyed double success: first in the national ‘Jugend forscht’ competition and then in the WE-Heraeus Foundation’s special prize. The special prize enabled them to attend the 130th meeting of the Society of German Natural Scientists and Physicians (GDNÄ) free of charge in 2018. ‘I am always surprised by how much talent, thirst for knowledge and creative energy the young guests bring with them,’ says Martin Lohse, former President of the GDNÄ. In addition to the jufo scholarship holders, the GDNÄ also invites upper secondary school students and young scientists to its conference.

‘The interdisciplinary exchange between scientists and interested citizens has been one of the society’s main goals since the GDNÄ was founded almost two hundred years ago,’ says Martin Lohse. Today, this means above all giving young people access to current research topics and involving them in the discussion.

Even though the audience at the meetings comes from very different backgrounds, the desired transfer of knowledge works well, as former guests report. ‘As a student, I benefited greatly from the interdisciplinary nature of the conference and the speakers’ efforts to explain their specialist knowledge in an understandable way,’ recalls Enrico Richter from Halle/Saale. Jochan Brede also particularly remembers the presentations at the 2018 meeting in Saarbrücken. ‘I looked back at some of the notes I took at the time to prepare for exams and presentations,’ reports the student from Hesse. But it wasn’t just the presentations that were interesting, adds Jannik Meyer: ‘There was also a very exciting supporting program with visits to research institutes in Saarbrücken.’

The three scholarship holders unanimously praise the pleasant atmosphere and easy access to experts during the GDNÄ meeting. ‘The conference not only provides exciting and controversial insights into current science, but also offers many opportunities to talk to the scientists between the lectures,’ reports Enrico Richter. Lennart Resch particularly remembers Nobel Prize winner Klaus von Klitzing, who spoke in Saarbrücken about the new definition of the kilogram. ‘His lecture was informative and entertaining at the same time,’ says the student from Lörrach. Klitzing is a very likeable man with his feet firmly on the ground, says Resch: ‘He proves that you can remain a normal person even with a Nobel Prize.’

Award-winning students

Jochan Breda and Jannik Meyer were fascinated by the pattern of spots that laser light creates on rough materials. In 2018, they worked together to figure out how this effect could be used for practical applications. The result is a laser measurement technique for surfaces. Jannik Meyer already qualified for the national final in physics in 2017. At that time, he analysed dust particles in the air.

Lennart Resch used a high-speed camera in 2017 to investigate how quickly different types of rope ladders and pencils fall to the ground.

Enrico Richter developed the software for a self-built quadcopter in 2018. His drone flies with an inexpensive microcomputer as its control unit.

Bringing renowned scientists and young people together is very much in line with the GDNÄ’s mission: ‘Our goal is to inspire young people to take an interest in science, technology and medicine and motivate them to pursue a career in science,’ says Martin Lohse. The pharmacologist is slated to be the chair of the 2022 meeting in Würzburg, which will focus on the importance and production of images for science. ‘Images are not only of paramount importance to researchers, they also make it easier for laypeople to get to grips with scientific issues,’ says Lohse.

The topic of the next GDNÄ meeting is therefore very close to the interests of teenagers and young adults. Images and videos are particularly important for this age group, which communicates a lot via social media. Science should also be able to captivate young people with images that arouse their curiosity. The GDNÄ meeting in Würzburg wants to show how.