10-22-97
ATHENS, Ohio -- Edward Kolb, author of one of the most widely used particle physics textbooks and a creator of a theoretical astrophysics group at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, will deliver a lecture on the big-bang theory Tuesday, Oct. 28 as part of Ohio University's Frontiers in Science lecture series.
Kolb, a professor of astronomy and astrophysics at the University of Chicago, will speak on "The Primordial Soup of the Big Bang," at 8 p.m. in Grover Center on the Athens campus.
Working with colleague Michael S. Turner, Kolb started the NASA/Fermilab Theoretical Astrophysics Group in Batavia, Ill., in 1983. He served as the head of that group for 10 years, and now continues his work with the lab as a scientist examining the application of high-energy physics to the study of the early universe.
In addition to more than 150 scientific papers, several television productions and numerous film series, Kolb co-authored "The Early Universe," and wrote "Blind Watchers of the Sky," his latest book for the general public that details the story of the people and ideas that shaped society's view of the universe.
A native of New Orleans, Kolb received a doctorate in physics from the University of Texas in 1978. His postdoctoral research included activities at the California Institute of Technology and Los Alamos National Laboratory, where he was the J. Robert Oppenheimer Research Fellow.
He is a fellow of the American Physical Society and has served on the editorial boards of several international scientific journals and Astronomy magazine. Kolb teaches cosmology to nonscience majors at the University of Chicago and received the Quantrell Prize for teaching in 1993.
Kolb's lecture is the first in this year's Frontiers in Science lecture series, a program that features scientists who have been recognized for their commitment to share their scientific knowledge with people of all ages. The series was established in 1991 by Jeanette Grasselli Brown, an Ohio University graduate and former university trustee, and her husband, Glenn R. Brown, through a contribution to the Ohio University Foundation.