Professor Links Chemistry & Art

By Cheryl Walker
(910) 759-5237
Posted Feb. 12, 1997

Noble Prize-winning chemist and published poet Roald Hoffmann will bridge the gap between science and art in a talk entitled "Molecular Beauty" on Wednesday, Feb. 19.

Intended for a general audience, the one-hour lecture begins at 3:30 p.m. in Benson University Centerís Pugh Auditorium.

"What makes molecules beautiful?" said Hoffmann. "It may be their simplicity, a symmetrical structure. Or, it may be their complexity, the richness of structural detail."

A chemistry professor at Cornell University, Hoffmann is a longtime friend of the National Book Award-winning poet A.R. Ammons, who is also on the Cornell faculty. Ammons is currently a visiting poet-in-residence at Wake Forest.

In addition to his science lecture, Hoffmann will give a reading of his own poetry at 7 p.m. in Scales Fine Arts Center, Room 102.

Both events are sponsored by the chemistry department. Admission is free. For information, call 759-4490.