A brilliant mathematician, a world-class physicist and a discoverer of new molecules. The Neuron Awards 2021 know their laureates
The Neuron Foundation has presented the Neuron Awards to outstanding Czech scientists. It gave three awards for lifelong contribution to science, seven awards for promising young scientists, and there is a new addition: the Neuron Award for exceptional connection of science and business.
Relive the atmosphere of the gala evening HERE.
The highest honour, the Neuron Award for lifelong contribution to science, went to three names.
The physician Josef Prchal, a world-renowned haematologist; the physicist Václav Petříček, who significantly advanced Czech crystallography; and the mathematician David Preiss, a solver of fundamental mathematical problems.
Along with the award, each of them receives a financial reward of CZK 1,500,000, which the Neuron Foundation provides from its patrons' donations.
The Neuron council also honoured seven scientific hopes, and the Neuron Award 2021 goes to: Jan Hladký (mathematics), Lenka Zdeborová (physics), Jitka Palich Fučíková (medicine), Prokop Hapala (chemistry), Zuzana Musilová (biology), Martin Tancer (computer science) and Petr Sedláček (social sciences).
Each Neuron Award for promising young scientists comes with a financial reward of CZK 500,000. Over the course of the evening the Neuron Foundation thus presented CZK 8,000,000 to Czech scientists.
A new feature this year was the Neuron Award for exceptional connection of science and business, won by the scientists Vítězslav Bryja and Kamil Paruch together with the transfer specialist Radoslav Trautmann. They receive the Neuron Award for the academic spin-off CasInvent Pharma, which is developing a drug against leukaemia.
"Alongside popularising science, connecting science and business is one of the Neuron Foundation's main missions," says the chair of the board and co-founder of the foundation Monika Vondráková, "so I am glad that this year we can honour not only scientists engaged in basic research but also those who take their discoveries further and actively work to give their research the greatest possible impact on society as a whole."
On 28 September 2021 the Neuron Foundation presented the Neuron Awards in the Pantheon of the National Museum for the twelfth time. The evening was hosted by Karel "Kovy" Kovář, and alongside the scientists other internationally successful Czechs such as Josef Průša, Jaroslav Beck and Klára Kolouchová also appeared.
WATCH THE RECORDING OF THE NEURON AWARDS 2021 GALA EVENING
WATCH THE RECORDING OF THE DEBATE WITH THE NEURON AWARD 2021 LAUREATES
THANK YOU TO THE PATRONS AND PARTNERS OF THE NEURON FOUNDATION AND THE NEURON AWARDS
