Czechia

Czech Researchers Teaching Robots to Write a Stage Play

A play written entirely by artificial intelligence is expected to premiere next January. Researcher Rudolf Rosa of Charles University said his team is working together with Svanda Theater and the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague on the project, dubbed THEaiTRE. Rosa said the idea was suggested by entrepreneur Tomas Studenik as a means of celebrating the 100th anniversary of R.U.R., aka Rossum’s Universal Robots, a 1921 play by Karel and Josef Capek that is credited with originating the term “robot.” The main limiting factor at the moment is that the existing model has not yet been trained to produce performance-suitable scripts, so the plan is for researchers to “feed” the AI with plays for it to learn from. The model essentially takes a small chunk of existing text (in this case, Čapek’s original play) and then is “inspired” to create further lines, themes and ideas. “Tomas thought that this should be properly celebrated and came up with the idea of turning the story around: 100 years ago, a man wrote a theater play about robots; what if today, robots wrote a theater play about men?” Rosa said. He said the team is working with artificial intelligence models that were previously successful in generating pieces...

 by Prague Morning Aug 06, 2020

Czech Republic Sends Search Team to Help Find Survivors in Beirut

Czech Interior Minister Jan Hamacek says Lebanon has accepted an offer to send a team of 37 rescuers with sniffer dogs to Beirut.

 by Prague Morning Aug 05, 2020

Prague Doctors Break World Record After Patient Survives 143 Days on Artificial Lung

Czech doctors set a new world record: a patient with pulmonary hypertension kept successfully on the artificial lung for more than 143 days!

 by Prague Morning Aug 04, 2020

The Czech Republic Ranked 10th Best Country in the World to Raise a Family

A new study has ranked 35 countries, using six different categories, to discern which are the best for raising a family. The Czech Republic ranks 10th overall, behind Belgium, Austria and Germany. Where is the best place to raise a family? A new study by the travel and family journalism company Asher & Lyric has ranked 35 OECD countries on how good they are to raise families in. Their “Raising a Family Index” is based on six different categories: Safety, Happiness, Cost, Health, Education and Time. Each category is made up of five different criteria, with data taken from several internationally renowned sources. The Czech Republic ranks 10th overall, garnering high scores across all five categories. It ranked particularly highly for the safety level (A), while it reported its lowest score for happiness (D), recording one of the ranking’s lowest scores in that category. It scored B in all other fields. Mexico and the United States received the lowest rankings in the index—the only two countries to receive ‘F’ grades overall. The index is largely focused on the challenges faced by families in the US and focuses its analysis on what its key findings ‘mean for American families,’ but does include short analyses of...

 by Prague Morning Aug 04, 2020

Airbnb Publishes Cleaning Handbook for Hosts in the Czech Republic

Airbnb’s Enhanced Cleaning Protocol and a step-by-step guide cleaning guide are now available to hosts in the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Poland. Hosts in these countries can access the Enhanced Cleaning Protocol materials in their local language through the Resource Center,  including a Quick Start Guide and Cleaning Handbook with guidance on the use of personal protective equipment, how to clean every room in a home, what to sanitize, and what supplies to have on hand. In addition to cleaning guidelines, hosts need to comply with guidance from governments or health authorities in their local jurisdictions. “I learned about the introduction of the cleaning protocol from an e-mail sent directly by Airbnb. For me, not much has changed in my already established method of cleaning, with the exception of additional disinfection. My guests are provided with disinfectants and face masks. I also inform them about the current situation, eg about current obligations for wearing the masks.  When the guests come to us, I will welcome everyone to say that I apologize, but that I can’t shake their hand at this time, everyone immediately smiles that they understand this and thanks to that a good atmosphere of trust is established when guests see that I...

 by Prague Morning Aug 03, 2020

Ukraine Excludes the Czech Republic From COVID-19 Safe Country List

Ukraine put the Czech Republic on the list of countries with a high risk of COVID-19 infection, as people returning from the Czech Republic must undergo a 14-day-long quarantine.

 by Prague Morning Aug 03, 2020

The First Defenestration of Prague – 601 Years Ago

Throwing out of the window is a collective dehonestation and a dishonour of official authority. However, this act is called “defenestration” (from the Latin “de” – ie, from – and “fenestra” – or window) thanks to the Czech lands, where throwing dignitaries out of windows has become not only a symbol of dissatisfaction but also chaos and suffering for whole Europe. The first occurred on July 30, 1419, but its story began four years earlier when the church burned to death its beloved master Jan Hus. His thoughts did not die with him – they spread inexorably across the kingdom, gaining more and more support among the dissatisfied people. Czech King Wenceslaus IV had to join the disputes between Catholics and Hus’ supporters who demanded an altar sacrament of Utraquist. In response to the pressure of the Roman King Sigismund and the growing Hussite arrogance, he established anti-Hussite city council in the New Town. The Hussite priests had to leave the churches, their processions were forbidden, and their brothers were thrown into jail provocatively on the day of Jan Hus’ burning. The first Prague Defenestration was a reaction to the arrest of several radical Hussites by Prague City Hall because they were preaching about Communion in Both Kinds. During the early morning hours on July 30th,...

 by Prague Morning Jul 30, 2020

O2 Now Offers 100 GB of Data for CZK 300 per Month (With Some Conditions)

A mobile plan tends to be one of those things we just set and forget, at least until it’s time for a new phone. It shouldn’t be though. New deals and discounts hit the market every week and savvy shoppers playing the field are getting more for less. O2 has announced a new plan where you get 100GB of data for only CZK 300 per month. The offer associated with a prepaid card is more advantageous than data packages with the current FREE + tariffs plan, which have a maximum of 60 GB of data together with unlimited calls and SMS for CZK 1,249 per month. The prepaid card offers also significantly cheaper internet connection than special data tariffs for tablets and computers (the O2 Data + Stříbrný includes 30 GB of data for CZK 649 per month). Now the bad part: Internet data does not work abroad (not even in the EU). Other services are quite expensive. SMS costs CZK 2. The offer is limited. The card can only be purchased until the end of August 2020. Only three prepaid cards can be ordered in one time The data package is activated automatically, and cannot be switched off “manually”....

 by Prague Morning Jul 29, 2020

Czech Govt Introduces ‘COVID-19 Traffic Light System’ for Czech Regions

The overall epidemiological situation in the Czech Republic is progressing well, but in some areas, it is necessary to be careful, said Health Minister Adam Vojtěch. In order to combat an uptick in coronavirus cases in the country, Vojtěch presented the Czech regional traffic light rating system, which has four levels. The worst situation is still in Prague, the Moravian-Silesian region, and the Jihlava region. “There are four levels,” Vojtěch announced at a press conference. Zero-degree areas show where the risk of infection is minimal or zero. The first level is marked in green and means a sporadic occurrence of the disease but without community transmission. “The second degree is symbolized by a yellow color. These are areas where we are already monitoring a certain community transmission of the disease,” Vojtěch further explained. The last level, the third, will be shown on the map in red color. “These are areas in which we are monitoring the growing community transmission and the risk of infection is significantly higher,” said Vojtěch.     The director of the Institute of Health Information and Statistics, Ladislav Dušek, showed a picture of what the maps might look like. “The first publication of maps, which will also...

 by Prague Morning Jul 28, 2020

Czechs Drank Half Less Beer During Pandemic

The Czech brewing industry recorded a loss of over CZK 4.7 billion from March to May.

by Prague Morning Jul 28, 2020

The Postcard App by Česká Pošta. Do You Remember When You Last Sent a Postcard?

Do you remember when you last sent a postcard? For me it was last week when I was asked to send some to our relatives’ kids attending summer camp – they don’t use mobiles there. Luckily there was an app for that. I first considered a visit to Lokál, where they have a selection of free postcards, that they’ll also post for free if you drop them in their mailbox. However, the cards are mostly beer-related and aren’t really suitable for kids. I definitely didn’t want to go to a shop and/or post office. I found and downloaded the Pohlednice App by Česká pošta. The app is in English, lets you upload photos, write a message, add a map, address and send all for 29 Kč. After you choose ‘Create a Postcard’, you can choose the size Then you choose the layout. You can press the + button to upload a photo. You can also choose a border. Write the message and optionally include a map. After that, you can pay using a credit card. Confirmation is sent to your email address                 So if you have kids at camp, elderly relatives without...

 by Pavel F. Jul 28, 2020

Plzeň Creates an Experienced Temperature Map of the City

Knowing how its citizens experience temperature in the urban areas is at the heart of a new project in the Czech city of Plzeň. Finding out where citizens feel too hot or on the contrary – where they prefer to take cover from the high temperatures – this is the objective of the experienced temperature map of Plzeň (originally Pocitové teplotní mapy Plzně). In order to create its temperature map focusing on the experience of residents and visitors, Plzeň invites them to co-create it together. An anonymous questionnaire, containing three short parts is available on the website www.pocitovemapy.cz (in Czech only). Users of the online tool can simply indicate how they feel in terms of temperature and therefore create their own version of the map. To do this, they can pinpoint locations or entire areas in the Czech city where they do not feel comfortable. On the next step, they are invited to do the opposite – point the places where they do feel at ease in the summer. Questions about how often users visit these locations, for what kind of activity and for how long, must also be answered to complete the survey. Finally, users are invited to complete a...

 by Prague Morning Jul 27, 2020

  • Most Popular

    American Man Suspected of Racist Assault at Prague’s Želivského Stop

    Why October 28 Is a National Holiday in the Czech Republic

    Prague Tram Disruptions Will Affect Six Lines During Autumn School Break

Tell more about your business

Tell us about your.

Tell us about your.

Tell us about your.

Tell us about your.

Tell us about your.

Thank You, It`s All Good

We will come back to you within 24 hours with our proporsal

Tell us about your.

Search