Richard G. Palmer

Richard G. Palmer (born 28 January 1949, in Reigate) is a British theoretical physicist. (He is a US immigrant with permanent residency status.) Palmer received from the University of Cambridge in 1970 his B.A. in theoretical physics (1st Class) and in 1973 his PhD in condensed matter theory with thesis advisor P. W. Anderson and thesis Theory of nuclear matter in neutron stars. In 1971–1973 he was supported by a Lord Kelvin Research Fellowship. He was in 1973–1975 an instructor and in 1975–1977 a lecturer at Princeton University. He was in 1977–1983 an assistant professor, in 1983–1991 an associate professor, and from 1991 to the present a full professor of physics at Duke University. At Duke, he was also in 1992–1995 a professor of experimental psychology, in 1999–2002 a professor of psychology and brain sciences, and in 1993–1999 a professor of computer science. He was a member of the external faculty of the Santa Fe Institute in 1989–2003. Palmer "is currently working on theories of statistical mechanics. He is interested in the application and development of statistical physics methods for many types of complex systems, including glasses and spin glasses, neural networks, genetic algorithms, and economic markets. The long-term goal of his work is to establish firm theoretical foundations for understanding the emergence of structure, complexity, and computational ability in driven systems of interacting adaptive components." Palmer was an Alfred P. Sloan Fellow for the two academic years 1979–1981 and a Guggenheim Fellow for the academic year 1980–1981. He won the Duke Endowment Award for Excellence in Teaching for the academic year 1980–1981.