Fanny Marcon

Models to reproduce, models for designing, researching or teaching... In their variety and diversity, models can create bridges between fields of knowledge, between cultures, between theories and reality, between teachers and students.

Funded by the University of Padua's call that encourages projects for the development of Third Mission and Open Science activities, the project "Models. A journey through disciplines and cultures" has been proposed by the Department of Physics and Astronomy, in collaboration with the Department of Industrial Engineering, the Department of Information Engineering, and the University Centre for Museums, with the support of numerous external partners.

The project aims to place "Models" at the centre as tools for research, learning, communication and inclusion, from the past to the present day. In particular, it envisages the realisation of:

i) a temporary exhibition, "Models. Knowledge in three dimensions", which highlights little-known aspects of the University of Padua's history;

ii) the writing and staging of a theatrical performance "Caravanseraglio", centred on the astrolabe, a model of the Ptolemaic universe and symbol of cultural exchange through time;

iii) a series of seminars: "From model to application", and

iv) the creation of records for PHAIDRA not only on the models displayed in the temporary exhibition, but also on many other models from the various collections of the University of Padua.