Vernon L. Pack Distinguished Lecture Series
The Vernon L. Pack Distinguished Lecture and Scholar in Residence program was established in 2002 through a generous gift from alumnus Vernon L. Pack, a 1950 graduate of the University. A distinguished lecturer visits campus to address important current issues that will allow the Otterbein community to reflect on ethical, spiritual and social issues. In alternate years, an esteemed scholar is invited to campus to reside for up to one academic year in order to provide an educational enrichment experience for Otterbein students.
2013 Lecture: "Encounter with Controversial Mathematics"
Around a hundred years ago, a mathematician named Georg Cantor, pioneered a new understanding of infinity. His discovery was met with an unusual amount of criticism from the mathematical community, with some referring to them as "corrupting" and "dangerous."
Robert Fefferman, Ph.D. and Dean of the Physical Sciences Division, University of Chicago will deliver a lecture entitled "A Journey to Infinity: An Encounter with Controversial Mathematics," where he will speak about Cantor's discoveries and the unusual vitriol they engendered. He is this year’s speaker for the upcoming Vernon L. Pack Distinguished Lecture and Scholar in Residence program.
This year's program, being held in conjunction with The Graduate School Spring Symposium, will take place at 3:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 4, in Riley Auditorium at the Battelle Fine Arts Center, 170 W. Park St. The event is free and open to the public.
Professor Robert Fefferman is the Max Mason Distinguished Service Professor of Mathematics. He has been Dean of the Physical Sciences Division at University of Chicago since 2003. Within mathematics he is an expert in the field of harmonic analysis and its applications to elliptic partial differential equations and its relationship to probability theory. In particular, he is one of the founders of modern multi-parameter Fourier analysis and has lectured around the world on his work.
He has been a fellow of the Sloan Foundation and in 2009 was elected to membership in the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He is a recipient of the University's Quantrell Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching and served as Chairman of the Mathematics Department from 1995 to 2001.
For more than twenty years, Professor Fefferman has been active in mathematics outreach, working with Chicago Public School teachers in order to improve the quality of mathematics education for Chicago's children.
He received his bachelor's degree in mathematics from the University of Maryland in 1972 and his Ph.D. from Princeton University in 1975.
Previous Lectures
2002 - Doris Kerns Goodwin, acclaimed historian and Pulitzer Prize in history winner for No Ordinary Time: Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt: The Home Front in World War II.
2004 - Fareed Zakaria, editor of Newsweek International and host of CNN's international affairs program Fareed Zakaria GPS.
2005 - Alan Lightman, noted physicist and critically acclaimed author of Einstein's Dreams.
2008 - Ed Begley, Jr., actor and environmentalist.
2010 – Dee Dee Myers, White House press secretary under President Clinton from 1993-1994, political analyst and commentator, and author of Why Women Should Rule the World. Myers is an expert on the issues facing women in Washington and in leadership positions of all kinds.
2011 – Harrell Fletcher, renowned visual and conceptual artist and recipient of the 2005 Alpert Award in Visual Arts.
Distinguished Scholars in Residence
2003 - Dr. Valentine Moghadam, a professor born in Iran, who conducts research regarding development, social change, and gender in the Middle East, North Africa, and Afghanistan.
2005- Lois Raimondo, an internationally-known photojournalist and Pulitzer Prize finalist nominee for her work on the New York City Mitchell Lama housing project for New York Newsday.
2007 - Wande Abimbola, President of the International Congress of Orisa Tradition and Culture, and world-renowned expert on Ifa, a West African sacred divinatory and literary system.
2009 - Dr. Richard Alley, an acclaimed geologist who conducts research on environmental issues including abrupt climate changes, glaciers, ice sheet collapse and sea level change.
2011 – Harrell Fletcher, renowned visual and conceptual artist and recipient of the 2005 Alpert Award in Visual Arts.