Dr. Ray Arvidson, Washington University in St. Louis
What was your first job?
My first job was working in a paper factory. My first professional full time job is the one I have now professor of Earth and planetary sciences at Washington University.
What got you interested in science?
Sputnik and exploring space seemed cool.
Who has been a mentor for you and how was that helpful?
Thomas Mutch, my former PhD advisor at Brown University, had the right combination of leadership, ethical approach, and also allowed me freedom to explore research on my own. He died during a Himalayan mountain climbing expedition.
If you weren't a scientist, what would you be?
Archeologist, historian, or engineer.