Professor Randall J. Platt, an expert in genetic engineering, has been awarded the Stanisław Lem European Science Prize for 2021. The statuette was presented at a gala ceremony in the auditorium of the Wrocław University of Science and Technology.

The Stanisław Lem European Science Prize (Lem Prize) was established in 2021 to commemorate the 100th birthday of the outstanding Polish science fiction novelist, who received an honorary doctorate from the Wrocław University of Science and Technology in 1981. It is awarded to young scientists (under 40 years of age) studying or conducting research in the European Union and associated countries.

- The most important elements in Stanisław Lem's work are people, science, technology, progress and the future. They are also central to the development of our university. Meanwhile, the prize is awarded annually for a recent discovery or significant achievement in broad areas of science and engineering, with strong elements of technology, interdisciplinarity, creativity and vision - said Professor Arkadiusz Wójs, Rector of the Wrocław University of Science and Technology.

The rector emphasised that the award is intended for young scientists who very often have a great impact on the development of science, but do not receive such distinctions as experienced researchers. The interdisciplinarity of the research conducted is also important, as this is the nature of all the major challenges currently facing our civilisation.

Introducing the laureate's profile, Prof. Aleksander Weron, a member of the competition jury, pointed out that despite his young age, Prof. Randall J. Platt already has an outstanding scientific output. In addition to numerous publications, this also includes nine patents that demonstrate the practical applications of his research. The decision to award the prize was taken unanimously.

Let's celebrate together @randall_platt @ArkadiuszWojs pic.twitter.com/HFfIxygQlk

— Politechnika Wrocławska (@PWr_Wroclaw) October 21, 2022

Prof. Randall J. Platt comes from the USA, is 35 years old and works in the Department of Biosystems Engineering at ETH Zürich. There, he has built a scientific team to develop and refine applications of indicator cell technology. Together, they aim to create completely new methods for biomedical engineering. The result of this work could be cellular machines capable of detecting various molecular, chemical and physical features of their environment and continuously recording this information via a DNA-based storage medium.

Such sentinel cells represent a technology that could find applications in many areas - from storing DNA data to monitoring any environment - soil, oceans and air, or even our own bodies.

- This is an incredible honour and one of the highlights of my still-young career to date. When I first heard about this award and being somewhat familiar with the work of Stanislaw Lem, I thought it was not easy to find a connection between his ideas and my work,' said Professor Randall J. Platt. - It seemed to me that his books were primarily related to computers, robots and machine learning. However, the more I thought about it, the idea of nanomachines became closer and closer to me. This is exactly what I am working on in my team. Our machines are not made of steel and conductors, but of cells and different kinds of biomolecules, he added.

During the event, the laureate gave a lecture entitled „Reconstructing the biological past with CRISPR”. During his several-day stay in Wrocław, the scientist visited, among others, the Laboratory of Advanced Plasmochemical Processes and the Geocentre.

- I also had the opportunity to talk to Prof Arkadiusz Wójs, who told me about the university's development plans. I think they are very bold and are heading in a very important direction, focusing on technology, interdisciplinarity and building bridges between engineering and medicine - he stressed.

The laureate was originally scheduled to receive the award on 15 November 2021 during the Celebration of the Wrocław University of Science and Technology, but the ceremony was postponed to 2022 due to the pandemic.

The founders of the Lem 2021 Prize are: Nokia Solutions and Networks, Foundation - PGE Polska Grupa Energetyczna, SatRevolution, PKO Bank Polski Foundation, Bergman Engineering, Kaczmarski Group and TestArmy Group.