The Good Professor Story

http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2011/12/longtime_rutgers_professor_wil.html

Physics professor Claud W. Lovelace, an expert in string theory who has taught at Rutgers University for 40 years, has three interests in life: classical music, parakeets and, of course, physics.

That’s why the 77-year-old professor, who has no spouse or children, decided to will his entire estate to the university’s Physics and Astronomy Department, said the department chair, Professor Ronald Ransome.

Lovelace has pledged $1.5 million to match funds provided by an anonymous donor to endow the first of 18 academic chairs, the university announced Monday. Lovelace said he wants to strengthen the university’s work in physics with practical applications, an area he described as the "opposite extreme" of his specialty as a theorist. The rest of the money will endow a graduate fellowship, Ransome said.

The anonymous donor last summer gave Rutgers $27 million — the largest individual donation the university has ever received — with the stipulation that the money be matched to increase the number of endowed chairs at the school by almost half, said Rutgers University Foundation President Carol P. Herring.

An endowed chair, considered an honor to give to a professor, can be used by the university to recruit a leader in an academic field or keep a valuable professor from being poached by another institution, Herring said. A small percentage of the endowment goes toward the professor’s salary and benefits.

Rutgers has 41 endowed chairs, with 18 more to be funded with the anonymous donation and matching funds. The number of endowed chairs is an indication of a university’s prestige, she said.

"This is a real bargain," Herring said. "There are a lot of people who would like to have their names on chairs, and $3 million is just too much money. Some of them will feel that $1.5 (million) is possible. I think we’re going to get a fast, very enthusiastic reaction."

A study ranked Lovelace as the 14th most influential physicist in the world from 1967 to 1973, according to the university.

"He’s a little bit of a character because of his rather single-minded devotion to physics, but he’s always lived a very simple life," Ransome said. "We’re extremely grateful that he was willing to do this."

Tracy Whitney wrote:http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2011/12/longtime_rutgers_professor_wil.html

Physics professor Claud W. Lovelace, an expert in string theory who has taught at Rutgers University for 40 years, has three interests in life: classical music, parakeets and, of course, physics.

That’s why the 77-year-old professor, who has no spouse or children, decided to will his entire estate to the university’s Physics and Astronomy Department, said the department chair, Professor Ronald Ransome.

Lovelace has pledged $1.5 million to match funds provided by an anonymous donor to endow the first of 18 academic chairs, the university announced Monday. Lovelace said he wants to strengthen the university’s work in physics with practical applications, an area he described as the "opposite extreme" of his specialty as a theorist. The rest of the money will endow a graduate fellowship, Ransome said.

The anonymous donor last summer gave Rutgers $27 million — the largest individual donation the university has ever received — with the stipulation that the money be matched to increase the number of endowed chairs at the school by almost half, said Rutgers University Foundation President Carol P. Herring.

An endowed chair, considered an honor to give to a professor, can be used by the university to recruit a leader in an academic field or keep a valuable professor from being poached by another institution, Herring said. A small percentage of the endowment goes toward the professor’s salary and benefits.

Rutgers has 41 endowed chairs, with 18 more to be funded with the anonymous donation and matching funds. The number of endowed chairs is an indication of a university’s prestige, she said.

"This is a real bargain," Herring said. "There are a lot of people who would like to have their names on chairs, and $3 million is just too much money. Some of them will feel that $1.5 (million) is possible. I think we’re going to get a fast, very enthusiastic reaction."

A study ranked Lovelace as the 14th most influential physicist in the world from 1967 to 1973, according to the university.

"He’s a little bit of a character because of his rather single-minded devotion to physics, but he’s always lived a very simple life," Ransome said. "We’re extremely grateful that he was willing to do this."

I am hoping there will be professors who would do scientific analysis instead of reaching hilarious conclusions based on personal prejudices.