Crystallography matters ... more!

This exhibition 'Kristallen verhelderd' aims at giving an overview of the history of crystallography (including a selected exhibit of minerals), introduce the work of Laue and the Braggs, present the pionieering work performed at Ghent University and show some recent applications of crystallography in solid state physics. 

The exhibition is aimed at both secondary schools, researchers and the general public. It is organized by the Museum of the History of Sciences at Ghent University, in collaboration with the Department of  Solid State Sciences and the Department of Geology and Soil Sciences.

To celebrate the UN International Year of Crystallography 2014, the association AMMS-InterESST Strasbourg (Association for Museology and Scientific Mediation - Strasbourg's Alumni network of the European Studies of Society Science, and Technology), with various collaborators, principally the Institute of Genetics and Molecular and Cellular Biology (IGBMC), have the honor to present the multi-axial project “La Cristallographie et nous - Crystallography in our life”.

The project discusses mainly about human health and proposes to discover the vast field of crystallography. Our goal: to celebrate the crystallography year as charted by the IYCr2014 program but also as a "traditional" science in the Strasbourg University and as a significant contribution to the scientific reputation of the city of Strasbourg and the region of Alsace. Our wish is to make this event a prelude to the International Year of Light in 2015.

The project includes: 

1. A travelling exhibition in Alsace called "La Cristallographie et Nous" (Crystallography in our life) during 2014 and 2015. The exhibition will first move on three of Strasbourg’s University campus: “Central Campus”, "Illkirch Campus", "Medicine Campus" and then will continue to travel in other Alsatian towns. It will start on the 2nd October 2014 at the Le Bel Institute, and will end in May 2015. The project focuses on three features: crystallography in our daily life, crystallography as a central tool for biology, medicine and pharmacology and crystallography and arts.
2. Labs tours in the new “Integrative Biology Center” located in Illkirch during the month of November 2014. Especially for this occasion, there will be a mini-exhibition in the building.
3. Tasting and prevention workshops called "Crystals in our dinner plates" focused on discovering crystals in our daily food will be proposed during the french national science festival, "Fete de la Science2014" on the 17, 18 and 19 October 2014. Elaborated in collaboration with the University Service of Medicine and Health Promotion (SUMPS) and the IGBMC, those workshops will present different crystals in our food and try to answer to these questions: Are they good for our health? What are the purpose of vitamins and minerals in our diet? How the researchers study these vitamins and their effects on our health? 
4. A publication about the project and the exhibition.

Dans le cadre de l’Année Internationale de la Cristallographie 2014 de l’ONU (IYCr2014), l’AMMS - InterESST Strasbourg (Association de Muséologie et Médiation Scientifique - Réseau Alumini du programme European Studies of Society, Science, and Technology de Strasbourg) en collaboration principale avec le Docteur Dino Moras de l’IGBMC (Institut de Génétique et de Biologie Moléculaire et Cellulaire) présentera le projet multiaxial sur la thématique de l’Homme et sa santé qui s’intitule « La cristallographie et nous » pour célébrer la cristallographie ainsi que son lien fort avec l’Université de Strasbourg et sa contribution au rayonnement scientifique de Strasbourg et de l’Alsace durant l’année universitaire 2014-2015 principalement sur le campus Central, le campus d’Illkirch et le campus de Médecine. L’accent sera mis sur le rôle de la cristallographie dans notre quotidien tout en appuyant sur son utilité en biologie, médecine et pharmacologie et en mettant en évidence ses liens vers d’autres domaines tels que l’art, les mathématiques, l’alimentation, ...

Ce projet comportera une exposition itinérante sur toute l’Alsace durant l’année 2014–2015, des visites de laboratoires de recherche du nouveau Centre de Biologie Intégrative à Illkirch et des ateliers de dégustation et de prévention axés sur la découverte pendant la Fête de la Science 2014. 

L’exposition « La cristallographie et nous ». Elle va itinérer dans un premier temps sur les campus strasbourgeois (central, médecine, Illkirch) et ensuite se déplacera dans les agglomérations alsaciennes. Elle commencera à partir du 2 octobre 2014 à l'Institut Le Bel, et prendra fin en mai 2015. Notre volonté est qu’elle soit aussi une introduction à l’Année Internationale de la Lumière en 2015.

In keeping with our desire to continue many of the initiatives undertaken this past year, the IUCr have decided to hold an "IYCr legacy" conference in lieu of a "Closing" ceremony for the International Year of Crystallography. This conference is aimed at reviewing all the activities associated with IYCr - all that has been (and is being) done, what was successful, what was not so successful, etc. - and discussing how to transform the activities into long-term sustainable actions.

The conference, entitled "Crystallography for the next generation: the legacy of IYCr", will focus on the achievements and problems encountered during IYCr2014 in order to determine which initiatives will be worth transforming into sustainable long-term actions with benefits for the crystallographic community. Therefore, sessions will be scheduled about:

• OpenLabs (including the IUCr initiative in Africa) for 2015 and beyond, with contributions from University rectors, professors and students who attended them and from the companies that partnered the initiative during IYCr2014;
• outcomes of the Summit meetings, to see what is going on in the three targeted regions and what to do next;
• the development of the crystallographic community, where representatives of the new countries that are starting activities in the field will be invited to describe their local situations and possibilities for international cooperation, in conjunction with the IUCr Regional Associates (ACA, AsCA, ECA, LACA);
• joint programmes between the IUCr and the large-scale facilities (e.g. Cheiron school, agreements for future partnerships, SESAME);
• crystallographic education programmes (activities for schoolchildren; new educational resources; links to educational activities of related disciplines; school and academic curricula);
• crystallography and industry (connections; opportunities for the community);
• IUCr journals and other activities of the Union (recent developments and new policies).