Alon Philosof is interested in the ecological role of viruses (mainly phages) in the marine environment. Globally, viruses constitute a large and abundant biomass, and are the second largest biomass in the oceans, exceeded only by the total biomass of bacteria. He is especially interested in understanding the temporal and spatial dynamics of host-phage interactions … Continued
Dr. Betsy Pugel hails from the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center and has spent the past five years as the Deputy to the Planetary Protection Officer at NASA Headquarters. She thrives in environments where invention and collaboration are needed for resolving unique challenges. She has worked on a range of missions for NASA, including the … Continued
John Magyar is a Research Scientist in Geobiology in the Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences at the California Institute of Technology. At Caltech, he works with Victoria Orphan on a variety of projects related to microbial extracellular electron transfer, anaerobic methane oxidation and sulfate oxidation in marine ecosystems, and the roles of viruses in … Continued
Beatriz Naranjo-Elizondo is a research assistant at the Centro de Investigación en Ciencias del Mar y Limnología (CIMAR-Marine Science and Limnology Research Center), University of Costa Rica. She has a B.Sc. in Biology from the Universidad de Costa Rica, same institution where she got a Lic. in Biology with emphasis in Zoology. She has published … Continued
Jennifer Paduan is a Research Specialist at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI). She studies submarine volcanoes using autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) to map the seafloor at high-resolution and remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) to make observations and collect samples, such as of lavas, sediments and hydrothermal fluids. Her recent projects have included the historical lava flows on the Juan … Continued
Dawn Cardace is an Associate Professor of Geosciences at the University of Rhode Island, in Kingston, RI, USA. She studies biosphere-geosphere interactions in ultramafic rocks at multiple field locations, connecting mineralogy, geochemistry, and prospects for deep microbial life. At the Coast Range Ophiolite Microbial Observatory in northern CA, USA (CROMO), she led the installation of … Continued
Bekah Shepard is a scientist, science educator, and educational consultant in the greater Sacramento area. She is passionate about communicating and sharing the excitement of scientific discovery, and specializes in designing and delivering innovative hands-on science experiences and curricula. She has collaborated with institutions such as the Powerhouse Science Center, the Davis Art Center, and … Continued
Giancarlo Troni is a Principal Engineer at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI), with a focus on the control and estimation of underwater robotics systems. He has a Ph.D. from Johns Hopkins University and has previously served as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at both the University of Michigan and MBARI, where he worked extensively … Continued
Dr. Florian Neumann is a postdoctoral researcher at the Mexican Center for Innovation in Geothermal Energy. Florian studies heat flow and physical properties such as thermal conductivity in marine environments. At CEMIE-Geo Florian is using heat flow observations and theory to understand the geodynamics of rifting and the thermal regime in oceanic crust. On the … Continued
Raquel Negrete-Aranda earned a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering at Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Mexico (UNAM) School of Engineering in Mexico City. After a short period working for the industry, she reconnected with her life-long science interest and earned a Ph.D. in Earth Sciences at CICESE. Her dissertation was on magmatic evolution of volcanic … Continued
