Girls' Day 2026

Discover the Brain: Exploring the World of Neuroscience!

We’ll show you what lies behind the fascinating world of brain research: which degree programs lead to neuroscience, what roles exist in the lab – from scientists to technical assistants – and why programming is such an important part of it. Theoretical and experimental research often go hand in hand here, as math, physics, and biology come together.

Female scientists will share how they found their paths into research, what their daily work looks like – and what makes it so exciting. Of course, you’ll also have plenty of opportunities to ask them questions!

Afterwards, you’ll have the chance to visit a real research lab in small groups.

Program

9:00 – 9:05 a.m.
Welcome

9:05 – 9:25 a.m.
Lilly von Kalckreuth – PhD Student, Torben Ott Lab

9:25 – 9:45 a.m.
Natalie Gloveli – Doctoral Researcher, Michael Brecht Lab

9:45 – 10:05 a.m.
Rosi Sammons – Postdoctoral Researcher, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin
How human brain cells communicate with each other

10:05 – 10:15 a.m.
Break

10:15 – 10:35 a.m.
Lisa Scheunemann (NeuroCure) – Group Leader, Freie Universität Berlin
Good and bad memories – What fruit flies teach us about a healthy balance

10:35 – 10:55 a.m.
Sevval Demirci (NeuroCure) – Doctoral Researcher, Scheunemann Lab, Freie Universität Berlin
The Fly and I Make a Good Team: How Curiosity Became My Work

11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Lab visits in small groups:

Lab visit 1:
Good and bad memories – What fruit flies teach us about a healthy balance
Learning on the Fly: We’ll take a look inside the brains of live fruit flies as they learn.
Lisa Scheunemann, Freie Universität Berlin

Lab visit 2:
A modern fluorescence research microscope will be demonstrated and can be used by the students themselves, with specially prepared samples from the Collaborative Research Center TRR384 IN-CODE (Neurobiology of Interneurons).
Jan Schmoranzer, Charité Advanced Medical BIOimaging (AMBIO)

Lab visit 3:
How human brain cells communicate with each other
We’ll show the setup where we can actually listen to individual human neurons.
Rosi Sammons & Verjinia Metodieva, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin

A joint event organized by BCCN and NeuroCure!