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Sylvester James Gates, Jr.

Visiting Professor 2010-2011 Distinguished University Professor, University System of Maryland Regents Professor, University of Maryland John S. Toll Professor, Department of Physics, University of Maryland Director, Center for String & Particle Theory, University of Maryland
The trailblazers in human, academic, scientific and religious freedom have always been in the minority… It will take such a small committed minority to work unrelentingly to win the uncommitted majority. Such a group may transform America’s greatest dilemma into her most glorious opportunity.
— Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Background

Sylvester James Gates, Jr. is a world-renowned theoretical physicist who serves as Distinguished University Professor, University System of Maryland Regents Professor, John S. Toll Professor of Physics, and Center for String & Particle Theory director at the University of Maryland. Gates earned SB degrees in physics and in mathematics and a PhD in Physics from MIT.

Interests

Gates’ research areas are mathematical and theoretical physics of supersymmetric particles, fields and strings, as well as the physics of quarks, leptons, gravity, super and heterotic strings and unified field theories, and adinkras. He is also well-known for using adinkras (West African geometric symbols) to develop graphical representations of supersymmetric algebras. Other lectures and writings discuss the challenge of technical educations for African-Americans and the issues of affirmative action, diversity and equity.

As an MLK visiting professor, Gates collaborated with members of the Center for Theoretical Physics (CTP) in the Department of Physics. Hosted by Professors Ed Bertschinger and Eddie Farhi, Gates continued his research on string theory, supersymmetry and supergravity. He also continued to serve as a member of President Obama’s Presidential Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.

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