“Open house with the TV mouse” at MIBE

In a Germany-wide activity day hosted by the popular educational show “Sendung mit der Maus” on October 3 2022, research institutes in various fields at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) opened their doors to mouse fans. The wide-ranging program attracted more than 800 children and adults to various locations and events throughout the TUM premises.

The Research Neutron Source, the Munich Institute of Biomedical Engineering, the Institute for Medical Microbiology, Immunology and Hygiene and the four Munich Excellence Clusters organized hands-on activities, exciting talks, onsite tours and virtual lab visits. Children immersed themselves in the world of science through fun and games and had the chance to explore, do experiments and make things with their own hands.

Giant bubbles, magic writing and fireballs: the program at MIBE kicked off with a spectacular and entertaining chemistry show. After that, the children visited scientific stations where they had the chance to try experiments and make things with their own hands.

Where do the colors of the rainbow come from? At the microscopy and optics station, the children tested what happens when light hits lenses, and assembled their own simple microscopes. How do we hear words and sounds? The mouse fans looked into these questions at the acoustics station. They also used a force sensor to test their own strength and watch their muscle activity in action on a monitor.

How can we see inside chocolate eggs without opening them? The young scientists learned how a real computed tomography device works during the X-ray CT scan with Kinder Surprise eggs. A Lego station, where children assembled models of a complex research device, was also a big hit. In the electronics workshop, they demonstrated a keen eye and steady hands as they soldered electronic cubes, small musical instruments and other kits.