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Jiri BicakCzech physicist
Date of Birth: 07.01.1942
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Content:
- Early Life and Education
- Interest in Physics
- Academic Career
- Professional Life
- International Collaboration
- Leadership Roles
- Membership in International Organizations
- Passions and Interests
- Literature and Philosophy
Early Life and Education
Jiří Bičák was born on January 7, 1942, in the Vinohrady district of Prague, Czechoslovakia. He began his education in 1948 at a school run by religious sisters, where he also received his first exposure to English. However, the school was abolished a year later, prompting Bičák to take private English lessons and learn to play the violin with the support of his parents.
Throughout his youth, Bičák exhibited a passion for culture, sports, and the arts. He attended lectures on mathematics, physics, and chemistry during his secondary school years, hosted by specialists from the university as part of "people's universities." Inspired by books by physician J. Archibald Cronin, he initially aspired to become a doctor and "save" lives.
Interest in Physics
During the latter half of the 1950s, Bičák pursued his love of music by playing guitar and violin in the band "Sputnice." He met Karel Hlavatý, who became a chemist, and they also performed classical music together. Bičák's mathematical prowess was evident during this time, as he excelled in math competitions, including being among the top 20 national mathematicians.
His interest in theoretical physics was ignited by Albert Einstein's book "How I See the World." After graduating from secondary school in 1959, he enrolled in the Faculty of Mathematics and Physics at Charles University to study theoretical physics, graduating in 1964.
Academic Career
Post-Graduate StudiesFollowing his undergraduate studies, Bičák obtained a Doctor of Natural Sciences degree and a Candidate of Sciences or Doctor of Philosophy in 1968. In 1982, he received a Docent and a Doctor of Science degree the following year. In 1992, he became a professor of theoretical physics.
Professional Life
Contributions to PhysicsAfter graduating, Bičák dedicated his career to general relativity, astrophysics, cosmology, and the history of physics. In 1971, he spent six months at the California Institute of Technology, where he met American physicist Richard Feynman.
He gained prominence in 1967 when he proved in his work that "some exact solutions of Einstein's equations" could be interpreted as gravitational waves. This led to invitations to lecture in London, where he met leading physicists of the time, including Stephen Hawking. Bičák later wrote an afterword to the Czech edition of Hawking's "A Brief History of Time" in 1988, titled "Briefly about Stephen Hawking and His View of the World." He also contributed afterwords to other translations of works by global physicists, such as Martin Rees' 2003 book "Our Uncommon Universe."
International Collaboration
Renowned astronomer Sir Martin Rees invited Bičák to lecture at Cambridge University in the late 1970s. In 1970, he went to the California Institute of Technology for a six-month research visit, where he wrote a dissertation on gravitational collapse. However, he was denied an extension by the Czechoslovakian government and forced to return home.
Bičák published approximately 140 original scientific papers in prestigious professional journals and book publications. His work was cited by notable physicists, including Nobel laureate Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman, American theoretical physicist Kip Thorne, and Russian theoretical physicist, astrophysicist, and cosmologist Igor Dmitriyevich Novikov.
Leadership Roles
In 1986, he became the head of the Department of Theoretical Physics at Charles University's Faculty of Mathematics and Physics and subsequently also the director of the newly established Institute of Theoretical Physics. Bičák lectured at many prominent international venues and collaborated regularly with Cambridge University's Institute of Astronomy from 1990 onwards.
He worked at the Max Planck Institute for Physics and Astrophysics in Garching, Germany, in 1982, a collaboration that continued until 1995. From 1994 to 1996, he collaborated with the University of Utah in the United States. Since 1995, he has been collaborating with the Albert Einstein Institute (Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics) in Golm/Potsdam, Germany.
Membership in International Organizations
From the 1970s onwards, Bičák held membership and various positions in international organizations and societies. He actively participated in the International Society on General Relativity and Gravitation (elected to the governing committee in 1980-1989 and 1995-2004). He was also a member of the International Astronomical Union, the European Physical Society, the Commission on Astrophysics of the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics (IUPAP), the European Academy of Sciences and Arts, Salzburg-Vienna, and a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society in London.
In 2001, he was elected a Fellow of the European Academy in London and a member of the Council of the Joint Section "Gravitational Physics" of the European Physical Society and the European Astronomical Society, among other roles.
Passions and Interests
Music and ArtBeyond his professional pursuits, Bičák drew inspiration from Einstein. He co-authored the book "Einstein and Prague," which celebrated the 100th anniversary of Einstein's birth. He also amassed a valuable collection of books about his role model.
Bičák shared a love of violin playing with Einstein. He found listening to music energizing and uplifting, often enjoying it in his home office while working. The visual arts also resonated with him. As a child, he enjoyed drawing, and his personal library included numerous art publications and monographs.
Literature and Philosophy
Bičák admired the ideas of Otokar Březina, Czech poet and philosopher, whose childhood readings left a lasting impression on him. Together with his daughter Alena, he translated the autobiography of American physicist and popular science writer George Gamow, providing Czech readers with insights into the early history of physics and Gamow's personal encounters with prominent figures in the field.
