Hidden Variables
What lies behind a single scientific breakthrough? A journey of trials and errors, ups and downs, successes and failures, and above all, an investment of time. At the intersection of art and science, a team of six dedicated quantum computing scientists come together to show you the hidden beauty within lost data and failed measurements - essential components in the pursuit of even the most subtle scientific insights.
Hidden Variables is a 3D structure in the shape of an hourglass. Beads are falling out from the top part of the hourglass, transforming into unused scientific data at the bottom part. The artwork is a representation of the time invested into producing the huge amount of data which may or may not lead to a valuable scientific result. Each of the panels composing the bottom part of the artwork was created from discarded data of each of the six young researchers, who transformed them into stories.
Hidden Variables was introduced for the first time at the Berlin Science Week 2023.
Artists: Miguel J. Carballido, Pierre Chevalier Kwon, Simon Geyer, Akash Gupta, Pierre Fromholz, Marie Le Dantec, Jung-Ching Liu and Marilena Longobardi.
17.03.2025-20.03.2025
APS Global Summit, Anaheim, CA, USA
In the frame of the International Year of Quantum Science and Technology, the APS Global Summit hosted a “Quantum Playground” where art and science projects centred around quantum science were displayed. NCCR SPIN had a booth to introduce several of their art and science projects, and among them, Hidden Variables.
16.03.2023
APS Quantum Fest, Anaheim, CA, USA
In the frame of the International Year of Quantum Science and Technology, the weekend preceding the APS Global Summit 2025 was dedicated to the Quantum Fest, co-organized by our managing director Marilena Longobardi. The event invited the public to discover Quantum realms through performances.
In the theatre, NCCR SPIN had installed Hidden Variables for the public to enjoy.
26.10.2024 - 27.10.2024
Festival della Scienza, Palazzo Ducale, Genoa, Italy
Since 2003, the Festival della Scienza (Science Festival in Italian) has become an international reference point and one of the leading event for the dissemination of scientific culture. Under this year’s red thread “challenges”, scientists, popularizers, artists, authors, as well as scientific institutions, met the public so that science can be touched, seen and understood without boundaries.
Hidden Variables was displayed in Genoa in its version 2.0, with more gold, more uniform presentation and improved mounting practicality.
01.11.2023 - 10.11.2023
Berlin Science Week 2023, Holzmarkt25, Berlin, Germany
The Berlin Science Week is an international science outreach fair taking place in Berlin every year. Scientists from all over the world introduce their research topics and their social impact during the 10-day fair to thousands of visitors.
This year for the first time, the Berlin Science Week introduced the FORUM. Under the motto “Dare to Know: Creative Science, Precise Art”, the FORUM was dedicated to exploring exchanges between science and art. NCCR SPIN participated by presenting Hidden Variables for the first time in a Tiny Gallery.