online lecture by Klaus Roth on April 18, 2023, 3 p.m

Moderation: Wolfgang Gerhartz

The name Dieter Oesterhelt is closely linked to the bacteriorhodopsin he discovered, which does incredible things in the cell membranes of the archebacterium Halobacterium salinarum: when irradiated with light, it transports protons from the inside of the cell through the membrane to the outside. How Dieter Oesterhelt stumbled into his future research area by chance, recognized his luck and, thanks to insatiable curiosity, a lot of skill and a good deal of persistence, achieved a chemical masterpiece is described here. He has often been honored for his research achievements, including the renowned Albert Lasker Prize in 2021. He was incomprehensibly denied the Nobel Prize he long deserved, a mistake that can no longer be corrected.

online lecture by Klaus Roth on 11.10.2022, 3 p.m.

Moderation: Wolfgang Gerhartz

Around 1700, Berlin was a hive of activity. Bright minds were recruited from all over Europe and flocked to the city. They were welcome, no one asked about their religion, they were allowed to try their luck. In this colorful startup scene, a few alchemists made a discovery of the century with Berlin blue. The startup company they founded flourished and the entire business plan consisted of a top-secret recipe. The future of the company seemed secure, but just a few years later, the entire manufacturing process was suddenly and unexpectedly published in all its details in the Philosophical Transactions of the English Royal Society. It was a vile betrayal and the search for the perpetrator dragged on for 300 years. The case was only recently finally closed. Let's revisit this alchemical Berlin "crime scene".

Did you like the lecture ? Or are you unable to attend the lecture ? Then write to Professor Roth by email; he will be happy to provide you with the slides from his lecture.

online lecture by Klaus Roth on November 29, 2022, 3 p.m.

Moderation: Wolfgang Gerhartz

Every year around the first Sunday of Advent, many kitchens are transformed into small bakeries where people make cookies and other baked goods together. Then the smell of freshly baked Christmas cookies, cinnamon stars, stollen and gingerbread wafts through the living rooms. No other festival is as closely linked to smells as Christmas, and this sensory impression remains a happy memory for a lifetime. Let's follow the scent trail and try to find out the chemical basis of the Christmas scent. The effort will be rewarded, because with our new knowledge, the Christmas treats are guaranteed to taste twice as good.

Did you like the lecture ? Or are you unable to attend the lecture ? Then write to Professor Roth by email; he will be happy to provide you with the slides from his lecture.