He worked closely with international institutions, authored more than 50 scientific articles in internationally renowned journals and conference proceedings, and was a frequent participant in major scientific conferences and workshops. He created a LSD programming code that portrayed the world as it would look near a black hole (the name corresponds to Paul’s strong sense of sharp, though often biting, humour).
Recently, he studied the possibility of the existence
of life around black holes, the matter motion in the extreme
gravitational field, and other current astrophysical issues. Some of the
research results, in which Pavel participated, were acknowledged by
icons of the field such as Kip Thorne, Lawrence Krauss, or Avi Loeb, and
his work has also received acclaim in popular media (e.g., New
Scientist, BBC Science Focus,Science Mag and also in Russian and Finnish
online journals). He greatly valued personal cooperation on scientific
projects with prof. Luigi Stella from the Astronomical Observatory of
Rome and Dr. Maurizio Falanga of the Swiss International Space Science
Institute.
He also served as a devoted mentor and, despite his
(sometimes) specific teaching methods, he was always able to activate
the potential for scientific work in his students and encouraged and
motivated them to embark on an academic career. He supervised many
bachelor and master theses, involved students in demanding research
projects, and provided all the necessary support. The significance of
his work is illustrated not only by his scientific achievements but also
by the accomplishments of the students he brought to science.
"For
me, Pavel was not only the supervisor of my bachelor's thesis but also
the one who showed me the way to the world of science and opened the
door to travel. He introduced me to the field of astrophysics and
supported me in my first scientific steps. I am extremely grateful to
him."
- Zuzana Turoňová, a 2nd-year student of a MA program. She
plans to start her doctoral studies and was offered a parallel job at
Los Alamos National Laboratory in the USA.
"I first met
Pavel in the second year of my studies at the university. I knew him as a
man who was willing to devote himself to his students. It was his habit
not to hesitate to involve us in real scientific tasks from the early
stages of our studies. Often these were the ones he was dealing with at
the time. He involved us in his work despite the fact that he would
finish it faster and better himself."
- Kateřina Klimovičová, a
student of the last year of her doctoral studies. Although still a
doctoral student, she is the author or co-author of more than 20
scientific publications and thus far exceeds the standard for this phase
of her scientific career.
"Pavel started to supervise me
in the first year of my master's degree, and although I did not study
science, he convinced me that I could still succeed in it. Without him, I
would never have applied for a doctoral program, I wouldn't have
believed that I could make it. He was always kind and friendly to his
students and
showed me that working in science also has a very pleasant human side. ”
-
Debora Lančová, a doctoral student. Among other things, she is the main
author of a study publishing supercomputer calculations in the
prestigious journal The Astrophysical Journal Letters. In connection
with this work, she was recently approached as a speaker for invited
lectures at two major international conferences.
Pavel's strong
personality integrated brisk response time, a significant drive, an
impressive intellectual overview, and also a distinctly human side,
which he systematically and skillfully tried to hide behind sarcasm,
though he often failed. His complex disposition was reflected by his
multiple, often opposing
positions and conflicting statements, which
he frequently illustrated by fitting quotes from an infinite number of
writers, such as Stanislaw Lem:
“No one reads; if someone does read, he doesn't understand; if he understands, he immediately forgets.“
“Good books tell the truth, even when they're about things that never existed and never will.“
This is how we knew Pavel and now we miss him (although he detested such proclamations and would be the first to forbid them).