We have selected twenty prominent figures connected with Poland, who lived through the ages and represented various scientific disciplines.
The idea is unusual in that the fates of the characters, often dramatic and strongly entangled in history, were brought closer to us by contemporary Polish writers.
The result is a unique, polyphonic story about science and its history, as well as an encounter with contemporary Polish literature, with the sensitivity and inventiveness of authors who have returned to the formalized world of scientific theories the feelings, emotions, desires and imaginings of their characters.
"Twenty well-known contemporary authors have taken on the interesting
and important task of writing the profiles of twenty Polish scholars. Their
unique and individual point of view gives the reader some quite unusual
perspectives, showing scientific discovery within the broader cultural
and social context. Through this approach, the scientists become less
remote figures, and – even if we cannot understand them fully – their
achievements are brought closer to our lives."
Olga Tokarczuk
I have not
been idle. Ever. Before the age of thirty, I had founded this country’s first
hospital for women and children that was staffed entirely by women. By then I
was an experienced midwife, so I could share my knowledge with others. My
colleagues underwent practical training and instruction at the hospital…
Sylwia Chutnik
Holding a pile of papers, Józefa approaches the lectern. The lecture hall falls silent. She is trying not to feel stress, and to forget about the fact that the only Pole to have lectured at the Collège de France before her was Adam Mickiewicz…
Mikołaj Łoziński
He taught himself mathematics and foreign languages; he worked in a bookshop and supported himself by tutoring. The First World War passed him by: he is short-sighted (…). He loves mathematics but is not particularly interested in a career…
Weronika Murek
When she wielded a spade in the Zoology Museum courtyard, Zofia Kielan was twenty years old. She was dogged and devoted to her chosen scientific passions — and her refined character, polished at home, in the scouting movement and during the Uprising, enabled her to achieve a very great deal.
Piotr Wojciechowski
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