The PAIR Distinguished Lecture delivered by Nobel Laureate Prof. Reinhard GENZEL, Director and Scientific Member of the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics, Garching, Germany, was successfully held on 8 February 2023. The webinar attracted over 500 participants from more than 60 countries and regions, including Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, India, Italy, Japan, Macau, the Netherlands, Russia, Singapore, Spain, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States. It was also broadcasted live on multiple social media platforms, including Bilibili and Weibo, and viewed by over 18,000 online audience in total.
The webinar was kick-started by Prof. CHEN Qingyan, Director of PolyU Academy for Interdisciplinary Research (PAIR), Chair Professor of Building Thermal Science in the Department of Building Environment and Energy Engineering at PolyU, followed by a welcome speech by Prof. TENG Jin-Guang, President of PolyU, and a speaker introduction by Prof. Christopher CHAO, Vice President (Research and Innovation) and Chair Professor of Thermal and Environmental Engineering at PolyU.
Prof. Genzel shared his 40-year journey in testing the massive black hole paradigm in the galactic centre. He discussed the development of the relevant research by different scientists, from Albert Einstein to Stephen Hawking, as well as how he and his colleagues conducted precise, long-term studies using the motions of gas and stars as test particles of the space time, showing the existence of a four million solar mass object.
A question-and-answer session moderated by Prof. Chao and Prof. Chen followed. The audience was inspired to have a fruitful exchange with Prof. Genzel.
Please click here for an online review.