The second edition of the European Stanisław Lem Prize has been launched. 100 thousand PLN will be awarded to a young scientist whose research is likely to have a positive impact on the future of our civilisation. Entries can be sent in by September 30.

– A visionary and futurist combining technology with the development of civilisation. Stanisław Lem was such an exceptional figure that his work should also have an impact on those responsible for creating new technologies – says Prof. Arkadiusz Wójs, Rector of Wrocław University of Science and Technology. – The prize named after him is therefore aimed at young researchers whose discoveries could change the world in the future – he adds.

The prize was established in 2021 to commemorate the 100th birthday of the outstanding Polish science-fiction novelist, who received an honorary doctorate from Wrocław University of Science and Technology in 1981.

The first winner of the prize was Prof. Randall J. Platt, a genetic engineering expert from the Federal Institute of Technology in Zürich (ETH Zürich – Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule Zürich), where he built a research team to develop and refine applications of sentinel cell technology. The scientists working there aim to create radically new biomedical engineering methods.

Prof. Platt is coming to Wrocław at the beginning of the new academic year to deliver a special open lecture and conduct scientific seminars. He will also meet with the young researchers of Wrocław Tech’s Academia Iuvenum.

– I admire Stanisław Lem and his contemporaries for their ability to envision the future of science and technology beyond what is even remotely feasible. Their work inspires me – said Prof. Platt after receiving the prize.

The Stanisław Lem European Prize (Lem Prize) is aimed at supporting young scientists (up to 40 years old) studying or conducting their research in the European Union and associated countries participating in the Horizon Europe Programme. It is awarded annually for a recent discovery or significant achievement in the broadly defined fields of science and engineering, with strong elements of technology, interdisciplinarity, creativity, and vision.

Nominations including a description of the discovery or achievement, as well as a list of publications with letters of recommendation, should be sent by September 30 to lemprize@pwr.edu.pl.

The winner is selected by the prize committee chaired by Prof. Reimund Neugebauer (President of the Fraunhofer Society) and composed of eminent scientists from foreign institutes and Wrocław University of Science and Technology, as well as Tomasz Lem, the writer's son.

The name of the Lem Prize 2022 winner will be announced on November 15, on the Celebration Day of Wrocław University of Wrocław and Technology.

Benefactors of the Lem Prize Edition 2022: