Slovakia Today, English Language Current Affairs Programme from Slovak Radio

RSI's interviewed the ex-wife of Rudolf Vrba, one of the Holocaust survivors who reported on atrocities in Auschwitz, who died Oct 2, 2020, at the age of 92 in Great Britain. RSI correspondent Kamila Šebestová sending in piece of music so needed in the time of COVID-19 restrictions.

Following the news overview we will speak to a French author Lola Gruber, who is working on a book about the situation in Czechoslovakia during 1950s. Then we will meet hikers, who spend almost every weekend in the mountains. Every October they climb up the same hill: Choč. And in our sport news segment we will look back at the international football matches Slovakia played in the past week and hear from Erik Černák, recent Stanley Cup champion with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

The second annual ESET Science Award, which this week will go to one of five finalists doing scientific work in Slovakia, will be presented by the 2017 Nobel laureate for Physics. Jonathan McCormick speaks with the Science Award's main organiser Paulína Böhmerová just ahead of Wednesday's ceremony, about the achievements of these finalists and the many people involved in the serious work of honouring them. Last week it was announced that the 2020 Nobel Prize for Physics has gone to Roger Penrose, who is known for his work not only in physics but also in the philosophy of mind. In honour of his achievement we replay an interview he did for RSI last year on the question of: What is the human mind?

News and Topical issue. How realistic are the proposals concerning the reform of the healthcare system presented in the "A Modern and Succesful Slovakia" plan?

News and Topical Issue. In today’s show we are going to discuss the situation with hoaxes, fake news and disinformation in Slovakia with information security specialist Tomáš Kriššák. In the second part of today’s programming, the topic will get a little bit lighter since we are going to present you with the 8th round of the UNESCO competition. This time about the traditional Slovak flute called the fujara.

In this part of our series tracing the work of this significant rose breeder, we will present to you … the roses. Featuring Jana Salatova, garden designer, Ivana Sarvasova and Vladimir Jezovic, Arboretum Borová hora, Peter Hoťka, Arboretum Mlyňany - Slovak Academy of Sciences, Charles Quest-Ritson, historian and author of RHS Encyclopedia of roses and Erich Unmuth, Rosenkultivarium Baden.

Following the daily news bulletin we will speak on the show about the life and work of Marína Paulíny - an unknown Slovak diplomat and humanitarian worker, who died 75 years ago in a plane crash. The Slovak embassy in London recently refurbished her tombstone at the Brookwood cemetery near London. Then we will look on the problems Slovak elite sport faces during the the pandemic.

It is projected that in the not-too-distant future, a new type of computer technology called “quantum computing” will be so powerful that it will be able to break through much of our current internet security and thus gain access to our online accounts – including potentially email, social networking and bank accounts. Jonathan McCormick speaks with Daniel Nagaj at the Slovak Academy of Sciences, an expert in the field of quantum computing, about this new powerful technology, what kind of protections are being planned against such future attacks, and what we can do about it now. Repeat: Few appreciate the differences between the Slovak and North American cultures as well as Mark Mokry, who was born and raised in Canada to Slovak parents, remained in Canada for four years after marrying his Nitra-born wife in an elaborate Slovak wedding, and then 12 years ago moved his young family to Slovakia where they still live today. His 'passion for Slovak culture', as he calls it, does not seem to have diminished over the years.

News and Topical issue.What's the impact of information chaos regarding restrictive measures to slow-down the spread of the new coronavirus on people's trust in authorities?. How do Public Health Offices manage the current epidemic?

News and Topical Issue. In the first part of today’s programming, we are going to take a close look at the main topics that Slovak ministers plan to include in the Slovak Recovery Plan in order to be able to draw money from the Next Generation EU financial package that should help European countries recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.

And then, in the second part of today’s programming, we are going to discuss primary forests in Slovakia as well as a proposal to declare Slovak Primeval Nature Reserve that would provide Slovak primary forest with the highest level of protection.