‘The Colors of Science’ by the Institute of Nuclear Physics, PAS – on the 70th anniversary of its founding

17 December 2025

The freely available e-book presents the most compelling research topics of the past decade pursued – and still being pursued – by scientists at the Institute of Nuclear Physics of the Polish Academy of Sciences in Cracow. (Source: IFJ PAN)

Anniversary publications are often associated with dry lists of dates and facts. ‘The Colors of Science,’ an e-book prepared to mark the 70th anniversary of the Institute of Nuclear Physics of the Polish Academy of Sciences (IFJ PAN), breaks with this convention. Rather than focusing on chronology, the freely available publication seeks above all to convey the passion for discovery that drives Cracow-based scientists to uncover new secrets of nature.

The search for particles unknown to modern physics, radiation detectors aboard a crewed spacecraft orbiting the Moon, the properties of matter in the interiors of gas giant planets, or multifractals helping to identify degenerative brain processes – these are just some of the topics presented in The Colors of Science, an e-book offered by IFJ PAN as a holiday reading recommendation. This richly illustrated, 47-page e-book – whose Polish-language version can be downloaded free of charge from the Institute’s press service at press.ifj.edu.pl – constitutes a standalone chapter extracted from a traditionally published, comprehensive anniversary volume prepared on the occasion of IFJ PAN’s 70th year of activity.

“The scientific achievements of our Institute place us among the leading research institutions in Poland. However, the success of our physicists is not solely the result of their extensive expertise. To a large extent, it stems from a deep passion for exploring the world around us and from a desire to understand the principles governing its functioning. That is why, in this chapter, we not only honor the authors of our most important achievements of the past decade, but above all seek to show the beauty of the physical problems that have inspired generations of our researchers,” says Prof. Bogdan Fornal, Deputy Director for Scientific Affairs at IFJ PAN.

Over the course of its 70 years of activity, IFJ PAN physicists have confronted the mysteries of nature across the full range of temporal and spatial scales. Research conducted at the Institute has encompassed phenomena involving quarks, atomic nuclei and chemical molecules, as well as processes and structures relevant on the scale of the entire Universe. Many successes have been driven by an almost unbelievable passion for discovery, combined with a perseverance that can sometimes be difficult to comprehend. Few people remember, for example, that when attempts were made in post-war Cracow to initiate nuclear physics research, physicists – then affiliated with the Jagiellonian University – had to borrow the only available radiation sources, thorium preparations, from hospitals, and only overnight. Today, thanks to knowledge accumulated over decades, they work together with physicians to destroy cancer cells on a daily basis using precisely controlled proton beams. This path – from the mystery of nature to practical application, from the painstaking work of research to spectacular results – is clearly visible on many pages of The Colors of Science.

“We are making the e-book available as a holiday gift marking the close of the Institute’s anniversary year – a gift intended for all those who are always eager for knowledge coming straight from the frontiers of science, often new not only to the readers but also to the scientists themselves,” says Iwona Świerblewska, Head of the Research Support Department at IFJ PAN. She also emphasizes: “The published e-book is, in a sense, a summary of the Institute’s long-standing and consistently pursued efforts in science communication and public engagement.”

The e-book can be downloaded from the IFJ PAN press service or directly here: http://press.ifj.edu.pl/news/2025/12/17/Barwy_nauki.pdf.

E-Book:

[„Barwy Nauki” (IFJ PAN, Kraków 2025)]

Contact:

M.Sc. Iwona Świerblewska
Institute of Nuclear Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences
tel.: +48 12 662 8181
email: iwona.swierblewska@ifj.edu.pl

Images:

The freely available e-book presents the most compelling research topics of the past decade pursued – and still being pursued – by scientists at the Institute of Nuclear Physics of the Polish Academy of Sciences in Cracow. (Source: IFJ PAN)