On 7 February, we welcomed a distinguished guest – Professor and Senator Jiří Drahoš – at a networking meeting of the Venture Club and Business Club Vyšehrad. Not surprisingly, the evening was held in a very friendly atmosphere; the professor proved to be a charismatic storyteller, knowledgeable expert and principled politician.
Science as a life mission
The professor was first given space to talk about his life, especially his scientific career. The enthusiasm with which the professor recounted interesting facts about his scientific field was transferred to the audience. His passion for mathematics and physics was evident from the beginning of his studies at the secondary school in his native Jablunkov, and he continued his passion at the University of Chemical Technology in Prague. When he defended his dissertation in 1976, he moved to the Department of Chemical Reactors at the Czechoslovak Academy of Sciences, where he worked as a researcher until 1989, having repeatedly refused the offer to join the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. The professor varied his narrative with examples of problems he had solved, such as fractal geometry or the so-called “Coastline paradox“. It remains a mystery, however, how many of us listeners managed to grasp this topic…
Political and social impact
The professor went on to talk about his career after 1989, in particular his time as President of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic and his other political activities. These culminated in his candidacy for President of the Czech Republic and his election as a Senator of the Parliament of the Czech Republic.
He was equally engaging in introducing us to the activities of the association he founded, Together for the Czech Republic, which is dedicated to solving various problems in our society, such as education and “fake news”. False information played a role in the presidential campaign in which Prof. Drahoš participated.
Particularly interesting were the sections devoted to the professor’s current activities in the Senate of the Parliament of the Czech Republic. His knowledge of the Czech political environment and the irreplaceable role of the Senate as a safeguard against the abuse of the political system by unscrupulous individuals or parties was revelatory for many participants in the discussion.
The opportunity to informally discuss
The second half of the evening was devoted to informal networking. In this part we had the opportunity to get to know each other and freely continue conversations with each other and with the professor on all the topics mentioned.
We would like to thank Professor Drahoš for coming to discuss with us and staying with us in the second part of the evening. We wish him every success in his professional and personal life.
You can see more photos in the gallery.
And when and where will the next discussion take place?
Members and friends of the club are welcome to attend future discussions and meetings. Keep an eye on the calendar of events.