On the afternoon of September 26, 2023, a distinguished visiting professor signing ceremony for Prof. Herbert Mayr was held at Department of Chemistry, Tsinghua University, hosted by the Center of Basic Molecular Science (CBMS). The ceremony took place at the Zheng Yutong Lecture Hall of the Science Building on campus.

During the ceremony, Prof. Lei Liu, the Dean of the Department of Chemistry at Tsinghua University, delivered a gracious speech, highlighting the extraordinary achievements of Prof. Herbert Mayr. On behalf of the department, Prof. Liu warmly welcomed and expressed sincere gratitude to Prof. Mayr for accepting the esteemed position of a distinguished visiting professor at Tsinghua University. The moment was witnessed by faculty members and students alike, as Prof. Jin-Pei Cheng, a distinguished professor of the department and the founding director of CBMS, presented Prof. Mayr with the official letter of appointment as a distinguished visiting professor.

Following the signing ceremony, Prof. Mayr delivered an academic lecture titled "1,3-Dipolar Cycloadditions of Diazoalkanes Revisited: The Role of a Forgotten Orbital." This lecture incorporated the latest research findings, providing novel insights into the mechanisms of 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition reactions beyond what is typically covered in textbooks. The language used in the lecture was engaging, and the comprehensive content sparked dynamic and thought-provoking discussions among the attendees.

Biography of Prof. Herbert Mayr

Prof. Herbert Mayr, a distinguished Member of the German National Academy of Sciences (Leopoldina) and Bavarian Academy of Sciences, served as head of the Organic Chemistry Division of the German Chemical Society. He was also esteemed as the chairman of the Review Board “Molecular Chemistry” of the German Research Foundation (DFG), the Dean of the Faculty of Chemistry and Pharmacy, LMU München, and the Director of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, LMU München. Prof. Mayr holds the esteemed position of a professor at the C4 level, the highest academic level in Germany. His research interests encompass the development of a kinetic model for polar organic reactions, in which the positions of reagents in comprehensive reactivity scales indicate the relative reactivities of competing reactive sites and provide an estimate, whether certain reactions are likely to take place. Globally recognized for his remarkable contributions in the field of physical and organic chemistry and dynamics research, Prof. Mayr’s findings have been incorporated into organic chemistry textbooks, providing indispensable references for organic chemists worldwide.