University Libraries Promotion and Tenure Recognition

We live on a unique planet that is filled with living creatures. The evolution of life on Earth was a result of many random events. Let the reader come away with some awe at the circumstances of our planet's existence today, knowing that if our Sun had been a kind of different star, or a random asteroid impact had not caused the extinction of some species, this planet might have been very different. As an educator at Penn State, my aspiration has been to show students their place in the universe and to hope that they experience the same sense of wonder that I continually derive from new scientific findings. The quest for understanding is never over and there is always more to be learned.