A Ming Dynasty porcelain vase dated to 1403–1424

Fire test furnace insulated with firebrick and ceramic fibre insulation.

Fixed partial denture, or "bridge"

A ceramic is an inorganic, nonmetallic solid prepared by the action of heat and subsequent cooling.^[1] Ceramic materials may have a crystalline or partly crystalline structure, or may be amorphous (e.g., a glass). Because most common ceramics are crystalline, the definition of ceramic is often restricted to inorganic crystalline materials, as opposed to the noncrystalline glasses.

The earliest ceramics were pottery^{[citation needed]} objects or 27,000 year old figurines made from clay, either by itself or mixed with other materials, hardened in fire. Later ceramics were glazed and fired to create a colored, smooth surface. Ceramics now include domestic, industrial and building products and art objects. In the 20th century, new ceramic materials were developed for use in advanced ceramic engineering; for example, in semiconductors.

The word "ceramic" comes from the Greek word κεραμικός (keramikos), "of pottery" or "for pottery",^[2] from κέραμος (keramos), "potter's clay, tile, pottery".^[3] The earliest mention of the root "ceram-" is the Mycenaean Greek ke-ra-me-we, "workers of ceramics", written in Linear b syllabic script.^[4] "Ceramic" may be used as an adjective describing a material, product or process; or as a singular noun, or, more commonly, as a plural noun, "ceramics".^[5]

Types of ceramic products[link]

For convenience, ceramic products are usually divided into four sectors; these are shown below with some examples:

• Structural, including bricks, pipes, floor and roof tiles
• Refractories, such as kiln linings, gas fire radiants, steel and glass making crucibles
• Whitewares, including tableware, cookware, wall tiles, pottery products and sanitary ware
• Technical, is also known as engineering, advanced, special, and in Japan, fine ceramics. Such items include tiles used in the Space Shuttle program, gas burner nozzles, ballistic protection, nuclear fuel uranium oxide pellets, biomedical implants, coatings of jet engine turbine blades, ceramic disk brake, missile nose cones, bearing (mechanical). Frequently, the raw materials do not include clays.^[6]

Examples of whiteware ceramics[link]

• Earthenware, which is often made from clay, quartz and feldspar.
• Stoneware
• Porcelain, which is often made from kaolin
• Bone china

Classification of technical ceramics[link]

Technical ceramics can also be classified into three distinct material categories:

• Oxides: alumina, beryllia, ceria, zirconia
• Nonoxides: carbide, boride, nitride, silicide
• Composite materials: particulate reinforced, fiber reinforced, combinations of oxides and nonoxides.

Each one of these classes can develop unique material properties because ceramics tend to be crystalline.

Other applications of ceramics[link]

• Knife blades: the blade of a ceramic knife will stay sharp for much longer than that of a steel knife, although it is more brittle and can be snapped by dropping it on a hard surface.

• Vehicle ceramic brake discs are resistant to abrasion at high temperatures.

• Advanced composite ceramic and metal matrices have been designed for most modern armoured fighting vehicles because they offer superior penetrating resistance against shaped charges such as high explosive antitank (HEAT) rounds and kinetic energy penetrators.

• Ceramics such as alumina and boron carbide have been used in ballistic armored vests to repel large-caliber rifle fire. Such plates are known commonly as small arms protective inserts (SAPIs). Similar material is used to protect cockpits of some military airplanes, because of the low weight of the material.

• Ceramic balls can be used to replace steel in ball bearings. Their higher hardness means they are much less susceptible to wear and can offer more than triple lifetimes. They also deform less under load, meaning they have less contact with the bearing retainer walls and can roll faster. In very high speed applications, heat from friction during rolling can cause problems for metal bearings, which are reduced by the use of ceramics. Ceramics are also more chemically resistant and can be used in wet environments where steel bearings would rust. In some cases, their electricity-insulating properties may also be valuable in bearings. The two major drawbacks to using ceramics are a significantly higher cost and susceptibility to damage under shock loads.

• In the early 1980s, Toyota researched production of an adiabatic engine using ceramic components in the hot gas area. The ceramics would have allowed temperatures of over 3000°F (1650°C). The expected advantages would have lighter materials, no or reduced cooling system, and hence a major weight reduction. The expected increase of fuel efficiency of the engine (caused by the higher temperature, as shown by Carnot's theorem) could not be verified experimentally; it was found that the heat transfer on the hot ceramic cylinder walls is higher than the transfer to a cooler metal wall. Obviously the cooler gas film on the metal surface works as a thermal insulator. Thus, despite all of these desirable properties, such engines have not succeeded in production because of costs for the ceramic components and the limited advantages. (Small imperfections in the ceramic material with its low fracture toughness lead to cracks, which can lead to potentially dangerous equipment failure.) Such engines are possible in laboratory settings, but mass production is not feasible with current technology.^{[citation needed]}

• Work is being done in developing ceramic parts for gas turbine engines. Currently, even blades made of advanced metal alloys used in the engines' hot section require cooling and careful limiting of operating temperatures. Turbine engines made with ceramics could operate more efficiently, giving aircraft greater range and payload for a set amount of fuel.

• Recent advances have been made in ceramics which include bioceramics, such as dental implants and synthetic bones. Hydroxyapatite, the natural mineral component of bone, has been made synthetically from a number of biological and chemical sources and can be formed into ceramic materials. Orthopedic implants coated with these materials bond readily to bone and other tissues in the body without rejection or inflammatory reactions so are of great interest for gene delivery and tissue engineering scaffolds. Most hydroxyapatite ceramics are very porous and lack mechanical strength, and are used to coat metal orthopedic devices to aid in forming a bond to bone or as bone fillers. They are also used as fillers for orthopedic plastic screws to aid in reducing the inflammation and increase absorption of these plastic materials. Work is being done to make strong, fully dense nano crystalline hydroxyapatite ceramic materials for orthopedic weight bearing devices, replacing foreign metal and plastic orthopedic materials with a synthetic, but naturally occurring, bone mineral. Ultimately, these ceramic materials may be used as bone replacements or with the incorporation of protein collagens, synthetic bones.

• High-tech ceramic is used in watchmaking for producing watch cases. The material is valued by watchmakers for its light weight, scratch resistance, durability and smooth touch. IWC is one of the brands that initiated the use of ceramic in watchmaking. The case of the IWC 2007 Top Gun edition of the Pilot's Watch double chronograph is crafted in black ceramic.^[7]

Types of ceramic materials[link]

A low magnification SEM micrograph of an advanced ceramic material. The properties of ceramics make fracturing an important inspection method.

A ceramic material is an inorganic, non-metallic, often crystalline oxide, nitride or carbide material. Some elements, such as carbon or silicon, may be considered ceramics. Ceramic materials are brittle, hard, strong in compression, weak in shearing and tension. They withstand chemical erosion that occurs in other materials subjected to acidic or caustic environments. Ceramics generally can withstand very high temperatures, such as temperatures that range from 1,000 °C to 1,600 °C (1,800 °F to 3,000 °F). A glass is often not understood as a ceramic because of its amorphous (noncrystalline) character. However, glass making involves several steps of the ceramic process and its mechanical properties are similar to ceramic materials.

Traditional ceramic raw materials include clay minerals such as kaolinite, whereas more recent materials include aluminium oxide, more commonly known as alumina. The modern ceramic materials, which are classified as advanced ceramics, include silicon carbide and tungsten carbide. Both are valued for their abrasion resistance, and hence find use in applications such as the wear plates of crushing equipment in mining operations. Advanced ceramics are also used in the medicine, electrical and electronics industries.

Crystalline ceramics[link]

Crystalline ceramic materials are not amenable to a great range of processing. Methods for dealing with them tend to fall into one of two categories – either make the ceramic in the desired shape, by reaction in situ, or by "forming" powders into the desired shape, and then sintering to form a solid body. Ceramic forming techniques include shaping by hand (sometimes including a rotation process called "throwing"), slip casting, tape casting (used for making very thin ceramic capacitors, e.g.), injection molding, dry pressing, and other variations. Details of these processes are described in the two books listed below. A few methods use a hybrid between the two approaches.

Noncrystalline ceramics[link]

Noncrystalline ceramics, being glasses, tend to be formed from melts. The glass is shaped when either fully molten, by casting, or when in a state of toffee-like viscosity, by methods such as blowing to a mold. If later heat treatments cause this glass to become partly crystalline, the resulting material is known as a glass-ceramic, widely used as cooktop.

Ceramics in Archaeology[link]

Ceramic artifacts are an important role in archaeology for understanding the culture, technology and behavior of peoples of the past. They are among the most common artifacts to be found at an archaeological site, generally in the form of small fragments of broken pottery called sherds. Processing of collected shreds can be consistent with two main types of analysis: technical and traditional.^[8]

Traditional analysis involves sorting ceramic artifacts, shreds and larger fragments into specific types based on style, composition, manufacturing, and morphology. By creating these typologies it is possible to distinguish between different cultural styles, the purpose of the ceramic and technological state of the people among other conclusions.^[9]In addition, by looking at stylistic changes of ceramics over time is it possible to separate (seriate) the ceramics into distinct diagnostic groups (assemblages). A comparison of ceramic artifacts with known dated assemblages allows for a chronological assignment of these pieces.^[10]

The technical approach to ceramic analysis involves a finer examination of the composition of ceramic artifacts and sherds to determine the source of the material and through this the possible manufacturing site. Two main areas to examine in this process are the clay composition and the temper used in the ceramics manufacture process. Temper is a material added to the clay which aids in the heating and expansion process of firing to produce better quality ceramics. Types of temper include shell pieces, granite fragments, and ground sherd pieces called grog. Temper is usually identified a microscopy of the temper material. Clay identification is determined by a process of refiring the clay and assigning a color to it using Munsell Soil Color notation. By identifying both the clay and temper composition and geographically locating a region where both are known to occur a material source assignment can be made. From the source assignment of the artifact further investigations can be made into the site of manufacture.^[11]

See also[link]

• Ceramic materials
• Ceramic engineering
• Ceramic Matrix Composite
• Ceramic art
• Pottery
• Potter's wheel

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Ceramics

• How pottery is made
• Ceramic Whistles
• How sanitaryware is made
• World renowned ceramics collections at Stoke-on-Trent Museum Click on Quick Links in the right-hand column to view examples.
• The Gardiner Museum – The only museum in Canada entirely devoted to ceramics
• Introduction, Scientific Principles, Properties and Processing of Ceramics
• Advanced Ceramics – The Evolution, Classification, Properties, Production, Firing, Finishing and Design of Advanced Ceramics
• Cerame-Unie, aisbl – The European Ceramic Industry Association

This article may contain wording that merely promotes the subject without imparting verifiable information. Please remove or replace such wording, unless you can cite independent sources that support the characterization. (May 2010)

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (January 2008)

Paolo Soleri (born June 21, 1919^[1] ) is an Italian architect. He established Arcosanti and the educational Cosanti Foundation. Soleri is a lecturer in the College of Architecture at Arizona State University and a National Design Award recipient in 2006.

Early life[link]

Soleri was born in Turin, Italy. He was awarded his "laurea" (PhD degree with highest honors) in architecture from the Politecnico di Torino in 1946. He visited the United States in December 1946 and spent a year and a half in fellowship with Frank Lloyd Wright at Taliesin West in Arizona, and at Taliesin in Spring Green, Wisconsin. During this time, he gained international recognition for a bridge design displayed at the Museum of Modern Art.

Soleri returned to Italy in 1950 where he was commissioned to build a large ceramics factory, "Ceramica Artistica Solimene" in Vietri on the Amalfi coast.^[2] The ceramics industry processes he became familiar with during its construction led to his award-winning designs and production of ceramic and bronze windbells and siltcast architectural structures. For over 40 years, proceeds from sales of the windbells have provided funds for construction to test his theoretical work. Ceramic and bronze bells are still produced and sold at Arcosanti and Cosanti in Arizona.

In 1956 he settled in Scottsdale, Arizona, with his late wife, Colly, and their two daughters. Dr. and Mrs. Soleri made a life-long commitment to research and experimentation in urban planning, establishing the Cosanti Foundation, a non-profit educational foundation. Soleri's philosophy and works have been strongly influenced by the Jesuit paleontologist and philosopher Pierre Teilhard de Chardin.

Arcosanti[link]

The Cosanti Foundation's major project is Arcosanti, a community planned for 5,000 people, designed by Soleri; Arcosanti has been in construction since 1970. Located near Cordes Junction, about 70 miles (110 km) north of Phoenix and visible from Interstate I-17 in central Arizona, the project intends to provide a model demonstrating Soleri's concept of "Arcology", architecture coherent with ecology. Arcology is envisioned by Soleri as a hyperdense city, designed to maximize human interaction; it should maximize access to shared, cost-effective infrastructural services, conserve water and reduce sewage; minimize the use of energy, raw materials and land; reduce waste and environmental pollution; and allow interaction with the surrounding natural environment. Arcosanti is a prototype of a desert arcology. Soleri's other arcology designs envisioned sites such as the ocean (Nova Noah), et al. (see: Arcology: City in the Image of Man).

Since 1970, well over 6000 people have participated in Arcosanti's construction. Their international affiliation group is called the Arcosanti Alumni Network. As of 2010, construction is underway to complete Arcosanti's Greenhouse Apron.

Other achievements[link]

The International Architecture Symposium "Mensch und Raum" (Man and Space) at the Vienna University of Technology (Technische Universität Wien) in 1984 received international attention. Paolo Soleri participated, among others: Justus Dahinden, Dennis Sharp, Bruno Zevi, Jorge Glusberg, Otto Kapfinger, Frei Otto, Pierre Vago, Ernst Gisel, Ionel Schein.

Soleri is a distinguished lecturer in the College of Architecture at Arizona State University and a member of the Lindisfarne Association.

In 1966, Paolo Soleri began working on the design for the Paolo Soleri Amphitheater in Santa Fe, New Mexico. It was built on the campus of the Santa Fe Indian School using large silt cast forms. The amphitheater is owned by the nineteen Native American Pueblos of New Mexico and is therefore not protected by local or state preservation laws.^[3]

A landmark exhibition, "The Architectural Visions of Paolo Soleri," organized in 1970 by the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington, DC, traveled extensively in the U.S. and Canada, breaking records for attendance. "Two Suns Arcology, A Concept for Future Cities" opened in 1976 at the Xerox Square Center in Rochester, New York. In 1989 "Paolo Soleri Habitats: Ecologic Minutiae," and exhibition of arcologies, space habitats and bridges, was presented at the New York Academy of Sciences. More recently, "Soleri's Cities, Architecture for the Planet Earth and Beyond" was featured at the Scottsdale Center for the Arts in Scottsdale, AZ. A Soleri bell appears in the film What the Bleep Do We Know? His work has been exhibited worldwide.

The Paolo Soleri Archives, the collection of all of Soleri's art and letters, is located at Arcosanti. The Soleri Archives is managed by Sue Kiersch under the direction of Cosanti Board Trustee Director of Special Projects Tomiaki Tamura, who resides at Arcosanti.

Soleri was interviewed in the 2007 environmental documentary "The 11th Hour (film)".

December 10, 2010 - Completion of Soleri Bridge and Plaza commissioned by Scottsdale Public Art. The 130-foot (40 m) pedestrian bridge, based on Paolo Soleri's design, is located on the South Bank of the Arizona Canal and connects newly developed retail area Scottsdale Waterfront with Old Town Scottsdale. The bridge is incorporated into a 22,000 sq ft (2,000 m²) plaza including silt cast artwork and a large bell assembly, The Goldwater Bell, also designed by Paolo Soleri.

Awards[link]

Soleri has received fellowships from the Graham Foundation and from the Guggenheim Foundation (1964, Architecture, Planning, & Design^[4]).
He has been awarded three honorary doctorates and several awards from design groups worldwide:

• 1963 - American Institute of Architects Gold Medal for Craftmanship
• 1981 - Gold Medal at the World Bienniale of Architecture held by the International Academy of Architecture in Sofia, Bulgaria
• 1984 - Silver Medal of the Academie d' Architecture in Paris
• 1996 - Honorary Fellow, Royal Institute of British Architects
• 2000 - Leone d'oro at the Mostra di Architettura di Venezia (Venice Architecture Biennale) for his lifelong achievement
• 2006 - Cooper Hewitt National Design Award for lifetime achievement

Writings[link]

He has written six books and numerous essays and monographs. When he is not traveling on the international lecture circuit, Soleri divides his time between Cosanti, the original site for his research located in Scottsdale, and Arcosanti.

See also[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Arcosanti

• Arcology
• Arcosanti
• Yavapai County, Arizona
• Mayer, Arizona
• Cosanti
• List of architects
• List of urban planners
• Paolo Soleri Amphitheater
• Lisa A. Scafuro. Phoenix Home & Garden. March, 2008, Page 270. “Paolo Soleri: The Lifetime Achievements of a Living Legacy”

References[link]

Marc Ribot
Background information
Born	(1954-05-21) May 21, 1954 (age 58)
Origin	Newark, New Jersey, United States
Genres	Experimental music, alternative rock, free jazz, electronic music, hardcore punk
Occupations	Musician, composer
Instruments	Guitar, vocals, trumpet
Associated acts	Tom Waits, Electric Masada, Bar Kokhba Sextet, The Prosthetic Cubans, Spiritual Unity, Ceramic Dog, John Zorn, Elvis Costello, T-Bone Burnett
Website	www.marcribot.com

Marc Ribot ( /ˈriːboʊ/;^[1] born May 21, 1954) is an American guitarist and composer.

His own work has touched on many styles, including no wave, free jazz, and Cuban music. Ribot is also known for collaborating with other musicians, most notably Tom Waits, Elvis Costello, and composer John Zorn.

Biography[link]

Ribot was born in Newark, New Jersey. He has worked extensively as a session guitarist. He has performed and recorded with Tom Waits, John Zorn, David Sylvian, Jack McDuff, Wilson Pickett, The Lounge Lizards, Arto Lindsay, T-Bone Burnett, Medeski, Martin and Wood, Cibo Matto, Elysian Fields, Sam Phillips, Elvis Costello, David Poe, Allen Ginsberg, Foetus, Robert Plant & Alison Krauss, Susana Baca, The Black Keys, Stan Ridgway, Vinicio Capossela, Alain Bashung, Lyenn, Hector Zazou, McCoy Tyner, Elton John, Madeline Peyroux, Marianne Faithfull, Leonid Fedorov, Tonio K, Andres Calamaro, Anarchist Republic of Bzzz and others.

Ribot's earliest session work was featured on Tom Waits' Rain Dogs (1985) and helped define Waits' new musical direction.^[2] Ribot worked with Waits on many of his following albums including Franks Wild Years (1987), Mule Variations (1999), Real Gone (2004) and Bad as Me (2011). He has appeared on Elvis Costello's Spike, Mighty Like a Rose (1991), and Kojak Variety (1995). Ribot has appeared on numerous recordings by John Zorn, including many of Zorn's Filmworks recordings, solo performances on Zorn's Masada Guitars (also featuring Bill Frisell and Tim Sparks), and is a member of Zorn's Bar Kokhba Sextet and Electric Masada . Ribot's first two albums featured The Rootless Cosmopolitans, followed by an album of works by Frantz Casseus for solo guitar. Further releases found him working in a variety of band and solo contexts including two albums with his self-described "dance band", Marc Ribot y Los Cubanos Postizos^[3] (The Prosthetic Cubans), featuring compositions by Arsenio Rodríguez.

Ribot admitted to Guitar Player a relatively limited technical facility due to learning to play right-handed despite being left-handed: "That's a real limit, one that caused me a lot of grief when I was working with Jack McDuff and realizing I wasn't following in George Benson's footsteps. I couldn't be a straight-ahead jazz contender if you held a gun to my head, but that begs the question of whether I would want to be one."^[4]

He currently performs and records with his group Marc Ribot's Ceramic Dog with bassist Shahzad Ismaily and drummer Ches Smith of the avant-garde band Secret Chiefs 3.^[5] Ribot's most current studio work involves several tracks accompanying the legendary pianist from John Coltrane's group, McCoy Tyner on his late 2008 album and DVD Guitars; which also features work with John Scofield, Bill Frisell, Béla Fleck, and Derek Trucks.

In late 2010, he toured Europe with his band SunShip (Mary Halvorson, Chad Taylor, Jason Ajemian).^[6]

A biographical documentary film about Marc Ribot was made, called The Lost String.

Ribot was also a judge for the 6th annual Independent Music Awards to support independent artists' careers.^[7]

Marc Ribot in Saalfelden, Austria 2010

Discography[link]

• Rootless Cosmopolitans (1990)
• Requiem for What's His Name (1992)
• Marc Ribot Plays Solo Guitar Works of Frantz Casseus (1993)
• Shrek (1994)
• The Book of Heads (1995)
• Don't Blame Me (1995)
• Shoe String Symphonettes (1997)
• The Prosthetic Cubans (1998)
• Yo! I Killed Your God (1999)
• Muy Divertido! (2000)
• Saints (2001)
• Inasmuch as Life Is Borrowed (2001)
• Scelsi Morning (2003)
• Soundtracks Volume 2 (2003)
• Spiritual Unity (2005)
• Asmodeus: Book of Angels Volume 7 (2007)
• Exercises in Futility (2008)
• Party Intellectuals (2008)
• Silent Movies (2010)

Filmography[link]

• Sabbath in Paradise (1998)
• The Soul of a Man (directed by Wim Wenders) (2003)
• A Bookshelf on Top of the Sky: 12 Stories About John Zorn (2004)
• Tom Waits Real Gone Tour DVD bootleg recording (2005)
• The Lost String (directed by Anais Prosaic) (2007)

References[link]

External links[link]

• Marc Ribot official website
• Marc Ribot bio from Pi Recordings
• Marc Ribot at the Internet Movie Database
• Marc Ribot at Allmusic
• Marc Ribot on Myspace
• Marc Ribot: Using his Voice Interview by Arron Kayce published on February 9, 2004.
• An interview with Ribot by Efren del Valle printed December 24, 2002 on Tomajazz.com
• The Complete Marc Ribot discography – includes all solo work as well as collaborations as a sideman in the projects of other musicians
• Interview with Marc Ribot discussing Albert Ayler's influence on his playing – "Marc Ribot: That's the Way I View It from New York" by Paul Olsen, published March 27, 2006 on Allaboutjazz.com
• Marc Ribot video interview at allaboutjazz.com