RNDr. Vojtech Ullmann
physicist

Vojtech Ullmann , b. April 14, 1949 in Konice (district Prostejov).
After graduating from the Nine-Year Elementary School in Konice and graduating from the Jan Opletal Grammar School in Litovel, he studied physics at the Faculty of Mathematics and Physics of Charles University in Prague.

Professional focus and activities:
Since 1973 he has been working as a physicist at the Department of Nuclear Medicine FNsP in Ostrava, where he is the head of the Physical and Technical Department. He deals with nuclear physics and the physics of ionizing radiation , physical-mathematical aspects of radioisotope scintigraphy , as well as the general theory of relativity, relativistic astrophysics and cosmology :

Non-professional interests and activities:
Photography, electronics, cottage, classical , spiritual and ethnic music , nature, philosophy :

Personal: Life in nature - memories from Konice with photos from favorite places.
The beauties of nature - photography

Contacts :
E-mail: vojtech.ullmann@fno.cz
Address :
Home: Vojtech Ullmann, V.Vacka 1672, 708 00 Ostrava - Poruba
To work: Department of Nuclear Medicine University Hospital, 17.listodadu 1790, 708 52 Ostrava-Poruba

Lectures and publications (selection)

Personal notes :

At this point, I would like to write a few lines intended mainly for friends and acquaintances, with whom I have a relationship with certain people and places ; Further notes on relations to certain ideas and concepts of science and philosophy, spiritual or social issues, can be found in the "Author's Notes" after opening each of the four basic thematic areas on the introductory page .
For most readers, these personal notes are certainly uninteresting . An exception could be the memory of Mr. Teacher Jáchym , who was such a bright personality that he can attract and please others who did not know him personally, but for whom he may evoke the memory of their teacher.
Then perhaps :
Country life - with photos from favorite places.

My birth house is located on the southern edge of the small town of Konice, in a nice natural environment by three ponds ("Nohávka", "Kameňák", "Střelnice" or "Šištót") and in a forest called "Bor" - see pictures " Memories - interesting places and people ", part" Our house by the pond Nohávka ". My father was a gardener, growing vegetables, flowers and fruit trees. Our relatively large gardenit stretched almost to the very forest. We had two greenhouses (one at the house, the other in the garden) and several hotbeds for growing seedlings and flowers. There were many fruit trees in the garden (plums, apple trees, ryngles, nuts, mirabelles, etc.), shrub and tree gooseberries and currants, flower beds of strawberries and raspberries. Also a lot of flowers - tulips, peonies, roses, lilies, golden shower, jasmine, etc. In addition, in spring and summer, many meadow flowers bloomed everywhere ...

Another natural "paradise" for us were ponds (then still unpolluted and non-devastated) with shores overgrown with dense reeds and cattails. A duckweed swam on the surface, water lilies and other aquatic plants grew out of the deep and mysterious black mud. Lots of fish, frogs, water beetles, leeches, monstrous larvae of dragonflies, small aquatic insects in the water. Water meters slid across the surface and beautiful brightly colored dragonflies flew over it. Waterfowl, grebes, and sometimes swans were abundant. Spring evenings by the ponds with a loud frog concert and the scent of flowering trees were especially magical. ...

Les Bor was a beautiful mixed coniferous-deciduous forest (predominance of pines and spruces) growing on the hills stretching from Konice towards Strážisko. There were many beautiful forest nooks , mowing, ravines with streams and small waterfalls, views of the surrounding landscape with fields, meadows, villages and other forests ("Skalky", "Zvoňák" with a legend about the underground bell, "Otínsko", "Loupežník "...). In summer, many mushrooms, wild strawberries, blueberries. This forest was the main source of inspiration for my photographic hobby, and even now, on every trip to Konice, I spend several hours in it, sometimes with a camera - the beauties of nature - photography .
Bor is not as beautiful as it was in my childhood or as I have captured it in photos from the 60's and 70's (a lot has been felled there in recent years, many places are overgrown with weed unmaintained bushes), but even now there are many nice places.

I would now like to make a few remarks and memories of some of the remarkable people I have met. Of course, I will start with those closest to me - my parents, relatives, teachers. My father's main interest was nature - not only within his gardening profession, but above all the forest and wildlife. Every winter, when gardening was scarce, he worked in the woods and his brother and I often helped him. In the evenings he told us various stories from the forest, whether it was his own stories or the stories of his famous foresters, hunters and poachers. He also enjoyed reading books on the forest and hunting; he was not an organized hunter, but a bit of a "poacher" as it used to be in the countryside ... In my interest in physics, mathematics, radio engineering, space, etc., he did not defend me, but he would rather be a forest engineer. My mother was a modest village woman, working in a small local clothing workshop, her hobby was reading. For interest in culturehowever, I was brought mainly by my aunt Marie, who not only read a lot, but also listened to the radio - mainly radio plays and literary and musical programs. I remember that when I swam at the other end of the pond in the early evening, for example, there was a loud call: "Vojta, get out of the water and wipe yourself, the reading will continue in a moment!". And similarly when sledding or other outdoor games. So I listened to the works of Moliér, Jirásek, Shakespeare, Tyl, Tolstoy, etc. This popularity of literature, theater and music, as well as listening to cultural programs on the radio (later especially the Vltava station), remained with me.

At a cottage in Borenovice while listening of sacred music

Since school years, in addition to physics, I have been particularly interested in questions of the philosophy of knowledge (gnoseology, noetics), especially the knowledge of science - what is matter, space, time, what is their relationship to our consciousness; how life came into being, whether there is life elsewhere in the universe; whether God exists and how to understand him, etc. Also since my school years, I have been interested in philosophy and theology not only here ("Western", Christian), but also Eastern ; Buddhism in particular appealed to me , which, with its tolerance, the proclamation of non-harm and bliss for all creatures, resonated very closely with my heart. Later I also got acquainted with some directions of Hinduism, Taoism, Confucianism. Even in these philosophical and spiritual directions, I found many beautiful and inspiring ideas, especially aboutthe unity of all being , the harmony with nature, the belief in the possibility of a humanistic human society. The search for God in my end eventually resulted in what might be called " soulful atheism " or pantheism - God as a spiritual principle contained in the very essence of things and events. This concept seems to me to be fully compatible with scientific materialism , which is a natural professional platform for every physicist (and scientists in general).

My ethical and social orientation was (in addition to the genetic dispositions, which we all have somewhat different) shaped primarily by the family environment in which I grew up. My parents and my aunt, who lived with us, were ordinary people, very modest and absolutely honest , without ambitions and ambition to exalt themselves above others. They practiced what is called "Christian love," but without idolatry and bygiveness, they did not force me or my brother into religion or church. They were never on either side, as I was then. As a boy, my father experienced the Austro-Hungarian monarchy, oppression on a large farm, and later the German occupation. From his narration I learned about the arrogance and characterlessness of the rich and powerful , about the hypocrisy of idolaters and "heavenly goats," but on the other hand also aboutgoodness and honesty of many ordinary people and some teachers, priests, doctors (such a doctor whom his father knew well was Dr. Carnation).
At school, my ethical and social attitudes were influenced by some excellent teachers , especially Mr. František Jáchym - a type of wise and educated teacher, as if combining the noble efforts of the former national revival with the exact thinking of modern times. Other teachers are mentioned in the talk " Memories - interesting places and people ", the passage " Our teachers ".

All these influences, together with my inner foundation, have resulted in my unequivocally leftist orientation , in respect for all decent people regardless of their property and status (on the contrary - I feel instinctive distrust of the rich and influential, especially when it comes to their behavior "see"). I evaluate people by what they are willing to do for others and for a good cause , not by what they are able to get (or more precisely " grab ") for themselves. I do not recognize any authorities or authoritative people - natural authority should be given by moral character, real knowledge and ingenuity. An authoritarian person has a defect in either character or knowledge.
I practice maximum modesty , I have no personal material or career ambitions; I have not embarked on the path of collecting scientific titles and ranks, nor of scientific competition, ambition and competition. I prefer independent reflection in seclusion . My main "ambition" is to know and understand how our world works :
What mechanisms does the Universe work with? What is the essence of things and events? Scientific knowledge leads us to a deep respect for the magnificence of hidden order and "reason", which is immanently embodied in being. And a friendly sharing of inspiration and joy from discovering the beauties and secrets of nature and the universe with other colleagues and "soul mates" on this journey ...

The Path of Knowledge
Through internally understood scientific knowledge, we can attain liberation from the shackles of pettiness and selfishness, attaining the spiritualization of our understanding of the world, and at enriching the interrelationships between ourselves and with living and inanimate nature. When a person embarks on a journey of knowledge in his youth, he knows and cannot do almost anything. He has only an open head and a desire in his heart to know and understand everything . Then all his life he slowly walks along the shore of the ocean of the unknown and modestly collects fragments of knowledge. He doesn't know much more at the end of his journey than at the beginning. He has known and understood much of the way the world works - current knowledge fills us with joy! However, the innermost essence of all phenomena and events, the root cause of everything
, it may be as distant to us as it was in the beginning ...
Personal limitations
One would like to know so much - to explore, study, understand, pass on - but there is not enough time and energy… Today I understand many things that I did not understand before; but again I cease to understand other things that I took for granted before…
For example: quantum physics, electrodynamics (origin of electric forces, magnetism - what structure in an electron excites a magnetic field by its motion? - or a condenser of what unitary field is an electron ?? .. and many more ...

Our house was in a nice natural environment by the ponds and the forest (" Life in the countryside ", " Memories - interesting places and people "), which gave the opportunity to stimulate love of nature, scientific and aesthetic inclinations, which I then realized in my lifelong hobby - nature photography . I have been photographing since childhood and I later used this skill in technical photography and creating images for professional publications.
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Vojtech Ullmann, physicist