Name: Mark Richards

Degree course: PhD (Atmospheric Physics)

Year graduated: 1998

Current role: Senior Teaching Fellow

Most useful module: Quantum Physics finally helped me to understand the principles of molecular spectroscopy, which I have used throughout my professional research career.

Tell us about a Black scientist who's inspired you, and why: Professor Sylvester James Gates (aka Jim Gates), a theoretical physicist and founding father of supersymmetry. More specifically, Jim first introduced (Ghanaian-based) Adinkra symbols in supersymmetric representation theory to represent concepts that were difficult to express in words. This single act ensured that the African contribution to this branch of science could not be erased over time.