People, papers and presentations

John Dennis, the Noah Harding Professor Emeritus of Computational and Applied Mathematics, was awarded an honorary doctorate in mathematics from the University of Waterloo June 15. Dennis, who was honored for his fundamental contributions to the study of continuous optimization, also delivered a convocation address to the university’s mathematics graduates. A video of the address is available here. Dennis’ remarks begin at 11:18.

Randy Hulet, the Fayez Sarofim Professor of Physics
and Astronomy, was elected to serve as the 2014-2015 chair of the American Physical Society’s Division of Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics (DAMOP) at the division’s annual meeting this month in Anaheim, Calif. Hulet will serve a one-year term as vice chair and a one-year term as chair-elect prior to serving as chair. Hulet is the fourth Rice physicist elected to the DAMOP “chair line.” Previous Rice DAMOP chairs are Barry Dunning, the Sam and Helen Worden Professor and chair of the Department of Physics and Astronomy; Ron Stebbings, professor emeritus of physics and astronomy; and King Walters, the Sam and Helen Worden Professor Emeritus of Physics and Astronomy.