The Inaugural Lecture of Professor Jason Reese, Regius Professor
of Engineering was held at 5.30pm on Wednesday, 30th May 2018 in the
Gordon Aikman Lecture Theatre (formerly known as the George Square
Lecture Theatre).
"A World in a Grain of Sand"
Imagine
sifting salt molecules from seawater, to provide drinking water in
countries affected by climate change. Or treating vehicle surfaces to
control the air or water flow and reduce fuel costs and carbon dioxide
emissions. There are multiple technological areas where leveraging the
interactions between the smallest constituents, right down to molecules,
would open up exciting opportunities.
Designing these types of
multi-scale systems is a grand challenge in science and engineering for
the 21st century. A fundamental problem is that current design tools do
not account for the physics that determines how these horizon
technologies behave. So we cannot cycle through digital prototypes,
assessing their performance, to identify the best ones to manufacture.
In
this lecture I will describe recent advances in engineering analysis -
across some 8 orders of magnitude in space, and 10 orders in time -
which mean that ideas and designs for new products and processes can
start being tested. This new kind of simulation-driven design promises
to be a productive enabler of emerging technologies, propelling the UK
to the cutting edge of multi-scale innovation.
Further Information