Distinguished Lectures

The statue of Ezra Cornell on the Arts Quad in fall.

We host two distinguished lectures each year in honor of prominent figures in our history, Raymond G. Thorpe and Julian C. Smith.

Raymond G. Thorpe Lecture

An annual guest lecture honoring Ray Thorpe’s dedication to excellence and over 39 years of teaching. The lecture was established in 1989 by Ray’s many friends and alumni. The objective of the lecture is to enhance the undergraduate teaching program by inviting an alumnus who typifies exceptional professional progress and service to the Cornell community.

Raymond G. Thorpe

Upcoming Raymond Thorpe Lectures

  • John Murphy

    Monday, October 19, 2026

    John Murphy
    United States District Judge, Eastern District of Pennsylvania

    How a Cornell Chemical Engineer Became a Federal Judge, and the Lessons Learned Along the Way

    John Murphy (ChemE ’99), a United States District Judge for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, will trace his path from Olin Hall to the halls of justice.  He will cover topics like: (i) how the law works (from the perspective of an engineer); (ii) careers in law; (iii) unexpected connections among the fields of law, science, and engineering; (iv) some of the challenges facing our legal system at the intersection of law and science; and, of course, (v) why an education in chemical engineering really does prepare you for anything.  He will also share insights from his time in chemical engineering that have carried him over the years, such as the role of mentorship, the bedrock of ethical conduct, and how serendipity favors the prepared mind.

    After Cornell, but before turning to a legal career, Judge Murphy followed the path of his mentors at Cornell, obtaining a Ph.D. in chemical engineering at Caltech, where he was an NSF fellow.  There, he worked in the laboratory of Professor Mark E. Davis on a thesis entitled “Methods for Collection and Processing of Gene Expression Data.”  He was also chair of Caltech’s Graduate Review Board, and obtained a patent on his work, two experiences that got him thinking about the law.  From there, he attended Harvard Law School, where he was editor-in-chief of the Harvard Journal of Law and Technology, and then served as a clerk for Chief Judge Kimberly A. Moore of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.  Before being appointed to the court, Judge Murphy was a partner at the law firm of Baker & Hostetler in Philadelphia, where he litigated patent, copyright, trademark, and trade secret disputes.  Now, outside of the courtroom, Judge Murphy serves on the Committee on Codes of Conduct of the Judicial Conference of the United States and the Subcommittee on Artificial Intelligence.  He also teaches at Villanova Law School and Rutgers Law School and is co-author of the last three editions of the popular law-school casebook Patent Litigation & Strategy.

    Monday, October 19
    Reception: 4 -4:30 p.m, 128 Olin Hall
    Lecture: 4:30-5 p.m., 155 Olin Hall

  • Fall 2027

    TBA

Past Raymond G. Thorpe Lectures
  • 2025 – Marlene Quijano, Senior R&D/Innovation Executive
  • 2024 – Kathleen Vaeth, Qualitrol Corporation
  • 2023 – Jefferson Tester, Cornell University
  • 2022 – Geoff Achilles, Air Products
  • 2021 – Paul Mensah, Pfizer, Inc.
  • 2020 – Craig Wheeler, Momenta Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
  • 2019 – Lisa L. Walker, DHR International
  • 2018 – Samir Somaiya, Godavari Biorefineries Ltd.
  • 2017 – Lisa Skeete Tatum, Landit
  • 2016 – Harvey Stenger, Binghamton University
  • 2015 – Eric Degenfelder, Axalta Coating Systems
  • 2014 – Todd Zion, SmartCells, Inc. 
  • 2013 – Bob Beadle, Ret. Valero Energy Corp. and Stephen Kirk, Ret. Lubrizol
  • 2012 – Marjorie L. Hart- Ret. Exxon Mobil 
  • 2011 – Alfred M. Center, Cornell University 
  • 2010 – Robert F. Smith, Vista Equity Partners LLC
  • 2009 – Peter Wright, P.A.W. Partners
  • 2007 – Evelyn Taylor Pearson, BP
  • 2006 – Beckie Robertson, Senior Partner Versant Ventures
  • 2005 – Tim Weldon, Intel Corporation
  • 2004 – Robert Ware, senior process technologist, Rohm and Haas
  • 2003 – John Carberry, Director of Environmental Technology, DuPont Company
  • 2003 – Ann Lee, Executive Director, Bioprocess R&D, Merck Research Laboratories
  • 2002 – Leon Anziano, former President and CEO of Arch Chemicals
  • 2000 – Carol Nolan, Director of Technical Services and Validation, Wyeth Laboratories
  • 2000 – Marshall E. Frank, Managing Director and President of Chem Systems Incorporated
  • 1999 – Samuel C. Fleming, Director of CareGroup, Incorporated
  • 1998 – Kenneth E. Ackley, President of Innovative Packaging
  • 1993 – Paul Orefice, Former Chairman of Dow Chemical Company
  • 1992 – H. Laurance Fuller, Co-chairman of BP Amoco Corporation
  • 1991 – Samuel Bodman, President of Cabot Corporation
Zhenan Bao talks with Chris Alabi and James Tanaka in Olin Hall lecture room.
Kathleen Vaeth gives Thorpe lecture to students in Olin Hall.

Julian C. Smith Lecture

An annual, two-day lecture series established by the class of 1962, and other friends and colleagues, to honor Julian Smith for his commitment and vision in promoting academic research in the school, and for his service as a member of the faculty and as director from 1965 to 1981.

Julian C. Smith

Upcoming Julian C. Smith Lectures

  • Spring 2027

    TBA

Past Julian C. Smith Lectures
  • 2025 – Zhenan Bao, Stanford University
  • 2024 – Kathleen Stebe, University of Pennsylvania
  • 2023 – Rachel Segalman, University of California at Santa Barbara
  • 2022 – Michael D. Graham, University of Wisconsin – Madison
  • 2021 – Paula T. Hammond, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
  • 2020 – Francis J. Doyle III, Harvard University
  • 2019 – Ignacio Grossman, Carnegie Mellon
  • 2018 – Lynn Loo, Princeton University 
  • 2017 – Emily Carter, Princeton University 
  • 2016 – David T. Allen, University of Texas at Austin
  • 2015 – Frances H. Arnold, California Institute of Technology 
  • 2014 – John F. Brady, California Institute of Technology 
  • 2013 – Pablo Debendetti, Princeton University
  • 2012 – James Liao, University of California, Los Angeles
  • 2011 – Juan J. de Pablo, University of Wisconsin – Madison
  • 2010-  Roger Bonnecaze, University of Texas at Austin
  • 2008 – Carol Hall, North Carolina State University
  • 2006 – Lanny Schmidt, University of Minnesota
  • 2005 – George Georgiou, University of Texas at Austin
  • 2004 – Gerald G. Fuller, Stanford University
  • 2003 – Klavs Jensen, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
  • 2002 – Sang-Tae Kim, Lilly Research Laboratories
  • 2001 – Robert S. Langer, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
  • 2000 – Alice P. Gast, Stanford University
  • 1999 – Mark E. Davis, California Institute of Technology
  • 1998 – Douglas A Lauffenburger, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
  • 1997 – Robert A. Brown, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
  • 1996 – L. Gary Leal, University of California at Santa Barbara
  • 1995 – H. Ted Davis, University of Minnesota
  • 1994 – Matthew V. Tirrell, University of Minnesota
  • 1993 – James F. Bailey, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zurich
  • 1992 – Andreas Acrivos, City College, City University of New York
  • 1991 – Michel Boudart, Stanford University
  • 1990 – John H. Seinfeld, California Institute of Technology
  • 1989 – John M. Prausnitz, University of California at Berkeley
  • 1988 – R. Byron Bird, University of Wisconsin