Josh was always interested in earth sciences -- especially volcanos. He just didn't know that you could make a career of it. In college, he was intending to eventually work for the space program and took physics and math -- but the prerequisites for engineering were not as interesting as he thought they would be . When he took classes in geology, however, he found himself fascinated -- he liked the materials and he liked the people he was working with. In one of the classes, he got to go to Hawaii and visit all the volcanos. Just before he got there, there had been a major sector collapse -- a big chunk of the island fell into the sea. So his advisor persuaded the authorities to allow the class right out onto the new flow. As the sun came up, a line of people led by a guy with a staff and long beard hiked over the flow, scooping up lava on their rockhammers. Josh bought in. UCDavis was buzzing with leading volcanologists at the time, so he continued his training there, then got his masters at New Mexico Tech. So how does a volcanologist end up in Kansas, at our Makerspace? He was studying Thermochronology and came to Kansas to get his Ph.D. He currently manages the Isotope Geochemistry Lab at KU. He came here because he wanted to use the woodshop... but his interests are broadening as he gains exposure to the interdisciplinary madness that is the Makerspace! We hope to see Josh in the near future leading geology expeditions in the Kaw Valley that will help us to see with our imaginations the glaciers, ancient rivers, and windstorms that shaped our region.