Noble Peace prize winner to visit TU Science Cafe | Events

THOMAS COUNTY, GA – News release from Thomas University

A Nobel Prize winner in Chemistry will visit Thomas University as part of its Science Café series.

The series, which began last fall, is a relaxed setting where scientists discuss their work through a casual conversation with participants.

The first speaker for the fall segment of the series will be Sir Harold Kroto, who was a co-recipient of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1996. His topic will be “Scientists of the past and their Present Influence.”

Originally from the city of Bolton in northern England, Kroto holds a bachelor’s degree in Chemistry and a Ph.D. in Molecular Spectroscopy, both from the University of Sheffield.

He began his academic career at the University of Sussex in Brighton in 1967, becoming a professor in 1985 and a Royal Society Research Professor in 1991.

In 1996 Kroto was knighted for his contributions to Chemistry. Also in 1996, Kroto, Robert Curl and Richard Smalley received the Nobel Prize for Chemistry for the discovery of C60 Buckminsterfullerene, a new form of carbon also known as “buckyballs.”

The molecule consists of 60 carbon atoms arranged as a spheroid in a pattern that matches the stitching on soccer balls. The configuration reminded Kroto of the geodesic domes designed by the late inventor/architect Buckminster Fuller, hence the name “buckminsterfullerene.”

 In 2001, he won the Royal Society’s prestigious Michael Faraday Award, which is presented annually to a scientist who has done the most to further public communication of science, engineering or technology in the United Kingdom.

Kroto is now the Francis Eppes Professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Florida State University.

The Science Café will be held at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 25, at the Hawk’s Nest inside the Campus Center at Thomas University.

The Hawk’s Nest will have a dinner special served from 6 to 6:30 p.m. for those who wish to share a meal with the presenter. Drinks and light snacks will be provided. Admission is free and open to learners of all ages.

 Other upcoming Science Cafés will feature Misty Penton presenting “Archaeology in a Historic Thomasville Cemetery” on Oct. 30 and Dr. Michael Davison presenting “Microscopic Photography” on Nov. 27.

 For more information about the Science Café, contact April D. Penton at apenton@thomasu.edu or Carol T. Willis at cwillis@thomasu.edu.