Environmental sciences

Interview with Dr. Diana Wall, University Distinguished Professor and Professor of Biology at Colorado State University. The interview begins with Wall reflecting on her childhood in Kentucky, the importance of the Girl Scouts in her life, and her early appreciation for the outdoors. She discusses her undergraduate studies in biology and botany at the University of Kentucky and her decision to stay there to pursue a doctorate degree. Wall describes her research on microscopic animals living in soils as well as her thesis on nematodes. She then discusses her postdoctoral position at University of California, Riverside and her field work in Nevada, Utah, and New Mexico. Wall explains the factors that influenced her to begin her work in Antarctica and talks about the shift from individual work to a more collaborative research environment. The interview concludes with Wall’s reflections on international collaborations, the Antarctic Treaty, and climate change.

Interview with Sarah Krall, who spent 30 seasons working in Antarctica in various different science support jobs. Krall discusses her childhood in Iowa and her undergraduate studies at Idaho State where she studied environmental science. She then describes her time working for the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS). Krall recounts her interest in working in Antarctica and her decision to apply to ITT Antarctic Services. She recalls her first position working at the Berg Field Center (BFC) and goes on to describe many of the various positions she held over the years, such as mountaineer, research assistant, helicopter scheduler, cook, and hovercraft operator. Krall shares stories about commune life and the atmosphere around camp over her many seasons in Antarctica. 

Interview with Vyacheslav Romanov, Research Physical Scientist at the National Energy Technology Laboratory. Romanov recounts his upbringing in the Urals region of the Soviet Union, and he describes his education at a special high school for gifted students in Moscow. He explains the circumstances that led to his enrollment at the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology for graduate school and his dawning realization that one can make sense of the world through physics. Romanov discusses his thesis research on the kinetics of light-matter interactions, and he describes his postgraduate work for the Soviet Space Program to develop thin film solar cells to power the International Space Station. He discusses the collapse of science funding after the breakup of the USSR and the opportunity he saw to emigrate to the United States at part of the Symposium on Diplomacy and Global Affairs in Washington, D.C. Romanov explains why he got an MBA from Waynesburg College and how this program put him on the path to U.S. citizenship. After a stint in the materials science industry, he describes his PhD research in physical chemistry and spectroscopy at the University of Pittsburgh, and how this led to his employment at NETL, first as a postdoc and then as a full-time employee. Romanov explains his initial work in geology and data analysis, his subsequent work in optimizing power plant generation, and his current research in reducing the environmental footprint of energy systems with machine learning. He describes the political and economic ramifications of his research, and he explains why carbon-based energy is central to the transition to a de-carbonized future, which, he asserts, will take decades to realize. At the end of the interview, Romanov explains why global efforts to mitigate environmental energy problems must rely on successful cooperation between the U.S. and China.