On July 10, Serbia marks the Science Day, a national event dedicated to the great Serbian scientist Nikola Tesla and to science in general. The decision to mark July 10, the day when Tesla was born in the Croatian town of Gospic in 1856, as the Science Day, was adopted by the Serbian Government in 201O. Jelica Tapuskovic has more.
The last time July 10 was marked as the Day of Nikola Tesla in 2010, however, as the persona and work of the greatest scientist of the 20th century surpass all borders, it was decided to celebrate July 10 as the Science Day. At the time the line ministry was charged with the celebration program, and the Center for the Promotion of Science, whose task is to raise public awareness about young scientists from Serbia, soon became involved in the organization.
This year, the event has commenced the day before with the opening of the exhibition entitled "Tesla's Vision of the Internet" by Lazar Boskovic, staged in Belgrade’s gallery "Ozone". The exhibition presents Tesla’s work "World System" from the year 1900, when he presented a 12-point vision of what is today called the Wi-Fi, mobile telephony, and GPS.
On this day, Belgrade’s 125-year old Astronomical Observatory is open for free visits. Also the panel discussion under the title "The Hunt for Higgs Boson: Has God Particle Been Discovered?" has been organized in the Gallery of Science and Technology of the Serbian Academy of Science and Arts, where the leading Serbian physicists discussed the CERN's scientific discovery of a new subatomic particle that might be Higgs boson and how reliable the results are.
On the occasion of the Science Day and Tesla's birthday, the Nikola Tesla Museum Director, Vladimir Jelenkovic, has pointed out that the planet is only now prepared to recognize his visionary work, which is why his popularity is growing worldwide. This is indicated by an increasing number of the Museum visitors from around the world, he said, adding that with his inventions, this great scientist predicted everything that marks the 21st century.
"The museum will participate in one part of the formal program, above all with the opening of the exhibition Blue Portrait of Nikola Tesla, and the exhibition of congratulatory cards Nikola Tesla received during his rich life," said Jelenkovic.
He announced that the Museum visitors will also be able to see the exhibition "Diplomas of Nikola Tesla", which presents all the accolades granted to Tesla, including honorary doctorates, medals, and memberships in world renowned research institutions that wanted to honor Tesla and his scientific work while he was still living.