California State University, Stanislaus’ (Stan State) very own honor society of Phi Kappa Phi hosted a talk with guest speaker and renowned astronomer-astrophysicist, Professor Enrico J. Ramirez-Ruiz on April 27 at the Mainstage Theatre.
The setting was quite relaxed, warm and as Alice in Wonderland would say, “curiouser and curiouser.” Conversations between the students and professors in attendance ranged from silent engagements to whispers.
The screen read a quote from Warren Buffett, “Gold gets dug out of the ground. Then we melt it down, dig another hole, bury it again and pay people to stand around guarding it. It has no utility. Anyone watching from Mars would be scratching their head.”
Professor Enrico J. Ramirez-Ruiz is an astronomer-astrophysicist with a diverse background. Born and raised in Mexico, he studied in England where he attended Cambridge University. His told experience was quite interesting in how his background played an influential role in his life and studies.
“I went to England and culturally, of course, it is different. Maybe I also did not get to experience the culture there, because when you go there and study you live in the university and you travel with people all over the world,” Ramirez-Ruiz said. “You are not really exposed to what it is like to live in the country, but it was very positive.”
As positive as his perceptions were of England, he did not experience a grounded change until he reached the United States. “I think most of my perceptions changed [and] happened when I came to this country [United States],” Ramirez-Ruiz said.
“I kind of realized the implications of being Mexican in this country. In one hand I was extremely naïve, thinking Mexican-Americans in the U.S. have everything. Then I took a trip to Salinas [California] to realize that we are a very strongly marginalized section of the population.”
Ramirez-Ruiz emphasized the essence and rarity of gold. He engaged the audience in how gold is formed in the universe. This particular and precious element was used to discuss his recipe in turning stars into gold. Plainly, the melting point of gold is about 1000 degrees. It is an element that shaped both our history and the generations of our world.
In fact, Aztecs believed they needed gold to travel in the afterlife, because gold lasts forever. Ramirez-Ruiz also noted the Aztecs believed, “Gold was sweat from the sun.” He also explained that the “vault” or, say, a pot of gold, is mostly stored in sea water, but in quantities that are quite small. This makes gold difficult to retrieve.
Ramirez-Ruiz has been working on a recipe for gold for about a decade. He expressed his realization of the extreme methods taken to make gold in the universe. He stated that two neutron stars are the first ingredient. Neutron stars are the densest objects in the universe. A good comparison Ramirez-Ruiz used was that a neutron star is about the size of the San Francisco bay and has the mass of the sun. In other words, the mass is like a bucket of neutron stars that weigh as much as Mount Everest.
A fascinating factor noted in the talk was that our “Own bodies are a reflection of the genealogy of the universe. If every atom can speak, it will tell you how many generations of stars and explosions it has gone through” said Ramirez-Ruiz during his talk.  
In other words, atoms are recycled throughout the life of humanity. Ramirez-Ruiz explained that we have about ten million atoms in our own body that were once in the body of Frida Kahlo or Albert Einstein.
He expressed that these atoms are constantly shared and recycled within the life of humanity. So, the next time you speak with an audience or are in a room with some of your favorite people, your atoms are shared as everyone breathes the oxygen in the room.
Ramirez-Ruiz ended his talk with the origin and myth behind the Aztecs’ belief on gold. As Aztecs believed that gold rained down (and were not necessarily made), when we were young, our essence begins when gold rushes and breaks into fractions coming down to earth.
He noted that we all start life extremely empty because we have missing pieces. This leads to an opportunity to find the other pieces in other people. Some will have a huge piece of yourself, and others will have a small piece, but you will never be complete until you retrieve every single piece.
An inspiring mythological story leads Ramirez-Ruiz to state the premise of everyone having something to give and contribute. Always listen to everyone, listen to their perspective, and rely on others to grow.
This talk was intriguing and inspiring to students such as Stephanie Lopez (senior, Geography), a Phi Kappa Phi member. “I think learning about things that are not common on campus is very interesting, like learning outside of normal majors and programs,” Lopez said. “Especially from someone who is so renowned and is learning things that we don’t typically learn everyday. I’ve never heard of a talk like this before. It opens your mind on thinking more than just life and past that.”
Students like Stephanie are ones Ramirez-Ruiz hopes to reach and inspire as well. “Yeah, I like this idea of how atomically we are very interrelated and equal and there is no distinction in terms of race, gender and who we are. I want to make it personal that the history of the universe is within all of us, and that in some ways we all have a deep connection to the universe” Ramirez-Ruiz said. “Equity and perception are very important to me, and being of course a Hispanic scientist and having to deal with stereotypes all the time.”
In continuation of his change while living in the United states, Ramirez-Ruiz noted, “On the other hand, being an academic and being Mexican, I always found myself justifying why was it I was in size, like it was some kind of exotic bird that went against the odds and was able to fly. That was kind of interesting. I think an important component that I try to do is also to communicate to other students that we potentially and atomically are all very similar and have the potential to succeed. There’s nothing intrinsic that will prevent us to do so. It’s nice when you see yourself, even if it’s in a miniscule way, with someone that is giving a talk or some scientist. Being an effective role model is important to me.”
For more information about Phi Kappa Phi visit www.csustan.edu/pkp or for more details regarding Professors Ramirez-Ruiz work visit http://www.ucolick.org/~enrico/science.html