DATE: 2:30 p.m. Jan. 16, 2006

EVENT: Sylvester James Gates, Jr., the John S. Toll Professor of Physics at the University of Maryland, College Park, will deliver the College of Engineering Martin Luther King Jr. Symposium keynote address on Jan. 16. Gates, a leading researcher in string theory, is believed to be the first African-American to hold an endowed chair in physics at a major U.S. research university. A graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Gates specializes in elementary particle physics and quantum field theory.

A member of the American Physical Society (APS), Sigma Xi and the National Society of Black Physicists, Gates has served as a consultant for the National Science Foundation, the Department of Energy and the Department of Defense. He was chosen as the first recipient of the APS Bouchet Award and is a Fellow of both APS and NSBP.

Gates has been featured in a number of educational outreach broadcasts including the NOVA mini-series,” The Elegant Universe,” and in” Mysteries of the Universe” as part of the PBS series,” A Science Odyssey.”

A reception in the Chesebrough Lobby immediately follows his lecture.

PLACE: Chesebrough Auditorium at the Chrysler Center on University of Michigan’s North Campus. The event is free and open to the public.

SPONSOR: College of Engineering. http://www.engin.umich.edu/

U-M College of Engineering