Children’s Day of Microscopy at Carl Zeiss

Winners of the Contest “365 Places in the Land of Ideas“

JENA/Germany, 11.11.2010. – The Children’s Day of Microscopy organized by Carl Zeiss is this year’s winner of the innovation contest titled “365 Places in the Land of Ideas“. On invitation from Carl Zeiss this exceptional biology teaching event is taking place for the sixth time in the company from 9 to 12 November. Learning how to use ZEISS microscopes will open the door to research for the participating students and arouse their enthusiasm for technology and the natural sciences. The event will be conducted in close collaboration with the teachers in order to support biology tuition.

At Carl Zeiss the Children’s Day of Microscopy took place for the sixth time, to which the company invited students from the Jena region to attend in order to learn more about microscopy. Hannah Stenzel from the Lobdeburgschule in Jena examining an onion skin with the Primo Star.

On 11 November Lutz Schmidt from the Deutsche Bank in Jena honored the Children’s Day of Microscopy as a Selected Place in 2010. This makes the event for up-and-coming researchers one of 5 prize winners that are honored every year by the “Germany — Land of Ideas” initiative and by the Deutsche Bank under the auspices of the President of the Federal Republic of Germany.

During the award presentation ceremony Lutz Schmidt emphasized the following:
“The Children’s Day of Microscopy is an excellent example of German creativity, inventiveness and commitment to the future. It takes into account the fact that, right from childhood, people are driven by the desire to discover what makes the world tick, and therefore promotes and challenges young scientists.

Dr. Jochen Tham from Carl Zeiss commented as follows on the award:
“We are very proud to be a Selected Place in the Land of Ideas. Already a tradition at Carl Zeiss, the Children’s Day of Microscopy is an example of our commitment to the promotion of up-and-coming young scientists — something that simply cannot start soon enough.”

The Children’s Day of Microscopy was created by Carl Zeiss in 2005. The around 125 participants who registered for the first expedition through microscopy in 2005 have now grown into approximately 350 students from five Jena schools. The girls and boys work on high quality stereo and laboratory microscopes and are supported by staff from Carl Zeiss. After a short, expert introduction specially tailored to the needs of the young participants, the students are then able to examine various samples and specimens themselves. With more than 100x magnification, for example, it is possible to exactly observe the living organisms in a droplet of water. The children are invited to bring objects with them from their own environment, which they can then examine under the microscope. The correct use of a microscope is an integral part of biology tuition in schools.

From a total in excess of 2,200 submissions, the Children’s Day of Microscopy convinced the jury and, with its future-oriented idea, is representative of Germany as the Land of Ideas. “The Selected Places in 2010 underscores Germany’s innovativeness and creativity in many different ways. Every day, we see the enormous potential offered by our region of the country. The network of ideas is growing right across Germany,” is how Lutz Schmidt explained the commitment of the Deutsche Bank.

Carl Zeiss
The Carl Zeiss Group is a leading group of companies operating worldwide in the optical and optoelectronic industries that generates revenues totaling around EUR 2.1 billion (2008/09). Carl Zeiss offers innovative solutions for the future-oriented markets of Medical and Research Solutions, Industrial Solutions and Lifestyle Products.

The Carl Zeiss Group has approximately 13,000 employees worldwide, including more than 8,000 in Germany. The Carl Zeiss business groups hold leading positions in their markets. Carl Zeiss AG, Oberkochen, is fully owned by the Carl Zeiss Stiftung (Carl Zeiss Foundation).

Carl Zeiss MicroImaging

Carl Zeiss MicroImaging GmbH comprises the Microscopy Group of the Carl Zeiss Group. Carl Zeiss MicroImaging is one of the leading manufacturers of microscope systems and offers total solutions for biomedical research, the healthcare sector and high-tech industries. Its product line spans a broad spectrum from light microscopes and systems for laser scanning microscopy and spectrometry to hardware and software for image processing and documentation. Carl Zeiss MicroImaging GmbH is headquartered in Jena, Germany. Other manufacturing and development sites are located in Göttingen and Munich. In fiscal year 2008/09 the Microscopy Group at Carl Zeiss generated revenues of approximately EUR 365 million with a global workforce of around 1,700 people.

Further information is available at

www.zeiss.de/micro