Dr. Joaquin Ruiz, who is a dean and member of the geosciences faculty at the University of Arizona and immediate past president of the Geological Society of America, will present "The Evolution of Earth" on Friday, Oct. 14, at 3 p.m. in room 102 of VanderWerf Hall as the 2011 Gentile Interdisciplinary Lecture at Hope College.

The public is invited. Admission is free.

The address is scheduled in conjunction with the college's annual Homecoming Weekend, which runs Friday-Sunday, Oct. 14-16.

Ruiz is executive dean of the Colleges of Letters, Arts and Science, dean of the College of Science and a professor of geosciences at the University of Arizona in Tucson. This summer he concluded a one-year term as president of the Geological Society of America, following a previous year's service as vice president.

As a scientist with equal abilities in chemistry and in geology, he addresses many first-order problems in the earth sciences, such as the development of new isotope systems for studying ore deposits and the tectonic processes involved in the growth and evolution of Mexico. His research team addresses problems ranging from the origins of life to present-day climate change.

Ruiz received his B.S. in geology and B.S. in chemistry at the University of Miami in 1977. He received his M.S. and Ph.D. in geology from the University of Michigan in 1980 and 1983 respectively.

From 1982 to 1983, he was an assistant professor at the University of Miami. He joined the University of Arizona Geosciences Department as an assistant professor in 1983, and was promoted to associate professor in 1989 and professor in 1993. He served as head of the Department of Geosciences from 1995 to 2000, and was appointed dean of the College of Science in 2000 and executive dean of the Colleges of Letters, Arts and Science in 2009.

In addition to his involvement in the Geological Society of America, he is a Fellow of the Society of Economic Geologists, and a member of the American Geophysical Union, the American Chemical Society, the Geochemical Society and the National Research Council of the National Academies of Science. He is a member of the MexicanAcademy of Sciences and the Governing Board of the Instituto Nacional de Astronomia, Optica y Electronica in Mexico.

He has served as secretary of the Volcanology Section of the American Geophysical Union, councillor of the Geological Society of America, and as a National Science Foundatin panel member for the Instrumentation and Facilities Program and the Centers for Excellence in Science and Technology Program. He has served as associate editor of the "American Journal of Science," "Geology," "Revista" and "Geofisica International" of the Institute of Geology, UNAM.

The Gentile Interdisciplinary Lectureship at Hope was established in 2005 by faculty colleagues, former students and friends of Dr. James Gentile. Gentile joined the Hope faculty in 1976 and served as dean for the natural sciences from 1988 to 2005, when he became president of Research Corporation, a private foundation in Tucson, Ariz., that supports basic research in the physical sciences.

VanderWerf Hall is located along 10th Street between Central and College avenues.