Effective 1 July 2011, the Executive Board of Utrecht University has appointed prof. dr. Gerard ‘t Hooft as Distinguished Professor. Nobel laureate Gerard ‘t Hooft is a Professor of Theoretical Physics at Utrecht University, as well as a Academy Professor (appointed by the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences Professor). With this appointment, Utrecht University now has nine Distinguished Professors, who owe their top status to their world-class and discipline-transcending qualities and strong global reputation.
Ever since completing his secondary education, Gerard ´t Hooft (b. 1946) has been with Utrecht University, where he studied Physics. Since 1969, he has worked for the university’s Institute for Theoretical Physics – first as a PhD student and later as a Professor of Theoretical Physics. In 2003, he also became a Science Academy Professor. In 1999, ´t Hooft shared the Nobel Prize in Physics with Martinus Veltman for “elucidating the quantum structure of the electroweak interactions in physics.” ´t Hooft is still active as a world-leading scientist and gives lectures for the Physics and Astronomy undergraduate programme and the Theoretical Physics graduate programme. His research topics vary from research into black holes, quantum gravitation and gauging theories, to the fundamentals of quantum mechanics. Each year, his work leads to publications in renowned scientific journals. Gerard ´t Hooft has not only won a Nobel Prize for his contribution to science, but also received many other awards and honorary degrees.
Distinguished Professors
The university’s Executive Board appoints only a very limited number of scientists as Distinguished Professors. They have all earned international recognition and renown for their world-class and discipline-transcending work. Among other things, a Distinguished Professor receives full freedom to carry out innovative research and teach cutting-edge courses. Moreover, a Distinguished Professor plays a thought-provoking role in the academic and public debate.
Photo
Prof. dr. Gerard ‘t Hooft. Photo by Milko Vernooy.
More information
Roy Keeris, press officer University Utrecht, tel. +31 (0)30 253 2411, r.b.keeris@uu.nl.
