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Popular Science: Small is nice? And sometimes toxic.Microplastics are a topic of today. They are everywhere, in water, in soil, in the air, and even in remote areas such as the Arctic. The study of the interactions of microplastics and common organic pollutants has so far focused mainly on the marine and other aquatic environment. However, their presence in the soil is one order of magnitude higher than that in the oceans. Tereza Černá, a doctoral student from the Department of the Environment at the Faculty of Science, Charles University, together with a group of experts, made an experiment on the interaction of soils containing polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and polyurethane foams. And what was the result? Published Sep 13, 2021 |
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Popular Science: Why do we yawn (longer than birds)?Summer, warm weather, dark room, and a boring lecture – a moment when anybody would like to yawn, but it is just not appropriate. Certainly, many of us have asked themselves: Why do we yawn in the first place? Numerous scientists have posed the same question, the result of which is a variety of different answers circulated among people. The most popular one says that yawning helps to oxygenate blood. As surprising as it may be, this theory was debunked over 30 years ago. Then, why do we yawn? Do other animals yawn in the same way we do? These questions can now be answered through a new study – the largest ever conducted on yawning – by an international team of scientists, including students from the group of Mgr. Pavel Němec, Ph.D., from the Department of Zoology at the Faculty of Science, Charles University. Published Sep 06, 2021 |
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Popular Science: A deep look into elephant teeth and the practices of antique tradersIvory has been traded since prehistoric times, until such type of commercial activity had to be completely prohibited more than thirty years ago, based on an international convention, in order not to completely decimate the remaining elephants. However, the trade ban is not complete. For example, the EU still permits trade with antiques made from animals that were killed more than 50 years before the elephants, like many other species, started to be protected in the EU from excessive international trade. It is argued that killing animals “then” does not endanger the current populations. However, is everything declared as antique really old? Researchers from the Center for Forensic Studies of the Faculty of Science at Charles University and the Institute of Nuclear Physics of the Academy of Sciences in the Czech Republic analysed ivory artefacts seized by the Czech Environmental Inspectorate, verified their age as reported by the trader, and arrived at surprising conclusions. Published Sep 01, 2021 |
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Evening Online Czech Language Course for foreignersFaculty of Arts at Charles University is offering an Evening Online Czech Language Course for Foreigners from 7 September till 16 December 2021. There is a 10% discount on course fees for UK employees. Published Aug 24, 2021 |
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Popular Science: Mysterious mercury-changing organisms under the Greenland Glacier are still eluding scientistsThe vast ice masses on our planet are melting. The danger of the rising level of the world’s oceans is much talked about. One of the gigantic continental glaciers that is currently losing its volume is the Greenland Ice Sheet. If the entire Greenland Ice Sheet melted, the level of the world’s oceans would rise by up to 7 meters. But is this the only danger? A disturbing new discovery was made during the research undertaken by an international team led by Jon Hawkings from Florida State University, in which a group of experts from the Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, led by Mark Stibal, also played a significant role. The danger is not only in the amount of water, but also in the presence of toxic substances in the melting waters. Published Aug 23, 2021 |
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Popular Science: The journey of Mars to methane and (much) fartherCuriosity is not only an important cosmic rover but also a common human emotion associated with discovering the unknown. While we are witnessing the first steps of cosmic tourism, space and its chemistry are still veiled by many questions. One of the big mysteries was the origin of methane detected by Curiosity on Mars. On Earth, methane is mostly of biological origin (its source is mostly living organisms), but could that be possible on the lifeless red planet? Prof. Svatopluk Civiš and Mgr. Antonín Knížek, two Czech scientists from J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry and Faculty of Science, Charles University, decided to embark on a journey to find the answer to this question. Published Aug 11, 2021 |
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4EU+ Course „Urban Regulations and Political Memory: Towards understanding Spatio-Temporal aspects of Urban Development”An international, interdisciplinary course organised by three 4EU+ member universities: University of Warsaw, University of Milan, Charles University, as part of the 4EU+ joint educational offer during the academic year 2021/2022. The students will be selected based on their CV and motivation letter. The deadline for sending the documents is 8th September, 2021. Published Jul 23, 2021 |
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Direct Insight into the Life of RootsThe team led by Matyáš Fendrych from the Faculty of Science, Charles University has recently published a study in Nature Plants. With support from a prestigious grant provided by the European Research Council (ERC), the team focused on a precise analysis of the rapid reaction of plant root cells to the phytohormone auxin. The study also involved colleagues from Prague’s University of Chemistry and Technology as well as from the University of Tasmania. Published Jul 20, 2021 |
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Popular Science: When volcanic ash flew over the Bohemian MassifCzechs know huge volcano eruptions primarily from disaster movies, but definitely not from their own country. Yet, even here, history was quite explosive. One of the geological mysteries of the Bohemian Massif is a widespread layer of ash fall tuff, called the “bělka” in Czech, preserved in the carboniferous basins of Central and Western Bohemia. But, how did it get there, when exactly, and what kind of volcano could have caused this? A team of Czech specialists from Charles University, the Czech Academy of Sciences, and the Czech Geological Survey decided to finally unravel this mystery, led by Filip Tomek from the Institute of Geology and Paleontology. Published Jul 19, 2021 |
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Popular Science: Focus on litter decompositionSulfur and nitrogen deposition has significantly affected the ecosystems of the entire northern hemisphere. The impact of acid rain has had a significant effect in terms of lowering water pH and leaching of important ions from the soil into surface waters, as well as in terms of the decomposition rate of plant litter and thus on the global carbon cycle. The decomposition rate is influenced by several factors. How does the type of substrate and nitrogen addition contribute to the decomposition process? This is the question that Michal Růžek from the Department of Physical Geography and Geoecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University asked, and together with his team he made an experiment that yielded interesting results. Published Jul 12, 2021 |
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Popular Science: Vampire squid tales, or how they came to their deep-water habitatAn international scientific team led by Associate Professor Košťák from the Department of Geology and Paleontology, Faculty of Science, Charles University has published a study in the Communications Biology journal describing an interesting fossil from the Hungarian Museum of Natural History. The work brings expands our knowledge of today’s deep-water vampire squids. Prof. Holcová and Dr. Mazuch from the same institute and Dr. Culka from the Institute of Geochemistry, Mineralogy and Mineral Resources, Faculty of Science, Charles University collaborated on this article. Published Jul 06, 2021 |
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New calls for postdoc applicants openWe are looking for prospective international, non czech citizens, post-docs for research within a specific field of biology, chemistry and geography. Deadline for applications is July 20th, 2022. Published Jun 17, 2021 |
Popular Science: What are the latest findings on water in the Hranice Abyss?The Hranice Abyss has been confirmed the deepest flooded abyss in the world with the last directly measured depth of its underwater part at 404 m. However, the Hranice Abyss is a remarkable karst phenomenon not only for its depth. As part of the Neuron Expedition project, a numerous research team of scientists and speleologists focused on the origin of water in the abyss and the causes of some of its specific properties. Published Jun 16, 2021 |
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Prevention of sexual harassmentCharles University attaches the utmost importance to prevention and a safe environment for everyone. It does not accept any form of sexual and gender-based harassment or violence and expects all individuals in the university community, its visitors, and contracting partners to treat each other with mutual respect, consideration, and dignity. Published Jun 14, 2021 |
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Vegetation change study in ScienceWe expected the biggest changes in vegetation to be at the end of the Ice Age. Instead, we were surprised they were in the last four thousand years," says paleoecologist Petr Kuneš of the Faculty of Science at Charles University. Kuneš was one of a group of experts including fellow Czech Ondřej Mottl whose findings were published recently in the prestigious scientific journal Science. Published Jun 07, 2021 |
Popular Science: Is the gloomy atmosphere of Transylvania disappearing?Fog is a phenomenon that influences many areas, yet is often neglected. Fog occurrence significantly affects water balance, decreases visibility and affects atmospheric deposition of pollutants. Therefore, it has a significant impact on the landscape and ecosystem. At the same time, it is not entirely easy to estimate its occurrence in advance, as there are many influencing factors. An international scientific team led by Iva Hůnová from the Institute for Environmental Studies, Faculty of Science, Charles University has focused on the terrain and its effects on fog occurrence as a very important, yet largely unexplored factor. Published Jun 07, 2021 |
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New Post-doc positions from the JUNIOR Fund projectThe goal of the JUNIOR Fund is to attract prospective international post-doc researchers, who will carry out research within a specific field. The main initiative is always on the relevant establishment or a faculty or other unit of CU that is interested in researching a particular research project. Click for list of the positions. Deadline for application is July 23, 2021. Published Jun 07, 2021 |
Popular Science: Czech imprint in modern paleontologyUnderstanding history promotes better understanding of the present and predicts the future. Findings from the past are thus more than desired. However, discovering them is often complicated and requires a lot of experience and sometimes even coincidence. Professor Zlatko Kvaček from the Department of Geology and Paleontology, Faculty of Science, Charles University described a new discovery in the Czech Republic, which went down in history of world paleontology. Published May 31, 2021 |
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Popular Science: Male fertility endangered by parasites?As much as one-third of the world’s population is infected by Toxoplasma gondii nowadays. It is known that toxoplasmosis could be harmful especially for immunocompromised patients and for an unborn fetus if the mother becomes infected during pregnancy. But does the Toxoplasma gondii parasite affect human fertility? A group of experts focused on this question. The research was carried out under the guidance of our student Jana Hlaváčová together with scientists Jaroslav Flegr and Šárka Kaňková from the Department of Philosophy and History of Science, Faculty of Science, Charles University and other specialists in this field. Published May 24, 2021 |
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BIOCEV zoologists have mapped the spread of rodents from Asia to Europe. Genetic traces from the Ice Age helped them.An international team led by Pavel Stopka from the Faculty of Science, Charles University at the BIOCEV Center discovered and described the spread of small mammals from Asia to its adjacent islands, as well as to Europe. Gene sequencing of hundreds of samples from striped field mice (Apodemus agrarius) helped reveal this animal’s evolutionary history. A study now published in the prestigious scientific journal Genes can help predict the migration of other rodents in the context of deforestation in Europe. Published May 05, 2021 |