The 8th Vienna Ball of Sciences will take place on January 29, 2022 at the Vienna City Hall. Under particularly strict Corona rules. And thanks to the power of science.
The one piece of good news: according to the current rules, the ball will take place. Why are we, as the organizing committee, daring the experiment? Because we are imposing particularly strict rules based on the findings of science. Continue reading The Power of Science
“An inherent feature of science is to ask questions leading to a better understanding of the world. However, the scientific system immediately has to be questioned regarding its accessibility for different individuals, since societies and academic institutions still lack homogenous access to education, opportunities and chances. Thus, science is depleted of diversity in terms of gender, ethnicity and ultimately and most importantly: mindsets. Continue reading Nicole Amberg: gender equality as driving force
Science is the basis of a sustainable modern society. It provides the tools to understand the dimensions of the challenges we face. It proposes solutions, highlights their potential and thus prepares the ground for reasoned political action – from pandemics to climate warming to species extinction. Trust in science means understanding the path to knowledge and appreciating results. This basis should be put beyond dispute in the political debate – then science and society would have reason to celebrate far beyond the pandemic.
Elke Ziegler is science editor with Ö1 and was awarded the Robert Hochner Prize 2021 for her coverage of the pandemic in journals, features and podcasts. The jury found that Ziegler had “tirelessly prepared the sometimes contradictory wealth of information for radio listeners in a factual, comprehensible, balanced, level-headed and always cutting-edge manner”.
This morning, the authorities announced a lockdown for 20 days starting Monday, November 22, 2021, and a mandatory COVID vaccination as of February 1, 2022. We welcome these measures because they allow us to proceed with planning for the Science Ball on January 29, 2022. Continue reading The pandemic and the midnight quadrille