People from BUT
FROM BUT

People

11 February 2023

Women from BUT who move the world of science and technology

Saying that science and technology are only for men is just a prejudice. At the Brno University of Technology in, you will find a total of 621 women who are indispensable for science and technology. On the occasion of today's International Day of Women and Girls in Science, which falls on February 11, we have selected for you one representative from each faculty whose achievements prove that women have their place in science.

Nikol Žižková – FCE

Associate Professor Nikol Žižková has been working at the Faculty of Civil Engineering at the Institute of Building Materials and Components since 2001. She is currently the guarantor of the Building Materials and Technology study programme. In addition to teaching subjects in the field of ecology in the construction industry, organization and management of plants and real estate valuation, she is dedicated to solving scientific and research projects in the field of modern, ecological building materials and sustainable construction. She was also among a group of experts who advised Mongolian companies on how to use fly ash in building materials. At the beginning of 2022, she became the vice president of WTA International (International Association for Science and Technology of Building Maintenance and Monuments Preservation).

Andrea Konečná – FME

Scientist Andrea Konečná was the only one from BUT to receive the prestigious JUNIOR STAR grant. Money from the Grant Agency of the Czech Republic is intended for exceptional young researchers with a recently completed doctorate. In the whole of the Czech Republic, only 23 projects received this support. She studied at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, specifically at the Institute of Physical Engineering, where it is a condition to go abroad for a study stay during her master's degree. She first travelled to Spain, where she ended up spending seven years. As part of her doctorate, she "tripped" from Spain to the USA several times and gained a number of valuable contacts. After returning to Brno, she did research at CEITEC BUT, with a new JUNIOR STAR grant, she is returning to her alma mater, the Institute of Physical Engineering, from January. There, hse now works on nanophotonics and electron microscopy.

Adriána Kovalčík – FCH

Associate Dean Adriána Kovalčík, who works at the Institute of Food Chemistry and Biotechnology at the Faculty of Chemistry, did not originally plan a scientific career during her studies. But several life challenges led her to the day when she was appointed a professor last year. She has a varied scientific journey behind her, driven by her interest in biodegradable polymers. She also gathered her experience abroad, namely in France at the Université Blaise-Pascal in Clermont-Ferrand and in Austria at the Universität für Bodenkultur Wien in Vienna, at the Graz University of Technology and at Wood K plus in Linz. It mainly focuses on research, preparation and characterization of natural polymers and their processing, isolation of bioactive substances from food waste and functional polymer composites.

Lenka Zajíčková – CEITEC

Lenka Zajíčková researches dry technologies for surface treatment of materials, especially technologies using ionized gas called plasma and atomic layer deposition. It develops bioactive surfaces and nanomaterials with applications in sensorics, tissue engineering or for antibacterial treatments. She leads the research group Plasma Technology at CEITEC BUT. She is an internationally recognized scientist with widely cited publications in the field of low-temperature plasma physics and plasma technologies. She is the representative of the Czech Republic in the Plasma Physics Committee of the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics. She is the chairperson of the international conference PLATHINIUM, which focuses on plasma processes and the preparation of thin films and will be held in France under the auspices of the French vacuum company.

Jana Schwarzerová – FEEC

Jana Schwarzerová works at the Institute of Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Communication, which, as part of her scientific career, deals with the study of genetic engineering, prediction algorithms and their correct implementation on biological systems. Thanks to this, aid can eradicate the principles of horizontal gene transfer and thus prevent the uncontrolled spread of antibiotic resistance. She won the main prize in the PhD talent FEEC 2021 competition. In a group led by Professor Wolfram Weckwerth from the University of Vienna, she is involved in interesting studies regarding plants and their prediction of properties in the current climate change.

Barbora Šmahlíková – FIT

Barbora Šmahlíková is studying the Master's programme in Information Technology and Artificial Intelligence at the Faculty of Information Technology. She got involved in research already at the beginning of her bachelor's studies. Her work in the field of algorithm development, so-called omega-automata, soon resulted in publications in international conference forums, which are mainly reserved for doctoral students. The algorithm for complementation, in the creation of which she played a significant role, is currently one of the best in the world. Barbora Šmahlíková is an exceptional student with a great talent for science and research, who this year won the Government Prize for a Gifted Student, in 2022 the Rector's Prize at the Academic Assembly and was also selected for competition 8 from BUT, where selected students present the best bachelor's degrees from all faculties for the past academic year.

Romana Drdová – FFA

Romana Drdová is a PhD student at the Faculty of Fine Arts, who contributed to the creation of the faculty recycling station. This is a space where students can come to choose material for work for free and consult about their artistic intention. Drdová got the inspiration for her project during her stay in New York, where she watched the local creative centre Material for the Arts dedicated to the reuse of materials, which it provides to schools, artists and non-profit organizations. Although she is now primarily focused on expanding the network of cooperating companies and building awareness of the recycling station among students, in the future he is not averse to turning the whole idea into a business and creating, for example, a network of such stations in Czech cities or institutions. She won the Empathy Award for her project in 2019.

Ema Záňová – FBM

Ema Záňová, a student in the field of Process Management, definitely does not think about the boxes "for girls" and "for boys". Last year, she became the first ever woman in the Czech Republic to lead the student formula team. In the formula team, she joined the Business and PR section from the beginning, based on her experience from high school and working for the student organization there. After the racing season, she went on an internship at TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Europe in Cologne, Germany, where she works as a process management intern, which is an ideal combination for her given her field. And when she's not in the workshops, she's running around the ice with her stick as a forward for the women's hockey team WHC Valkyries Brno. This year, she also participated in the World University Winter Games, where she won fourth place with her team.

Kateřina Bucsuházy – IFE

Kateřina Bucsuházy is a graduate of the doctoral studies at the Institute of Forensic Engineering, BUT, in Brno, where she also studied for a master's degree in Expert Engineering in Transport. And as she says, the "accident" has already remained with her. She now works at the Centre for Transport Research, specifically in the area of In-Depth Analysis of Accidents. It deals with the human factor in transport in the analysis of road traffic accidents. The results of her work contribute to increasing road traffic safety. He works with a team of experts from different fields, where everyone can use all the knowledge. Together with her colleagues, she tries to ensure that the outputs of her research activities serve to improve the quality of the work of experts. In 2019, she won the Rector's Award for BUT graduates.

Nina Bartošová – FA

Vice-Dean Nina Bartošová is an architect, theoretician and historian of architecture. Her approach to research reflects her previous foreign experience from an academic environment, which she gained in France, England and Austria. In 2016, together with her team, she was involved in the Cvernovka architectural-urban planning competition, in which they won the 3rd prize. She is the co-author of the scientific monograph Industrial through the eyes of experts/monuments: Theory and methodology of industrial heritage protection in the context of Bratislava, which won the Literary Fund prize for scientific and professional literature in 2016, as well as two other publications in which she participated - War Bratislava and Forgotten Geberation: Czech architects in Slovakia.

Themes

Faculty of Architecture Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Communication Faculty of Fine Arts Faculty of Civil Engineering Faculty of Chemistry Faculty of Mechanical Engineering Faculty of Information Technology Faculty of Business and Management Institute of Forensic Engineering CEITEC BUT