LU konference
The University of Latvia (UL) can be proud of its Basketball Team
The name of our university is mentioned not only in connection with a higher education of good quality but also speaking about achievements in basketball. The UL basketball team has a long history, which is closely tied with that of the entire national sport. This year, the university basketball team has won a place among the six strongest teams in the 1st division of the Latvian Basketball League for the second time in a row. This summer, three excellent players, Žanis Peiners, Kristaps Dārgais and Harijs Rubenis, are graduating the UL, and the team's coach is determined to bring up other equally successful players.
Film expert, Professor Viktors Freibergs
It does not occur often that those who have some hobby or close interest for a particular subject can carry others with them. One such rare case is Professor Viktors Freibergs from the University of Latvia, Faculty of Social Sciences. Professor is passionate about cinematography, and he shares his knowledge proficiently and provocatively; therefore, his lectures are crowded. In 2011, Professor Freibergs was awarded with the prize ‘The Professor of the Year in Social Sciences’. In his interview to the UL magazine Alma Mater, he speaks about his passion for cinema and his lectures on it, as well as the interaction between cinema and real life.
The New Season in the Botanical Garden of the University of Latvia
The Botanical Garden of the University of Latvia is the oldest botanical garden in Latvia. Last year, the first Tropical Butterfly House in the Baltic States was opened in it. This year, at the end of February, the new Azalea House opened its doors to delight visitors with the beauty of the largest collection of azaleas in the Northern Europe. Furthermore, the Botanical Garden has a branch, the Nursery of Rhododendrons ‘Babīte’, which is located beyond the borders of Riga city and is the only nursery of rhododendrons of this kind in the Baltic States. This summer, the 11th Flower Ball will be held at the Botanical Garden, bringing together plant breeders, nature lovers, landscape architects and gardeners.
Let’s sing!
Edgars Vītols is a young and popular Latvian conductor, whose name is often mentioned in mass media and described as a new talent and the conductor of the 21st century. Edgars conducts the choir ‘Aura’ of the UL Faculty of Physics and Mathematics and the Riga State Gymnasium No. 2 choir, where his talent has long earned him praise and accolades. Choirs and music are Edgar’s lifestyle, and he believes that choir singing is a fashionable activity.
From June 30 to July 7, The XXV Nationwide Latvian Song and XV Dance Festival will take place in Riga. As part of the festival’s program, a concert in honour of the 150th anniversary of the well-known Latvian composer Jāzeps Vītols’s birth will be held on July 2 at the Great Hall of the UL.
Students' Ideas are coming to life
Skin regeneration, owls’ migration, video lectures and floorball at night; there are no limits to students’ ideas and they go beyond any borders. The Scientific Projects Competition carried out by the Student Council of the University of Latvia allows these ideas become more realistic and feasible.
This year, the annual project competition ‘Liec idejai lidot’ (Let the idea fly) that encompasses scientific fields was merged with the competition ‘Liec idejai augt’ (Let the idea grow) which covers the cultural, social and sports spheres. Both competitions have been organised by the Student Council with a total funding of 11,000 lats. Seven projects have received full funding, while another seven have been provided with partial support. The winners have confirmed that the application procedure is not complicated and invited others to apply for the next competition in order to make their dreams come true.
The Couple Learning program
Four years ago upon the UL Student Council’s initiative, an informal language learning program, the Couple Learning program, was created with the aim to promote a responsive and open cross-cultural fellowship between Latvian and foreign students who study in Latvia. Within the program, informal communication helps break the linguistic and cultural barriers and promote the integration of foreign students into Latvian higher education environment. Students from abroad learn the Latvian language and culture, whereas Latvian students learn their foreign counterparts native language and get to know their country's culture. This program is implemented by the UL Student Council in cooperation with the Riga Technical University Students’ Parliament and the Riga Stradins University Students’ Government. For more information on how to apply visit www.lusp.lv.
The Largest EU-Aided Project for the University of Latvia
30 June will see the conclusion of a large-scale ERDF-funded project No. 2010/0202/2DP/2.1.1.2.0/10/APIA/VIAA/013 'Support for the international cooperation projects and other international cooperation activities in research and technology at the University of Latvia'. The project’s main objectives are to stimulate the UL scientific research activities and raise the awareness of the UL in the European Union and all over the world. Within the project, Gunta Ķizāne, a leading researcher at the UL Institute of Chemical Physics, and her colleagues have implemented a remarkable research on materials for fusion reactors that is potentially useful for creating alternative energy sources.
A Latvian as an exchange student in Latvia
The University of Latvia (UL) pays notable attention to strengthening its competitiveness and international collaboration; therefore it is offering exchange program studies for foreign students, and in recent years, their number has grown. It is interesting though that some students whose home country is Latvia and who are studying full time abroad at the UL partner universities come to study in Latvia on exchange programs. One of them is Kaspars Adijāns, who is studying history at the Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz (Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz) in Germany and is currently on an exchange program in his homeland Latvia. Kaspars has now decided to return to Latvia to finish his studies.
The new music bands of the University of Latvia have taken part in the contest ‘Hadrons 2013’
On May 16 at the club of the University of Latvia (UL) ‘Nabaklab’, the 8th new bands contest ‘Hadrons 2013’ (Hadron 2013) was held, where six bands competed for the opportunity to get studio recording sessions, perform at the freshmen event ‘Aristotelis 2013’ (Aristotle 2013), and participate in the festivals ‘Laba Daba’(Good Nature) and ‘Bildes’ (Pictures). This year, the band ‘Nē’ (No) from the UL Faculty of Geography and Earth Sciences became the winner, whereas the second place went to the band ‘The Citizens’ from the Faculty of Chemistry. The third place was taken by the band ‘Brutal Christ’ that represented the Faculty of Social Sciences and the Faculty of History and Philosophy. The stories about the creation of the bands are creative and interesting, as are their participants.
Prominent cognitive expertsperception researchers have given lectures at the University of Latvia
In the middle of May, the 9th International Symposium of Cognition, Logic and Communication ‘Perception and Concepts’, organized by the UL Centre for Cognitive Sciences and Semantics in collaboration with the Department of Philosophy of McMaster University, Canada, has taken place at the University of Latvia. The symposium’s participants have mainly focused on the issues regarding the relation between perception and concepts (knowledge structure) including such questions as whether the concepts that we acquire are related to our perceptual experience or does the perceptual experience depend on these concepts, as well as whether it is possible for the perception to exist without any concepts at all.
This year, the symposium has been attended by a record number of world-class scientists, among them such researchers of perception and concepts as Professor Edouard Machery, the University of Pittsburgh, USA, Professor Jesse Prinz, the City University of New York, Professor David Chalmers, the Australian National University and New York University, Professor Andy Clark, the University of Edinburgh, UK, Professor Robert Goldstone, the Indiana University Bloomington, and many others.
- <link eng general press almamater>Magazine "Alma Mater"
