Winter Distinguished University Professorship Lecture

Sponsored by the Office of the President and the Office of the Provost, this event features three Distinguished University Professors speaking on their professional and scholarly experiences. Each concise lecture will be followed by a brief Q & A. “Weave Patterns and Projective Geometry” by Sergey Fomin (Richard P. Stanley Distinguished University Professor of Mathematics and Professor of Mathematics, College of Literature, Science, and the Arts). Sergey Fomin has made breakthrough contributions to mathematics. A native of St. Petersburg, Russia, Fomin came to the US in 1992. After 7 years at MIT, he joined UM. In collaboration with Andrei Zelevinsky, Fomin introduced and developed the theory of cluster algebras, a groundbreaking concept that has found important applications across multiple fields. This work was recognized by the Steele Prize for Seminal Contribution to Research (American Mathematical Society, 2018). Fomin is a member of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences. He is a fellow of the AMS, a member of its Council, and a former chief editor of its flagship journal. “Battery Middle Life Crisis and Decisions” by Anna Stefanopoulou (Huei Peng Distinguished University Professor of Mechanical Engineering, William Clay Ford Professor of Technology, Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, College of Engineering). Stefanopoulou received a diploma in naval architecture and marine engineering (1991) from the National Technical University of Athens and a Ph.D. (1996) in electrical engineering and computer science from the University of Michigan. After working at Ford Motor Company, she joined U-M’s faculty in 2000, founded the world’s first academic research group in fuel cell and battery control, led breakthrough work that created digital twins of advanced propulsion systems, and developed robust sensing and calibration algorithms critical to electrified powertrains. Her scholarship, patented inventions, and industry collaborations have informed U.S. and international policy, including work with the EPA, the Department of Energy, and the United Nations. As a mentor to over 50 doctoral and postdoctoral researchers and hundreds of students each year, Professor Stefanopoulou has built Michigan into a global epicenter for powertrain education and research. She is an elected Fellow of IEEE, ASME, and SAE, and a recipient of major international awards for innovation and education. “Rebels, Repressors, Regular Folk and Me: A 30 Year Reflection of the last 75 years (in 20 Minutes)” by Christian Davenport (Charles Tilly Distinguished University Professor of Political Science, Professor of Political Science and Department of AfroAmerican and African Studies, College of Literature, Science, and the Arts Professor of Public Policy, Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy). For nearly 30 years, Professor Davenport has been at the forefront of studying state as well as non-state uses of coercion and force. Across 5 books and 50+ articles, he has examined onset, escalation, de-escalation, termination, recurrence and co-evolution in relevant behavior both globally as well as across diverse cases (most notably the United States, India and Northern Ireland) . Speaking to its merit, the work has received numerous grants (including 12 from the National Science Foundation) and awards (including a fellowship with the American Academy of the Arts and Sciences, the Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza Prize for Democracy and a best book award from the American Political Science Association). Insights from this scholarship have influenced not only other academics but governments and civil society institutions throughout the world. More recently Professor Davenport has engaged in more artistic endeavors including a collaboration with the artist Rick Lowe to be shown in our own UMMA next year. His newest interest involves what he calls “Political Love”.