The Materials Week has begun
Almost 60 activities – lectures, workshops, shows and exhibitions – this is what the Materials Week at the Silesian University of Technology promises. The event is carried out as part of the European City of Science Katowice 2024.
This is the last week of the celebrations of Science Week at the European City of Science. From December 16th to 22nd a Materials Week will be taking place. During the event, issues related to broadly understood materials, not only in engineering and construction, will be presented.
“During this event, we want to show that we come into contact with materials on a daily basis, both in large engineering structures and in everyday life. Regardless of whether we are talking about plastics, ceramics, composites, metals and alloys, and textiles, we are all dealing with materials on a daily basis” - said Prof. Krzysztof Nowacki, Dean of the Faculty of Materials Engineering.
The Week of Materials is also an opportunity to present the potential and educational offer of the Faculty.
- “We are in the centre of the Metropolis, we want to show that the Silesian University of Technology is a very important point on the map of Katowice. Events such as the Materials Week are also an opportunity to present our educational offer related to materials engineering” – added the Dean.
The week of materials was inaugurated by the Open Labour and Employers' Exchange at the Faculty of Materials Engineering. During the event, almost 20 companies from the materials industry prepared their offers.
“We started the event with the Day with an Employer, i.e. a large labour exchange, addressed mainly to students. There will also be lectures and workshops as well as advice on CV writing or interview training “– said Dr Eng. Sandra Grabowska, Vice-Dean for Infrastructure and Organization of the Faculty of Materials Engineering.
During the Materials Week, the issues related to ecology, sustainability and consumption will also be discussed. “We want to show not only the wide spectrum of materials we deal with, but also pay attention to social responsibility in this area and to the fact that we have a big impact on what happens to them. Currently, scientists are creating materials in order to ensure that they do not destroy the environment and are suitable for re-use – adds the Vice-Dean.
On the first day of the Materials Week there was also an online lecture entitled “Materials for the City of the future,” during which Dr Hab. Eng. Magdalena Jabłońska-Czapla, Prof. IPIŚ, raised the issues of challenges, future, and ecological risk of photovoltaics as an alternative energy in smart cities in Poland.
In the afternoon, at the railway station in Bytom, a workshop entitled “Wiklina - material with soul” was held. The participants learned the basic techniques of wicker weaving and the history of this craft.
Until the end of the week, you can visit the exhibition of art works at the Academy of Fine Arts in Katowice entitled “BioCraftLab.” The exhibition presents an experimental approach to the design of materials.
- “We show here various types of natural raw materials and how they can potentially be used in design - said Martyna Piątek, lecturer at the Academy of Fine Arts. - Students were doing their own experiments with a given material, such as making a massager from beeswax by adding Himalayan salt or biomaterials from banana or topcoat” - added the lecturer.
The week of materials will last until December 22nd , for more information and registration visit: https://program.miastonauki.pl/tydzien-materialow/.
