Experts Database

 
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Anthropology | Aquarium | Arachnology | Astronomy | Botany | Climate Change | Education & Exhibits |
Entomology | Genomics | Geology | Green Building | Herpetology | History of Science | Ichthyology |
Invertebrate Zoology | Mammalogy | Marine Biology | Ornithology | Paleontology
 
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ANTHROPOLOGY
Contact Title Department Specialty Expeditions / Highlights
Zeray Alemseged Curator and Irvine Chair Anthropology Early human evolution Dikika Research Project in Ethiopia. Discovery of the "world's oldest baby" (Australopithecus afarensis) in 2006.
Russell Hartman Senior Collection Manager Anthropology Native American and Oceanic cultures, esp. California and Southwest Southwestern Native American art, especially of Navajo and Pueblo Indians
AQUARIUM
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Chris Andrews Director and Chief Aquarium and Public Engagement Aquarium/museum exhibits and public programs. Fish parasitology.  
Dave Chan Senior Aquatic Biologist & Diving Safety Officer Aquarium Volunteer diver program. Temperate marine fishes and invertebrates, insects. Palmyra Atoll, Costa Rica (army ants), Trinidad and Tobago (army ants)
Nicole Chaney Aquatic Biologist Aquarium Reptiles, amphibians, insects  
Charles Delbeek Senior Aquatic Biologist Aquarium Tropical fish and coral reefs, cephalopods, seadragons. Underwater photography. Live coral husbandry, aquarium life support systems. Dives in South Korea, Japan, Palau, Thailand, Marshall Islands, Fiji, Indonesia, Solomon Islands, Hawaii, Philippines, Florida, and Bonaire
April Devitt Aquatic Biologist Aquarium Tropical marine fishes and invertebrates  
Freeland Dunker Veterinarian Aquarium Animal medicine and surgery Diagnosis and treatment of elephants with tuberculosis
Jim Evans Aquatic Biologist Aquarium Freshwater fishes, reptiles and amphibians, insects Army ant collection trip (Costa Rica); harvester ant collection (Arizona); giant water bug collection (California)
Laurie Kormos Animal Health Manager Aquarium Fish and reptiles  
Brenda Melton Curator Aquarium Oversees the Academy's Rainforest and Swamp, living exhibits within the Kimball Natural History Museum, and programming animals.  
Kristen Natoli Horticulturist Aquarium Plants and butterflies (the Academy's Rainforest exhibit)  
Pamela Schaller Senior Aquatic Biologist Aquarium Penguins, bats, freshwater fishes, shark reproduction Work with African mammals, tropical sharks, and penguin exhibit design and husbandry
Bart Shepherd General Curator Aquarium Coral reefs. Fish biomechanics. New Academy exhibit design. Coral propagation, lighting methods for corals in captivity. Philippines
Matt Wandell Aquatic Biologist Aquarium Tropical marine fishes and invertebrates  
Brooke Weinstein Aquatic Biologist Aquarium Penguins, freshwater fish, and freshwater plants  
Seth Wolters Senior Aquatic Biologist Aquarium Tropical marine fishes and invertebrates, sharks and rays Philippines, Hawaii
ARACHNOLOGY
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Charles Griswold Curator Arachnology Spiders Terrestrial Arthropod Inventory of Madagascar. "Tree of Life" for spiders. Planetary Biodiversity Inventory (worldwide survey) of Goblin spiders. China Natural History Project. Expeditions to Chilean, New Zealand, and Australian temperate rainforests.
Vincent Lee Curatorial Assistant Entomology Scorpions and pseudoscorpions Madagascar and Kenyan arachnids and insects.
Darrell Ubick Curatorial Assistant Entomology Arachnids and troglobites (cave organisms). Endemic and invasive California arachnids. Cave-dwelling arachnids in Santa Cruz and Texas; Planetary Biodiversity Inventory of spider family Oonopidae; serpentine endemic arachnids in California.
ASTRONOMY
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Bing Quock Assistant Director Planetarium General astronomy, solar system  
Ryan Wyatt Director Planetarium Science visualization, astrophysics, history of astronomy, beyond solar system  
BOTANY
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Frank Almeda Senior Curator Botany Living roof design. Tropical flowering plants. Princess flowers (Melastomataceae). Complete revision of Marin Flora. Recent expeditions to Brazil, Panama, and Madagascar.
Bruce Bartholomew Senior Research Scientist Botany Plants of China and Modoc County, California China Natural History Project, Flora of China.
Tom Daniel Curator Botany New World Acanthaceae (shrimp plants and their relatives). Native and invasive plants in San Francisco. Pollination. Desert plants. A new flora of San Francisco, and floristic catalogs of mountain ranges in Arizona and the Mexican state of Sinaloa. Sao Tome and Principe.
Elisabeth Fourtanier Research Scientist Invertebrate Zoology & Geology Fossil diatoms Computerized database of diatom names
Peter Fritsch Curator Botany Flowering plants, especially snowdrops, silverbells, persimmons, and wintergreens China Natural History Project. Plant distribution changes in Asia and the Americas as a result of Tertiary climate change.
Kim Steiner Associate Curator Botany Snapdragon family . Oil-producing orchids and oil-collecting bees. Biochemistry of floral scents. South African Nemesia, Diascia, and orchids.
Debra Trock Senior Collections Manager Botany Asteraceae family, a large group that includes sunflowers, dandelions, daisies, and more Wyoming, Colorado; Flora of North America series
CLIMATE CHANGE
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Peter Fritsch Curator Botany Flowering plants, especially snowdrops, silverbells, persimmons, and wintergreens China Natural History Project. Plant distribution changes in Asia and the Americas as a result of Tertiary climate change.
Healy Hamilton Director Center for Biodiversity Research Mapping biodiversity, effects of climate change on species' geographic ranges, conservation. River dolphins. Whale evolution. Seahorses and their relatives.
River dolphins of the Amazon; Palmyra Atoll Research Consortium; Seahorse Sleuth (database of seahorse DNA); continental scale conservation corridors; seahorses, sea dragons and pipefish of the Indo-Pacific.
Dave Kavanaugh Senior Curator Entomology Beetles, especially carabid beetles China Natural History Project; Madagascar; Madang Province, Papua New Guinea; personal expeditions to Hawaii, New Zealand, Siberia, Amazonian Peru, Costa Rica, and all mountainous regions of North America. Evidence for climate change based on changes in the distributions of montane beetle species.
Peter Roopnarine Curator Invertebrate Zoology & Geology Models of ecosystem evolution and extinction. Relationship of climate change to extinction. Clams, mussels, and relatives. Baja California and the Gulf of California; thermal spring ecology and gastropods of Cuatro Cienegas, Mexico; conodonts of Nevada; molluscs of the southeastern U.S. and Caribbean; bivalves in the Gulf of Thailand; lead curator of Altered State: Climate Change in California exhibit.
EDUCATION & EXHIBITS
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Chris Andrews Director and Chief Aquarium and Public Engagement Aquarium/museum exhibits and public programs. Fish parasitology.  
Roberta Brett Senior Science Content Specialist Education Omophron, a genus of carabid beetles. Madagascar and Yunnan, China.
Meg Burke Director Education Informal science education. Philippine coral reef diversity, conservation, and education. Feral animals, especially goats. Polar bears. Costa Rica, Philippines, Seychelles, Belize. Multiple Academy travel programs to the Galapagos and Churchill, Manitoba.
Aaron Pope Manager of Sustainability Programs Public Programs Sustainability education and practices. Green building features. "Arena for Engagement" in the Altered State: Climate Change in California exhibit. San Francisco Sustainable Seafood Watch Alliance.
Carol Tang Director Public Programs Museum exhibits and public programs, science education. Astrobiology, invertebrate paleontology. Western United States, Dominican Republic, Mexico (Chihuahua Desert).
Ryan Wyatt Director Planetarium Science visualization, astrophysics, history of astronomy, beyond solar system  
ENTOMOLOGY
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Roberta Brett Senior Science Content Specialist Education Omophron, a genus of carabid beetles. Madagascar and Yunnan, China.
Brian Fisher Curator Entomology Ants - especially in Africa and Madagascar AntWeb: building the global online infrastructure for the biodiversity and identification of the world's ants. First in-depth inventory of Madagascar's ants. Influencing conservation priorities in Madagascar and the islands of the southwest Indian Ocean.
Dave Kavanaugh Senior Curator Entomology Beetles, especially carabid beetles China Natural History Project; Madagascar; Madang Province, Papua New Guinea; personal expeditions to Hawaii, New Zealand, Siberia, Amazonian Peru, Costa Rica, and all mountainous regions of North America. Evidence for climate change based on changes in the distributions of montane beetle species.
Norm Penny Senior Collections Manager Entomology Academy's entomology collection. Lacewings, scorpionflies, and relatives. New species of Chrysopinae (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae) from Costa Rica
Wojciech Pulawski Curator Entomology Wasps A revision of the African wasp genus Tachysphex (2007) and a revision of the wasp tribe Palarini (2008).
Jere Schweikert Curatorial Assistant Entomology General entomology Madagascar, Kenya, Kuril Islands.
Robert Zuparko Curatorial Assistant Entomology Parasitic Hymenoptera (wasps, bees, ants)  
GENOMICS
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David Mindell Dean of Science and Research Collections Research Bird evolution and conservation. Viruses. Molecular evolution. Alaska, Middle East, and Australia; conservation of Peregrine Falcons and Oriental White-backed Vultures (Indian subcontinent); avian molecular clocks; conservation of Hooked-billed Kites in Cuba and Grenada; publication of the popular science book The Evolving World: Evolution in Everyday Life.
W. Brian Simison Curator Comparative Genomics Phylogenetics, genomics, DNA sequencing, biogeography Semi-annual collecting trips to Venezuela, Panama, Costa Rica, Virgin Islands, Jamaica, Mexico (Baja, La Paz, Cabo Pulmo, Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan, Puerto Vallarta).
GEOLOGY
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Jean DeMouthe Senior Collections Manager Geology Paleontology and mineralogy.  
GREEN BUILDING
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Frank Almeda Senior Curator Botany Living roof design. Tropical flowering plants. Princess flowers (Melastomataceae). Complete revision of Marin Flora. Recent expeditions to Brazil, Panama, and Madagascar.
Alan Good Landscape Exhibits Supervisor Operations Living roof care. Exterior gardens and landscaping on Academy grounds.  
Ari Harding Building Management Systems Specialist Operations Building management software for the Academy. Green building technology and engineering. Solar cells. Mechanical and control systems designer.  
Aaron Pope Manager of Sustainability Programs Public Programs Sustainability education and practices. Green building features. "Arena for Engagement" in the Altered State: Climate Change in California exhibit. San Francisco Sustainable Seafood Watch Alliance.
HERPETOLOGY
Contact Title Department Specialty Expeditions / Highlights
Robert Drewes Curator Herpetology African amphibians and reptiles. 36 expeditions to 19 African countries since 1969, including 3 multidisciplinary expeditions to the Gulf of Guinea (2001- 2009). Three books including Ecological and Environmental Physiology of Amphibians (2009).
Alan E. Leviton Curator Herpetology Reptiles and amphibians, especially in Asia. 19th century history of the California Academy of Sciences.  
Wallace J. Nichols Research Associate Herpetology Sea turtles. Ocean conservation, ocean plastic and pollution. Tracking loggerhead turtles on their migration from Mexico to Japan; assessing turtle bycatch in Baja California; Latin America; Indonesia
Jens Vindum Senior Collections Manager Herpetology Snakes, frogs, toads, lizards, and salamanders - especially in California. China Natural History Project, Myanmar Biodiversity Project, creating Myanmar museum.
Jeff Wilkinson Research Biologist Herpetology Asian treefrogs. Familiar with issues surrounding California red-legged frogs and California tiger salamanders. Surveys of reptiles and amphibians from Arizona, California, Japan, Taiwan, Myanmar, and southwest China.
HISTORY OF SCIENCE
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Michael Ghiselin Senior Research Fellow Invertebrate Zoology & Geology History and philosophy of biology. Principles of systematics. Darwin. Evolutionary aspects of reproduction. Sea slugs. Molecular phylogeny of the animal kingdom.
Alan E. Leviton Curator Herpetology Reptiles and amphibians, especially in Asia. 19th century history of the California Academy of Sciences.  
ICHTHYOLOGY
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David Catania Senior Collections Manager Ichthyology Academy's fish collections China Natural History Project, Sao Tome and Principe (2009), X-Ray Ichthyology exhibit.
William Eschmeyer Curator Emeritus Ichthyology Taxonomic literature of fishes Genera of Fishes (1990), Catalog of Fishes (1998), Catalog of Fishes online database (current).
Healy Hamilton Director Center for Biodiversity Research Mapping biodiversity, effects of climate change on species' geographic ranges, conservation. River dolphins. Whale evolution. Seahorses and their relatives.
River dolphins of the Amazon; Palmyra Atoll Research Consortium; Seahorse Sleuth (database of seahorse DNA); continental scale conservation corridors; seahorses, sea dragons and pipefish of the Indo-Pacific.
Tomio Iwamoto Curator and Chair Ichthyology Grenadiers (a group of about 400 deep-sea fishes related to the codfish). Western Pacific, Australia, Tasman Sea, Angola, Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean, and Indian Ocean grenadiers. Fishes of Sao Tome and Principe.
Douglas Long Research Associate Ichthyology, Ornithology & Mammalogy Sharks, deep-sea fishes. Marine mammals, especially sea lions. Birds, especially New World vultures. Bioinventories of birds and mammals in Myanmar, China, South Africa, and Sao Tome; revised biogeography of central California mammals; avian conservation in New Zealand.
John McCosker Senior Scientist and Department Chair Aquatic Biology Shark behavior, eels, Galapagos Islands fish, flashlight fish, salmon, and coelacanths. Sustainable seafood choices. Galapagos Island expeditions using submersibles, 1975 Academy coelacanth expedition.
INVERTEBRATE ZOOLOGY
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Michael Ghiselin Senior Research Fellow Invertebrate Zoology & Geology History and philosophy of biology. Principles of systematics. Darwin. Evolutionary aspects of reproduction. Sea slugs. Molecular phylogeny of the animal kingdom.
Terry Gosliner Senior Curator Invertebrate Zoology & Geology Marine invertebrates, especially sea slugs. California and tropical marine habitats. Philippine coral reefs, Papua New Guinea, Madagascar, Palmyra Atoll, Malaysia, Galapagos. First comprehensive inventory of nudibranchs (sea slugs) along Costa Rica's Pacific coast. Comprehensive guide to 1,400 species of Indo-Pacific nudibranchs.
Rich Mooi Curator Invertebrate Zoology & Geology Echinoderms: sea urchins, sea stars, sand dollars, brittlestars, sea cucumbers, and sea lilies Marine invertebrates in Antarctica, including brooding sea urchins. San Francisco Bay benthic survey. Sea urchin and crinoid interaction in the Bahamas. Sao Tome and Principe.
Peter Roopnarine Curator Invertebrate Zoology & Geology Models of ecosystem evolution and extinction. Relationship of climate change to extinction. Clams, mussels, and relatives. Baja California and the Gulf of California; thermal spring ecology and gastropods of Cuatro Cienegas, Mexico; conodonts of Nevada; molluscs of the southeastern U.S. and Caribbean; bivalves in the Gulf of Thailand; lead curator of Altered State: Climate Change in California exhibit.
Bob Van Syoc Senior Collections Manager Invertebrate Zoology & Geology Barnacles. Benthic invertebrates of the Pacific coast. Intertidal and shallow subtidal from San Diego to Mendocino; multi-year surveys of the Channel Islands and Southeast Farallon Island. Other expeditions to Alaska, British Columbia, Baja California, Panama, South Pacific, Philippines, Borneo, Red Sea, Madagascar, Australia, Galapagos Islands, Clipperton Island, and cruises off the California coast to sample shelf and slope fauna.
Gary Williams Curator and Chair Invertebrate Zoology & Geology Octocorals: soft corals, sea fans, and sea pens. Coral reefs of the tropical western Pacific. Philippines, Melanesia, Micronesia, Galapagos, Patagonia, sub-Antarctic, Madagascar, Palmyra, southern Africa, Gulf of Guinea.
MAMMALOGY
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Jack Dumbacher Associate Curator and Chair Ornithology & Mammalogy Birds - including chemical defenses and conservation. Elephant shrews. Biogeographic study of birds in New Guinea. Investigation of toxicity source for poisonous birds. Elephant shrews in Namibia. Spotted owls in North America.
Healy Hamilton Director Center for Biodiversity Research Mapping biodiversity, effects of climate change on species' geographic ranges, conservation. River dolphins. Whale evolution. Seahorses and their relatives.
River dolphins of the Amazon; Palmyra Atoll Research Consortium; Seahorse Sleuth (database of seahorse DNA); continental scale conservation corridors; seahorses, sea dragons and pipefish of the Indo-Pacific.
Douglas Long Research Associate Ichthyology, Ornithology & Mammalogy Sharks, deep-sea fishes. Marine mammals, especially sea lions. Birds, especially New World vultures. Bioinventories of birds and mammals in Myanmar, China, South Africa, and Sao Tome; revised biogeography of central California mammals; avian conservation in New Zealand.
MARINE BIOLOGY
Contact Title Department Specialty Expeditions / Highlights
Terry Gosliner Senior Curator Invertebrate Zoology & Geology Marine invertebrates, especially sea slugs. California and tropical marine habitats. Philippine coral reefs, Papua New Guinea, Madagascar, Palmyra Atoll, Malaysia, Galapagos. First comprehensive inventory of nudibranchs (sea slugs) along Costa Rica's Pacific coast. Comprehensive guide to 1,400 species of Indo-Pacific nudibranchs.
Healy Hamilton Director Center for Biodiversity Research Mapping biodiversity, effects of climate change on species' geographic ranges, conservation. River dolphins. Whale evolution. Seahorses and their relatives.
River dolphins of the Amazon; Palmyra Atoll Research Consortium; Seahorse Sleuth (database of seahorse DNA); continental scale conservation corridors; seahorses, sea dragons and pipefish of the Indo-Pacific.
Tomio Iwamoto Curator and Chair Ichthyology Grenadiers (a group of about 400 deep-sea fishes related to the codfish). Western Pacific, Australia, Tasman Sea, Angola, Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean, and Indian Ocean grenadiers. Fishes of Sao Tome and Principe.
Douglas Long Research Associate Ichthyology, Ornithology & Mammalogy Sharks, deep-sea fishes. Marine mammals, especially sea lions. Birds, especially New World vultures. Bioinventories of birds and mammals in Myanmar, China, South Africa, and Sao Tome; revised biogeography of central California mammals; avian conservation in New Zealand.
John McCosker Senior Scientist and Department Chair Aquatic Biology Shark behavior, eels, Galapagos Islands fish, flashlight fish, salmon, and coelacanths. Sustainable seafood choices. Galapagos Island expeditions using submersibles, 1975 Academy coelacanth expedition.
Rich Mooi Curator Invertebrate Zoology & Geology Echinoderms: sea urchins, sea stars, sand dollars, brittlestars, sea cucumbers, and sea lilies Marine invertebrates in Antarctica, including brooding sea urchins. San Francisco Bay benthic survey. Sea urchin and crinoid interaction in the Bahamas. Sao Tome and Principe.
Wallace J. Nichols Research Associate Herpetology Sea turtles. Ocean conservation, ocean plastic and pollution. Tracking loggerhead turtles on their migration from Mexico to Japan; assessing turtle bycatch in Baja California; Latin America; Indonesia
Bob Van Syoc Senior Collections Manager Invertebrate Zoology & Geology Barnacles. Benthic invertebrates of the Pacific coast. Intertidal and shallow subtidal from San Diego to Mendocino; multi-year surveys of the Channel Islands and Southeast Farallon Island. Other expeditions to Alaska, British Columbia, Baja California, Panama, South Pacific, Philippines, Borneo, Red Sea, Madagascar, Australia, Galapagos Islands, Clipperton Island, and cruises off the California coast to sample shelf and slope fauna.
Gary Williams Curator and Chair Invertebrate Zoology & Geology Octocorals: soft corals, sea fans, and sea pens. Coral reefs of the tropical western Pacific. Philippines, Melanesia, Micronesia, Galapagos, Patagonia, sub-Antarctic, Madagascar, Palmyra, southern Africa, Gulf of Guinea.
ORNITHOLOGY
Contact Title Department Specialty Expeditions / Highlights
Jack Dumbacher Associate Curator and Chair Ornithology & Mammalogy Birds - including chemical defenses and conservation. Elephant shrews. Biogeographic study of birds in New Guinea. Investigation of toxicity source for poisonous birds. Elephant shrews in Namibia. Spotted owls in North America.
Moe Flannery Collections Manager Ornithology & Mammalogy Birds, especially of Southeast Asia Myanmar 2001; China 2002-2005.
Sylvia Hope Research Associate Ornithology Fossil birds. Crows, jays, and magpies. Behavior observation and song recordings of jays; paleontology digs for fossil mammals and birds in Wyoming.
Douglas Long Research Associate Ichthyology, Ornithology & Mammalogy Sharks, deep-sea fishes. Marine mammals, especially sea lions. Birds, especially New World vultures. Bioinventories of birds and mammals in Myanmar, China, South Africa, and Sao Tome; revised biogeography of central California mammals; avian conservation in New Zealand.
David Mindell Dean of Science and Research Collections Research Bird evolution and conservation. Viruses. Molecular evolution. Alaska, Middle East, and Australia; conservation of Peregrine Falcons and Oriental White-backed Vultures (Indian subcontinent); avian molecular clocks; conservation of Hooked-billed Kites in Cuba and Grenada; publication of the popular science book The Evolving World: Evolution in Everyday Life.
PALEONTOLOGY
Contact Title Department Specialty Expeditions / Highlights
Zeray Alemseged Curator and Irvine Chair Anthropology Early human evolution Dikika Research Project in Ethiopia. Discovery of the "world's oldest baby" (Australopithecus afarensis) in 2006.
Elisabeth Fourtanier Research Scientist Invertebrate Zoology & Geology Fossil diatoms Computerized database of diatom names
Sylvia Hope Research Associate Ornithology Fossil birds. Crows, jays, and magpies. Behavior observation and song recordings of jays; paleontology digs for fossil mammals and birds in Wyoming.
Peter Roopnarine Curator Invertebrate Zoology & Geology Models of ecosystem evolution and extinction. Relationship of climate change to extinction. Clams, mussels, and relatives. Baja California and the Gulf of California; thermal spring ecology and gastropods of Cuatro Cienegas, Mexico; conodonts of Nevada; molluscs of the southeastern U.S. and Caribbean; bivalves in the Gulf of Thailand; lead curator of Altered State: Climate Change in California exhibit.
Carol Tang Director Public Programs Museum exhibits and public programs, science education. Astrobiology, invertebrate paleontology. Western United States, Dominican Republic, Mexico (Chihuahua Desert).

 
Arrange by Specialty | Arrange by Name
 
Jump to a Specialty:
Anthropology | Aquarium | Arachnology | Astronomy | Botany | Climate Change | Education & Exhibits |
Entomology | Genomics | Geology | Green Building | Herpetology | History of Science | Ichthyology |
Invertebrate Zoology | Mammalogy | Marine Biology | Ornithology | Paleontology
 
Click here to see a more detailed Experts Database.
To get in touch with an expert, email or call one of the Academy's press contacts.