Thomas A. Vilgis

Thomas A. Vilgis (born July 9, 1955 in Oberkochen ) is a German physicist.

Vilgis research in the field of soft matter (English Soft Matter ) and forwards at the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research in Mainz, a working group for analytical theory of soft matter. There he also leads a “Soft Matter Food Physics” group that researches the physical aspects of food, including ingredients and preparation. It makes a scientific contribution to the field of molecular cuisine or molecular gastronomy. He is also Professor of Theoretical Physics at the University of Mainz .

biography

Vilgis studied physics and mathematics at the University of Ulm from 1975 to 1981 , with a diploma in physics. He received his doctorate there in 1984. After a stay as a postdoc at the Cavendish Laboratory , Cambridge, UK with Sir Samuel Edwards, he completed his habilitation in 1990 at the University of Mainz. There he was appointed professor for theoretical physics in 1996. Since 1985 he has been a group leader at the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research. In 1988 he was visiting scholar at Imperial College London , and from 1999 to 2000 he was Directeur de Recherche au Laboratoire Européen Associé at the Institut Charles Sadron in Strasbourg , France.

Research: statistical physics of soft matter

Vilgis conducts basic physical research in many closely related areas and tries to describe material properties as precisely as possible using theoretical models. His theoretical tools include statistical soft matter physics , the theory of polymers , fractal geometry , applied materials theory, the physics of glass transition ( glass transition temperature ) and the dynamics of disordered systems.

The materials he investigated include copolymers , elastomers , polyelectrolytes , gels , hydrogels and the reinforcement of polymer networks with fillers. In total, he published around 300 refereed scientific papers in international journals.

Research: soft matter food physics

Vilgis conducts research at the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research in the field of molecular food sciences using experimental methods from the physics and chemistry of soft matter . This includes B. the flow behavior ( rheology ) of dough, the structure and properties of fat storage particles ( oleosomes ) or the physical behavior of hydrocolloids .

Interdisciplinary knowledge transfer

Vilgis is also involved in nutrition education. In numerous guest lectures, the interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary communication of scientific and cultural-historical knowledge about the composition, properties and importance of food is particularly close to his heart. Since 2013 Vilgis supported as guest speaker the 2011-2014 by the German Commission for UNESCO excellent, the core student project CookUOS (pronounced [kʊk] [uːoːɛs]) at the University of Osnabrück . With the Göttingen nutritional psychologist and medical doctor Thomas Ellrott and the Osnabrück three-star chef Thomas Bühner , he denies the format of a lecture conceived by Uwe Neumann and Oliver M. Gillen "Scientific cooking show with Thomas³ (t high 3) - Science tasty made".

Journalistic activity

Vilgis conducts scientific research in the field of molecular gastronomy and also publishes popular science books and articles on the subject. He writes columns in " eat & drink " (1999–2010), " Physics in Our Time ", Vincent Klink's " Chief Own Cooker ", Slow Food Magazine , in the Swiss gourmet magazine Salz & Pfeffer and is co-editor of the interdisciplinary journal Culinaire - Kultur and science of food. He is also regularly featured in a scientific column in the wine magazine enos - by wine, people and cultures . In addition, Thomas Vilgis is an expert guest on numerous radio and television programs. Since 2016, Vilgis can be heard in the weekly radio column Gastrojet on the program SWR2 on Saturday afternoon , on topics and the culture and science of food. For the book Aroma - die Kunst des Würzens (with Thomas A. Vierich), the Gastronomic Academy of Germany (GAD) bestowed the highest award "Goldene Feder", which is reserved only for extraordinary works.

Publications

Scientific

• with I. Lendner and R. Caviezel: Nutrition in need of care and dementia - joie de vivre through enjoyment. Springer Verlag, Vienna 2014, ISBN 978-3-7091-1602-9 .
• with M. Klüppel and G. Heinrich: Reinforcement of Polymer Nano-Composites: Theory, Experiments and Applications. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 2009, ISBN 978-0-521-87480-9 .
• with W. Grellmann, G. Heinrich, M. Kaliske, M. Klüppel and K. Schneider (Eds.): Fracture Mechanics and Statistical Mechanics of Reinforced Elastomeric Blends (Lecture Notes in Applied and Computational Mechanics). Springer / Vienna 2013, ISBN 978-3-642-37909-3 .
• The Molecule Menu - molecular knowledge for creative chefs. S. Hirzel Verlag, Stuttgart 2010, ISBN 978-3-7776-2108-1 .
• with Rolf Caviezel: Cooking and cooking techniques: Scientific explanations and texts , Matthaes Verlag, Stuttgart, ISBN 978-3-87515-419-1 .

Popular science

• Molecular cuisine, physics and chemistry of fine taste. Hirzel Verlag, Stuttgart 2005, ISBN 3-7776-1370-3 .
• Science al dente - scientific miracles in the kitchen. with illustrations by Anna Zimmermann. Herder Verlag, Freiburg 2007, ISBN 978-3-451-05761-8 .
• Molecular cuisine - the cookbook. Tre Torri Verlag, Wiesbaden 2007, ISBN 978-3-937963-58-7 .
• The molecular kitchen - experiments for young chefs. with illustrations by Roland Wengenmayr. Hirzel Verlag, Stuttgart 2007, ISBN 978-3-7776-1535-6 .
• Molecular cuisine - taste, aromas, flavor. Tre Torri Verlag, Wiesbaden 2009, ISBN 978-3-937963-84-6 .
• Cooking University - Taste. Tre Torri Verlag, Wiesbaden 2010, ISBN 978-3-941641-22-8 .
• The Molecule Menu - molecular knowledge for creative chefs. S. Hirzel Verlag, Stuttgart 2010, ISBN 978-3-7776-2108-1 .
• with Rolf Caviezel: The modern kitchen trade. Tre Torri Verlag, Wiesbaden 2012, ISBN 978-3-941641-57-0 .
• with Hubertus Tzschirner: Sous-vide. The easy entry into the gentle cooking technique. Torch bearer, Cologne 2012, ISBN 978-3-7716-4506-9 .
• with Rolf Caviezel: Food pairing - harmony and contrast. Fona Verlag, Lenzburg, Switzerland 2012, ISBN 978-3-03780-480-3 .
• with Thomas A. Vierich: Aroma - the art of seasoning . Stiftung Warentest , Berlin 2012, ISBN 978-3-86851-049-2 .
• with Andreas Rummel and Carolin Friese: The high school of grilling - the best for the grill and skewer. Christian Verlag, 2014, ISBN 978-3-86244-589-9 .
• with Rolf Caviezel: The perfume of the kitchen. Tre Torri, Wiesbaden 2014, ISBN 978-3-941641-97-6 .
• with Hubertus Tzschirner: Raw! The new definition of raw food. Fackelträger Verlag, Cologne 2014, ISBN 978-3-7716-4547-2 .
• Cooking for show-offs. Stiftung Warentest , Berlin 2014, ISBN 978-3-86851-405-6 .
• with Hubertus Tzschirner, Nic Lecloux, Nils Jorra: Burger Unser. Callway, Munich 2016, ISBN 978-3-7667-2201-0 .
• with Rolf Caviezel: BeerPairing Fona Verlag, Lenzburg 2017 ISBN 978-3-03780-620-3 .
• with Thomas A. Vierich: Aroma vegetables - the way to perfect taste , Stiftung Warentest, Berlin, ISBN 978-3-658-21389-3 .
• with Argang Ghahiri and Thomas Bosbach: Knowledge tastes - the magic of science in cooking explained - with 16 recipes , Springer, Wiesbaden, ISBN 978-3-86851-457-5 .
• with Stuart Pigott, René Pollitsch and Erwin Seitz: Grill Royal , (German / English), Distance Verlag, 2018, ISBN 978-3-95476-193-7 .
• with Stefanie Hiekmann : Aroma games. Real taste buds thanks to perfect food pairing. Christian Verlag , Munich 2019, ISBN 978-3-95961-215-9 .
• The gastronaut - explorations by a cooking physicist, Stiftung Warentest , Berlin 2018. ISBN 978-3-86851-483-4 .

Book contributions

• Water: physics and chemistry - not esoteric. In: G. Hirschfelder, A. Ploeger (Ed.): Purer Genuss? Water as a drink, a commodity and a cultural asset. Campus Verlag, Frankfurt 2009, ISBN 978-3-593-39028-4 .
• Physics and culinary studies. In: I. Schütze (Ed.): One can argue about taste. Ingredients from the kitchen, art and science. Kadmos Verlag, Berlin 2010, ISBN 978-3-86599-087-7 .
• Sous-vide cooking: theory, methodology & taste. In: E. Kornmayer (Ed.): Sous-vide basic cookbook. Verlag Gebrüder Kornmayer, Dreieich 2010, ISBN 978-3-938173-68-8 .
• Enjoyment and nutrition from a scientific perspective. In: A. Ploeger, G. Hirschfelder, G. Schönberger (eds.): The future on the table - analyzes, trends and perspectives of tomorrow's nutrition. VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, Springer Fachmedien, Wiesbaden 2011, ISBN 978-3-531-17643-7 .
• Ketchup as tasty soft matter. In: C. Vega, J. Ubbink, E. van der Linden: The kitchen as a laboratory. Reflections on the science of food and cooking. Columbia University Press, New York 2012, ISBN 978-0-231-15344-7 .
• with N. Russ: Sweet physics - sugar, sugar blend and sugar glasses. In: C. Vega, j. Ubbink, E. van der Linden: The kitchen as a laboratory. Reflections on the science of food and cooking. Columbia University Press, New York 2012, ISBN 978-0-231-15344-7 .
• Taste and indulgence - an elaborate arrangement of physics, chemistry, biology and materials research / Taste and indulgance - an elaborate arrangement of physics, chemistry biology and materials research. In: A. Käsmayr: No art around. About the (im) possibility of running a restaurant. The Green Box, art editions, Berlin 2012, ISBN 978-3-941644-46-5 .
• The alchemy of the kitchen. In: S. Schellhaas (Ed.): The world in a spoon. Kerber Verlag, Bielefeld 2012, ISBN 978-3-86678-775-9 .
• From Tricatel to El Bulli - a techno-cinematic description. In: D. Kofahl, G. Fröhlich, L. Alberth (Eds.): Culinary Cinema - Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Food and Drink in Film. transcript Verlag, Bielefeld 2013, ISBN 978-3-8376-2217-1 .
• What we are allowed to eat or: How molecular is ethics? In: G. Hirschfelder, A. Ploeger, J. Rückert-John, G. Schönberger (eds.): What man is allowed to eat - economic compulsion, ecological conscience and global conflicts. Springer, 2015, ISBN 978-3-658-01464-3 .

Web links

• Literature by and about Thomas A. Vilgis in the catalog of the German National Library
• Roland Wengenmayr: Hard Science and Haute Cuisine. (pdf) In: MaxPlanckResearch 4/2003. Archived from the original on July 28, 2010 . 
• Website at the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research. 
• Uwe Ebbinghaus ħrsg = blogs.faz.net: The discovery of the beer gap. October 27, 2017 . 
• Editor of the journal culinaire . 

Individual evidence

1. ↑ CookUOS homepage. In: cookuos.uni-osnabrueck.de. Retrieved July 2, 2016 . 
2. ^ Uwe Neumann: T³ - 4th scientific cooking show "Science made palatable". In: www.cookuos.de. Retrieved July 2, 2016 . 
3. ↑ Stefanie Hiekmann: 370 visitors to the science cookery show in Osnabrück-Halle . ( noz.de [accessed January 24, 2018]).
4. ↑ List of editors journal culinaire
5. ↑ enos-of wine, people and cultures
6. ↑ SWR2 on Saturday afternoon. Retrieved November 10, 2018 . 
7. ↑ gastronomische-akademie.de: Prize winner Goldene Feder