The Hebrew University of Jerusalem congratulates Professor Haim Sompolinsky on receiving the 2026 Dirac Medal
Grant and Award Announcement
Updates every hour. Last Updated: 29-Oct-2026 19:16 ET (29-Oct-2026 23:16 GMT/UTC)
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem proudly congratulates Prof. Haim Sompolinsky, one of the world's leading theoretical physicists and neuroscientists, on being awarded the 2026 Dirac Medal and Prize by the Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP).
Professor Jun Ma's research group at the University of Science and Technology of China reported a novel green ammonia synthesis strategy based on high-energy electron beam dissociation collisions. This work utilizes a MeV-level electron beam to directly act on an N₂/H₂ gas-phase system, achieving ammonia generation at room temperature, atmospheric pressure, and without an external heating source. The study shows that the high-energy electron beam can activate stable N≡N triple bonds through ionization, excitation, and secondary electron induction processes, driving the conversion of nitrogen and hydrogen into NH₃. In the catalyst-free system, an ammonia generation rate of 0.14 μmol·L⁻¹·s⁻¹ can be obtained by optimizing the electron beam parameters; further, the introduction of Ru nanocatalysts increases the ammonia yield by up to 2.8 times compared to the catalyst-free system. This work provides a new research approach for achieving small molecule activation and green ammonia synthesis using high-energy electron beams. The article was published as an open access Research Article in CCS Chemistry, the flagship journal of the Chinese Chemical Society.
Rapid land use changes across the Southeast United States are creating challenges for young and beginning farmers, family farm operations and the economies of rural communities.
To address this challenge, the University of Tennessee Institute of Agriculture (UTIA) and the Tennessee Farm Bureau Federation will host the inaugural Southeast Farm and Forest Land Summit on Monday, October 12, 2026, at the Tennessee Farm Bureau headquarters in Columbia, Tennessee.