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Discover Chemistry

Lecture topics

For schools, teacher training, local sections, Young Chemists’ Forum, ...

For clarity, the topics of the lectures offered are classified into the following subject areas:

- Management
- Natural sciences
- Energy
- History
- General chemistry
- Dyes
- Plastics, polymers
- Biochemistry, biotechnology, genetic engineering
- Pharmacy and medicine
- food chemistry
- Water
- Industrial chemistry, materials
- Environment

Organisational matters. Travel expenses will be covered by the inviting party. No honoraria are payable. Please contact the speakers directly to arrange a date.

List of topics (see below). Click the triangle to expand. For details of the lecture title, abstract and information about the target audience and the duration of the lecture, please look under the name of the respective speaker.

Management

When does an investment pay off? Dealing with risk (Kunz)
The employment situation of chemists in Europe (Salzer)
What comes after the information society? – Technology, AI and the future of humanity (Waser)

Natural sciences

Careers in the natural sciences (Stevens)
Science experiments in nursery school (Stevens)
What makes us vibrate? Acoustics and standing waves (physics) (Heywang)
A little light is burning (Heywang)
Can chemistry be kosher? (Roth)
Stockholm or Harvard? (Roth, link)
Serendipity, or the role of chance in discoveries (Ehlers)
Women and the natural sciences (Ehlers)
What exactly is glass? (Ehlers)
The tongue – a versatile all-rounder (Heywang)
Something’s dripping – (almost) everything about droplets (Heywang)
What comes after the information society? – Technology, AI and the future of humanity (Waser)
What is consciousness? Do we have free will? (Waser)
Artificial intelligence – what lies ahead? (Waser)
Interdisciplinarity – from personal experience (Waser)
Prospects for new materials for the computers of the future (Waser)

Energy

Energy, the elixir of life – where does it come from and where does it go? (Schwab)
Efficient electric heating with carbon (Kunz)
Using carbon dioxide chemically – what is possible and what makes sense? (Röper)
Lithium: the white gold of the Andes (Schultheiß-Reimann)
Renewable energy – technological fundamentals and significance for sustainable living on our planet (Gürtzgen)

History

Dimitri I. Mendeleev – a polymath? (Boeck)
From the Isenheim Altarpiece to the Beatles (Roth)
150 years of the Periodic Table of the Elements (Ehlers)
Women and the natural sciences (Ehlers)
The Walden inversion and the person behind it (Boeck)
On the first women chemists (Boeck)
Lothar Meyer and the Periodic Table (Boeck)
The fate of Jewish chemists during the Nazi era (Boeck)
Ferdinand Friedlieb Runge and a precursor to chromatography – the Runge pictures (Boeck)
The discovery of nitroglycerin and what came of it (Ehlers)
The development of chemistry into an independent branch of science (Salzer)
113 years of the Haber–Bosch process – collaboration between science and industry (Schwab)
What exactly is glass? (Ehlers)

General Chemistry

The fascination of chemistry: “Vivaldi goes Chemistry" (Full und Ruf)
The chemical magic of a Stradivarius (Roth)
H₂O – tapped and sealed with the original cork (Roth)
Can chemistry be kosher? (Roth)
Molecules that move the world - Part 1: Small molecules, big impact (Ehlers)
Molecules that move the world - Part 2: Molecules as the building blocks of life (Ehlers)
Molecules that move the world - Part 3: Active ingredient molecules that made history (Ehlers)
Left and right – a chemical problem too (Boeck)
150 years of the Periodic Table of the Elements (Ehlers)
Changing use of raw materials in the chemical industry (Schwab)
Industrial catalysis - a key success factor for the chemical industry (Schwab)
The tongue, a jack of all trades (Heywang)
Value chains in industrial organic chemistry (Röper)
Homogeneous catalysis in the chemical industry (Röper)
Chemical utilisation of carbon dioxide – what is possible and what makes sense (Röper)
Lithium: the white gold of the Andes (Schultheiß-Reimann)
113 years of the Haber-Bosch process – collaboration between science and industry (Schwab)
Perspectives on new materials for the computers of the future (Waser)
What exactly is glass? (Ehlers)

Dyes

Tattoo – Chemistry beneath the skin (Roth)
Crime scene Berlin: Prussian blue – its discoverers and betrayers (Roth)

Plastics, polymers

Fibre-reinforced composites – efficient materials inspired by nature (Kunz)
Plastic waste: knowledge and speculation (Kunz)
The world of large molecules! – Plastics: curse or blessing? (Ehlers)

Biochemistry, biotechnology, genetic engineering

Contributions of biotechnology to the treatment of the widespread disease diabetes mellitus (Ehlers)
Nature as a model – isolating new medicines from natural sources (Ehlers)
Isolation and purification of pharmaceutical active ingredients from fermentation broths (Ehlers)
Chromatography – a key technology for the purification of biopharmaceuticals (Ehlers)
The importance of biotechnology for the industrial production of new substances (Ehlers)
Genetic engineering – what is it? How does it work? (Jany)
Genetic engineering in everyday life (Jany)
Genetically modified foods – opportunities and risks (Jany)
Green genetic engineering – forming opinions through discussion (Jany)
Ecotoxicology – conventional and genetically modified plants (Jany)
From Mendel to modern plant breeding (Jany)
Of sailors, guinea pigs and citrus fruits (Roth)

Pharmacy and medicine

Alternative therapies! – Fad? Bestseller? Quackery? Placebo effect? What lies behind them? (Ehlers)
Iodine-based contrast agents for computed tomography (CT) (Schmitt-Willich)
Gadolinium-based contrast agents for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) (Schmitt-Willich)
Chemistry’s contribution to diagnostic imaging: contrast agents in CT, MR imaging and PET (Schmitt-Willich)
Drugs and addiction – a problem in all societies (Ehlers)
Diabetes and obesity (Ehlers)
From the Isenheim Altarpiece to the Beatles (Roth)
Tattoos – chemistry that gets under your skin (Roth)
Of seafarers, guinea pigs and citrus fruits (Roth)

food chemistry

Sparkling wine – scientifically effervescent, too! (Heywang)
Eggs, eggs, eggs! (Heywang); also available as an online lecture
The chemistry of espresso (Roth)
The chemical secret of the Christmas scent (Roth)
H₂O – drawn from the tap and bottled at source (Roth)
Can chemistry be kosher? (Roth)
Sweeteners, the sweet side of chemistry (Roth)
From the first beer to the hangover (Roth)
Chocolate – a chemical sensory high (Roth)
Absinthe – the kiss of the green fairy (Roth)
From the Isenheim Altarpiece to the Beatles (Roth)
Chilli – “Some like it hot!” (Roth)
Of sailors, guinea pigs and citrus fruits (Roth)
The food of the future – novel foods (Jany)
Food intolerances – allergies and pseudo-allergies (Jany)
Honey and nature’s sweet treats (Heywang)

Water

Water – an everyday miracle (Heywang)
Splish-splash – experiments with water (Heywang)
Something’s dripping – (almost) everything about drops (Heywang)

Industrial Chemistry, Materials

Development of chemical processes from the laboratory to production readiness (Stevens)
Teaching topic: Chemical production (Stevens)
Chemistry perspectives on the road to nanoelectronics (Waser)
Changing use of raw materials in the chemical industry (Schwab)
Industrial catalysis – a key success factor for the chemical industry (Schwab)
The importance of biotechnology in the industrial production of new substances (Ehlers)
Carbon – real gold? (Kunz)
Efficient electric heating with carbon (Kunz)
Value chains in industrial organic chemistry (Röper)
Homogeneous catalysis in the chemical industry (Röper)
Changes in the raw material base for the chemical industry (Röper)
Changing raw materials in the (petro)chemical industry (Schwab)
113 years of the Haber–Bosch process – collaboration between science and industry (Schwab)
What exactly is glass? (Ehlers)

Environment

Energy, our elixir of life – where does it come from and where does it go? (Schwab)
Changing use of raw materials in the chemical industry (Schwab)
How can the IR absorption of CO₂ be calculated using “off-the-shelf” resources? (Kunz)
Plastic waste: facts and speculation (Kunz)
Energy efficiency through material selection (Kunz)
Strategies, visions and illusions for saving the climate (Kreysa)
Small molecules, big impact – trace gases in the atmosphere (Müller)
Renewable energy – technological fundamentals and its importance for sustainable living on our planet (Gürtzgen)

Lecture topics

For schools, teacher training, local sections, Young Chemists’ Forum, ...

For clarity, the topics of the lectures offered are classified into the following subject areas:

Organisational matters. Travel expenses will be covered by the inviting party. No honoraria are payable. Please contact the speakers directly to arrange a date.

Management

When does an investment pay off? Dealing with risk (Kunz)
The employment situation of chemists in Europe (Salzer)
What comes after the information society? – Technology, AI and the future of humanity (Waser)

Natural sciences

Careers in the natural sciences (Stevens)
Science experiments in nursery school (Stevens)
What makes us vibrate? Acoustics and standing waves (physics) (Heywang)
A little light is burning (Heywang)
Can chemistry be kosher? (Roth)
Stockholm or Harvard? (Roth, link)
Serendipity, or the role of chance in discoveries (Ehlers)
Women and the natural sciences (Ehlers)
What exactly is glass? (Ehlers)
The tongue – a versatile all-rounder (Heywang)
Something’s dripping – (almost) everything about droplets (Heywang)
What comes after the information society? – Technology, AI and the future of humanity (Waser)
What is consciousness? Do we have free will? (Waser)
Artificial intelligence – what lies ahead? (Waser)
Interdisciplinarity – from personal experience (Waser)
Prospects for new materials for the computers of the future (Waser)

Energy

Energy, the elixir of life – where does it come from and where does it go? (Schwab)
Efficient electric heating with carbon (Kunz)
Using carbon dioxide chemically – what is possible and what makes sense? (Röper)
Lithium: the white gold of the Andes (Schultheiß-Reimann)
Renewable energy – technological fundamentals and significance for sustainable living on our planet (Gürtzgen)

History

Dimitri I. Mendeleev – a polymath? (Boeck)
From the Isenheim Altarpiece to the Beatles (Roth)
150 years of the Periodic Table of the Elements (Ehlers)
Women and the natural sciences (Ehlers)
The Walden inversion and the person behind it (Boeck)
On the first women chemists (Boeck)
Lothar Meyer and the Periodic Table (Boeck)
The fate of Jewish chemists during the Nazi era (Boeck)
Ferdinand Friedlieb Runge and a precursor to chromatography – the Runge pictures (Boeck)
The discovery of nitroglycerin and what came of it (Ehlers)
The development of chemistry into an independent branch of science (Salzer)
113 years of the Haber–Bosch process – collaboration between science and industry (Schwab)
What exactly is glass? (Ehlers)

General Chemistry

The fascination of chemistry: “Vivaldi goes Chemistry" (Full und Ruf)
The chemical magic of a Stradivarius (Roth)
H₂O – tapped and sealed with the original cork (Roth)
Can chemistry be kosher? (Roth)
Molecules that move the world - Part 1: Small molecules, big impact (Ehlers)
Molecules that move the world - Part 2: Molecules as the building blocks of life (Ehlers)
Molecules that move the world - Part 3: Active ingredient molecules that made history (Ehlers)
Left and right – a chemical problem too (Boeck)
150 years of the Periodic Table of the Elements (Ehlers)
Changing use of raw materials in the chemical industry (Schwab)
Industrial catalysis - a key success factor for the chemical industry (Schwab)
The tongue, a jack of all trades (Heywang)
Value chains in industrial organic chemistry (Röper)
Homogeneous catalysis in the chemical industry (Röper)
Chemical utilisation of carbon dioxide – what is possible and what makes sense (Röper)
Lithium: the white gold of the Andes (Schultheiß-Reimann)
113 years of the Haber-Bosch process – collaboration between science and industry (Schwab)
Perspectives on new materials for the computers of the future (Waser)
What exactly is glass? (Ehlers)

Dyes

Tattoo – Chemistry beneath the skin (Roth)
Crime scene Berlin: Prussian blue – its discoverers and betrayers (Roth)

Plastics, polymers

Fibre-reinforced composites – efficient materials inspired by nature (Kunz)
Plastic waste: knowledge and speculation (Kunz)
The world of large molecules! – Plastics: curse or blessing? (Ehlers)

Biochemistry, biotechnology, genetic engineering

Contributions of biotechnology to the treatment of the widespread disease diabetes mellitus (Ehlers)
Nature as a model – isolating new medicines from natural sources (Ehlers)
Isolation and purification of pharmaceutical active ingredients from fermentation broths (Ehlers)
Chromatography – a key technology for the purification of biopharmaceuticals (Ehlers)
The importance of biotechnology for the industrial production of new substances (Ehlers)
Genetic engineering – what is it? How does it work? (Jany)
Genetic engineering in everyday life (Jany)
Genetically modified foods – opportunities and risks (Jany)
Green genetic engineering – forming opinions through discussion (Jany)
Ecotoxicology – conventional and genetically modified plants (Jany)
From Mendel to modern plant breeding (Jany)
Of sailors, guinea pigs and citrus fruits (Roth)

Pharmacy and medicine

Alternative therapies! – Fad? Bestseller? Quackery? Placebo effect? What lies behind them? (Ehlers)
Iodine-based contrast agents for computed tomography (CT) (Schmitt-Willich)
Gadolinium-based contrast agents for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) (Schmitt-Willich)
Chemistry’s contribution to diagnostic imaging: contrast agents in CT, MR imaging and PET (Schmitt-Willich)
Drugs and addiction – a problem in all societies (Ehlers)
Diabetes and obesity (Ehlers)
From the Isenheim Altarpiece to the Beatles (Roth)
Tattoos – chemistry that gets under your skin (Roth)
Of seafarers, guinea pigs and citrus fruits (Roth)

food chemistry

Sparkling wine – scientifically effervescent, too! (Heywang)
Eggs, eggs, eggs! (Heywang); also available as an online lecture
The chemistry of espresso (Roth)
The chemical secret of the Christmas scent (Roth)
H₂O – drawn from the tap and bottled at source (Roth)
Can chemistry be kosher? (Roth)
Sweeteners, the sweet side of chemistry (Roth)
From the first beer to the hangover (Roth)
Chocolate – a chemical sensory high (Roth)
Absinthe – the kiss of the green fairy (Roth)
From the Isenheim Altarpiece to the Beatles (Roth)
Chilli – “Some like it hot!” (Roth)
Of sailors, guinea pigs and citrus fruits (Roth)
The food of the future – novel foods (Jany)
Food intolerances – allergies and pseudo-allergies (Jany)
Honey and nature’s sweet treats (Heywang)

Water

Water – an everyday miracle (Heywang)
Splish-splash – experiments with water (Heywang)
Something’s dripping – (almost) everything about drops (Heywang)

Industrial Chemistry, Materials

Development of chemical processes from the laboratory to production readiness (Stevens)
Teaching topic: Chemical production (Stevens)
Chemistry perspectives on the road to nanoelectronics (Waser)
Changing use of raw materials in the chemical industry (Schwab)
Industrial catalysis – a key success factor for the chemical industry (Schwab)
The importance of biotechnology in the industrial production of new substances (Ehlers)
Carbon – real gold? (Kunz)
Efficient electric heating with carbon (Kunz)
Value chains in industrial organic chemistry (Röper)
Homogeneous catalysis in the chemical industry (Röper)
Changes in the raw material base for the chemical industry (Röper)
Changing raw materials in the (petro)chemical industry (Schwab)
113 years of the Haber–Bosch process – collaboration between science and industry (Schwab)
What exactly is glass? (Ehlers)

Environment

Energy, our elixir of life – where does it come from and where does it go? (Schwab)
Changing use of raw materials in the chemical industry (Schwab)
How can the IR absorption of CO₂ be calculated using “off-the-shelf” resources? (Kunz)
Plastic waste: facts and speculation (Kunz)
Energy efficiency through material selection (Kunz)
Strategies, visions and illusions for saving the climate (Kreysa)
Small molecules, big impact – trace gases in the atmosphere (Müller)
Renewable energy – technological fundamentals and its importance for sustainable living on our planet (Gürtzgen)

Chemistry education

Chemistry for a better world

Chemistry education

Lecture topics

For schools, teacher training, local sections, Young Chemists’ Forum, ...

Management

Natural sciences

Energy

History

General Chemistry

Dyes

Plastics, polymers

Biochemistry, biotechnology, genetic engineering

Pharmacy and medicine

food chemistry

Water

Industrial Chemistry, Materials

Environment

Lecture topics

For schools, teacher training, local sections, Young Chemists’ Forum, ...

Management

Natural sciences

Energy

History

General Chemistry

Dyes

Plastics, polymers

Biochemistry, biotechnology, genetic engineering

Pharmacy and medicine

food chemistry

Water

Industrial Chemistry, Materials

Environment