RICHARDSON, Texas (Sept. 5, 2002) - The Cecil and Ida Green Center for the Study of Science and Society at The University of Texas at Dallas (UTD) will host Sir Walter Bodmer on Wednesday, Sept. 25, at 7:30 p.m. in UTD's Conference Center Auditorium for a lecture highlighting the relationship between genes and disease.

        Sir Walter's talk, entitled "Genes, People and Disease," is part of the Cecil and Ida Green Distinguished Lecture Series held annually at UTD. The lectures are free and open to the public.

        Sir Walter's lecture will focus on how genetic differences may influence susceptibility to disease and how those differences can be used to characterize human populations and their interrelationships. For example, susceptibility to some common chronic diseases, such as diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis, can be influenced by tissue types, which may be used to match individuals for kidney and other transplants.

        Sir Walter currently is principal of Hertford College, Oxford, in England and was formerly director-general of the Imperial Cancer Research Fund, where he continues to conduct scientific research. He was made a fellow of the Royal Society in 1974 and received knighthood in 1986. He is a foreign associate of the National Academy of Sciences and a foreign honorary member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Sir Walter, who is the recipient of more than 20 honorary degrees and fellowships, was the second president of the Human Genome Organization and is past president of the British Association for the Advancement of Science and of the Royal Statistical Society.

        A reception will be held immediately following the lecture. For more information, please contact Janie Jury at (972) 883-2555 or jjury@utdallas.edu.

About the Cecil and Ida Green Center for the Study of Science and Society

         Created in 1992, the Cecil and Ida Green Center for the Study of Science and Society promotes more effective use of science and technology in understanding and remediating problems that threaten the global future. The center provides an institutional setting in which experts can engage in focused cross-disciplinary research and analysis. Center research programs and invited speakers reflect the center's commitment to a multidisciplinary approach to achieving solutions to society's most pressing problems. This exchange of ideas across disciplines and types of organizations has been a driving force behind many of the philanthropic activities of Cecil Green, a founder of The University of Texas at Dallas, and his late wife, Ida.

About UTD

        The University of Texas at Dallas, located at the convergence of Richardson, Plano and Dallas in the heart of the complex of major multinational technology corporations known as the Telecom Corridor , enrolls more than 7,000 undergraduate and 5,000 graduate students. The school's freshman class traditionally stands at the forefront of Texas state universities in terms of average SAT scores. The university offers a broad assortment of bachelor's, master's and doctoral degree programs. For additional information about UTD, please visit the university's Web site at www.utdallas.edu.