Translated from http://www.fnp.org.pl/aktualnosci/aktualnosci/rok_2011/laureaci_nagrod y_fundacji_na_rzecz_nauki_polskiej_w_2011_roku
For the twentieth time in row the Foundation Council selected laureates of FNP Prize, awarded for outstanding achievements and scientific discoveries in four areas of science. As of 2011 they are: Humanities and Social Sciences; Life and Earth Sciences; Mathematics, Physics and Engineering Sciences; Chemical and Material Sciences.
FNP Prize, awarded since 1992, are considered the most important scientific award in Poland. This year they are worth 200 thousand zł. each.
FNP Prize winners in 2011 are:
Humanities and Social Sciences:
Prof. Tomasz Giaro of the Faculty of Law and Administration of Warsaw University - for an interdisciplinary analysis of the category of truth in the doctrines of law from antiquity to the present - opening new prospects for understanding of the law as one of the foundations of European civilization;
The Foundation Award is based on his monograph "Römische Rechtswahrheiten. Ein Gedanken Experiment (2007)" on the theory and history of law. This is the result of years of his studies; it has been published by a renowned German publishing house.
Arguments of truth (verum est) or falsehood (falsum est) were part of the discourse of jurisprudence from ancient Rome to the modern German doctrine. Made on a wider scale in the nineteenth century, however, the codifications shifted the burden of law-making from science to legislation. Because the legislator "commands but not discusses" a criterion of legal truth is in doubt. Prof. Giaro approaches this question in a framework of a broad analysis of ancient sources and later European legal tradition, using the method of thought experiment. Although an experiment interpreted literally is unacceptable in the legal sciences, the analysis of historical materials can answer the question whether an application of the truth criterion facilitates or impedes the legal discourse.
Life and Earth Sciences:
Prof. Jan Potempa of the Department of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Biotechnology of Jagiellonian University in Krakow - for the characterization of a new family of bacterial proteases and for demonstration of their role in the development of periodontal disease;
The research of Professor Potempa deals with the role of bacteria "Porphyromonas gingivalis" in the formation and development of "periodontitis". The laureate and his colleagues isolated and characterized seven protein-degrading enzymes produced by this bacterium - including the so-called "gingipain". He also proved that it is exactly the "gingipain", which are key factors for the development of periodontitis, showing that they are responsible for the disorder of the body defensive reaction, which instead of eliminating the bacteria turns against its own tissues. This leads to chronic inflammation of periodontal tissues and, as the result - the loss of alveolar bone and exposure of the necks of the teeth.
The findings of Professor Potempa have changed thinking about the genesis of periodontal tissue inflammation. They are also highly valued for their therapeutic potential - the results of his research may lead to the development of more effective drugs to combat periodontal disease, and thus - to reduce the risk of development of heart disease and arthritis.
Mathematics, Physics and Engineering Sciences:
Prof. Maciej Lewenstein of the Institut de Ciències Fotòniques (ICFO) in Castelldefels and Catalana de Recerca Institució and Estudis Avançats in Barcelona - for achievements in the area of quantum optics and the physics of ultra-cold gases;
The laureate has made an outstanding contribution to the development of these areas - his theoretical work often deals with groundbreaking experiments, such as the first observation of dark solitons in Bose-Einstein condensates.
In the last decade, Professor Lewenstein focused on the research of strongly correlated ultra-cold quantum gases. The study of these systems led to the experimental realization of the so-called quantum simulators, namely the first quantum computers for special applications. Quantum simulators allow to understand the complex physics of many-body quantum systems, and such phenomena as superconductivity or superfluidity.
Other research of Professor Lewenstein also deals with interferometry of the matter waves and its potential application for precise time and frequency measurement.
Chemical and Material Sciences:
Prof. Elżbieta Frąckowiak of the Faculty of Chemical Technology, Poznań University of Technology - for research on new materials and carbon composites and their use for electrochemical energy storage and conversion.
Carbon materials developed by her are in particular carbon nano-tubes and their nano-composites with conductive polymers and oxides, nano-textural carbons and carbon composites enriched with nitrogen, oxygen and iodine. They are the bases of the technology used in super-capacitors.
Super-capacitors are devices with a high capacitance, able to quickly collect and discharge large amounts of energy. They are used in automotive industry (hybrid and electric cars), power industry (battery backup systems for power grid stabilization) and in industries producing mobile devices. Due to their nature they can be considered a partial alternative to the fuels responsible for the high carbon-dioxide emission. They also allow for storage and transfer of energy generated from renewable resources - wind, solar, geothermal. They are thus an important element of the process of finding solutions to problems of energy shortage and environmental pollution.
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