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Philosophers often say that to find the truth one must look below the surface.
But for scientists and engineers in a broad range of fields, the surfaces of
objects can reveal a wealth of useful information, from the function of ancient
stone tools, to the best temperature to serve chocolate, to the causes of excessive
wear on machine parts, to the identity of an art forger, to the best surface
topography for friction, adhesion, or cleaning.
Practitioners of surface metrology, the study of the texture or roughness of
surfaces, will gather at Worcester
Polytechnic Institute (WPI) between Oct. 26 and 28, 2009, for the inaugural
International Conference on Surface Metrology. This is the first scientific
gathering highlighting the use of surface metrology in fields as diverse as
anthropology, art conservation, biology and biomedicine, chemistry, engineering,
food science, geology, manufacturing, and physics. Designed for conservationists,
designers, engineers, researchers, scientists, technicians, and other interested
in surface roughness and surface metrology and applications at any level and
in any field, the symposium will promote the exchange of ideas on surface metrology
between people with a diverse set of applications, provide educational opportunities
at all levels of surface metrology, and disseminate advances and insights in
surface metrology fundamentals, methods, equipment, software, and applications.
The symposium is being organized by Christopher Brown, professor of mechanical
engineering at WPI and director of the university's Surface Metrology Laboratory,
W. James Stemp, assistant professor of anthropology and director of the Surface
Metrology and Archaeological Research Technologies Project at Keene State College,
and Patrick Ravines, senior research fellow and project manager at the George
Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film. In addition to technical
sessions, the conference will feature exhibitions of surface metrology equipment,
including a confocal microscopy made by Olympus, and a number of tutorials on
surface metrology techniques and applications by representatives of the National
Institute of Standards and Technology, DigitalSurf in France, Ecole Central
de Lyons, the University of North Carolina, Rutgers University, the University
of Huddersfield in the UK, and WPI.
Posted September 1st, 2009
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