Technical Ceramics or Industrial Ceramics is a field the ceramic artist does't usually indulge in. This field deals with 'inorganic non-metallic materials' and includes not only porcelain, but also bricks, other refractory materials and also glass. They are classified as hard, high temperature resistant materials that don't deform. One application for such materials are the Space Shuttles Ceramic Tiles, protecting it from the heat of friction during re-entry from space.
Another application for high temperature ceramics are Advanced Heat Engines, such as gas turbine car enginers and heavy duty diesel engines. MITs World of Materials goes deeply into the molecular structure of high temperature ceramics and includes information on Ferro Electric ceramics and Super Conducting ceramics.
On a lighter note Claynets Technical Ceramics Pages offer in depth technical information on kilns and kiln burners, while the international magazine Ceramics Technical offers articles on all sorts of technical concerns for the ceramic artist.
While ceramic art and industrial ceramics seem miles apart, there are certain things that the ceramic artist can learn about from the industrial side of ceramics, eg. about the compacting of dry clay to a body, as is done in the RAM press, which many of you will be familiar with. This is an interesting field for the artist, with much useful information normally unheard of in art schools.