Pearson Lecturers give two lectures — one is broader in scope and meant to appeal to a diverse audience (May 16th), and a second that is more focused and technical (May 18th). The lectures will both be at 4pm in ESB 1001.

Professor Howard A. Stone is the Donald R. Dixon ’69 and Elizabeth W. Dixon Professor in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Princeton University. Stone is a fluid dynamicist who uses experiments, theory and numerical simulations to study transport problems at the intersections of engineering, biology, physics and applied mathematics. He is known for developing original research directions in microfluidics including studies and applications involving bubbles and droplets, red blood cells, bacteria, chemical kinetics, etc. Stone received the Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering from the UC Davis in 1982 and the PhD in Chemical Engineering from Caltech in 1988. In 1989 Stone joined the faculty of the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences at Harvard University, where he eventually became the Vicky Joseph Professor of Engineering and Applied Mathematics. In 2000 he was named a Harvard College Professor for his contributions to undergraduate education. In July 2009 Stone moved to Princeton University. He is a Fellow of the APS and is past Chair of the Division of Fluid Dynamics. In 2008 he was the first recipient of the G.K. Batchelor Prize in Fluid Dynamics and in 2016 he received the APS Fluid Dynamics Prize. He was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 2009, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2011, and the National Academy of Sciences in 2014.

This will be the eleventh in a series of distinguished lectureships given in memory of Professor Dale Pearson, who was a faculty member at UCSB from 1987 through 1993. Professor Pearson received a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Iowa State University in 1964 and then went to work at Firestone Tire and Rubber Company in their Central Research Laboratories where he became Research Engineer and Group Leader. He earned a M.S. in Chemical Engineering at the University of Akron in 1971 and a Ph.D. in Materials Science from Northwestern University in 1978. He then moved on to hold research positions at AT&T Bell Laboratories (1978-83) and at Exxon Corporate Research Laboratories (1983-87) before joining the faculty at UCSB as a member of the Chemical & Nuclear Engineering and Materials Departments.

Professor Pearson’s research on the rheology of polymeric liquids, liquid crystals, and other complex fluids was recognized worldwide and led to two prestigious awards, the Dillon Medal from the American Physical Society in 1988 and the Charles M.A. Stine Award in Materials Engineering and Sciences from the American Institute of Chemical Engineers. Professor Pearson was an outstanding and enthusiastic teacher and had especially close relationships with his students and colleagues from all over the world. Perhaps the most telling insight into his character was that he was equally at ease and enthusiastic whether working with a beginning graduate student or a leading researcher in the field. He was truly a pleasure to work with, always providing stimulation without intimidation, generous with his praise, and selfless with his appropriation of credit to others.

The Pearson Memorial Lectures are made possible by the Dale Pearson Memorial Fund, established at UCSB by his family, friends, and colleagues.