Biophysical Society Bulletin | May 2024

Biophysics Week

Early Career Investigators Meet Marta Filizola from Mount Sinai

Biophysics Week in Lithuania The Lithuanian Biophysical Society held a wide range of educational events at the Life Sciences Center and Faculty of Physics of Vilnius University, as well as at the National Cancer Institute. They organized hands-on laboratory exercises, lab oratory tours, and public lectures, aiming to promote various branches of biophysics among high school and university students, as well as already existing community members. They covered a diverse range of questions a biophysicist might encounter and offered different perspectives on how to answer them by using various model systems and methodol ogies. More than 140 participants took part in the discussions and activities.

The GPCR Forum Early Career Investigator (ECI) Zoominar se ries hosted Marta Filizola , a computational biophysicist at the Icahn School of Medicine in New York, for a career discussion session. The session provided an overview of Filizola’s career path. ECIs asked about topics for junior scientists where decision-making is difficult but has a significant impact on their future. Filizola emphasized the importance of attending international scientific meetings to network. She shared her experience about starting a lab and having an (academic) ca reer while starting a family. Visit www.gpcrforum.org/events/ gpcr-zoominars to learn more.

Art&Science Day: Science Meets Art During International Biophysics Week 2024, the first Art&- Science Day took place at the Institute of Molecular Biosci ences at University of Graz. During this event, participants of all ages were invited to unfold their creativity at five hands on stations, where they could experience research from a special perspective and get in touch with the researchers of the institute. The day was rounded out by two lectures on science design: one by Verena Resch titled "Make Science Beautiful" and the other by the event’s organizer, Ariane Pes sentheiner , on how to use comics to present complex content in a simple way (for more on the project “BioPhyCom – Dive into Biomembranes with Comics,“ go to https:/biophycom.

Biophysical Society of Canada (BSC) Gastronomy Cooking Class On March 21, to celebrate Biophysics Week, the Trainee Ex ecutive of the Biophysical Society of Canada (BSC) held their first Gastronomy Cooking Class. This interactive and informa tive class was hosted by Sara Evans , a PhD candidate in the Department of Chemistry at Dalhousie University. Students, postdocs, and professors from across Canada came together virtually to learn the science behind jellies while following

along with Sara in the kitch en. Attendees learned about the structure and function of pectin (a polysaccharide) and gelatin (a protein) while preparing their own jellies and interacting with Sara throughout the class.

uni-graz.at). More than 80 children and adults clearly had fun at this successful event and, in addition to great works of art, they certainly took home some scientific insights.

May 2024

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