Elvan Kut Bacs has been a scientific researcher at the Collegium Helveticum since 2004 and is coordinating the research and teaching of the institute in the domain of Natural Sciences since 2009. As a member of the management board she is thereby jointly responsible for the initiation, development and implementation of its strategic aims. Together with the coordinator in the domain of Humanities, Social Science and Cultural Studies she is tracking and analysing the transdisciplinary dialogue and cooperation between the fellows and scientific researchers working on various projects at the institute.
Born in Zurich she studied Pharmaceutical Sciences at the ETH Zurich (diploma thesis in Pharmaceutical Chemistry). In her dissertation she focused on the emotional modulation of pain perception, particularly on endogenous opioids as neurochemical mediators between pain and emotion. Together with Amrei Wittwer and Nils Schaffner she received the second prize of the German «Förderpreis für Schmerzforschung 2007».
She is author and co-editor of several scientific publications that focused on topics such as metaphors and images in science, fantastic voyages through the body, and on pharmacological brain enhancement. On Sundays she experiences the practical aspects of her research when she is working as a pharmacist in the Bahnhof Apotheke Zurich.