Disclaimer: machine translated by DeepL which may contain errors.

Faculty of Science, The University of Tokyo: Winter Break Course for High School Students—Event Report

Kazuo Emoto (Director, Office of Communication / Professor, Department of Biological Sciences)

(From top, in the order of presentations) Professor Hiroyuki Kagi of the Geochemical Research Center, Professor Noriko Sorimachi of the Department of Biophysics and Biochemistry, and Professor Takahiro Shinagawa of the Department of Information Science delivering their presentations

The annual lecture series for high school students, held during winter break, took place on Wednesday, January 7, 2026, in a hybrid format featuring in-person attendance at Koshiba Hall and a live stream via the Faculty of Science YouTube channel.

Following opening remarks by Professor Director, Shinichi Okoshi, Dean of the Graduate School of Science and Dean of the Faculty of Science, Professor Hiroyuki Kagi of the Geochemical Research Center delivered a lecture titled “What Happens When Pressure Is Applied to Matter? —Chemistry and Earth Sciences Under High Pressure—,” followed by a lecture by Professor Noriko Sorimachi of the Department of Biophysics and Biochemistry titled “Tackling Disease Treatment Strategies Through Life Science Research—Contributing to Society Through Science—,” and a lecture by Professor Takahiro Shinagawa of the Department of Information Science titled “Can You Really Trust Your Computer? —Technology Working Behind the Scenes—.”

As this was an opportunity to gain a glimpse into cutting-edge research in each field, on-site participants listened intently to the lectures while taking notes. During the Q&A sessions, so many questions were raised for each presentation that they could not all be answered within the allotted time; as a result, lecturers were seen taking the opportunity during breaks to respond directly to on-site participants.This clearly demonstrated the high level of interest among the participants. The Public Relations Office and the Information Technology Team collaborated to manage the proceedings and handle video recording and streaming, while the General Manager and the General Affairs Section provided support for on-site registration and safety management. We would like to express our sincere gratitude to everyone who participated or watched the event, as well as to all those who assisted with the preparation and operation.