I grew up in the Rockies before heading to the East Coast for school. At MIT I enjoyed undergrad research in the Ocean Engineering Teaching Laboratory and helped run the Discover Ocean Engineering pre-orientation program. I tinkered with propellers and flapping foils in the water tunnel until I earned my master's degree, then moved down to WHOI for my doctorate. As part of the Deep Submergence Lab, I was lucky enough to participate in five oceanographic research cruises, with the AUVs ABE and Sentry, and the Jason II ROV. Then for a few years I worked from shore on Tethys-class long-range AUVs. In 2019, I formed Otter Works, LLC and shifted to consulting full-time.

I believe map projections should be about half Robinson, a third Winkel tripel, two-sevenths Dymaxion, and the rest Van Der Grinten.