Ondřej Biemann was the overall winner of the student scientific competition for the Dean’s Award, organised by the UP Faculty of Science. The graduate of the Bachelor’s study field Geoinformatics and Geography attracted the attention of the expert jury with his thesis “Atlas of Natural Characteristics of the Olomouc Region”, which can find application in the teaching of regional geography at secondary or primary schools.
“I remember how reluctantly I was putting on a suit in the morning before the competition because I don’t like suits, and I didn’t expect to win in the Bachelor’s category at all, let alone become the overall winner. It’s proof to me that what I created makes sense. Therefore, I would like to thank the supervisor of my thesis, Dr Alena Vondráková, for her advice and patience during my thesis, the staff of the Olomouc Regional Office for their help and valuable consultations, and all the other people who supported me,” said Biemann.
The “Atlas of Natural Characteristics of the Olomouc Region” contains 65 maps and comprehensively covers the nature of the Olomouc region, from internationally protected localities through the habitats of large mammals to ecological burdens. “Ondřej processed a huge amount of data, performed a lot of analytical work and even designed some cartographic syntheses, which is one of the top tasks of a cartographer. He created the complete graphic design of the atlas and, in cooperation with geography teachers at secondary schools, tested the atlas directly in the classroom. He also created a workbook for it, where there are tasks for individual chapters. Students completed the tasks and commented on them. Ondřej then incorporated them into their final form. Our effort now will be for the atlas to be published in cooperation with the Regional Office of the Olomouc Region and for it to actually reach schools. The atlas is already available on the website of the Department of Geoinformatics,” added Dr Vondráková of the Department of Geoinformatics.
Seventy competitors from the Faculty of Science took part in this year’s competition for the Dean’s Award. Before the expert jury, students presented their works in mathematics and computer science, chemistry, physics, biology and ecology, earth sciences, and didactics of natural sciences, in the Bachelor’s, Master’s, and doctoral categories. The competition also included a poster section.
“Just as last year, on account of the shift in practical teaching due to the extraordinary measures during the summer semester, we were forced to organise the student scientific competition for the Dean’s Award only in July. Nevertheless, the students were very interested in the competition, and we were also pleased with the large number of quality works in the Bachelor’s category. We would like to thank all the students,” said Jan Říha, Vice-Dean for Study, Education, and Social Matters. The names of all the overall winners will be engraved on the travelling cups. You can find the results of the competition here (in Czech).
The Student Scientific Competition for the Dean’s Award has been held annually in its current form since 2007 and continues the long tradition of Student Scientific and Expert Activities. The aim of the competition is to motivate students to actively participate in science and research and to continue working in the field of research and knowledge. All duly enrolled Bachelor’s, Master’s, and doctoral students at the Faculty of Science can take part in the competition.
