Archive: Science and technology | Science Science
Science Journal
Lots of us might be sick of the cold, literally and figuratively, but as
the skiers begin hanging up their hats as the birds and the bugs come back,
so ends the happy time of the year for at least one man in the Czech
Scientific community, Radek Mikuláš. Dr. Mikuláš is not your everyday
geologist. For 20 years he has been venturing out onto the winter rivers,
ponds and reservoirs of the Czech Republic on skates to study a very
special type of rock – ice. The fruit of his labour, a book called
Ledové Čechy, or “Icy Bohemia”, won a prize from publishers Academia
recently for its beautiful production, and it’s not without some
fascinating insights. Earlier this week I went to visit Dr Mikuláš in his
tiny office at the Institute of Geology. More
Giant leap for mole-kind as Czech cartoon character joins space shuttle crew
A legendary Czech is going into space on a forthcoming shuttle flight.
Although a veteran of such cosmic adventures, as well as many others, this
crew member might raise some eyebrows ― he’s the world recognised
cartoon character, the mole, sometimes known as the little Mole or
Krteček. We look at a giant step for mole-kind. More
Prague café to host informal gatherings with leading Czech scientists
Prague’s Café Braun will host an unusual event this week; each evening
members of the public will be invited to sit down over coffee or a glass of
wine with a leading scientist, to discuss some of the exciting developments
in their field. The event’s called ‘a Week of Science Cafés’, and
it’s part of a broader campaign by the NGO Czech Head to try and
popularise science. More
Did John the Baptist wear sandals?
Petr Hlaváček is a man with a passion for shoes. The dean of Zlín’s
Bata University knows the technology of shoe-making inside out. He has
reconstructed shoes worn by Oetzi the Ice Man 5,000 years ago and is
working on the latest technologies for shoes intended to help diabetic
patients, among many other projects. So when Czech experts studied the
contents of the St Maurus reliquary said to contain the remains of John the
Baptist –among them a small piece of a leather sandal which may have been
his – it was only natural that they should turn to the country’s
leading shoe expert for help. I spoke to Petr Hlaváček to find out just
what he had managed to ascertain. More
Michal Pěchouček – AI specialist developing ways of improving aviation and protecting ships from pirates
Though still only in his late 30s, Professor Michal Pěchouček is an
internationally recognised expert in the field of artificial intelligence.
His work includes developing machines that are capable of working together
without active human input, while he has also helped create sophisticated
programmes aimed at improving flight traffic control – and thwarting the
pirates that disrupt international shipping in the Gulf of Aden. More
Science Journal
What do foxes and yoghurt have in common? Nothing at all, aside, that is,
from that fact that they are the subjects of some interesting experiments
in Czech science. Welcome to this month’s Science Journal. More
Science Journal
On this month’s Science Journal we have the wonders of numbers with maths
king Dr. Daniel Král. More
Researchers look for descendants of medieval “vampire”
Czech scientists have launched an unusual project that might lead them to
the descendants of a medieval “vampire”. On Tuesday, they collected
DNA samples from around a dozen inhabitants of Hrádek nad Nisou, where a
14th century grave had been found with a body buried in a way typical for
outcasts. But the main purpose of the project is to draw attention to
science, and to a new town museum that should open next year. More
Science Journal
Coming up on this month’s Science Journal: advice on how to win the
National Prize for scientific research – just revolutionise global
progress in the field of virology; organisms of the Czech Republic, unite!
Your genetic data is wanted, but there are so many of you – more than
100,000; and how do generations of children from smoggy Prague know there
are stars out there? Because there is one of the largest planetariums in
the world here, and it’s celebrating its fiftieth birthday. More
World's astronauts, scientists, technicians meet for annual space congress
More than 2,000 astronauts, engineers and scientists are currently rubbing
shoulders at the Prague Congress Centre, for the annual International
Astronautical Congress. The meeting, being held here for the first time
since 1977, covers subjects as diverse as the future of the International
Space Station and whether there’s life on Mars.
More
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