For their inaugural event in the Nanotechnology Seminar Series, the Nanoscience Institute for Medical & Engineering Technology (NIMET) will host Nobel Laureate Sir Harold Kroto. Kroto was one of three scientists to win the Nobel Prize in 1996 for discovering the carbon molecule C60– which they named Buckminsterfullerene, more commonly known as “buckyballs.” His speech, “Carbon in Nano and Outer Space,” will detail how the discovery of C60 arose from a curiosity about atmospheric chemistry, and how that curiosity serendipitously led to advancements in nanoscale research.
The seminar will be held in NEB 102 on Thursday February 26 at 3:15 p.m. All are welcome.
Kroto is the Francis Eppes Professor of Chemistry at Florida State University, where his work focuses on nanoscience and cluster chemistry, as well as STEM education outreach. Kroto was knighted for his contributions to chemistry the same year he received the Nobel Prize. He is a fellow of the Royal Society of London and holds an emeritus professorship at the University of Sussex, Brighton, United Kingdom. He holds over 40 honorary degrees from universities around the world and serves on several academic advisory boards.