When we first conceived the idea in 2019—to bring young systems engineering scientists into dialogue with 250 international artists at the Locarno Film Festival’s BaseCamp—we could not have foreseen the impact. The collaboration has enriched both the festival and our NCCR MSE: there is hardly a more intense and rewarding way for young researchers to sharpen their science communication skills, to step outside the academic bubble, and to engage with creative minds from a seemingly different world.
Yet science and art share a common ground: both strive to explain, to explore, and to make sense of our world.
This summer, from 6–17 August 2025, we once again sent a group of young Science Ambassadors (PhD and Postdoc level) to join the BaseCamp – Laboratory of Ideas. It is almost impossible to list all the multifaceted and numerous highlights of these ten days in Locarno. Some impressions can, however, be found in our Logbook 2025 section.
A particularly exciting moment was the Masterclass on the Ethics of Engineering Life, which we presented within BaseCamp program. As an icebreaker and introduction, we showed a six-minute video about everyday life in our NCCR MSE laboratories—filmed in advance and received with great interest by the audience:
A podcast about the NCCR MSE's 2025 Science Ambassadors at the LFF BaseCamp.
23.08.2025; moderation: Michael Berger
Hi there! My name is Catarina Monteiro Gomes, and I am a Portuguese biomedical engineer-turned-scientist, currently working as a postdoctoral researcher in Prof. Hierlemann’s lab at ETH Zürich, in the Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering in Basel. My research focuses on building intricate 3D human brain cell models to study neuroinflammation and regeneration. In other words: I explore how the brain breaks – and, more importantly, how it might heal.
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Making sense of experiences that ask you to look more closely has shaped many of my decisions. Perhaps that’s why I find such meaning in my work as a microbiologist, where understanding comes from learning how to see the invisible. The reward unfolds after long stretches of uncertainty, when the pieces suddenly come together, because then, it doesn’t feel like you are just knowing parts, but as if you can see the whole at once.
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I am a PhD researcher in the Khammash Lab at ETH Zürich, where I develop computational frameworks—combining stochastic filtering, mathematical modelling, and machine-learning inference—to reconstruct hidden cellular states from noisy single-cell data.
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I am Rob, a British microtechnologist and postdoctoral researcher at ETH Zürich, working in the group of Professor Dittrich. Microtechnology is often applied to model a specific biological component, be it a cell, tissue, or other entity. Why? Because, broadly speaking, it enables the development of new biotechnologies and medicines while also deepening our understanding of fundamental biological phenomena.
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I believe that science and art, though seemingly different, share common values like creativity, expression, and impact. They can enrich each other: artistic work sometimes misses structure, while science lacks charisma and accessibility. I tried to embrace a synergy between art and science during my Chemistry studies and the work within my band.
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