Six Czech students were recognized as Junior Ambassadors for their achievements in science and technology at the Academy of Sciences on December 12, 2011. Five boys and one girl were chosen under the Junior Ambassadors of Science and Technology pilot program launched in July 2011 by the Academy, the U.S. Embassy in Prague and American companies operating in the Czech Republic. The program encourages Czech youths to study science, mathematics and engineering, its purpose being to expand the pool of talented budding scientists and engineers from which future innovations will come. The students, with their parents and teachers, toured the Institute of Experimental Botany and the Academy of Sciences in Prague where they met with the U.S. Charge d’Affaires, Joseph Pennington, and member of the Academic Council Jiří Beneš. Astronaut Andrew Feustel then talked with the Junior Ambassadors via a digital video conference, answering their questions and explaining the important role science and technology plays in today’s society. and Luděk Svoboda.
This issue includes an interview with Dr. Radomír Pánek, head of Tokamak Department of the Institute of Plasma Physics of the ASCR. Dr. Pánek's team observed the distinctive H-mode operation for the first time (on November 29, 2012) since the Tokamak was reinstalled in the IPP in 2008. The H-mode (high confinement mode) refers to a sudden improvement of plasma confinement in the magnetic field of tokamaks (by about a factor of two) which is foreseen as the standard mode of operation for the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER). The H-mode pedestal forms near the plasma transport barrier, located behind the improved plasma confinement. Greater insight into the physics of this narrow plasma region is required to enhance control of the power flux, plasma heating and the Edge Localized Mode (ELM) instabilities in fusion reactors. and Luděk Svoboda.
The Center for Innovations in Nanomaterials and Nanotechnologies (Nanocentre), which began its work at the J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry of the ASCR in 2010, has successfully established a direct link between the fundamental research and industry as it transfers research results into the technological praxis. The Center is equipped with a progressive instrumentation and computational technique for high-tech synthesis. structural characterization and clarification of functioning of nanomaterials, as well as for their development and judging their technological applicability. and Luděk Svoboda.