UPCOMING LECTURE SERIES SPEAKERS
An exciting lineup featuring a bestselling science writer, the chief executive officers of a leading computer chipmaker and a top software company, and a tech-industry pioneer will join Purdue President Mung Chiang this semester as part of the Presidential Lecture Series. The first PLS event of the semester also coincides with Purdue’s yearlong celebration of the United States’ 250th birthday.
Feb. 26
Timothy Ferris
Ferris is the author of a dozen books including “The Science of Liberty,” “Seeing in the Dark,” “The Whole Shebang” and “Coming of Age in the Milky Way,” which was translated into 15 languages and named by The New York Times as among the leading books published in the 20th century. In his bestselling “Science of Liberty: Democracy, Reason, and the Laws of Nature,” published in 2010, Ferris highlights the pivotal role that science plays at the core of liberty and free expression and as a precursor to a liberal society while also advancing and promoting economic prosperity. His three documentary films — “The Creation of the Universe,” “Life Beyond Earth” and “Seeing in the Dark” — premiered in prime time on PBS.
March 2
Lisa Su
As chair and CEO of Advanced Micro Devices Inc. (known as AMD), Dr. Su has led the company’s transformation into the industry’s high-performance and adaptive computing leader. One of the most influential leaders in global technology, Su has helped solve the world’s most important challenges by delivering the next generation of computing and AI solutions. Su was Time’s 2024 CEO of the Year and has been recognized as one of Barron’s World’s Best CEOs and Fortune’s Most Powerful People in Business. She received the 2024 Bower Award for Business Leadership and the Distinguished Leadership Award from the Committee for Economic Development. Su is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering.
March 25
Shantanu Narayen
As chair and CEO, Narayen has transformed Adobe into an industry innovator by pioneering a cloud-based subscription model for its creative software, establishing the global standard for digital documents, and creating and leading the explosive digital experience category. Narayen joined Adobe in 1998 as vice president and general manager of its engineering technology group. He became president and chief operating officer in 2005, CEO in 2007, and chair of the board in 2017. He has been recognized by several publications as one of the world’s leading executives, including Barron’s World’s Best CEOs and Fortune Businessperson of the Year lists, and named a Top CEO by Glassdoor based on employee feedback.
April 30
Bruce Leak
A multimedia pioneer, engineer, founder and investor, Leak is a co-founder of Playground Global, a deep tech venture capital firm backing the most technically ambitious founders of our generation — those working at the edge of engineering and sciences. With a master’s degree in electrical engineering from Stanford University, Leak spent two summer internships at Microsoft, where he tested an early prototype of Microsoft Word for the original IBM PC and later worked on initial versions of Microsoft’s Macintosh applications. His first full-time role was with Apple Computer, where he led the company’s efforts on 32-bit Color QuickDraw, which became the foundation of true color display on Mac screens and sparked the birth of QuickTime.
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