**Science Communication Focus Group founding team**

**SCIENCE JOURNALISTS**

**Leonard David** is senior space writer for *SPACE.com*. He has been
reporting on world space progress for nearly four decades, with
particular emphasis on the search for life elsewhere. David\'s writings
have appeared in a diverse array of publications, from *Aerospace
America* to the *Financial Times* and *Foreign Policy* magazine. He is a
co-author of the recently published book, *Chaos to Cosmos: A Space
Odyssey*.

**Leigh Dayton** is a multi-award winning science writer and
broadcaster, specializing in the impact of science and technology on
society. She is

currently science writer at *The Australian*, the country\'s national
newspaper. Previously, she was a reporter/producer for ABC Television\'s
long-running science program, *Quantum*, science writer with the *Sydney
Morning Herald* and Sydney and Vancouver correspondent for Britain\'s
*New Scientist* magazine.

**Bruce Dorminey** is a science journalist and author of *Distant
Wanderers: The Search for Planets Beyond the Solar System*, who writes
exclusively about astronomy and astrophysics. A former bureau chief for
Aviation Week & Space Technology magazine, he has written for numerous
newspapers and magazines, including: the Financial Times, Astronomy,
Discover, Canada\'s Globe & Mail, the Boston Globe, and the Dallas
Morning News. He was a 1998 winner in the Royal Aeronautical Society\'s
Aerospace Journalist of the Year Awards. One of his primary passions is
how our own astrobiological beginnings are affected by the structure of
the cosmic web at large, and what such structure portends for the
evolution of intelligent life in our own galaxy and beyond. He is
currently at work on his next book.

**Michael Lemonick** is senior science writer for Time Magazine, with a
special expertise on astronomy. His 1998 book *Other Worlds: The Search
for Life in the Universe*, won the American Physical Society Science
Writing Award.

**Charles Petit** is a senior writer for *U.S. News & World Report* and
has covered science for more than 30 years for both newspapers and
magazines. Special interests include earth and space sciences,
evolution, paleontology, physics, and the intersection of biology with
nanotechnology. He is a former president of the National Association of
Science Writers, works from his home in Berkeley, and has a bachelor\'s
degree in astronomy from UC-Berkeley.

**Christina Reed** is an oceanographer-turned-journalist with a goal of
communicating science to the public. A former editor of *Geotimes*, she
has worked on assignment in the Galapagos for the Woods Hole
Oceanographic Institution and was \'shipwrecked\' on a Scottish island
for the Discovery Channel. She is currently the science coordinator for
*Titanic* director James Cameron. Last summer her job was to check out
the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean at 1,012 meters deep.

**SCIENCE COMMUNICATORS**

**Paul Davies** is Professor of Natural Philosophy at the Australian
Center for Astrobiology at Macquarie University. He is well known as an
author, broadcaster and public lecturer. He has written more than 25
books, both popular and specialist works, which have been translated
into more than 20 languages. His latest book is *How to Build a Time
Machine.* Also notable is his popular account of astrobiology *The Fifth
Miracle* now republished under the title *The Origin of Life,* and *The
Mind of God* for which he won the Templeton Prize in 1995. Paul writes
regularly for newspapers, journals and magazines in several countries,
both about science and the political and social aspects of science and
technology. He won the *ABC Eureka Prize* in 1991 for the promotion of
science in Australia and in 2002 the Royal Society's *Faraday Prize* for
his contributions to the promotion of physics to the public.

**Bruce Jakosky** is Professor of Geology at the University of Colorado
where he is a member of the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space
Physics. He is PI for the University of Colorado NAI Lead Team. He
authored *The Search for Other Planets* in 1998 and more recently
co-authored with Seth Shostak and Jeffrey Bennett a textbook for
emerging courses on astrobiology entitled *Life in the Universe.* He has
a keen and active interest in science communication. Bruce has been
involved with a number of spacecraft missions including *Clementine,
Mars Observer* and the *Mars Global Surveyor.*

**David Morrison** is Senior Scientist with the NASA Astrobiology
Institute. He is an astronomer and planetary scientist and one of the
founders of astrobiology. In addition to 135 technical papers and 8
college texts, he has published popular articles in Scientific American,
Sky & Telescope, Astronomy, Mercury, Skeptic, Skeptical Inquirer,
Astronomy Education Review, and the Journal of the National Center for
Science Education. In the 1980s he created several widely-used
instructional slide sets of planetary images with supporting text for
high-school and college teachers. His trade books include Voyage to
Jupiter, Voyages to Saturn, Cosmic Catastrophes (with Clark Chapman),
and Exploring Planetary Worlds. His website on the comet and asteroid
impact hazard, about to enter its tenth year, is the definitive source
of information to the public on this topic. In 1993 he was awarded the
Klumpke-Roberts Prize of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific for his
contributions to public education and understanding of science. At NAI
Central, he is responsible for general oversight and interpretation of
astrobiology science, with special interest in EPO and training,
including the on-line answering of questions to \"Ask an
Astrobiologist\".

**Seth Shostak** is senior astronomer at the SETI Institute with
responsibilities for much of its outreach activities. He has a weekly
one-hour show on Radio America, *Are we alone?* and is author of
*Sharing the Universe: Perspectives on Extraterrestrial Intelligence*
and co-author of *Cosmic Company.* Seth has also co-authored with
Jeffrey Bennett and Bruce Jakosky a pioneering astrobiology textbook,
*Life in the Universe.* He has written several hundred popular articles
on astronomy, technology, film and television. He regularly makes
television and radio appearances and gives public talks in the US and
elsewhere in the world. In addition, he teaches half a dozen informal
education classes in and around the San Francisco Bay Area. A keen
photographer, his pictures have appeared in science and general
magazines, including the cover picture for Time Magazine. He is a
corresponding member of the International Academy of Astronautics and
chair of its international SETI Permanent Study Group.

**SCIENCE EDUCATION SPECIALISTS**

**Mark Brake** is Professor of Science Communication at the University
of Glamorgan and is one of the UK\'s leading communicators in science.

He has led the development of numerous innovative science courses,
including the world\'s first BSc in Science and Science Fiction. He is
the director of the university\'s extensive public outreach program in
science, science communication and astrobiology.

**Emily CoBabe-Ammann** is the head of Education and Public Outreach at
the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics at the University of
Colorado at Boulder, where she is responsible for working with
scientists to develop E/PO projects and their ultimate implementation
and evaluation. She leads the education and outreach for CU's Center for
Astrobiology, as well as for several other missions and programs at the
largest of CU's space science institutes. Her programs support
community-based outreach programs in space physics and atmospheric
science/climate change, science workshops for journalists, undergraduate
project- and mission-based research programs, and a variety of both
formal and informal K-12 science education experiences that particularly
target underrepresented populations. Emily received her Ph.D. from
Harvard University in Earth and Planetary Sciences with Dr. Stephen Jay
Gould in 1991.  She was Assistant Professor of Geosciences at the
University of Massachusetts at Amherst, and over the last five years,
worked as a researcher for McREL (Mid-Continent Research for Education
and Learning) and as Senior Science Education Consultant for the Center
for Science Education at the Medical College of Wisconsin, specializing
in technology impacts on science education, teacher professional
development, and teacher induction, recruitment and retention.

**Edna DeVore** is the Deputy Chief Executive Officer of the SETI
Institute and Director of Education and Public Outreach. She has been a
researcher, planetarium director, teacher, curriculum writer and
administrator. In addition to management responsibilities, she works on
projects related to education and outreach. She co-directs the education
and public outreach programs for two major NASA projects: SOFIA
(Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy) and Kepler, a
Discovery Mission that seeks Earth-sized planets around other stars.
Edna has presented more than 200 invited talks and teacher workshops
across the US. She was the US co-chair for the Fulbright Symposium
*Science Education in Partnership* held on the Great Barrier Reef,
Australia, in tandem with the International Astronomical Union's
Symposium 213 *Bioastronomy 2002: Live Among the Stars.*

**Martin Griffiths**, is a senior lecturer, Earth & Space Sciences,
University of

Glamorgan. He is an astronomy communicator, and has introduced one of
the few university programs in the UK that utilizes a holistic, cultural
and historical approach to observational astronomy. Currently he is
engaged in widening access via lecturing to public bodies, in addition
to fulfilling a role in lifelong learning via university outreach
programs. He has published numerous articles for such magazines as
*Astronomy Now* and the *Webb Society Journal* and regularly appears on
TV and radio.

**Cherilynn Morrow** currently serves as the Director of Education &
Public Outreach (EPO) at the Space Science Institute (SSI) in Boulder,
Colorado.   She was trained as a solar physicist with a PhD from the
University of Colorado and post-doctoral experience at Cambridge
University. Twelve years ago she chose to transform into a science
educator and a facilitator of effective communication/collaboration
between scientists and educators. Cheri's crossover from scientific
research to education began with interdisciplinary undergraduate
teaching and curriculum design in math and astronomy. Her transformation
was completed during her 2-year stint (1992-1994) as a visiting
scientist at NASA Headquarters where she developed seminal strategies
and policies for engaging the space science community in K-12 education
and public outreach. As a result of her work, she was selected to be one
of three NASA presenters at a meeting convened by Carl Sagan and the
NASA Administrator on "How NASA Can Better Communicate with the
Public".  Cheri has since served in several leadership and advisory
roles in the science and education communities. She has convened dozens
of workshops, seminars, and conference sessions for scientists and
scientific leaders to support their greater understanding of K-12
education and its potential synergies with informal education and the
business of news reporting. She delivered an invited keynote paper at
the Fulbright Symposium that adjoined the IAU Bioastronomy Symposium on
Hamilton Island, Australia in July 2002 (*The Role of Scientist-Educator
Partnerships in Improving Science Education*). Cheri is also passionate
about creating innovative instructional materials and educator workshops
that integrate art with science, and that are effective in confronting
misconceptions people often have about space and earth science (e.g.
*Kinesthetic Astronomy, The Saturn Educator Guide, A Family Guide to
Mars*). She leads the design, implementation, and evaluation of
educational programs associated with SSI's interactive traveling
exhibitions. These include *MarsQuest* --  a 5000 sq. ft. exhibit
starting its second 3-year tour that brings the ongoing excitement of
Mars exploration to science centers all over the US; and *Alien Earths
--* a 3000 sq. ft. exhibit in the planning stages that addresses several
astrobiology themes and is engaging the broader astrobiology education
community in its development and dissemination. 

**Catherine Tsairides** is currently, Education and Public Outreach
Director for the NASA Astrobiology Team. She is also Lead -
Co-Investigator, on the *Linking Our Origins To Our Future* research
proposal, Director of the Yellowstone National Park, California Academy
of Sciences, and New York Hall of Science partnerships to develop new
regional workshops, activities, exhibits, and other products for the
public bringing astrobiology to the national and international public.
She coordinates and manages the NASA Ames content development and review
teams with TERC to develop the first published year-long Astrobiology
High School Curriculum, Stanford University course, Astrobiology
Academy, develop national exhibits, educational products and
professional development programs focused on scientists and educators in
field experiences, and materials for the formal and informal public
developing exhibits, guides, and manuals. Catherine serves on the Board
of Directors for the Valley Children's Museum, Advisory Board for New
York Hall of Science, Science Communication Focus Group, Elementary
Principals and Supervisors Association, Association for Supervision and
Curriculum Development, National Staff Development Council, Astrobiology
Executive Council Education Chair, Astrobiology, Science Conference
Organizing Chair, Yellowstone National Park Planning Committee. She is
Educational Consultant for LeapFrog Publishing, Disney, and Knowledge
Adventure product development. As former Education and Public Outreach
Coordinator for NASA's Astrobiology Institute she created the Life On
Earth...and Elsewhere Astrobiology Educator Guide in collaboration with
TERC. She has a strong background in education and management having
been an elementary school principal, mathematics curriculum specialist,
university adjunct professor, student teaching supervisor, and national
consultant for McGraw Publishing Company.

**Krisstina Wilmoth** is the Education and Public Outreach Manager for
the NASA Astrobiology Institute. She is responsible for traditional
education projects for K-12 teachers as well as for information to be
provided to museums, science centers, the media, and the public.
Krisstina\'s degrees are in English, and her most recent academic
position was as Assistant Professor of Journalism and Technical
Communications at Colorado State University before joining NASA in 2001.

**SCIENCE MUSEUM EXPERTS**

**Kerrie Dougherty** is Curator of Space Technology at the Powerhouse
Museum, Sydney and has twenty years of experience as the only
museum-based space historian, curator and educator in Australia. Kerrie
developed Australia\'s first major museum space exhibition, *Space:
Beyond this World*, which was also the first exhibition in the world to
bring together examples of the space technology of the three Cold war
Superpowers: the US, USSR and China. She was also a co-developer of the
Powerhouse Museum\'s Dibner Award-winning exhibition *Cyberworlds:
Computers and Connections* and curator for the record-breaking
Australian tour of *Star Wars: the Magic of Myth*. Kerrie was co-author
of *Space Australia*, the first popular history of Australian space
activities, and has also co/authored a variety of other publications on
space topics, from magazine articles to a children\'s first reader and a
high school textbook, in addition to academic papers on astronautical
history, space education and space and society. Her paper on *Museums,
SETI and Community Awareness* was published in *Acta Astronautica*, vol.
42, no 10-12 in 1998.

Kerrie is a frequent media commentator on space topics and has extensive
experience in developing space-related public programs and outreach
events: in 1998 she was the Outreach Co-ordinator for the International
Astronautical Congress in Melbourne. She also serves on the Board of the
Spaceweek International Association and lectures on space and society
topics for the International Space University. Kerrie is a member of the
International Academy of Astronautics\' \'History of Astronautics\'
Committee and the International Astronautical Federation\'s \'Space and
Education\' Committee. In 2000 she was awarded the National Space
Society of Australia\'s Space Pioneer Award, for her work in promoting
space awareness.

**Martin Weiss** is Director of Science at the New York Hall of Science.
He has been responsible for developing many biology and chemistry-based
exhibitions and programs. The includes permanent and traveling versions
of the major microbiology exhibition *Hidden Kingdoms -- The Word of
Microbes.* He also developed *Marvelous Molecules -- The Secret of
Life,* a ground-breaking exhibition about the shared chemistry of living
things and has most recently worked on a program concerning the search
for life on other planets. Martin is keenly interested in communicating
science to the public with content-rich exhibitions and programs,
consulting with, and advising science museums.

**SCIENCE TV PRODUCERS**

**Heather Couper** is an internationally recognized writer and
broadcaster on astronomy, space and science. She was a co-founder of
Pioneer Productions, one of the UK's top 30 independent TV production
companies, specializing in factual and scientific programming. She
recently left the company to return to solo presenting. She has built a
career as a communicator and populariser of science and astronomy,
hosting several TV programs as well as many radio shows. In addition,
she has written over 30 books and has hosted her own BBC astronomy
website. She particularly enjoys giving public presentations.

**Nigel Henbest** is an internationally acclaimed science populariser
specializing in astronomy and space. His 34 books and over 1,000
articles have been translated into 27 languages, while his TV
productions have gained awards both in Britain and in the US. Nigel is a
co-founder of Pioneer Production, of which he is now company director.
His screen credits include *BBC Television, Channel 4 (UK), The Learning
Channel, Discovery Channel, WGBH* (Boston, Mass) and *ABC* (Australia).
He appears regularly on radio, including BBC Radio 4 and the World
Service. He writes a regular column with Heather Couper in *The
Independent*, a leading UK daily newspaper. Previously he has been
astronomy consultant to *New Scientist*, editor of the Journal of the
British Astronomical Association and media consultant to the Royal
Greenwich Observatory.

\* Pioneer Productions have made, among other factual programming, *Life
on Mars, Talking with the Aliens, The Day the Earth was Born* and
*Raging Planet.* It has a popular science website FirstScience.com,
which attracts two million visitors a year.

**SCIENCE WEB AND ASTROBIOLOGY COMMUNICATION EXPERTS**

**Kathleen Connell** is a member of the founding group of Astrobiology,
and was the Chair for \"Question 7\" which included the initial planning
for astrobiology outreach during its formative period. She is currently
with the Astrobiology Integration Office, the Program office at NASA
Ames, and oversees the Astrobiology Portal
(http://astrobiology.arc.nasa.gov). She is currently a senior scientist
at USRA/RIACS and has accepted an adjunct faculty position with San Jose
State University, which she will assume in January 2004. She will also
act as the Director of a new start, The Center for Humanity and Space ©,
proposed for the NASA Research Park, Moffett Field, California. She led
the strategic communications of astrobiology to the Congress in the
execution of an astrobiology forum in Senate chambers and also initiated
and co-chaired *The Societal Implications of Astrobiology Workshop* in
1999. She also produced a conceptual film on the topic with Director
Michael Danty, which won an award at the New York Film Festival in 2000.

**Wendy Dolci** is Assistant Director at the NASA Astrobiology
Institute. Her work includes responsibility for the NAI website,
organization of the NAI General Meetings, and special projects related
to communication such as the NAI Insight Courses
(http://nai.arc.nasa.gov/insight). She is interested in how to
communicate the science of astrobiology to the public through the web
and other media, and in scientist-to-scientist communication across
disciplines. She is experienced in the use of virtual communication
tools and methods, which are used routinely to conduct the business and
science of the Institute. She would like to explore ways to make use of
technology in communicating astrobiology to the public.

**Daniella Scalice** began her career as a scientist in the Department
of Cell Biology at Harvard Medical School working on problems in axon
guidance, after receiving a degree in molecular biology from the
University of California, Santa Cruz. It was through looking under a
microscope at the stained nervous system of fruit fly embryos that
Daniella first came to appreciate art and photography. Soon after, she
left the lab to pursue some conservation biology projects in Northern
California and Hawaii, finally finding herself in film school. Making
digital collages with all manner of scientific imagery and developing a
passion for sound editing, it resulted in a position with the NASA
Astrobiology Institute, producing various multimedia public interest and
educational pieces for their website. As part of this work, she
conducted numerous video interviews with astrobiologists to enable them
to share their stories with the public. Daniella is now the Education
and Public Outreach coordinator at the NAI has a special interest in the
storytelling she sees as essential to astrobiology. Her main passion for
astrobiology lies in its power as a modern day creation myth, and its
intimate link with the culture and society from which it emerged.

**RISK COMMUNICATION EXPERT**

**Dr. Margaret S. Race** is an ecologist currently working with NASA
through the SETI Institute in Mountain View, CA. Her current work
focuses on planetary protection, environmental impact analyses, legal
and policy issues, and risk communication related to solar system
exploration and the search for extraterrestrial life. She was an
organizer and editor of a series of international workshops that
developed containment and planetary protection protocols for NASA's
upcoming Mars Sample Return missions. She is currently a member of a
AAAS-NASA workgroup analyzing the societal and ethical dimensions of
Astrobiology, and is also involved in a team-taught course on Planetary
Protection for working space professionals. She was a member of two
major National Research Council (NRC) studies: one on Issues in Mars
Sample Return and the other on Sample Return from Small Solar System
Bodies

Dr Race has extensive analytical experience and risk communication on a
wide range of science and technology topics, including space
exploration, genetic engineering, bioterrorism, natural disasters,
global change issues, invasive species, and agriculture and natural
resource management. Throughout her career she has been actively
involved in science education and outreach for K-12 schools, museums,
mass media and the general public. In addition to her appointment at
SETI Institute, Dr. Race is currently a Visiting Fellow at Stanford
University in the Center for International Security and Cooperation and
a research affiliate with the Energy and Resources Group at University
of California at Berkeley.

**SCIENCE COMMUNICATION SPECIALISTS**

**Rick Borchelt** is director of communications and public affairs at
The Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, an independent research
institute focusing on fundamental biological sciences. He has had a
varied career in science communications and science public policy,
including stints as media relations director for the National Academy of
Sciences; press secretary for the U.S. House of Representatives
Committee on Science, Space and Technology under the chairmanship of the
late Rep. George E. Brown, Jr.; special assistant for public affairs in
the Executive Office of The President during the Clinton Administration;
and director of communications for the Department of Energy\'s Office of
Science. While affiliated with Vanderbilt University, he chaired a
three-year study, funded by NASA and DOE, on best practices in
communicating to the public about science, technology and health. The
study, by a blue-ribbon panel of Pulitzer-Prize winning journalists,
scientists, public affairs officers, and science writers, culminated in
the March 2002 conference \"Communicating the Future,\" the first
peer-reviewed international conference of its kind. He is a Fellow of
the American Association for the Advancement of Science and a member of
the AAAS Committee on Public Understanding of Science and Technology.

**Rick Chappell** is Director of the Office of Science and Research
Communications and head of the Dyer Observatory at Vanderbilt
University. He served as chief scientist at NASA's Marshall Space Flight
Center and he co-authored the landmark study *World's Apart: How the
Distance Between Science and Journalism Threatens America's Future.*
Rick was an alternate payload specialist for a 1992 shuttle mission and
oversaw a number of research programs while working at NASA. In
1994/1995 he worked with Vice President Al Gore to create the K-12
science education program GLOBE (Global Learning and Observations to
Benefit the Environment). He founded the Aspen Global Change Institute
in 1989, together with John Denver's Windstar Foundation.

**Carol Oliver** is executive officer of the Australian Centre for
Astrobiology. She was recently awarded her Masters in Science
Communication with Central Queensland University with a thesis *SETI and
the media: Improving science communication* and has begun a doctorate
with Macquarie University entitled *Communicating Astrobiology in
Public*. Carol has a background in science journalism and is currently
responsible for education, outreach and media at the Australian Centre
for Astrobiolology at Macquarie University in Sydney. The ACA currently
attracts hundreds of media mentions worldwide each year, and is an
international partner of the NASA Astrobiology Institute. Carol was the
Local Organizing Chair for the International Astronomical Union's
Symposium 213 *Bioastronomy 2002: Life Among the Stars* and Australian
co-chair of the Fulbright Symposium *Science Education in Partnership*
held in tandem on the Great Barrier Reef, Australia. She is a
corresponding member of the International Academy of Astronautics and
co-chair of its international SETI Permanent Study Group. Most recently,
she initiated collaboration with the ICT Innovation Center at Macquarie
to trial a project involving a team of 24 Grade 10 students from ten
high schools to work in tandem with ACA researchers on an innovative
science mission to black smokers in the Pacific Ocean. She is
co-organizer of a week-long series of public and school events entitled
*Celebrating Space* to be held at Macquarie University for the 2004
Australian National Science week. Carol also designed and maintains the
ACA website [http://aca.mq.edu.au](http://aca.mq.edu.au/) and developed
the Macquarie University Biotechnology Research Institute website
[http://www.mq.edu.au](http://www.mq.edu.au/)

**Jon D Miller** is the Director of the Center for Biomedical
Communications and has an interest in astrobiology. Trained as a
political scientist, Jon brings the social science skills of survey
research and quantitative analysis to the study of the public
understanding of science and technology. For two decades he has designed
and conducted the biennial national studies of the public understand of
science and technology for the National Science Board, published
biennially as the *Science and Engineering Indicators.* His work in the
measurement of scientific literacy and attitudes has been replicated in
more than 20 countries. Jon has published five books and more than 40
articles and chapters in the area of the public understanding of science
and technology and in the development of science and mathematics skills
during secondary schooling and college.

**Dr David Raitt** has worked for the European Space Agency since 1969
in France and Italy, as well as The Netherlands, in a variety of
positions. He is now Senior Technology Transfer Officer in the European
Space Agency's Technology Transfer and Promotion Office in The
Netherlands where his activities involve not only identifying and
researching new breakthrough technological opportunities to ascertain
their subsequent spin-off/spin-in possibilities in new markets but also
making the general public more aware of space technologies and concepts
and the benefits that can result from technology spin-off. He created
the concept and logo for products which contain European space
technology inside in an effort to make the public more aware of ESA's
achievements. He has been instrumental in completely revising the
publication and promotional activities of the Technology Transfer
Programme and is coordinating the TTP's Web site and educational
activities. One particularly noteworthy study that he initiated and
managed related to innovative technologies from science fiction for
space applications. Essentially this study sought to ascertain whether
science fiction literature, arts and films contained concepts or
technologies which had been overlooked and which now might be possible
to achieve with today's scientific and technical advances. The work
generated much press and public interest and has fostered several
follow-on activities and publications. David Raitt holds professional
qualifications in library and information science and has a doctorate in
communications and information science. He is a Fellow of the Chartered
Institute of Library and Information Professionals. He is also a Fellow
of the Royal Astronomical Society and a Corresponding Member of the
International Academy of Astronautics.