Nobel Prize winner in chemistry to deliver Illinois Institute of Technology Ralph Peck Lecture
Chicago, IL — September 20, 2001 —
This year’s annual Ralph Peck Lecture will feature Amhed Zewail, 1999 Nobel Peace Prize winner in chemistry. Zewail was awarded the Nobel Prize for his groundbreaking studies of the transition states of chemical reactions using femtosecond spectroscopy. Femtochemistry looks at the chemical processes that occur between molecular bonds in time frames on the order of billionths of a second. The lecture will occur on September 28 at 3:00 p.m. in IIT's Perlstein Hall Auditorium. The Peck Lecture will kick off a year-long celebration of 100 years of excellence in chemical engineering at IIT.
“We are so thrilled to be getting Zewail," says Hamid Arastoopour, Max McGraw professor and chair of the Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, which hosts the Ralph Peck Lecture Series. “Zewail's work has enabled researchers to observe phenomena that occur close to the scale of atomic motion. This, in turn, has opened up a new dimension in microscopic research."
Zewail was awarded the 1999 Nobel Prize in chemistry for developing a unique method to observe chemical reactions occurring at the molecular level. His technique involves using special lasers and what can be described as “the world’s fastest camera” to allow scientists to watch chemical reactions in real time. Zewail’s research has made it possible for the first time to observe, study, and predict motion with a resolution of femtoseconds, thus allowing scientists to probe nature at its fundamental level.
Each year, the Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering invites a lecturer to speak on topical environmental and chemical engineering issues. Zewail’s lecture, “The Race Against Time¾Measuring the Immeasurable," will look at the development of ultrashort pulses of laser light that has made it possible to observe physical, chemical, and biological changes with a resolution of femtoseconds¾15 orders of magnitude faster than the human heartbeat and reaching the scale of atomic motion, both spatially and temporally. In his lecture, Zewail will explore mankind's race against time and its culmination in femtoscience.
Ahmed Zewail is presently the Linus Pauling Chair Professor of Chemistry and Professor of Physics, and the Director of the NSF Laboratory for Molecular Sciences (LMS) at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech). He has also been elected as a foreign member of the Royal Society for his pioneering development of a laser-based new field, which, as cited by his Nobel Prize, caused a chemical revolution. Zewail’s other honors include the Robert A. Welch Prize, the Wolf Prize, the King Faisal Prize, the Benjamin Franklin Medal, the Peter Debye Award, and the E.O. Lawrence Award. From Egypt, he received the Grand Collar of the Nile, the highest state honor, and postage stamps were issued to honor his contributions to science and humanity. Zewail was born and raised in Egypt and joined Caltech as a U.S. citizen in 1976.
Lois A. Bey, IIT’s first woman engineer graduate, will also attend the Peck lecture. Bey graduated from IIT in 1950 and is a Life Member of the Society for Women Engineers.
The Ralph Peck Lecture Series began in the late 1970s and is held in honor of Ralph Peck, who served as chairman of the Department of Chemical Engineering at IIT from 1953 to 1967. Peck may be best known for his innovative teaching methods, which include his “ten-minute quiz.” He traveled extensively, introducing his teaching methods in India, Israel, Brazil, Algeria, Korea, and Japan. He received the Excellence in Teaching Award from IIT in 1973, and the Western Electric Fund Award for Teaching Excellence for 1975-76 from the American Society for Engineering Education. He was a Fellow of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers and a member of the American Chemical Society and the ASEE.
To reserve a seat at the Peck Lecture and for specific details, please contact Donna Ivy at 312.567.3041 (phone), ivy@iit.edu (e-mail) or 312.567.8874 (fax). For additional details, click on the Peck Lecture icon at www.chee.iit.edu.
About Illinois Institute of Technology
Illinois Institute of Technology, also known as Illinois Tech, is a private, technology-focused, research university offering undergraduate and graduate degrees in engineering, science, architecture, business, design, human sciences, applied technology, and law. One of 16 institutions that comprise the Association of Independent Technological Universities (AITU), Illinois Tech offers exceptional preparation for professions that require technological sophistication, an innovative mindset, and an entrepreneurial spirit.
