On January 11, 2023, the Faculty of Physics of the University of Bucharest and the Institute of Atomic Physics organized Romania@CERN – Open Symposium 2023. The event was occasioned by the meeting of the International Scientific Advisory Board (ISAB) on the anniversary of 10 years since the foundation of ISAB.
The symposium was attended by students and pupils, teaching staff at the university and pre-university levels, together with government representatives, directors of research and development institutes and representatives of the management of the University of Bucharest. In addition to the approximately 150 participants who were in amphitheater 3 of the Faculty of Physics, the event was attended virtually by representatives and members of the academic community in the country, researchers and teaching staff at the pre-university level together with groups and classes of students.
In the opening of the event, short speeches were given by special guests – prof. Sorin Costreie, PhD (State Adviser to the Prime Minister for Education and Research and Vice-Rector of the University of Bucharest), prof. Tudor Prisecaru, PhD (Secretary of State at the Ministry of Research, Innovation and Digitization), Nicolae Mărginean, PhD (General Director of the National Research-Development Institute for Nuclear Physics and Engineering – “Horia Hulubei”- IFIN-HH), prof. Virgil Băran, PhD (director of the Council for Doctoral University Studies of the University of Bucharest), assoc. prof. Mădălin Bunoiu, PhD (President of the Romanian Agency for Quality Assurance in Higher Education and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Timișoara) and Florin Buzatu, PhD (Scientific Delegate of Romania to the CERN Council and General Director of the Institute of Atomic Physics).
The first session of the symposium was moderated by prof. Lucian Ion, PhD, dean of the Faculty of Physics of the University of Bucharest, as a representative of the host institution.
In the first part, the event was centered around the two speeches, intended for a wide audience, given by Cristinel Diaconu, PhD, Director of the Center for Elementary Particle Physics in Marseille, France, and by prof. John Harris, PhD, from Yale University, USA.
They were followed by two presentations on the research projects through which Romania participates in the CERN experiments, given by Florin Buzatu, PhD, respectively on the CERN educational program, given by lect. Roxana Zus, PhD, teaching staff at the University of Bucharest and representative of Romania in the CERN Teacher and Student Forum.The session ended with a round table on career opportunities in research through the participation in large scientific collaborations, in dialogue with ISAB members: Cristinel Diaconu, PhD (CPP Marseille, CNRS, France), Christian Joram, PhD (CERN Physics Department), prof. John Harris, PhD (Yale University, USA), prof. Thomas Lohse, PhD (Humboldt University, Germany), as well as researcher Călin Alexa, PhD, President of the Scientific Council of the National Research-Development Institute for Physics and Nuclear Engineering – “Horia Hulubei” (IFIN-HH) and coordinator of the group which participates on behalf of Romania in the ATLAS experiment at CERN.
The second part of the symposium continued at the Institute of Atomic Physics with presentations of the national projects underway at the CERN experiments. The poster of the Romania@CERN – Open Symposium 2023 event, including its full program, can be found here.
More information on Romania’s participation in CERN can be accessed here and here.
