Geophysical Institute of the ASCR

INHIGEO Symposium, Prague, July 2-11, 2005
In July 02 - 11 th , 2005, an annual symposium of the International Commission on the History of
Geological Sciences (INHIGEO) was held in Prague and in Valtice in south Moravia under the
auspices and with the support of the Geophysical Institute.
The symposium entitled ‘History of Geophysics’ was focused on the origin and development of
individual geophysical sub-disciplines. During three days of oral and poster presentations
42 participants from 14 countries listened to 26 communications in total. Seven of the principal
presentations have been selected for publication in a special issue of the Earth Science History (ESH)
entitled ‘History of Geophysics’, to appear in 2006. In this collection, a modern definition of
geophysics in relation to the present geology will be given, and historical advancement of the main
geophysical disciplines will be expounded.
According to the INHIGEO symposia tradition seven geophysical and geological excursions
throughout the Czech Republic were organized during the meeting. Those were a two day excursion to
the earthquake-swarm region in the west and northwest of Bohemia and six single day excursions,
leading specifically to the Bohemian Cretaceous Basin (the Central Bohemian Uplands), to the Lower
Paleozoic of Bohemia (Barrandian), to the medieval silver mining town of Kutná Hora, to the Central
Moravian Karst, with the deepest gorge in the Czech Republic, Macocha (138.5 metres), to the South
Moravian Karst and world-known archeological sites (Věstonice), as well as to the famous caves of
the Czech Karst in the surroundings of the town of Beroun in Central Bohemia.
The symposium was a financially self-supporting event. The lecture part of the symposium was held
in the campus of the Geophysical Institute, in the building of the Institute of the Physics of the
Atmosphere AS CR.
The Symposium Local Organizing Committee (LOC), Jan Kozák, Ondřej Jäger, Josef Haubelt and
Michal Pondělíček wish to express their cordial thanks and appreciation to the directors of both the
Institutes, Aleš Špičák and Jan Laštovička, for their much welcome support and assistance.
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