The researchers used a simplified model to describe heat transmission and conductivity throughout different oven parts. Pizza comes out of the oven | Shutterstock Pizza as a black body The main physical process taking place during baking is heat transmission. Stone and wood, in contrast, transmit heat more slowly, so in stone and wood surfaces, it is possible to find one side of the surface hot, while the other is colder. Metals, for instance, are good heat transmitters, and therefore pots are usually made of metal that conducts the heat of the flame uniformly to the entire pot. Thermal conductivity is the property of a material to conduct heat. For instance, one kilocalorie is required to heat one liter of water by one degree, but heating the same amount of aluminum requires about one fifth of that, since its heat capacity is lower. The specific heat capacity of a body is the amount of heat required to raise the temperature of a body by one degree. The amount and speed of transmitted heat is determined by two properties of the bodies involved: their heat capacity and thermal conductivity. The second law of thermodynamics states that heat always flows spontaneously from a hot body to a colder one. Three main layers are involved in the process: the oven's surface (stone or metal), the dough, and the toppings. The main physical process occurring during baking is heat transmission: the oven's heat is transmitted to the pizza through the oven plate and the air. For instance, what are the differences between baking a pizza in a domestic metal oven and baking it in a traditional stone wood-fired oven? And what is the actual difference between pizzeria-made pizzas and homemade ones? Theoretical physicists Andrey Varlamov and Andreas Glatz have recently joined forces with Italian food anthropologist Sergio Grasso, aka 'The Gastrosopher,' to study the physics of the baking process. Here, there are also a number of options, beginning with the simplest heating option, of using a microwave, for those who are lazy or in a hurry, up to the baking stone used by foodies and pros. Pizza can come with a large variety of toppings, but what really separates one pizza from another is the baking process. There are many methods for preparing this simple-yet-magnificent food, starting from pizza made from half a pita, a heated store-bought frozen pizza, all the way to high-end oven-baked pizzas, made with springy dough that is tossed in the air.

Any pizza lover knows that, contrary to what we would like to believe – not all pizzas are created equal.

Panorama pizza