Vilupanur Ravi, chair of the chemical and materials engineering department, has been appointed as an editor for a trade publication next year when it focuses on archaeomaterials — the materials that archeological artifacts are made from.
Ravi will serve as guest editor for three archeomaterials topics that will be published in JOM, a monthly trade magazine published by The Minerals, Metals & Materials Society, in 2015.
Ravi’s interest in archaeomaterials began with Damascus swords, which were produced in the Middle East from roughly 300 B.C. to 1700 A.D. The swords were widely known for being strong, but flexible, and exhibited a distinctive pattern on their surfaces.
His interest in the topic grew after he collaborated with an anthropologist on the materials used by the Chumash tribes of coastal California. Their research focused on ceramic goods and ocean-going canoes.