Material man

Jorge Viñals

Montrealers love to tell winter weather stories, and physics professor Jorge Viñals has already gotten an earfull of masochistic bragging, even though he officially joined McGill only in April.

Owen Egan

He commuted a lot into Montreal last winter. "I remember every time I came I was told that this was the coldest week ever, and then I would come back two weeks later and be told again this is the coldest week ever. Finally somebody told me, 'Well last winter was the coldest winter in a long time.'"

The slope leading to the Rutherford Physics Building can be a slippery one with a cover of ice or a smattering of snow. One would think that someone who got his physics degrees from the University of Barcelona and spent the last 15 years in Florida may find it a little daunting, but Viñals says he is prepared. The new professor and director of the McGill Institute for Advanced Materials (MIAM) likes to ski and hike. He used to go to the Pyrenees in Spain when he was a student, and has his winter jacket already hanging in his office to prove he's ready for our weather.

He worked at the School of Computational Science and Information Technology at Florida State University. "In the '80s, computers were powerful enough that you could start understanding new phenomea by using just computers. Now we simulate airplanes, we simulate engines. More and more experimentation is done by computer."

He often explores where disciplines overlap. "I find it difficult to work on the same type of issues for too long," he says.

"[MIAM] was established about two years ago and is meant to be an interdisciplinary institute, to focus and foster those areas of research that don't neatly belong to any particular department. The idea of MIAM is to help catalyze research that will involve collaborations among different departments and the creation of a new graduate program in advanced materials that would be interdisciplinary in nature." For example, Viñals says, MIAM could bring together biology and chemistry students to resolve a problem that needs their combined expertise.

Many materials in use, such as artificial organs, are so advanced they require scholars from a variety of disciplines to work together. "You have to have people who know mechanics, people who know biochemistry and people who know fluid flow if there's work that involves the flow of blood. There are many problems now in science and technology that are too complex to be handled by one discipline. The creation of this institute reflects the fact that there are a lot of people at McGill already working in those areas, and the need for better coordination."

MIAM involves about 10 professors from areas such as physics, chemistry, biomedical engineering, mechanical engineering and dentistry.

Viñals has made sure his love of variety is reflected in his life in his new city, as well. "When I have time (I have a nine-year-old son), I like to exercise. In Florida I used to play soccer more than basketball, but here it's difficult because of the weather. I enjoy anything that involves running so I can play tennis —# anything that involves a group of people chasing something that moves, you'll find me there." He has joined a basketball league and looks forward to signing up for the physics soccer league at McGill. He adds, "It's also good to have a beer with your friends." Sounds like he has already cracked the recipe for handling our long winters.

Balbir Gill