The promoter and general director of the enigmatic congress known as Puzzle X is called Zina Jarrahi Cinker. This American, physicist and expert in graphene, meets with La Vanguardia on an autumn afternoon on the terrace of a cafeteria on Tarragona street to talk about the second edition of her fair. It will be held between November 14 and 17, under the umbrella of the Smart City Expo. Puzzle X is promoted by the Fira, the Mobile World Capital and the Advanced Material Future Preparedness Taskforce, chaired by John Hoffman.
It is defined as an appointment to explore frontier materials, an expression that in this context could be translated as “the new frontiers of matter”.
“This congress goes far beyond the debate on the future of graphene or other physical materials... it goes on the expression of matter. It addresses, above all, the ideas that can transform the world, although without elitism, with concepts that everyone can understand. The idea is how we can get together to identify the great challenges of humanity. Hence one of our mottos: from matterverse to metaverse (a play on words where the meta of the metaverse has been replaced by matter, the word matter in English)”. Said with the enthusiasm that Zina Jarrahi usually gives to all her statements.
Puzzle X is, due to the difficulty of defining it, quite a challenge for any press department that wants to communicate its content. Its very name suggests that it has more of an idea to develop than a closed concept: "We all have a piece of the puzzle that has to define a sustainable future," maintains its promoter.
At the intersection between physics, philosophy, economics or art, the salon is defined, in some way, by the profiles of some of the participants. In fact, its main contribution is precisely the provision of this meeting space for the city between all the aforementioned disciplines and some more, which differentiates it from other events that are watertight compartments.
The participation of two Nobel Prize winners is expected: the graphene researcher Kostya Novoselov (who usually participates in very disruptive scientific-artistic performances, as those attending the last Hay Festival in Segovia could see) and the creator of laser cooling methods William Phillips . Also from the associate director of the MIT Media Lab, Hiroshi Ishii; Intel Director of Quantum Applications and Architecture Anne Matsuura; representatives of other universities, companies and local participants such as the rector of the UPC, Daniel Crespo, or the head of the gastrointestinal surgery service at the Hospital Clínic, Antonio de Lacy.
Without the intention of stimulating the buying and selling of any product or entertaining staff who buy tickets, Puzzle X thus offers itself as a space for disciplinary connection around another concept that incorporates what should be a great bet in Barcelona: building a sustainable metaverse. In other words, assume from the city a certain leadership of the policies that guarantee that the new technologies respect the rights of the people.
These are ambitious challenges. Its compliance will be difficult to assess. But there is one thing that Puzzle X is willing to do from the start: participating in the emerging art, science and technology scene that is taking shape in Barcelona. In this second edition, it has taken an important step in this direction, by joining forces with the Sónar festival and the UPC in the Matter Music session, scheduled for the 16th.
Antònia Folguera, curator of Sónar D, explains that the festival brings its experiences in music and dance developed with the Hamill Industries and Playmodes studios, also in collaboration with the UPC. This session is closed by Hiroshi Ishii and Ilyas Khan, founder of Cambride Quantum Computing.
Being held under the umbrella of the powerful Smart City Expo takes the limelight out of Puzzle X. Making connections with the local arts community can help you get more exposure in the city and abroad.
