SAS at European Researchers’ Night

On Friday, September 29, 2023, the 17th year of the science festival – European Night of Researchers took place. The Slovak Academy of Sciences was once again prominently represented at the event. 26 stands were prepared for visitors in various cities of Slovakia – Banská Bystrica, Bratislava, Košice and Poprad. SAS scientists had also prepared lectures on interesting topics. We choose:

Košice

SAS institutes in the Eastern capital had prepared a rich scientific supply. Institute of Geotechnics SAS revealed the stone secrets of water, small metal eaters in the waters and brought closer the water laboratory. At the institute’s stand, visitors could see a unique method of cleaning highly chemically contaminated waters using electric current, as well as proposed methods of cleaning mine waters that pollute the river Slaná . The presented technologies were created at the Institute of Geotechnics SAS in Košice and are designed for the needs of specific situations that we encounter. Part of the stand was dedicated to proposals for cleaning groundwater leaking from the hazardous chemical waste dump in Vrakuňa in Bratislava.

The Institute of Experimental Physics SAS presented not only ferrofluids, superconductive train, fun with vacuum or searching for proteins, but also microrobots in action. Get to know the world of materials was the name of the exhibition of the Institute of Material Research SAS. Visitors could try out the basic properties of metals, plastics, ceramics and composites and discover their structure using microscopes. At the same time, they could verify whether the experiments presented in the online space are all valid and can be trusted. The mysterious world of neurons was brought by the Institute of Neurobiology SAS. It showed how a large supercomputer receives information about the outside world and the state of our body, analyzes and processes it lightning fast, controls every muscle in our body, every organ, every breath we take. Institute of Animal Physiology CBS SAS brought closer the Bacterial struggle for survival.

Poprad

In the largest city under the Tatras, Astronomical Institute SAS literally brought the Universe closer as a never-ending adventure. Using attractive 3D models of astronomical objects, large-scale roll-ups and multimedia projection, it presented various areas of astrophysical research in Slovakia. Those interested were able to look through the astronomical binoculars.

Presentation of the Institute of Experimental Physics SAS was related cosmic radiation and its research on Lomnický štít.

 

Selected lectures by scientists from SAS:

Košice

4PM.: Parasites in the world of global changes. Should we be afraid of them? (MVDr. Daniela Antolová, DrSc., Institute of Parasitology SAS)

6PM: From Košice to the comet, Mercury and Ganymede (Ing. Ján Baláž, PhD., Institute of Experimental Physics SAS)

Poprad

10:30AM – 11:15AM: The Black Sun over the Sahara (RNDr. Vojtech Rušin, DrSc., Astronomical Institute SAS)
11:30AM – 12:15PM Success story – 80 years of the Astronomical Institute SAS (Mgr. Marián Jakubík, PhD., Astronomical Institute SAS)