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‌Issue #5 — Experience

Hello Basically, Science readers,

To mark the highly anticipated opening of the VISTA Science Experience Center on October 3-5, this edition is all about Experience! 

This time we take a first look at our brand new center to experience research, see experiences becoming memories in real time, and witness plants ignoring gravity for water.

Assistant Professor, Amelia Douglass, won a European Research Council (ERC) Starting Grant of €1.5 million. © ISTA 

Cat and Mouse: Surviving from Experience

By observing mice in different environments, researchers found that brain circuits tied to movement and decision-making are closely linked to those controlling the body’s internal state. The connection shifts depending on the animal's immediate experiences, helping it prepare for what’s coming.

A simplified toy model of amorphous solids helps visualize the “independence” principle. © ISTA 

‌Predicting How Complex Systems Learn

Researchers are building a unified theory of learning — not just for brains or algorithms, but for any system that experiences and adapts. The framework could help design new materials, guide machine learning, or even shape the future of nanorobotics.

Mouse-ear cress roots faced with drought growing towards moisture. © Friml Group

‌Experiencing Drought? Choose Water over Gravity

Choosing water over gravity is something we don't experience. Plants, however, have been found to suppress their gravity-sensing abilities and direct roots towards moisture in drought conditions. The new findings could pave the way to developing plants capable of withstanding extreme weather.

Freeze fracture replica of mossy fiber endings with synaptic vesicles. © Olena Kim/ISTA

Panther or Black Cat: The Mechanism of Memories

‌The hippocampus is central to converting short-term memory into long-term memory — and therefore learned experience. Until recently, scientists have not been able to link memory formation to distinct molecular signals. Now, a team of neuroscientists uncover new details about the mechanisms driving memory processing.

Outside the new VISTA Science Experience Center. © Anna Stöcher

‌Why Experiencing Research Concerns Us All

Gaia Novarino, Vice President for Science Education at ISTA, and Christian Bertsch, Head of the VISTA Science Experience Center:

"If we want a society that values evidence and critical thinking, we need to make the processes of science visible, accessible, and open to discussion. Science should not be presented as an accumulation of ready-made facts and certainties but as a method of thinking and approaching the world around us.

VISTA presents science as a human endeavor, full of creativity, uncertainty, and collaboration. When people feel excluded from science, they’re more vulnerable to misinformation. But when we make research processes transparent, we give people tools to think critically and participate in the conversation," says Gaia Novarino.

Christian Bertsch adds: "We believe research should be accessible for everyone. That belief becomes reality with the opening of the VISTA Science Experience Center in Klosterneuburg this October. It’s a place where people of all ages can get hands-on with science, explore exhibitions, experience the process of discovery, and feel an ownership of science."

VISTA’s first exhibition, Science in the Making, focuses on the questions, experiments, collaborations, and even mistakes involved in conducting world-class research. We invite everyone to join the Opening Festival from October 3-5.

The VISTA Science Experience Center © ISTA  

‌New Home for Science Experiences at ISTA

The new VISTA Science Experience Center opens this October on the ISTA campus. With exhibitions, maker spaces, and events, it offers fresh ways for the public to engage with science. The official opening festival (October 3–5) features workshops, panels, music, and more!