Where does science end and art begin, and vice versa? This is the question posed to visitors by the new exhibition Reflections, which brings together the works of four leading Czech and Polish artists, scientific perspectives on their artworks and new works inspired by these scientific analyses. Science turns its gaze to art, which returns it, and the cycle of inspiration unfolds.
It is our sad duty to announce to the physics community and the wider public that the eminent plasma theorist and research organizer Karel Jungwirth has passed away.
On 29 September this year, CERN, a European laboratory for particle physics, the place where the web was born in 1989 and the Higgs boson was discovered in 2012, celebrated its 70th anniversary. The impetus came from Louis de Broglie, a French theoretical physicist and 1929 Nobel Prize winner in Physics, who proposed the establishment of a European physics laboratory in 1949 to prevent the outflow of talented physicists to the US.
This year's Researchers‘ Night at the Institute of Physics, although rainy and gloomy, attracted 494 visitors to the premises of the Institute of Physics, who overcame the bad weather to immerse themselves in the world of science. Participants were impressed by the beauties of the microworld, the starry sky in the mobile planetarium, scintillating crystals and followed the tracks of invisible particles in the fog chamber. Physics enthusiasts could attend a panel discussion with leading scientists. Yet the evening was not only about science. The program also featured the Sleeping Lion drama group with a two-act comedy from the period of the First Republic and a screening of photo contest images. The contest winner announcement ended the night's program.
Even neighbourhood festivals are influenced by fashion trends. On the third Saturday in September, a part of Cukrovarnická Street was traditionally transformed into a friendly and sunny neighbourhood space. This year's Zažít město jinak (Experience the City Differently) event ran along the lines of the circular economy – clothes and books were exchanged, photovoltaic devices were demonstrated and there was also positive chemistry.
Another traditional "Family Day", this time pirate themed, brought fun to our employees and their families. Although the weather made it clear that summer was definitely over, it did not prevent a large turnout of our colleagues and their family members. "Our events are not just about having fun, they strengthen the relationships between our employees, their families and support our organisational culture. It is important for us to create a friendly and supportive environment," says Simona Dačeva, HR Team Manager, on behalf of the organizational team.
Enthusiasm for science is the driving force behind success. This is also demonstrated by Lindau Meetings, where for decades young scientists from all over the world have been meeting Nobel laureates. "The atmosphere of togetherness and mutual support they experience there is an invaluable source of inspiration," says this year's participant Petr Veřtát, a postdoctoral fellow from the Department of Magnetic Measurements and Materials at the Institute of Physics of the Czech Academy of Sciences.
