~~Our Experts~~
To my knowledge, I never encountered a scientist until I was in my 40s. One day, I spent a day with a chemist, and then I realized that scientists are actually just regular people. After that, science seemed a lot less scary.
When I realized that science could be understood by regular people, I wanted to learn it, and all of it. Now, I'm on pace to graduate with honors with a degree in Astrobiology--life in space!! 10 years ago, I never would have guessed this is where I'd end up.
I can talk about planetary science, geology, and some biology and physics. Mainly, I can talk about how scientists are not the holders of some secret knowledge, that we are just regular people that go grocery shopping, get stuck in traffic, and grill on the weekends.
I got my Ph.D. in Chemistry in 2016 from the University of Delaware, focusing on organic chemistry and biochemistry. I learned a lot about the chemistry of the body while I was doing my graduate work. I'm currently a researcher in the chemistry department at Arizona State University, and I'm working on a project where we convert carbon dioxide to useful materials. Ask me about chemistry, biological chemistry, climate change, and alternative energy!
Joel Lusk
...needs to write his bio and send us a pic, but he's been an awesome contributor as an expert biochemist/microbiologist at Science on Main!!
Ryan Smith
...needs to write a bio and send a pic, but he recently joined our team of experts specializing in geology!
Jessica Noviello I am currently a postdoctoral scholar at the School of Earth and Space Exploration at Arizona State University. I completed my PhD on Europa and other icy moons in the outer solar system in June 2019. Right now I work on asteroids and small rocky bodies, specifically a Kuiper Belt Object called 2003 EL61 Haumea. I am also active in the vertebrate paleontology (through the Southwest Paleontological Society) and science communication communities. I have previous experience in public outreach, including a documentary called "Behind the Bones," which is available for viewing on YouTube. I've participated in national science communication workshops, guest blogs for The Planetary Society, and countless in-person outreach events! I am also currently working on starting a video series on geology and statistics concepts, as well as a few articles for Future Tense and Medium. In my spare time, I like to explore Arizona's wild corners, run long distance races, and read lots of books.
