In the three short years of its existence the ESET Science Award has already gained a certain amount of international recognition, including the endorsement of one Nobel physics laureate and the direct involvement of another. Jonathan speaks with ESET’s Anton Zajac, the person most involved in establishing the award, about what motivated him and his colleagues to undertake this immense task, and how it all got started. Repeat: One of the ironies of scientific progress is the way in which new technologies can sometimes get in the way of each other. This phenomenon is clearly seen in the case of modern city lights causing a problem for astronomical researchers, the problem of ‘light pollution’. Jonathan speaks with František Kundracik, a light pollution researcher at the Physics, Maths and Informatics faculty of Bratislava’s Comenius University, about this problem and what he and his colleagues have been doing to help mitigate its impact.