The Food Science & Agricultural Chemistry Department at Macdonald Campus is celebrating its 25 years of existence by inviting some stars from the worlds of cooking and chemistry.

The symposium is open to the public.

Dr. Hervé This

Dr. This is a French physical chemist who works for the Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique at AgroParisTech in Paris, France. His main area of scientific research is molecular gastronomy, that is, the science of culinary phenomena (more precisely, looking for the mechanisms of phenomena occurring during culinary transformations). Although his main focus is on physical chemistry, he also attributes great importance to the emotional aspect of cooking, as shown by the title of one of his books: Cooking is love, art, technique.

Maxime Bilet

Bilet is a chef and co-author of Modernist Cuisine: The Art and Science of Cooking. Modernist cuisine has in recent years blown through the boundaries of the culinary arts. Borrowing techniques from the laboratory, pioneering chefs at world-renowned restaurants such as elBulli, The Fat Duck, Alinea, and wd50 have incorporated a deeper understanding of science and advances in cooking technology into their culinary art.

Dr. Joe Schwarcz BSc'69, PhD'74

Dr. Schwarcz is the director of McGill University's Office for Science and Society, whose mandate is to demystify science for the public, the media and students. Dr. Schwarcz also teaches a variety of courses in McGill's Chemistry Department and in the Faculty of Medicine with an emphasis on health issues, including aspects of "Alternative Medicine". He is well known for his informative and entertaining public lectures on topics ranging from the chemistry of love to the science of aging. Professor Schwarcz has received numerous awards for teaching chemistry and for interpreting science for the public; has written several books; has appeared on television and radio; and writes a weekly column for the Montreal Gazette, "The Right Chemistry".