Wild About Science: Obsessed with Bacteria

Wild About Science: Obsessed with Bacteria: Wednesday 25 November 2026, 19:00–20:30, Vigerslev Bibliotek, Copenhagen. Admission is free.

Researcher and author Fatima AlZahra'a Alatraktchi takes us into the microscopic world of bacteria, where far more happens than the naked eye can see. Through her research, she has developed a method to "hear" how bacteria communicate with each other - revealing communities with cooperation, conflicts, and survival strategies.

While Fatima investigates what makes some of the smallest organisms deadly, she discovers that bacterial life resembles our own in many ways. This makes it possible to ask them questions humans have spent generations answering: Is it worth cheating? What happens to a society if everyone stops cooperating? And perhaps the biggest question of all: what can bacteria tell us about the meaning of life?

Fatima AlZahra'a Alatraktchi is a research leader, lecturer, and entrepreneur with a Ph.D. from the Technical University of Denmark. She is currently a lecturer at the Department of Science and Environment at Roskilde University and is known for her research in bacteria and nanotechnology. She has received the Lundbeck Foundation Talent Prize, the L'Oréal-UNESCO Prize for Science, Inspire them Young by Albright, and FEMINA's Hope of the Year. In 2024, Berlingske named her one of Denmark's 100 greatest talents. In 2019, Forbes selected her as one of Europe's "30 under 30" in science and health, and her TED talk has been viewed by over 2 million people.

This event is part of Copenhagen Libraries' festival "Wild About Science", which in October-November hosts scientific lectures for adults at libraries across Copenhagen Municipality. Questions can be sent to librarian Mads Kusk at makusk@kk.dk.