He has a PhD in East Asian history (1600-2000) from Stanford University. His research focuses on the intersection of people and their local habitats in early modern and modern Japan. He has recently authored “Modern Routes through Old Japan” in Cartographic Japan: A Reader and is completing a book manuscript entitled Turbulent Stream: Reengineering Environmental Relations along the Rivers of Japan, 1750-2000. At the University of Illinois, he offers a variety of courses on the history of Japan, East Asia, science, technology, and the environment.