VOL. 1VOL. 1

A UNIVERSE OF RESEARCHA UNIVERSE OF RESEARCH

TABLE OF CONTENTSTABLE OF CONTENTS

© University of Luxembourg, November 2020. Volume 1, First Edition.

Published under Creative Commons CC BY-ND 4.0. This means that you are free to copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format as long as you give appropriate credit and don’t modify the artwork.

Contributing artists: Marion Dengler (p. 8, 9, 12, 13), Andy Genen (p. 10, 11, 14, 15), Antoine Grimée (p. 4, 5, 18, 19), Sabrina Kaufmann (p. 6, 7, 16, 17), Valérie Minelli (Cover, portraits, p. 3), Veronika Mischitz (p. 1)

Printed in Luxembourg, Ehlerange by Reka Print + www.reka.lu

Disclaimer: This comic is a work of fiction and does not reflect the opinion of NASA, CFL, Uni.lu or any other organisation or of any character appearing in this publication. All events and characters in this comic – even those based on real people – are entirely fictional.

ISBN: 978-2-87971-171-3

Why Science Comics? Why Science Comics? 11

Editorial Editorial 22

Zamara & Yso – To New Horizons Zamara & Yso – To New Horizons 2 - 32 - 3

A Furry Tale A Furry Tale 4 - 54 - 5

Math, Magic and Maryam Math, Magic and Maryam 6 - 76 - 7

Becoming an Agent of Change Becoming an Agent of Change 8 - 98 - 9

Inside the Solar Cell Inside the Solar Cell 10 - 1110 - 11

The Adventures of Tuwwo the Water Molecule The Adventures of Tuwwo the Water Molecule 12 - 1312 - 13

Microglia: Guardians of the Brain? Microglia: Guardians of the Brain? 14 - 1514 - 15

Chronicles from Platform 6 Chronicles from Platform 6 16 - 1716 - 17

A Gut Feeling A Gut Feeling 18 - 1918 - 19

The People Behind the Comics The People Behind the Comics 20 - 2420 - 24

RE Printed Matter

myclimate.org/01-18-619125

11

EditorialEditorial

22

Science meets art

Serge HaanSerge Haan

For these science comics, we brought together young scientists and comic artists from Luxembourg. We are very thrilled to present 8 short comics resulting from the cooperation between all these talented people, including the science communicators and comic experts in our team. I hope that you will have as much fun reading our comics as we had conceiving them.

Our aim is to present you some research topics which our local scientists are working on but also to give you an idea of the daily life and work of scientists. Research institutions live from the dynamism, curiosity and enthusiasm of our many young researchers.

YsoYso (pronounced why-so?), Zamara’s faithful companion, is as adventurous as our dogs on Earth – but when he eats (Yso has decided to identify as male) something he shouldn’t, we see his inner workings! He can also change shape and turn to liquid when he wants! Cool, right? It would be, if he didn’t keep running off all the time and slipping through cracks – causing Zamara to chase him all around the University!

ZamaraZamara is a planetary exchange student (think Erasmus, but further away...) from Liquaria. She is also the first Liquarian to leave the planet for an exchange! Earth is so different from her planet – she had never heard of such strange concepts as “war” and “gender” but she is slowly learning how humans work. Zamara learned that on Earth there are several gender identities like female, male, non-binary, trans, genderfluid and agender. Although Liquarians do not distinguish different genders, Zamara has decided to identify as female during her stay on planet Earth. She is bursting with curiosity to understand everything she possibly can about her human friends in Luxembourg. Sometimes she can even get into trouble, for example when chasing her best dog friend Yso.

Vice Dean of the Faculty of Science, Technology and Medicine (FSTM)

33

Zamara & Yso – To New HorizonsZamara & Yso – To New Horizons

Some time ago on planet Liquaria…

Thinking about your upcoming exchange

year?

Yes. Earth will be so strange!

Feels weird going alone.

You think that’d work?

Sure. If gravity is similar, I should be

able to keep it together.

After all, we’re all just molecules sticking

together.

At worst, I can carry you around in a jar. Hehe… You’d be less trouble!

But humans are so different. What if they

don’t like me?

I’m sure we’ll find friends there!

You’ll be fine. It rarely gets that cold where we’re going.

I’m more worried about freezing. When temperatures

get too low…

... my molecules will rearrange and I’ll have trouble changing shape or even moving…urgh.

Maybe I can join you?

To be continued…

A Furry TaleA Furry Tale

44

Meet Félicette, the first cat in

space, and Major Tom...

... discoverers of foreign planet

AllergoPloto. We are not alone

anymore.

Our new friends will be

here soon.

Hellooo Félicette!!

Oh no, what is

happening?

This looks like an allergic reaction! Let’s get you tested..

You seem to be allergic to cats!

You must have become sensitized

to Félicette when you met for the first time

on AllergoPloto.

The immune system protects the body against intruders such as bacteria

and viruses that can cause illnesses.

What do you mean? Sensitized?

Whaaatt?

Meow!

55

Sometimes the immune system wrongly

identifies harmless substances as dangerous

and tries to fight them.

Instead of tolerating the

allergen, the body produces IgE antibodies ...

... specialized tools to catch allergens.

The IgE antibodies are mounted on immune cells circulating in the blood or residing in the skin, ready to catch the

allergen.

The body is now sensitized to the allergen.

Félicette, like any other cat is naturally spreading allergens

into the air.

When you met Félicette again here in

Luxembourg, your immune system was ready to attack

the allergens!

The immune cells are releasing substances like histamine which lead to inflammatory allergic reactions in the body.

At least, this is how it

works in human bodies.

And what should I do

now?

Let’s keep in touch! We have just installed the new SpacecallsTM

App in our ship.That’s a

good idea!

Meeow!

Since there are no cats on AllergoPloto,

you will be fine.

These molecules are

called allergens.

The Fields Medal - comparable to the Nobel Prize - is awarded to outstanding mathematicians under 40. To this day, Maryam was the first and only woman to receive it.

*

Math, Magic and MaryamMath, Magic and Maryam

66

HEY ZAMARA HEY ZAMARA I GOT US A COOL I GOT US A COOL

NEW GAME. NEW GAME. LET’S PLAY LET’S PLAY Hurry up, find the portal and get out before the laserbot

kills you! Be careful - the walls are covered in mirrors! (Tip: Portals are always in dark areas. Try to find them )

THE ILLUMINATION PROBLEM:THE ILLUMINATION PROBLEM:

CHOOSE YOUR HEROCHOOSE YOUR HERO

HERE WE GOHERE WE GO

It’s a math problem. So we should choose

a mathematician, don’t you think?

Yeah, you’re right Tau.

Let’s go with Maryam

This one is easy.

All we have to do

is hide in the lower half of the room

and we’re good

Pfff, easy again.

Let’s hide in one of the corners.

Hehe.

Ha Nice try. We’ll hide in one of the

upper corners.

And now...

Tau

MARYAM MIRZAKHANIMARYAM MIRZAKHANI Queen of Geometry

(1977 – 2017)Skills: fearless mind, deep thinker

Achievements: Fields MedalSpecial power: Magic Wand

THE PENROSE ELLIPSE – LEVEL 1THE PENROSE ELLIPSE – LEVEL 1

YOU WINYOU WIN YOU WINYOU WIN YOU WINYOU WIN

THE PENROSE ELLIPSE – LEVEL 2THE PENROSE ELLIPSE – LEVEL 2 THE PENROSE ELLIPSE – LEVEL 3THE PENROSE ELLIPSE – LEVEL 3

Tau?

*

** The Magic Wand Theorem by Mirzakhani and Eskin can be applied to show that ** The Magic Wand Theorem by Mirzakhani and Eskin can be applied to show that there are no dark regions in any room of a particular shape (rational polygon), there are no dark regions in any room of a particular shape (rational polygon), when lit by a single light source.when lit by a single light source.

* Roger Penrose has been awarded the 2020 Nobel Prize in Physics. He * Roger Penrose has been awarded the 2020 Nobel Prize in Physics. He mathematically proved the existence and formation of black holes.mathematically proved the existence and formation of black holes.

77

HECK HECK YESYES

Taaauuu. You are so MEAN

TOKARSKY’S ROOM – TOKARSKY’S ROOM – LEVEL 95LEVEL 95

AND INDEED:AND INDEED:

A LITTLE LATER…A LITTLE LATER…

Oh… I’m so sorry, Zamara. I got carried away.

Argh, we keep dying in this

one

Magic Wand** applied In this particular room, there are no dark

REGIONS. Just a single dark POINT.

Let’s use the Magic Wand.

What?

But that’s impossible

How are we going to find a single point?

Many things become clearer, once you manage

to change your perspective. Think outside the

box. Be brave. You can do this…

Yaay Finally We did it

I had NO IDEA

math could be so COOL

Never mind. Thank you.

Well done In 1958, Roger Penrose* built this curved

room with walls made of mirrors.A single light source can NEVER light the room

COMPLETELY Are you ready

for more?

You told me you wanna play the new game TOGETHER, but it is only YOU playing! You don’t even listen to me

Becoming an Agent of ChangeBecoming an Agent of Change

88

This school trip’s pretty cool!

Hey Earthling! I’m Yso the spacedog! What are you

doing here?

Oh...!! You’re astronaut Jessica

Meir!

Wow, hi! I am Ada!

Oh my gosh, the penguins!?

Yes, emperor penguins are especially at risk because sea ice is their primary biotope and it’s melting rapidly: from 1979 to 1990, Antarctica lost 40 gigatons of ice, and since 2009 it lost more than 6 times this amount. At this rate, it is

projected that 80% of emperor penguin colonies will disappear.

It doesn’t stop with the animals, though. Humans are and will be the species most affected by climate change, with women being the most vulnerable group.

How great to see another girl

up here!

Welcome! Nice to meet you! From space, the Earth looks

absolutely stunning, don’t you think?

I see the Earth, yeah... But I also see clouds of smoke, fire...I think

I can see Antarctica, at least what’s left of it...

I am not sure yet...wait... Is there someone

coming?

99

Every day women endure the consequences of climate change to a disproportionate degree: 77% of household income depends on natural resources which are being depleted day by day, while women are mostly responsible for looking after the family

and are the main care providers.

Climate change is a threat amplifier; besides its environmental impact it highlights gender inequality. Women account for 70% of the world’s poor, meaning that climate-related events such as flooding and

droughts hit them harder, in a world where they already lack independence.

This is devastating, and climate change is getting worse!

Who can change that?

...Scientists, engineers, people with passion!By raising our voices, we can empower those who are impacted the most! Here... this is to remind you of

the great power you have to make a difference and become an agent of change.

Ada, what did you learn today?

H-Huh, Yes??

I asked, what did you learn today? Today...Today I learned that

girls and women can change the world!

We are capable of saving the planet and its inhabitants from climate change through science

and technology...

... and today we have a world driving on clean, renewable energy and sustainable environments. Thanks to ALL the brave girls and

women who stood up and used their voices...

…to fight for justice and equality and press for a thriving planet! Our world only benefits when

we are included!

Ada?! Good morning, Ada.

Wake up...

Ada, listen. GIRLS like you...

Inside the Solar CellInside the Solar Cell

1010

1111

The

Adve

ntur

es o

f Tu

wwo

the

Wat

er M

olec

ule

The

Adve

ntur

es o

f Tu

wwo

the

Wat

er M

olec

ule

It’s

gettin

g to

o

crow

ded

here

. Dow

n yo

u go

, Tuw

wo!

EVAP

ORAT

ION

is th

e pr

oces

s of

a li

quid

tu

rnin

g in

to a

gas

. For

plant

s, th

e su

n pr

ovid

es the

ene

rgy

for th

e wa

ter to

ev

apor

ate

on the

leaf

’s su

rfac

e.

Pfou

h, a

few

mor

e m

illim

etre

s an

d

I wo

uld

have

let go

…

We

can’t

let ca

vitat

ion

ha

ppen

, Tuw

wo, o

ther

wise

th

e tree

mig

ht d

ie!

Keep

foc

usin

g!

Don’t

let go

!

I’m e

xhau

sted

Wat

t…

I ca

n’t h

old

on a

nym

ore,

m

y ar

ms

are

tired

…

All y

ou n

eed

to rem

embe

r is

to “ke

ep y

our ar

ms

in c

heck

”!!!

Don’t

tra

nsfo

rm b

ack.

If y

ou

fail,

we’ll

all f

ail.

This

is wh

ere

th

e ad

vent

ure

star

ts!

Wow

, tho

se thi

ngs

look

so

cool! W

hat ar

e

they

for

?

Take

my

hand

and

yo

u wi

ll fin

d ou

t.

Wha

t ha

ve y

ou

got us

the

re,

Terry? Le

ave

me

alon

e,

I wa

nt to

go

back

up!

C’m

on, n

o ne

ed to

worry!

I’m

Ter

ry a

nd thi

s old

chap

is

Wat

t. W

elco

me

to “On

the

Roo

t”,

the

cooles

t pl

ace

with

in 10

0 m

m.

“On

the

Root

” is

just

a

welcom

e br

eak

befo

re

the

long

jour

ney.

Hold

on,

it’

s st

artin

g to

go

uuuu

p!

COHE

SION

-TEN

SION

allo

ws w

ater

molec

ules

to

keep

ho

ldin

g to

geth

er u

nder

ten

sion

as the

y ar

e pu

lled

upwa

rds

by e

vapo

ratio

n in

the

leaf

.

Don’t

wor

ry tho

se a

rms

are

so

stro

ng, a

nd y

ou w

ill le

arn

fast

, jus

t fo

cus.

This

cohe

sion-

tens

ion

keep

s us

tog

ethe

r to

pul

l eac

h ot

her.

But… I

don

’t kn

ow h

ow to

co

ntro

l the

tra

nsfo

rmat

ion,

no

r ho

w to

use

my

arm

s ye

t!

CAVI

TATI

ON is

the

pro

cess

of

gas

form

ing

with

in

a liq

uid.

It o

ccur

s at

ver

y low

pres

sure

s, wh

ich

can

be

fou

nd in

the

wat

er s

yste

m o

f pl

ants

. Cav

itatio

n ca

n re

sult

in d

ehyd

ratio

n be

caus

e it

inhi

bits

wat

er f

low.

The

tran

sfor

mat

ions

, the

miss

ion,

th

e long

jour

ney…

Eve

ry b

edtim

e st

ory

my

mum

told

me

was

true

! An

d I

neve

r be

lieve

d he

r…

Now

you

can

relax,

Tuww

o, an

d be

pro

ud

of y

ours

elf:

you

arriv

ed a

t th

e EV

APOR

ATIO

N PO

INT

and

succ

essf

ully

acco

mpl

ished

you

r m

ission!

RIVE

RBED

RIVE

RBED

BAR

“ON

THE

ROOT

”BA

R “O

N TH

E RO

OT”

GROU

ND W

ATER

GROU

ND W

ATER

Microglia: Guardians of the Brain?Microglia: Guardians of the Brain?

1414

1515

Chronicles from Platform 6 Chronicles from Platform 6

1616

Are you kidding me? My train’s

been cancelled

again! The next one’s not for 30 minutes!

Hi Will!

Zamara! Yso! Hi!

So our train’s not coming, huh? Let’s head over to our platform and

wait together!

Excuse me?

Sorry to interrupt. My name is Ashley, I research travellers’ behaviour and their

interaction with information devices.

Would you agree to answer some of my

questions anonymously?

My goal is to understand how to improve the

experience of travel for everyone.

Um, sure Yaay, Liquarians love questions!

Could you describe

your experience of missing the train?

Are there also questions

for alien dogs?

I woke up late as usual, and rushed

here only to find that my train had been

cancelled.

Sometimes I’d like to find out more easily what is

happening with the trains but the information I get is kinda

confusing...

1717

I see... Often technologies are developed without any collaboration with the

people...

...who will use them and so do not satisfy their needs.

Sometimes, this causes confusion for users, exactly like you are

experiencing, right now.

To think of a service that serves your

purpose, it is important to evaluate prototypes together with users.

Let’s imagine some virtual information assistants that could guide you

through your journey, and improve your future travel experience in the event of

a service interruption.

I love technologies and I’d like to use

them. But I also know that these tools need to use my personal data in order to be

efficient.

And I don’t know whether I’m willing to

share that data.

Ah, your train is arriving. Thank you so much for your time and sharing your

thoughts!

Thanks for your explanations!

It made the waiting time go by faster.

I find your approach very interesting.

Um... so does that mean that this

approach enables you to understand human interactions? Could it explain why Will

always blushes when I’m talking to him?

It’s precisely for this reason that people like me

investigate users’ experiences, together with their

perceptions and emotions, in order to understand their needs and improve things. Our approach is based on psychological sciences and is called user experience

research.

Would you use them?

* A community of microorganisms, such as bacteria, viruses and fungi.

A Gut FeelingA Gut Feeling

1818

Pizza again?

That’s all we’ve been eating since we arrived on this planet.

I have a stomach ache!

Again? You had one only yesterday!

There must be a problem in your gut!

I need to go and take a closer look.

Ok, but be careful!

Hello, my name is Edward Coli. I am a guardian of the gut, trying to keep this place clean and healthy…

…and this is Biff!

I am Yso! I am visiting my friend’s gut. She is having a lot of stomach

aches lately!

Who are all these guys?

We are the microbiome* of the gut.

Usually we are very organised and everybody has their

defined job.

1919

I am a guardian.

My name is Faecali.

I am a builder.

I am a degrader.

Our community used to live in

harmony before. There was a perfect balance between the different species, but then things changed.

There aren’t enough of us guardians anymore to keep this place safe.

This is what they have been

feeding on.

The more of these waves flow

through the gut, the stronger they get.

We guardians need other nutrients!

So you mean we have to have a balanced diet?..

We need to talk! Your gut

is messier than your room! And what

is this? This is called

‘broccoli’.

A FEW MONTHS LATER…A FEW MONTHS LATER…

…so that all the species in the gut have

something they can feed on to keep

us healthy!I have to warn Zamara!

TAKE COVER!

The People Behind the ComicsThe People Behind the Comics

Ever since he was a kid, Andy Genen (born in 1979) has always loved all kinds of comics. After finishing his studies at the Institut St-Luc in Brussels, where he actually studied "creating comics", he started working as a freelance illustrator / comic book artist and has since illustrated numerous very varied projects. His best known comic work includes "De leschte Ritter" trilogy, which he created with Lucien Czuga, and several collaborations with John Rech ("Dream Catcher" and "Alex & Tun"). "De Roude Puma" and his latest series "Tow & Tank" are among his solo works.

ANDY GENENANDY GENEN

The comic ‘Inside the Solar Cell’ is about an accidental journey of a scientist and her nephew inside a solar panel. It gave us the chance to disseminate some knowledge about solar cells so that everyone can understand how our energy of the future works.

Himanshu PhirkeHimanshu Phirke is studying the optical and electrical properties of solar cells in the Department of Physics and Materials Science (DPhyMS) at the University of Luxembourg. He is very passionate about science and loves to do fun experiments.

Anna SchmittAnna Schmitt is working on the neuronal activities of gifted adults at the Institute of Cognitive Assessment (COSA) within the Department of Behavioural and Cognitive Sciences (DBCS) of the University of Luxembourg. Science communication is also one of her interests.

In Luxembourg, more than 10,000 people suffer from Alzheimer’s disease, the major cause of dementia. Researchers are investigating whether the immune cells of the brain, microglia, could drive brain deterioration and symptoms in this, still incurable, disease.

Sonja FixemerSonja Fixemer is currently analysing microglia heterogeneity in post-mortem brains from Alzheimer’s disease patients at the Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine (LCSB).

Shubhra AcharyaShubhra Acharya comes from India and is interested in finding novel biomarkers for better diagnosis and prognosis of Parkinson’s disease at the Luxembourg Institute of Health (LIH).

Anna SchmittAnna Schmitt is currently studying the neuronal activities of gifted adults at the Institute of Cognitive Assessment (COSA) at the University of Luxembourg.

Anouk EwenAnouk Ewen comes from Luxembourg and is currently investigating the role of protein modifications in innate immune cells at LIH.

Inside the Solar CellInside the Solar Cell

Microglia: Guardians of the Brain?Microglia: Guardians of the Brain?

2020

Himanshu

Sonja

Anna

Shubhra

Anouk

Anna

Andy

Born in 1992, Antoine "Tunn" Grimée completed a master’s in narration at the École de Recherche Graphique in Brussels in 2017. After his studies, he started working in comics and illustration. He produces various illustrations for the written press as well as posters for the Luxembourg cultural scene, and regularly publishes one-page comic strips devoted to historical characters in Warte-Perspectives. In 2018, "De Coyote am Schofspelz" was published by Fairtrade Luxembourg, first in the serial section of the Revue, then as a full-length album. In 2019, he released "D’Geheimnis vum verschwonnene Sall", commissioned by the Lycée Michel Rodange on the occasion of its 50th anniversary.

ANTOINE GRIMÉEANTOINE GRIMÉE

Our gut is home to millions of little creatures, called microorganisms. Depending on what we eat and thus feed them, they can keep us healthy or make us sick. With this comic, we highlight the important relationship between nutrition and the gut microbiome, which influences our health.

Catherine DelbrouckCatherine Delbrouck, a PhD student at the Luxembourg Institute of Health (LIH), explores how a specific metabolic by-product promotes cancer cell invasion.

Lynn BonettiLynn Bonetti is a PhD student at the Luxembourg Institute of Health (LIH). She investigates the importance of antioxidants in immune cells and their relevance in gastrointestinal diseases.

Catherine SedraniCatherine Sedrani, a PhD student at the Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine (LCSB), is studying the interactions between the gut microbiome and the nervous system.

Most people have heard about allergies before and the word is commonly used, but only few know that allergies are actually an overreaction of the immune system. With this comic, we wanted to explain what an allergy is in a simple and fun way, make you aware of the problems that come with allergic diseases and highlight the importance of allergy research.

We are BenteBente Janssen-WeetsJanssen-Weets and Julia KlüberJulia Klüber and we are doing our PhD at the Luxembourg Institute of Health (LIH) in the Department of Infection and Immunity. We both are members of the research group Molecular and Translational Allergology. Bente is focusing her research on respiratory allergies and Julia is specialised in food allergies.

A Gut FeelingA Gut Feeling

A Furry TaleA Furry Tale

2121

Catherine

Julia Bente

Lynn

Catherine

Antoine

The People Behind the ComicsThe People Behind the Comics

2222

A non-binary queer comic artist living in Berlin, trying to work as a freelancer. Likes the macabre and gothic horror. Main inspirations are Symbolism, Art nouveau and works from the golden age of illustration. Eerie, mysterious stuff with hidden meanings is my jam, which is why my stories and illustrations tend to veer into magical realism, if not outright fantasy. I grew up with Franco-Belgian comics, started reading manga after that and now primarily read American indie graphic novels, preferably with queer themes. Successfully blending these three different styles of comic art and narration is something I want to achieve in my own work.

MARION DENGLERMARION DENGLER

We wanted to be part of this cool project that promotes the sharing of science in a lively way. The topic itself came from a combination of our research topics and interest in our natural surroundings.

Louis KriegerLouis Krieger is working in the Environmental Research & Innova-tion (ERIN) department at the Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology (LIST), completing his PhD in the costs and benefits of plant water transport.

Adnan MoussaAdnan Moussa is working in the ERIN department at the LIST and completing his PhD in hydrological modelling of catchment travel times.

Marie-Alix DalleMarie-Alix Dalle is part of the Department of Engineering (DoE) at the University of Luxembourg, completing her PhD on desalination process based on evaporation.

The Adventures of Tuwwo the Water MoleculeThe Adventures of Tuwwo the Water Molecule

Women account for the minority of the world’s researchers while representing 70 percent of the world’s poor. It’s time for a change. Let’s start by raising our female academic voices!

Adriana CoppolaAdriana Coppola works at the Department of Engineering (DoE) of the University of Luxembourg (Uni.lu) on energy efficiency.

Chrysovalantou KalaitzidouChrysovalantou Kalaitzidou is a member of the Department of Engineering (DoE) at the Uni.lu doing research on data-driven modelling of biomaterials.

Eleftheria CharalambousEleftheria Charalambous is working at the Department of Infection and Immunity of the Luxembourg Institute of Health (LIH) and investigates how early life adversity shapes the microbiome.

Johanna JaschikJohanna Jaschik works at the Luxembourg Centre for Contemporary and Digital History (C2DH) of the Uni.lu, focusing on border and migration studies of Eastern Europe.

Becoming an Agent of ChangeBecoming an Agent of Change

Louis

Adriana

Eleftheria

Chrysovalant

ou

Johanna

Adnan

Marie-Alix

Marion

2323

Sabrina Kaufmann is an illustrator from Luxembourg. Since her childhood, she has always loved drawing and writing, a passion that finally led her to become a freelance artist and teacher in the manga field. In love with fashion and aesthetic worlds, she focuses mainly on illustrating beautifully dressed ladies in enchanting settings. Since 2016, she has been constantly working on her free-to-read webcomic project Illustrated Fairytales, after Grimm’s and Andersen’s stories. Most importantly, she strives to create meaningful content that motivates and inspires, and loves sharing the behind-the-scenes of everyday freelance life on her social media.

SABRINA KAUFMANNSABRINA KAUFMANN

User eXperience (UX) is an interdisciplinary science that allows a better understanding of users’ interactions with products or services. In this story, we illustrate some methods used by designers to investigate users’ perceptions and behaviours (such as user interviews and tests of concepts) in order to improve the experience of services and products. Luce DrouetLuce Drouet is working at the Department of Behavioural and Cognitive Sciences (DBCS) at the University of Luxembourg (Uni.lu). In her doctoral thesis, she researches travellers’ experiences with the information devices of the Luxembourgish railways.Prasad AdhavPrasad Adhav is focusing his research on simulations of fluid mechanics at the Department of Engineering (DoE) of the Uni.lu.Abiodun SolankeAbiodun Solanke is currently investigating how to extract evidence from digital texts at the Department of Computer Science (DCS) of the Uni.lu.

Maryam Mirzakhani was one of the greatest mathematicians. Her solutions to different problems connected different areas in mathematics, physics and engineering. In our comic, we portray an application of her work visually, hoping it entertains and encourages you to take up math.

Kamelia JamaatiKamelia Jamaati, a computer engineer and psychologist from the Luxembourg Centre for Educational Testing (LUCET) of the University of Luxembourg (Uni.lu), is analysing patterns in educational data in order to predict special needs of children with, for instance, ADHD or dyslexia.

Nhat Minh DoanNhat Minh Doan from the Department of Mathematics (DMATH) at the Uni.lu is .investigating curves on surfaces. and their moduli spaces.

Poorani GnanasambandanPoorani Gnanasambandan from the Materials Research and Technology (MRT) department of the Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology (LIST) is working on transparent conducting materials for solar cells.

Chronicles from Platform 6Chronicles from Platform 6

Math, Magic and MaryamMath, Magic and Maryam

Luce

KameliaNhat Minh

Poorani

Prasad

Abiodun

Sabrina

Nicole PaschekNicole Paschek loves to talk about science. During her studies in behavioural and neural biology, she also found her passion for writing and decided to study journalism as well. As a journalist, she realised that scientists sometimes struggle to explain what they do in an understandable way. Improving those skills is the mission of DESCOM, a training programme in science communication for doctoral candidates in Luxembourg. Since 2019, Nicole has been working as Project Manager of DESCOM.

Oliver GlasslOliver Glassl is an educational management professional with long-term experience in academic teaching and curriculum development. His education includes degrees in speech and language therapy and business adminis-tration. His research in the field of neurorehabilitation has given rise to various publications. Currently working for the Doctoral School in Science and Engineering (DSSE) at the University of Luxembourg, he is a member of the DESCOM team.

Veronika Mischitz (Véro)Veronika Mischitz (Véro) is a former biologist, turned visual storyteller. For over a decade, she has been creating (science) comics for various clients as well as teaching the magic of her craft to kids and adults. Driven by curiosity and a sense of wonder, she loves to explore unknown territory, learn new things along the way and turn them into compelling stories. She is a mentor for LUX:plorations and the creator of the comic story "Why Science Comics?”.

Valérie Minelli Valérie Minelli is a Luxembourgish cartoonist, living in Germany. She writes and draws the international webco-mic “Mrs.Frollein“, which hopefully brings some love and joy to her readers. For LUX:plorations she drew all the portraits, designed Zamara and Yso, their comic as well as the cover of this comic booklet. When she’s not busy creating comics, Minelli loves to draw illustrations, especially for children’s books, or is busy fangirling about whatever band she likes the most at the moment.

Serge HaanSerge Haan is a professor of biological chemistry in the Department of Life Sciences and Medicine (DLSM) at the University of Luxembourg. His research focusses on molecular disease mechanisms associated with the development and metastasis of colon cancer: how do cancer cells develop resistance to treatment and how do they interact with their microenvironment? His strong interest in communicating science to the public led to his founding the DESCOM project.

Bruno TeheuxBruno Teheux is a researcher in the Department of Mathematics (DMATH) at the University of Luxembourg. He also likes to organise activities that allow as many people as possible to experience the multiple aspects of mathematical research and to become aware of the incredible modernity of this discipline. Where there is no fun, there is no math!

Jessica BurtonJessica Burton is a researcher at the Luxembourg Centre for Contemporary and Digital History (C2DH), working on the relationship between European comic transfers in the 1960s within the Popkult60 project. She specialises in comics studies and has previously worked as a comic editor for Titan Comics, on titles such as Doctor Who, before embarking on her PhD. She is a mentor for LUX:plorations, and teaches classes on comics history at the University.

THANK YOUTHANK YOU to everyone else involved in the production of the science comics, especially the academic supervisors who made sure the comics are scientifically correct, namely Hugo Parlier (Uni.lu), Kacy Greenhalgh (International School Michel Lucius, Luxembourg), David Bouvier (Uni.lu), Stanislaus Schymanski and Remko Nijzink (LIST), Melania Guerra, Vincent Koenig and Francesco Viti (Uni.lu), Annette Kuehn and Christiane Hilger (LIH), and Alex Redinger (Uni.lu). Furthermore, we would like to thank Alexandre Lagarmitte, Aurélie Couvidat, Anastasia Mouzard-Teickner, Martina Christen, Laura Bianchi, Aswin Lutchanah and Jean-Paul Hoffmann (Uni.lu), as well as the Luxembourg Learning Centre (LLC) for their support.

The People Behind the ComicsThe People Behind the Comics

2424

MARION DENGLER

@MDENGLER_ILLUSTRATION

MDENGLER@POSTEO.DE

ILLUSTRATOR

MARIONDENGLER-ILLUSTRATION.COM

descom.uni.ludescom.uni.lu

SPECIAL THANKS TO OUR SPONSORSSPECIAL THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS

sciencecomics.uni.lusciencecomics.uni.lu

DOWNLOAD THE COMIC & GIVE US DOWNLOAD THE COMIC & GIVE US FEEDBACK ON THE WEBSITE:FEEDBACK ON THE WEBSITE:

DOCTORAL EDUCATION IN SCIENCE COMMUNICATIONDESCOM

Supported by the Luxembourg National Research Fund (FNR)