According to Massimiliano Paesani, a Computational Chemistry PhD student and one of the initiators of the club night, visitors can expect an exciting night of music combined with immersive visuals that are generated directly from research data and molecular simulation movies. “It is very much an effort of our whole research group, with many researchers providing their data and rendering the videos”, he says. The featured music will be a slow but steady crescendo in tempo and energy, rooted in electronic music, starting from 90 beats per minute (BPM) up to 180 BPM. It will be a diverse set combining highly experimental music with extremely poppy songs featuring ABBA and the likes.

“The idea is to cover people's taste as much as possible so that everybody can have fun”, says Paesani. “We want to create a setting where everybody is welcome and can embrace their own personality. Everyone should feel at home. From people who aren’t necessarily used to clubs, to well-seasoned ravers. We shape the evening so that it starts gently, inviting conversation, slowly building momentum in a steady, coherent arc towards the real clubbing experience.”

Solar cells and soft materials

In their research at the Computational Chemistry group, Paesani and colleagues use computer simulations to investigate chemical phenomena, combining theoretical chemistry, computer science, and mathematics to predict molecular properties, simulate reactions, and analyse chemical data. “Our research helps in understanding, designing, and optimising molecules and materials”, he explains. “This is relevant to all sorts of applications, from pharmaceuticals to solar cells and novel soft materials.”

Since the visual research output not only has a scientific but also an aesthetic quality, Peasani took the initiative for the club night. He explains that the ‘Molecular Jungle’ night will develop in analogy to the scientific process itself: thoughtful, incremental, always moving forward, and grounded in collaboration and interaction among people from diverse backgrounds. But the bottom line of the club night is, of course, to enjoy the immersive experience: “At many club events you see all sorts of trippy visuals, but we think the stuff we work on is way more visually engaging!” At the same time, he hopes to make people aware that you can do cool stuff with real science: “Who knows, maybe someone will actually get curious to understand what they are looking at!”

You can register online through this form, where you can also find a link to the first ‘Slow but Steady’ 20 minutes of music compiled by DJ Fatty Hands. Don’t wait too long, since capacity is limited

Please note that the Molecular Jungle club night will be at Jungle Amsterdam at Tweede van Swindenstraat 26, near Oosterpark and just a 5-minute walk from Muiderpoort Station. This is not to be confused with the (former) Jungle Club nightclub located on the Amstel River.