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Computer generated human-like images that can talk are nothing extraordinary these days, but you would struggle to find one that can pronounce Czech words. Czech scientists have recently developed a synthetic human face that can pull off all the tongue-twisters of the Czech language and move his face accordingly. In today's Czech Science we meet "Chatter", as the image has been christened, and find out about the uses of such a device.

With Christmas just around the corner, it may be good that the carp Czechs are so fond of usually don't come from rivers. Scientists and environmentalists have been examining whether pollutants in the country's rivers are affecting the fish that make their way onto Czech tables. Although the findings in two recent studies are not alarming, they may give fish-eaters food for thought.

The "Czech Brain" prizes have been awarded in Prague to outstanding Czech scientists and researchers. The awards were founded three years ago with the goal of drawing the public's attention to research and development and to try and raise the prestige of scientific work in society.

For thousands of years, humans and animals have been communicating in various ways but it wasn't until much more recently that interspecies communication became a focus of scientific research. The team at the Laboratory of Interspecies Communication in Prague are trying to prove that parrots don't always talk parrot fashion.

"We are not able to define exactly what life is but we know for sure that there must have been water at its origin," - those are the first words of an unusual film documentary that was recently presented by its authors at the Czech Academy of Sciences. The film proves that you don't need expensive scuba-diving equipment to be able to see dramatic underwater scenes. It shows that the wildlife in a humble puddle in a South Bohemian forest can be just exciting.

Computers are an essential part of many people's lives these days but there are many who are unable to use their hands to operate a computer mouse and keyboard. People with disabilities improvise with various methods, such as pressing the keys with a pencil held in their mouth. Scientists around the world have been trying to develop instruments that could translate the movements of one's eye to control a computer but the fruits of the research have always been too big, clumsy and expensive. Now a team from the Czech Technical University in Prague

The Czech Republic's butterflies have gone down a tough road. Scientists say about half of their species are endangered and 18 species have gone extinct over the past century. The work of the leading butterfly researcher at the Institute of Entomology in South Bohemia has shown looming trouble for some butterflies but also signs of hope in an unlikely place.

In today's Czech Science, we spoke to one of many Czech scientists who turn to the arts in their spare time, but never really stray far from their microscopes. Jaromir Plasek's photographs are extreme close-ups of very small things.

Passers-by would never guess what lies inside this inconspicuous two-storey building in a quiet north Prague suburb. The simple concrete construction houses one of the largest lasers in Europe. In fact, it is the most powerful radiation source ever developed in laboratory conditions. Its output amounts to four times all the street lights in Prague shining out from the tip of a needle. As part of an EU programme, the unique centre invites researchers from across Europe to come here and carry out their projects.

A new anti-HIV drug has recently been approved in the United States. One of its two components was developed by Czech scientists, who - as well as the other inventors - have agreed to give up their royalty rights on sales in parts of the world where HIV/AIDS has hit hardest.