Science x Porcelain

Our university is a great treasure trove of interesting stories. Every plate and every cup from the collection Science x Porcelain narrates such a story. Many of these stories include scientific patterns or graphics. We used those patterns to design a series of beautiful gifts made out of porcelain. This series is available at the of our university.

 

Twee bekers uit de serie wetenschap x porselein

Cor Unum

The porcelain is made by , a ceramics studio in the Netherlands with a legacy of over 65 years. Cor Unum takes social and cultural responsibility by working with a team of professionals, students, people with a distance to the labour market, designers and volunteers.

 

De makers van het porselein in de werkplaats in 's- Hertogenbosch
The makers in their studio in 's-Hertogenbosch

A growing collection

The current collection consists of a series of four patterns: about simulation software, the viewing behaviour of children, the core of the Earth and getting rid of plastic in our oceans. Would you like to immortalise another research on porcelain? Please contact us.

 

Beeld van een keuken met de borden en bekers.
The current collection consists of four different cups and plates

 

#1 About people鈥檚 behaviour in crowds

porcelain - About people's behaviour in crowds

Een kop en bord uit de collectie wetenschap x porselein
The illustration shows one frame of an animation that simulates crowds

What happens when a large number of people gather in one specific place? Computer science researchers at Utrecht 木瓜福利影视 develop path planning and crowd simulation software that can run several scenarios. This helps city governments with planning big events, even in the city centre. For instance, by ensuring one-way traffic at some places.

Crowd simulation & the one-and-a-half metre

 

 

 

#2 About how children scan faces

porcelain - About how children scan faces

Een bord en kopje uit de collectie wetenschap x porselein
The illustration shows how a child scans a face with an anxious expression

Where and how long do children look on their parent鈥檚 face when they are talking or discussing? And can children鈥檚 viewing patterns predict how social they are? Researchers at Utrecht 木瓜福利影视 set up eye tracking experiments to collect data. The results can potentially be used to improve communication between parent and child, but also for the development of social robots.

About looking while listening

 

 

 

#3 About the core of our planet

porcelain - About the core of our planet

Een bord en kopje uit de collectie wetenschap x porselein
The illustration shows the curve of a diagram which proves that the inner core of our planet is solid

Without drilling a very deep hole, one researcher at Utrecht 木瓜福利影视 proved the theory that the Earth has a solid core. In fact, it is a ball with the size a little smaller than the moon. The discovery of the J-wave in the Flores Sea was the proof. This research can tell us something about the evolution of the magnetic field, which is essential for life on Earth.

How we teach children about this

 

 

 

#4 About cleaning up plastic in the oceans

porcelain - About cleaning up plastic in the oceans

Een bord en kopje uit de collectie wetenschap x porselein
The illustration shows the route of drifters that are carried along by the ocean current

How do we clean up the plastic that floats around in our oceans as effectively as possible? To answer this question, scientists at Utrecht 木瓜福利影视 are investigating how plastic waste moves through our oceans. This knowledge will be used to make our oceans plastic-free, starting with the Galapagos Islands.

7 myths about the plastic soup
Making the Galapagos Islands plastic-free again

 

Point of sale

All plates and cups can be ordered separately on the website of the .