Katherine R. McCall

Mary Lyon Award

March 7, 1997

Katherine R. McCall, Class of 1985. We honor you today for your achievements in theoretical and applied physics and for your ability to inspire and to encourage others in your chosen field.

A double major in physics and mathematics, you received your Mount Holyoke degree magna cum laude and won numerous honors, including the Bennett and Sarah Williston Prizes. You earned both master's and Ph.D. degrees in physics from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, after which you returned to your native West to accept a post-doctoral fellowship at Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico. Last year you were selected from a large and impressive national field of candidates for your current position as assistant professor of physics at the University of Nevada, Reno.

You have conducted research at that interface where computational theory meets practical problems, illustrating your ability to approach complex, little understood phenomena at Los Alamos where you quickly reached an extraordinary level of maturity in your scientific endeavors. Now in Reno, you continue to develop the means by which complex physical phenomena, such as seismic wave propagation in diverse materials,--earthquakes, for example--can be modeled and understood.

An excellent teacher, highly respected and appreciated by your students, you are an illuminating speaker. With your cross-disciplinary scientific interests, you inspire students with your own motivation and versatility.

Katherine, for your past accomplishments and for the promise of those to come, the Alumnae Association of Mount Holyoke College is proud to present to you the Mary Lyon Award.