| I
was born, raised, and educated in San Francisco. While
taking an undergraduate astronomy course (because a
friend said it was "easy"), I discovered my
interest in physics and astronomy. I abandoned my major
in broadcasting and earned a master's degree in physics
from San Francisco State University. While there, I
discovered my love for teaching. I was the youngest
person in the California State University system ever
to teach lecture sections of pre-med physics. In 1986,
I moved to Massachusetts to study science education
at Boston University. While in Boston, I married my
husband John, conducted educational research at the
Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, taught
astronomy at Boston University, evaluated educational
software, helped design a high school curriculum on
fractals in nature, and earned my doctorate in Science
Education. After eight years, my husband and I got sick
of the humid summers, icy winters, and crazy drivers.
I returned to San Francisco and joined the Exploratorium
in 1993, where I am now director of the Teacher Institute.
I am also a co-author of The Science Explorer, a series
of Exploratorium activity books for children and their
parents. When not at the museum, I teach graduate courses
in educational technology at the University of San Francisco
and write science fiction short stories.
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