Lead Author
Jeffrey Bennett is an astrophysicist (Ph.D., University of Colorado), teacher, and author who specializes in science and math education and has taught at every level from preschool through graduate school. Career highlights include serving 2 years as a Visiting Senior Scientist at NASA Headquarters, where he developed programs to build stronger links between research and education, proposing and helping to develop the Voyage Scale Model Solar System located on the National Mall in Washington, DC and in numerous other communities, and developing the free app Totality by Big Kid Science to help people learn about total solar eclipses. Besides this book, he is the lead author of bestselling textbooks in astronomy, astrobiology, mathematics, and statistics, and of critically acclaimed books for the public including Beyond UFOs (Princeton University Press), Math for Life (Big Kid Science), What Is Relativity? (Columbia University Press), On Teaching Science (Big Kid Science), and A Global Warming Primer (Big Kid Science). He is also the author of six science picture books for children, titled Max Goes to the Moon, Max Goes to Mars, Max Goes to Jupiter, Max Goes to the Space Station, The Wizard Who Saved the World, and I, Humanity; all six have been launched to the International Space Station and read aloud by astronauts for the Story Time From Space program. His writing has been recognized with numerous awards, including the American Institute of Physics Science Communication Award. Learn more at his personal web site, www.jeffreybennett.com.
Science Editor/Illustrator/Web Designer
Malanka Riabokin earned a double B.S. in astrophysics and physics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and an M.S. in physics from Michigan State University, where she worked with Dr. Megan Donahue, current president of the American Astronomical Society. She then spent four years as a telescope operator for Kitt Peak National Observatory, where she facilitated the gathering of observational data for more than 50 astronomy research collaborations. In 2016, Malanka returned to science education, working at the University of Arizona as a science editor and instructional designer; her projects there included development (with Professor Chris Impey) of an online astrobiology course. In 2019, she won an educational grant to produce a comprehensive high school course on climate change, Teaching Today to Save Tomorrow, that is now available for instructors to download and use, free of charge. She joined this project because of the opportunity it provides for her to combine her background in astrophysics with her educational and artistic skills in finding visually effective ways to communicate scientific concepts to middle school students.
Additional Contributors
Many other people have helped shape this project. We’d particularly like to thank:
The Cosmic Perspective team of Megan Donahue, Nick Schneider, and Mark Voit. These three outstanding scientists and educators are co-authors of Dr. Bennett’s college astronomy textbook series, from which a significant fraction of the material in this book is adapted. They have also helped shape Dr. Bennett’s thinking on pedagogy and appropriate design for this curriculum. This project would not exist without their contributions.
Special thanks to Pearson Higher Education for granting permission for us to repurpose text, art, and web materials written/developed by the authors for The Cosmic Perspective into this project.
Courtney Faust, who built this web site and all other web sites of lead author Jeff Bennett.
Liza Brown, who created the initial design for this project, that formed a foundation for the current web site.
And all the teachers, friends, and colleagues who have generously taken the time to review this project and provide us with feedback.