Story Collider Presents: Stories from San Jose State University
Join us for an evening of true, personal stories about science in partnership with San Jose State University! Hosted by Erin Barker and Liz Neeley.
This show is supported by a San Jose State University Artistic Excellence Programming Grant.
Stories by:
Annie Chase is a Bay Area native who grew up playing sports and heavily influenced by a coach who used physics to determine the most efficient softball swing. This lead her to study physics as an undergraduate at Saint Mary’s College of California; where her love of physics blossomed (she wears the badge of “nerd” proudly - though she prefers the term “intellectual badass”). Annie earned her master’s in physics, with an emphasis on Physics Education Research, at San José State University. She has been teaching physics full time at the undergraduate level ever since. Annie is deeply invested in the student experience and therefore employs active-learning techniques, emphasizes inclusivity, and is constantly reflecting on ways to be approachable to students. When not teaching, Annie loves pen shopping (yes, that’s a thing), obeying her cat’s wishes, and trading clever remarks with friends.
Philip Heller is an Assistant Professor of Computer Science at San Jose State University, specializing in Bioinformatic Oceanography. His academic career began late in life, after 30 years in Silicon Valley as a programmer and author. He came to San Jose State for an M.S. degree, and then moved on to the University of California at Santa Cruz for a Ph.D. in Bioinformatics. He then spent a year as a Smithsonian Scholar at Moss Landing Marine Laboratories, and joined the San Jose State faculty in 2016. His current research uses artificial intelligence to study coral reefs and climate change. He is the author of four books on computer programming and one unpublished novel.
Ana Paz-Rangel is a Program Analyst for the Ed.D. Leadership Program at SJSU. A native of Salinas, California, Ana has loved travel and learning languages since her childhood, which has led her to France, Germany, Mexico, and Paraguay. She has a B.S. in political science from Santa Clara University and an M.A. in Latin American Studies from Georgetown University. She currently lives in San Jose with her fiancé and is involved in her local Toastmasters club, where she is Vice President of Public Relations.
When lab exposures failed to give her any superpowers, Janet D. Stemwedel abandoned chemistry to become a philosopher. As a Professor of Philosophy at San José State University, she focuses on philosophy of science, ethics in scientific practice, and how scientists and non-scientists can better share a world with each other. She has written extensively about the ethics and philosophy of science for outlets including Forbes, Scientific American, and ScienceBlogs.
LeAnne Teruya is a lecturer in the Geology Department at SJSU and Co-Director of the Bay Area Environmental STEM Institute (BAESI). LeAnne has always loved two things: Mountains and stories. She spent her early years hiking and reading, became an English professor, and then headed to the hills to be a geologist. While an English professor, LeAnne enjoyed exploring the depths of human nature with students through stories and literature. Now as a geologist, she delves into the stories that rocks tell and teaches students to examine the intersection between humans and the environment. As Co-Director of BAESI, LeAnne conducts Earth science workshops and field trips for middle and high school teachers. Her aim is for students and teachers alike to see the world around them with new, geological, eyes. When possible, LeAnne likes to escape her windowless urban office for her outdoor office—the Sierra Nevada Mountains—where she can be found, literally nose to the ground, taking a close look at the rocks, then later cozying up with a good book in the evening.