Scientific Highlights In Memory Of Leon Van Hove

Book excerpt: The “Scientific Highlights in Memory of Léon Van Hove” meeting brought together many distinguished scientists and several top officials of the European Community in honor of Léon Van Hove, an outstanding European scientist who contributed immensely to the research and development of mathematical and theoretical physics. One of the most influential physicists of the post-war period, Léon Van Hove inspired new research and work from statistical mechanics to field theory and multiparticle production. The papers in this volume recollect Léon Van Hove's early days as a scientist and recount his efforts in favor of scientific collaboration across national and international boundaries and of the cultural integration of Europe. Such insight must surely interest those who seek beyond academic and research knowledge in physics to understand its history and development, seen through the life and work of Léon Van Hove.