Part 1: Nathan Klavzer

How doing some simulations can be insightful - an example in polymer composites

Have you had some finite element (i.e. numerical simulations) classes in the past and got scared or, perhaps, disgusted ?  Well, let me help you regain faith in the usefulness of simulations in your PhD/work !! I want to show you how simulations can help you find answers that you may not be able to get experimentally. But don’t worry, this won’t be a long lecture full of details about simulations… Instead, I will simply illustrate one instance where the use of simulations solved one (of my many) problems ! More precisely, I will explain how enriching a classical continuum model with strain gradient plasticity theory allowed improving failure predictions of polymer composites.
 

Part 2: Antoine Hilhorst

Fun and efficient note taking

I have been using the software "Obsidian" for note taking and I found it very useful. In a quick presentation, I want to share how I use this tool for note taking but also project management, literature review, and database building. I will also take this opportunity to remind my fellow researchers of a few useful resources.