Continuities and Discontinuities in Science and Doctoral Studies

• Prof. RNDr. Šárka Pospíšilová, Ph.D., geneticist, Vice-Rector for Research and Doctoral Studies from 2019
• Prof. Ing. Petr Dvořák, CSc., molecular biologist, Vice-Rector for Science and Research 2011-2019
• Prof. RNDr. Jana Musilová, CSc., physicist, Vice-Rector for Science and Research 2004-2011

In the last twenty years, science and research in the Czech Republic has undergone a great transformation. Not only have the methods of science funding and publication strategies changed, but also the philosophy of science and the role of scientific knowledge in society. The structure and organisational framework of doctoral studies, traditionally considered the cornerstone of science and research in the university environment, have undergone a similar transformation. The debate, to which three successive Vice-Rectors of Masaryk University have accepted the invitation, will allow us to ask questions about the meaning of scientific knowledge, its forms, continuities and discontinuities, interdisciplinary shifts and, last but not least, the role of science in the modern history of Masaryk University.