Gerd Folkers Livres

In a university context, the term design is interpreted in very different ways. At ETH Zurich it ranges from the theoretical description of certain material properties to their experimental testing, including aircraft, robots, and the codes that control them. Design plays a major role in simulating human behavior, developing new learning and teaching systems, and planning the future of waste disposal. Indeed, one is tempted to say that the question about whether or not something qualifies as design – the issue of design or no design – ultimately comes down to the assessment of the researchers themselves.

Every day and perhaps even every hour, there’s a scientist somewhere in the world making the next scientific breakthrough. Indeed, scientific development cannot take place in a vacuum; rather it thrives in an environment that offers inspiration and the necessary framework. One such place is ETH Zurich; it has flourished in this role over the course of its more than 150-year history.

Kann man Tornadogeschwindigkeiten mit Hühnern messen? Waren Modelle von unfassbar schnell fliegenden Enten eigentlich Opiumgewichte? Was fängt man mit einem «Centi-Maître-d’Amour» an? Diese wichtigen Fragen des Lebens lassen sich klären. Sie helfen nachzudenken, was Messen eigentlich bedeutet und welche Zumutung es manchmal darstellt. Die Reise führt uns zu seltsamen Messgeräten: von der Seelenwaage des altägyptischen Totenbuchs bis zur modernen Normierung der Eidotterfarbe.