never before has innovation in history
promised so much to so many in
such a short time
innovation we hear about it now
lot
innovation more than ever in this
moment can change our lives but
we really know what it means
what is an innovation
what it means to do innovation well
if you search on the internet
as I did I will find an infinity
of different definitions of this word
but all have a concept in common
innovation to deal with
the practical application of an invention
therefore to invent means to conceive
formulate new ideas for a product
to innovate means to transform these
ideas these inventions in some products
marketable and I want to make you an example
that I have in my hands is a
laser pointer and well behind this
object apparently so simple yes
actually hides a story of
innovation that is extremely long and
technology is equally fascinating
in fact, lasers were discovered over the years
fifty was invented in the 50s
the patent dates back to 1960 ownership
of the American bears and was the result of
scientific research extremely
long and complex
think that if it could not be done
discover the laser without research
scientific studies on the nature of light
made from plan that einstein
at the beginning of the twentieth century and well but after
the invention of the laser you have to wait
still many years before seeing
appear in our lives
the laser think that dates back to 1974
the first scan of a barcode
of a product inside a store
it is done with laser technology and if
you want to wait a few more years for
the first installation of optical fibers
we are in the city of chicago
1977 today telecommunications
they work with optical fiber that
use laser and if you have to wait
the 80s to see the reader appear
cd used and well I could do
an infinity of other examples today with
laser
today the laser is used medicine for
surgery is used in industry
to do precision cutting or in
esthetics for hair removal removal
tattoos
the laser is given to be part of the
our daily life with objects too
very simple like this pointer
well to arrive at an invention is a
long and tiring route serves so much
scientific research but translate of the
ideas of scientific research of
inventions in an innovation in a
product is just as complex is a
long and tiring route but it can
change our lives and concern us
more closely than you can
imagine I gave him the example of
laser but today I want to tell you
another story of innovation one
story that we are still writing with
the tip of a pencil is the graphite
in fact it was discovered in the sixteenth century
They were of fine English shepherds are
account for the first time there were
of apparently metallic stones
that if you rub on their sheep
they could leave a black mark
it was a real revolution for the time
because it allowed him to mark the
sheep to be able to distinguish in the herd but
it was only a few years after two
Italian
BERNE cooked the spouses had an idea
brilliant cut out this stone the
graphite and insert the tubes of
wood was the birth of the pencil like the
we know today
and this is already in itself is one
incredible story of innovation later
more than five hundred years promises again
to change the world
if we went to see the graphics in fact
very very very close up there
we would see that it is stratified and
composed of a pile of millions
millions of layers on top of each other like
a book composed of many pages
resting on top of each other
the single layer the single sheet of the
our graphite book consists of
carbon atoms that are linked between
their hexagonal honeycomb geometries
breaking this sheet is practically
impossible but the link between them
a layer and subsequent that is between one
page and the other instead extremely
weak so you can detach one
layer from others fairly
simple this is also the reason for
which our pencil writes when
we’re going to waste it on a piece of
paper what happens that some
packets of these layers come off
from the graphite block and remain on the
piece of paper leaving a black mark
the pencil writes but had to wait
until 2004 because two scientists in
manchester with an experiment
apparently very simple after years
and years of scientific research succeeded
for the first time to isolate a single
graphite layer
the graphene that Friday night those two
scientists could not game had
only a scotch arrangement
some graphite maybe you will ask well
why not use a penknife for the idea
that the graphite was broken in a manner
extremely controlled was not going
broken in all directions
you had to attack a layer from
others without breaking the single layer
so with a piece of scotch e
start attacking attack
stick and unplug start at
peel off these layers of graphite one
on the other and finally they managed to
get a single and looking with a
microscope and characterize it you think
that these experiments earned him the
Nobel Prize in Physics in 2010
let’s see a little more closely
why is it so interesting this
graphene we said is a symbol
graphite layer a carpet of atoms
carbon from the material that often o
thin that you want only as much as one
atom does not exist anything thinner
and it is considered a bit of the material
of the wonders the material of the
superlatives is a bit the best in
all
think that the material more
and known there is nothing that he has
a mechanical resistance equal to him and
even at a mechanical resistance
superior to that of steel and pur
being so strong is extremely
flexible
think I could build a big hammock
as much as a square millimeter as the
tip of a pencil and capable of
support four kilos four kilos on
a hammock as big as the tip of
this pencil is a material
extremely light one gram is
sufficient to cover an area of 2.630
square meters to give you an idea for
cover the surface of a field from
calcium would take three grams 3 grams
and while being so light and thin it is
practically completely waterproof
there are no substances elements
practically they can cross it
and it is the best conductor of heat
known virtually can transport
the heat better than any other
material is one of the best conductors
of electricity carries current into
extremely effective and
transparent let the light lo
it crosses but the most interesting thing
those are the dots you see at the bottom
because many others are the cards that the
I could list you and many others
and those that still have discoveries
think that these are the potentials
of this material that scientists
Europeans got together are
managed to get the biggest one
European funding of always graphene
flagship Europe made available
one billion euros for a project of
10 years to study its graphene
potential applications and with
the goal of turning this into
of commercial products
Europe united to succeed e
try to compete with countries like the
China that are much more accustomed to doing
technological innovation
now the question is so much attention
beautiful properties what you can do with it
never make this material
and you give some examples
finally we said a material
flexible is a transparent material
which conducts electricity very well
well, you could do one
flexible wearable electronics
transparent
think you can do with graphene i
your screens screens in yours
cell phones and then put on a first
step towards the construction of smartphones
completely flexible then I could
think about rolling an arm around
and then like a bracelet to wear it
but not only seems science fiction but
Imagine taking a piece of paper
light transparent plastic that I could
roll up and put in the bag but on the
which you can read news or watch
a film this same technology can be
also use for clothes
think that one day ours
t-shirts could become gods
intelligent objects capable of acting
like sensors and then for example
monitor our heartbeat
during physical activity and at the time
himself is able to collect these
data and transfer them for example mine
cell phone but not just recognize everyone
up there an electric car
well we all know that we would like it
be able to use these electric cars
to reduce consumption reduce the
emissions but you also know that in
this moment to recharge the
batteries of your cellphones or i
your computers take hours
well thanks to the graphene we could
build a lot more batteries
efficient able to accumulate more
charge and charge in a manner
extremely fast for example in ten
minutes
graphene also a material we have
called the light and resistant
think you can combine it with gods
composite materials ie build of the
new lightweight and resistant materials
we could use them for example for
make us planes or satellites or
any type of vehicle making it
therefore extremely light lighter
less consumption and less costs seems
science but we are not so far
today graphene is produced on a level
industrial
one of the most common techniques there
allows to obtain graphene in the form of
powder this powder can then be
dispersed inside a liquid e
then create some powder inks
inks can then be combined
with materials we use in the
our everyday life by giving it
so its own characteristics then
making them, for example, more performing
or with new properties
today we have a shoe that is
thermally more comfortable because
thanks to the addition of graphene in his
bed
this is made capable of dissipating heat
more effective way and therefore to give
greater thermal comfort than ours
foot but not only do we have a helmet that
thanks to the graphene made safer e
thermally more comfortable because
able to better absorb the bumps and
dissipate the heat as best as possible
be accumulated for example for
exposure to the sun
we also have more tires
bicycles that thanks to the graphene
present in the mixture can for
example guarantee greater adherence
a greater resistance to drilling one
greater speed or clothing
sporty that thanks to graphene
thermally more comfortable
electrostatic antibacterial these are
just a few examples but they are all
Products made in Italy is still a lot
it is being done in many laboratories
Graphene abbot technologies are going
developing and could soon arrive
on the market
maybe some of you will recognize the
We are a little robicino aicab
developing composites that thanks to
graphene can be light and
resistant to replace at least in
part of the metal structures is that
make up this would allow him to
be lighter then lighter
means less consumption and therefore
means we could give one
greater autonomy with the batteries of
which it has and make it even less
expensive but not only are we working
of paper or fabrics that thanks to
graphene can be made capable of
conduct electricity and then
usable as electrodes or screens
electromagnetic but thin
low-cost flexible, possibly
also biodegradable or batteries
that can be given thanks thanks to
more performing and possibly also
flexible these are just a few
examples
a lot of other things are being done
we are working on it and many more
they are technologies that we will need
work in the future to make innovation not
it’s easy it’s a long path and
tiring transform of the ideas of the
scientific research in the products is a
really difficult path requires
a long time but it can really change
our lives and it concerns us more from
close to what you can imagine is
more than ever in this historical moment
it can become an opportunity for revival
for our companies
graphene is an opportunity is an example
of innovation in progress Italy is in
first row
I do not know about you but I can not wait to
turn the next pages to see where
will take us and see which others
exciting chapters will be available
write with the tip of a pencil
thank you all
[Applause]
”
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