Chalmers Conference Centre

Title: Light on Life
Date: Dec 2-3, 2024
Venue: Chalmers Conference Centre, Gothenburg, Sweden
Homepage: Light on Life
Registration: Register here

Join us for a symposium that brings together the brightest minds in science, including Nobel laureates. Prepare to be captivated by a series of compelling lectures and dynamic discussions that will dive into the latest groundbreaking discoveries and innovations. The event will be moderated by the renowned researcher, Emma Frans.

Participants will learn about space exploration and how scientists search for clues about life's inception. Moreover, they will have the opportunity to discover how cutting-edge spectroscopy techniques are designed and used to explore fundamental processes in biological systems. The symposium will also shine a light on medical breakthroughs, showcasing innovative approaches and discoveries that promise a healthier and longer life for humanity.

Light on Life is open to researchers, university students and high school students and teachers. Registration will open after the summer. The event is co-organized by the Nano Area of Advance, Materials Science and Health at Chalmers, in collaboration with Molecular Frontiers.

Program

The program will include different themes, Insights by light, Smallest Constituents of life, Life as a scientist, Looking at life, Healthy life and Looking for Life. Each theme will be followed by a 30-minutes Q&A where high school students have the chance to ask questions. More information about the program will be published further on.

Monday 2 December

Insight by light - Advanced measurements and simulations of electron behavior enlighten our understanding of nature at the smallest level.

Anne L'Huillier - Attosecond pulses of light for the study of electron dynamics 
Eberhard K. U. Gross - Electrons dancing to the rhythm of light, visualized by computer simulations

Smallest constituents of life - Enigmatic driving forces or when noise is put to work

Steven Chu - Molecular motors and the laws of physics at the nanoscale

Life as a scientist – From the lab to the Nobel prize; the importance of a scientific approach and creative thinking.

Emma Frans - How to think like a scientist

Looking at life - From photochemistry to genome understanding.

Richard Zare - Casting a new light on nonlife to life
Xiaowei Zhuang - Illuminate life at the nanoscale and genome scale by imaging

Tuesday 3 December

Healthy llife - Unraveling Molecular Insights for Personalized Precision through Nanomedicine Innovations

Angela Grommet - Design of molecular boxes as artificial receptors and enzymes
Samir El-Andaloussi – New delivery tools for gene editors inspired by similarities between viruses and intracellular communication vehicles
Margaret Holme – Using X-rays and neutrons to look inside gene editing nanoscale carriers

Looking for Life - How did life begin, and can we find signatures of life beyond Earth?

Morgan Cable - Ocean Worlds: Searching for Evidence of Life in our Cosmic Backyard
Lee Cronin - Assembly Theory and the Emergence of Life Through Chemistry