Richard Ernst, 1991 Nobel laureate in chemistry and professor at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, will visit Cornell University Sept. 23 through Oct. 7 as an A.D. White Professor-at-Large.

The co-author of Principles of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance in One and Two Dimensions , Ernst is the recipient of many honors, including numerous honorary doctorates and the Wolf Prize for Chemistry, the Ampere Prize and the Benoist Prize.

Ernst will give the following lectures during his stay: "Fourier Transform Concepts in Spectroscopy: From Monsieur Fourier to Medical Imaging," Monday, Sept. 24, at 4:40 p.m., Baker Laboratory 119; "How Can a Rational Scientist Become Fascinated by Tibetan Art?" Sunday, Sept. 30, at 3 p.m., Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art; "Science and Our Future: The European and American Challenges," Monday, Oct. 1, at 4:40 p.m., Baker 119/200; and "Frontiers of NMR," Thursday, Oct. 4, at 4:40 p.m., Baker 119.

Ernst's Cornell hosts are Jack Freed, professor of chemistry and chemical biology, and Earl Peters, executive director of chemistry and chemical biology.

Said Freed: "Ernst must be counted in a small and unique group of 20th-century physical scientists whose research achievements have directly revolutionized many fields, including chemistry, physics, engineering, biology and medicine … His introduction of Fourier transform methods for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has been a keystone in the development of this extremely important modern medical instrument for both clinical use and medical research. His most distinguished pioneering contribution, however, includes the introduction of two-dimensional NMR and its extension to three and higher dimensions, which have greatly enhanced resolution of spectroscopy. This led Ernst and his colleague, Kurt Wüthrich, to develop the extremely important technique of determining the detailed structure of proteins in their normal environment in aqueous solution."

For more information about Ernst's visit, contact Peters at (607) 255-8105. For more information about the A.D. White Professors-at-Large program, contact Gerri Jones, program administrator, at (607) 255-0832.