James H. Williams, Jr. (S.B., 1967 and S.M., 1968 -- Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Ph.D., 1970 -- Trinity College, Cambridge University) is the School of Engineering Professor of Teaching Excellence, Charles F. Hopewell Faculty Fellow, and Professor of Applied Mechanics in the Mechanical Engineering Department at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He is also Professor of Writing and Humanistic Studies in the School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences. He has received many awards and published numerous papers and reports in conjunction with his teaching, consulting and research in the mechanical characterization of advanced fiber reinforced composites; wave propagation in large space structures; in-process and post-process quality control; reliability; dynamic fracture; nondestructive evaluation with emphasis on acoustic emission, thermal and ultrasonic responses of composites; dynamic behavior of structures subjected to seismic excitation; and the development of computerized data base systems for composite materials selection. If unavailable at his office, he can likely be found attempting to hit a 200-yard three-iron to an elevated green somewhere in the Boston area.