Katalin Balázsi facts for kids
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Katalin Balázsi (born in 1978) is a scientist from Hungary who studies materials. She leads a team that works with very thin layers of materials at a big research center. She also used to be the president of a group that helps women in science in Hungary.
Growing Up and School
Katalin Balázsi was born in 1978 in a town called Šahy in Slovakia. When she was in elementary school, she was very good at math. She even competed for her school in math contests.
For high school, her father signed her up for a school where she learned to be an electrician. There were only four girls in her class, and 32 boys! She worked hard and finished at the very top of her class.
Katalin went to the Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava for her college degrees. In 2000, she earned her first degree in Electromaterials Engineering. Then, in 2002, she got her master's degree in materials science. This is a field where scientists study what things are made of and how they behave.
While she was working on her master's degree, Katalin also worked as a technician at the Slovak Academy of Sciences. Later, she became a researcher there. She used a special microscope called a transmission electron microscope to look at tiny structures of nanomaterials. These are materials that are incredibly small. In 2005, she earned her highest degree, a doctorate, in materials science. The Academy even called her the "Young Researcher" because of her great work.
Her Work as a Scientist
In 2006, Katalin Balázsi started working as a researcher at the Institute of Technical Physics and Materials Science in Hungary. This institute is part of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. By 2012, she became a senior scientist there. Besides using electron microscopes, Katalin has also worked on making different kinds of ceramic materials. Ceramics are things like pottery, bricks, or even parts used in electronics.
Katalin and nine other female scientists started the Association of Hungarian Women in Science in 2008. They wanted to help more women get involved in science in Hungary. This group even won an award in 2018 for being innovative in science. Katalin was the president of this association from 2018 to 2021. She also received a special medal in 2021 for promoting diversity in science.
In 2021, she became one of the few Hungarian scientists to be a fellow of the European Ceramic Society. She is also on the board of a group called the European Platform of Women Scientists. This group helps women scientists across Europe. She has also been a leader in other science groups in Hungary.
Her Family
Katalin Balázsi is married to another scientist named Csaba Balázsi. They have two sons. Besides speaking Hungarian, she also knows Slovak, Czech, and English.
