MICHAEL L. WONG a curriculum vitae

I am a research associate in the University of Washingtonʼs Astrobiology Program studying planetary atmospheres, habitability, biosignatures, and the emergence of life. I am also co-authoring a revised edition of the textbook Astrobiology: A Multidisciplinary Approach with Professor Jonathan Lunine. My other passions include photography, graphic design, writing, public speaking, and playing a variety of team sports. I host a podcast called Strange New Worlds, which examines science, technology, and culture through the lens of Star Trek.

EDUCATION PhD, Planetary Science (2018) California Institute of Technology MS, Planetary Science (2014) California Institute of Technology BA, Planetary Science (2012) University of California, Berkeley

CONTACT e-mail [email protected] website www.gps.caltech.edu/~mlwong address Univeristy of Washington 3910 15th Ave NE Physics/Astronomy Bulding Room C319 Seattle, WA 98195

@miquai

last modified 12.14.20 photo by MAX GERBER RESEARCH POSITIONS Research Associate (2018–present) University of Washington, Department of Astronomy & Astrobiology Program Advisor: Victoria S. Meadows As a postdoc at UW, I am applying my skills on the exoplanet frontier with in silico simulations of the atmospheric chemistry of terrestrial exoplanets around M-dwarf stars. The questions I’m currently tackling include: What controls the amount of abiotic oxygen that can build up on such worlds? Are volatile-rich worlds habitable? And what might life look like in such alien environments?

Research Assistant (2012–2018) California Institute of Technology, Division of Geological & Planetary Sciences Advisors: Yuk L. Yung, Michael J. Russell, Andrew P. Ingersoll As part of my doctorate at Caltech, I envisioned and performed novel research in the field of planetary science—primarily computational modeling of planetary atmospheric processes. I published my research in peer-reviewed journals (see Scientific Publications) and presented my results at numerous conferences and workshops around the world. In addition, I aided my research group by writing grant proposals, giving my peers feedback and advice on their projects and presentations, proofreading drafts of their papers prior to publication, and running mini-lectures/ tutorials on interesting and relevant scientific topics, such as the emergence of life. I also contributed to the general academic community at Caltech. I gave annual seminar talks to my department, participated in campus-wide talk and poster sessions, and gave campus-wide tutorials on software and skills that I have expertise in. Finally, I organized and ran two different weekly seminars for a year each.

Undergraduate Research Apprenticeship (2011) University of California, Berkeley, Department of Earth & Planetary Sciences Advisors: Burkhard Militzer, Hugh F. Wilson During this 10-week summer research internship, I performed ab initio simulations of superionic water ice relevant to the interiors of ice giant planets. I presented my work with a poster at the 2011 American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting and published the research as Wilson et al. (2013) in Physical Review Letters.

Carnegie Summer Scholar (2010) Carnegie Institution for Science, Geophysical Laboratory Advisors: Alexander F. Goncharov, Viktor Struzhkin During this 10-week summer research internship, I conducted laser-heated diamond anvil cell experiments. I presented my work in the Carnegie Institution of Washington Summer Scholars Symposium and created a poster for the 2010 American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting. I published the research as Goncharov et al. (2012) in the Journal of Applied Physics. SCIENTIFIC PUBLICATIONS Not Yet Published “Do the Clouds of Venus Contain Phosphine?” AP Lincowski, VS Meadows, ..., ML Wong, ... (in review) Astrophysical Journal Letters

“Hydrogenic Phototrophs in Gas Giant Atmospheres and Other Reduced Worlds” ML Wong & YL Yung (in review) Planetary Science Journal

“Emergence, Construction, or Unlikely? Navigating the Space of Questions Regarding Life’s Origins” S Bartlett &ML Wong (submitted)Conflicting Models for the Origin of Life, SK Smoukov, J Seckbach, R Gordon (eds.), Wiley-Scrivener

“Nitrogen Fixation at Early Mars,” D Adams, Y Luo, ML Wong, ... (in review) Astrobiology

Peer-Reviewed Publications “Defining Lyfe in the Universe: From Three Privileged Functions to Four Pillars,” S Bartlett & ML Wong (2020) Life

“Living at the Extremes: Extremophiles and the Limits of Life in a Planetary Context,” Y Merino, HS Aronson, DP Bojanova, ..., ML Wong, ... (2019) Frontiers in Microbiology

“Methane on Mars and Habitability: Challenges and Responses” YL Yung, P Chen, K Nealson, ..., ML Wong, ... (2018) Astrobiology

“Pluto’s haze as surface material,” WM Grundy, T Bertrand, ..., ML Wong, ... (2018), Icarus

“Structure and composition of Pluto’s atmosphere from the New Horizons solar ultraviolet occultation,” LA Young, JA Kammer, ..., ML Wong, ... (2018) Icarus

“Nitrogen oxides in early Earth’s atmosphere as electron acceptors for life’s emergence,” ML Wong, B Charnay, P Gao, YL Yung, MJ Russell (2017) Astrobiology

“Constraints on the microphysics of Pluto’s photochemical haze from New Horizons observations,” P Gao, S Fan, ML Wong, ... (2017) Icarus

“The photochemistry of Pluto’s atmosphere as illuminated by New Horizons,” ML Wong, S Fan, P Gao ... (2016), Icarus

“The Atmosphere of Pluto as observed by New Horizons,” GR Gladstone, ..., ML Wong, ... (2016) Science

“Pluto’s Implications for a Snowball Titan,” ML Wong, YL Yung, GR Gladstone (2015) Icarus

“Evolution of Earth’s Atmosphere,” YL Yung, ML Wong, EJ Gaidos (2014) Encyclopedia of Atmospheric Sciences (2nd Edition), GR North, JA Pyle, F Zhang (eds.), Academic Press

“Superionic to superionic phase change in water: consequences for the interiors of Uranus and Neptune,” HF Wilson, ML Wong, B Militzer (2013) Physical Review Letters

“Thermal conductivity of argon at high pressures and high temperatures,” AF Goncharov, ML Wong, ... (2012) Journal of Applied Physics TEACHING ASTR 497 Astrobiology for STEM Majors—Instructor (2020) University of Washington I was the primary instructor for a 10-week university-level course on Astrobiology, tailored for upper-division STEM majors at the University of Washington. This course was based on the Astrobiology course that I designed at Caltech (see below) with updated lecture material, class activities, and assignments.

Ge/Ay 159 Astrobiology—Instructor (2017, 2018) California Institute of Technology, for Professor Yuk L. Yung I was the primary instructor for a 10-week university-level course on Astrobiology, which I overhauled and redeveloped from scratch. I wrote brand-new lectures covering three major topics: planetary habitability, the origins of life, and the search for life in the cosmos. I devised and graded weekly homework assignments, and oversaw the development and grading of the final projects—miniature research projects performed by individuals or pairs of students.

Ge/Ay 11c The Science of the Solar System—Teaching Assistant (2014–2016) California Institute of Technology, for Professor Michael E. Brown As a teaching assistant, I ran guest-lectures and weekly in-class discussions with Caltech students. In addition, I crafted and recorded a lecture for the corresponding Coursera MOOC, which was taken by over 10,000 students around the world. My TA duties included devising and grading weekly homework assignments, conducting the final exam review session, and grading the final exam. For the 2014 class, I initiated and curated the class blog and organized a class field trip to use the MINERVA telescope to observe planetary bodies.

Adventures in Planetary Science—Instructor (2014, 2015) Institute for Educational Advancement I taught an after-school (2014)/summer (2015) course for gifted elementary and middle school students. For this course, I devised novel in-class activities, prepared homework assignments, organized field trips, and was responsible for student assessment and feedback.

Ge/Ay 159 Astrobiology—Guest Lecturer (2015, 2019) California Institute of Technology, for Professor Yuk L. Yung I guest lectured on the origins of life for one week (2015) and two weeks (2019). I was also responsible for overseeing the homework assignments for the origins of life section of the course.

PHOTOGRAPHY

I photo-blogged the adventures of my Astrobiology course during Winter 2017, sharing with friends and followers on Instagram(@miquai) what we were covering each day of class.

photos by MICHAEL L. WONG AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS UW Physics Slam—Slammer Supreme/1st place (2019) Awarded by audience vote at the inaugural University of Washington Physics Slam Leadership Award (2018) Awarded by the Graduate Dean of the California Institute of Technology KISS Affiliate (2018–present) Nominated by the Caltech Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences for the Keck Institute for Space Studies 3-Minute Thesis Competition—1st Place (2018) Awarded by the Caltech Library after a live competition at Caltech on March 13, 2018 GSC Teaching Award—Best Teaching Assistant (2017) Awarded by the Caltech Graduate Student Council Richard H. Jahns Teaching Award (2017) Awarded by the faculty of Caltech Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences Outstanding Teaching Assistant (2017) Awarded by the Caltech Dean of Graduate Studies and Registrar based on Teacher Quality Feedback Reports Graduate Research Spotlight Speaker (2017) Awarded by the Caltech Graduate Student Council NAI Scholarship (2015) to participate in the Josep Comas i Solà International Summer School in Astrobiology Department Citation (2012) Awarded to the top undergraduate upon graduation by the UC Berkeley Department of Earth & Planetary Sciences Outstanding Accomplishment of a Graduating Senior (2012) Awarded by the Associated Students of the University of California Publications Center PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES Peer Reviewer for Scientific Journal Articles I have refereed manuscripts submitted toJournal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences, The Astrophysical Journal, and Astrobiology. Peer Reviewer on NASA Review Panels I have served on two week-long review panels to judge the scientific merits and programmatic relevance of proposals seeking NASA grant funding. UWAB Steering Committee: Postdoc & Research Scientist Representative I currently serve on the University of Washington Astrobiology Program Steering Committee. Seminar Series Organizer & Host Yuk Lunch Seminar, Caltech (2015–2016) Planetary Science Seminar, Caltech (2014–2015) While I was a graduate student, I organized two seminar series. My duties included selecting and inviting speakers, organizing speaker meetings and activities, introducing the seminar talk, and moderating the Q&A. SEMINARS & COLLOQUIA Invited long-format talks I have given: • Caltech / Yuk Lunch Seminar / December 16, 2020 • Univeristy of Arizona / LPL Colloquium / November 10, 2020 • UC Santa Cruz / Planetary Lunch Seminar / August 31, 2020 • Earth Life Science Institute / ELSI Seminar / June 18, 2020 • Caltech / Yuk Lunch Seminar / March 12, 2020 • University of British Columbia / Astronomy Colloquium / March 4, 2019 • NRC Herzberg / Science Tea Talk / February 28, 2019 • University of Washington / Astrobiology Colloquium / November 20, 2018 • UC Riverside / Astrobiology Coffee Hour / May 25, 2018 • Caltech / Planetary Science Seminar / October 31, 2017 • Caltech / Planetary Science Seminar / October 11, 2016 • Caltech / Planetary Science Seminar / October 27, 2015 • Caltech / Yuk Lunch Seminar / August 4, 2015 • Caltech / Planetary Science Seminar / November 18, 2014 CONFERENCES & WORKSHOPS Professional meetings I have attended: • American Geophysical Union / December 2020 / Virtual / poster • Division of Planetary Sciences / October 2020 / Virtual / invited plenary talk & panel, session chair • Venus Science Today / September 2020 / Virtual • Exoplanets III / July 2020 / Heidelberg, Germany (virtual) / poster • JPL A-Team Study, Mars / July 2020 / Pasadena, CA (virtual) / talk • ALIFE / July 2020 / Montreal, Canada (virtual) / talk • Molecular Origins of Life Meeting / July 2020 / Munich, Canada (virtual) / poster • JPL A-Team Study, Venus / June 2020 / Pasadena, CA (virtual) / talk • Uninhabitable Conference / May 2020 / Chicago, IL (virtual) • Lunar & Planetary Science Conference / April 2020 / Woodlands, TX (virtual) / early career talk • Exoplanets in Our Backyard / February 2020 / Houston, TX / poster, session chair • Extreme Solar Systems IV / August 2019 / Reykjavík, Iceland / poster • Sagan Summer Workshop / July 2019 / Pasadena, CA / poster • Astrobiology Science Conference / June 2019 / Bellevue, WA / talk, poster • Chemobrionics 30/80 Meeting / March 2019 / Grenada, Spain / invited talk • American Astronomical Society / January 2019 / Seattle, WA /thesis talk • American Geophysical Union / December 2018 / Washington, DC / poster • NAS Chemical Sciences Roundtable / November 2018 / Washington, DC / invited talk • Division of Planetary Sciences / October 2018 / Knoxville, TN / poster, session chair • Cloud Academy / September 2018 / Les Houches, France • JPL Icy Worlds Team Meeting / February 2018 / Pasadena, CA / invited talk • Juno Microwave Radiometer Team Meeting / January 2018 / Pasadena, CA / invited talk Professional meetings (continued): • American Geophysical Union / December 2017 / New Orleans, LA / poster • Habitable Worlds / November 2017 / Laramie, WY / talk • Division of Planetary Sciences / October 2017 / Provo, UT / thesis talk • The Early History of Planetary Systems and Habitable Planets / August 2017 / Tartu, Estonia / talk • Astrobiology Science Conference / April 2017 / Mesa, AZ / poster • American Geophysical Union / December 2016 / San Francisco, CA / poster • Division of Planetary Sciences / October 2016 / Pasadena, CA / talk • Biosignatures and the Search for Life on Mars / July 2016 / Reykjavík, Iceland / poster • American Geophysical Union / December 2015/ San Francisco, CA / talk • Division of Planetary Sciences / October 2015 / Washington, DC / poster • International Summer School in Astrobiology / June–July 2017 / Santander, Spain • Astrobiology Science Conference / June 2015 / Chicago, IL / talk • American Geophysical Union / December 2014/ San Francisco, CA / poster • Eighth International Mars Conference / July 2014 / Pasadena, CA / poster • Titan Through Time 3 / April 2014 / Pasadena, CA / talk • American Geophysical Union / December 2013/ San Francisco, CA / talk • Division of Planetary Sciences / October 2013/ Denver, CO / poster • American Geophysical Union / December 2012 / San Francisco, CA • American Geophysical Union / December 2011 / San Francisco, CA / poster • American Geophysical Union / December 2010 / San Francisco, CA / poster PRESS My work in the news: • Interview with Dr. Mike Wong / NASA NExSS Newsletter/ December 2020 • It’s lyfe, Jym / Chemistry World / August 14, 2020 • Radio interview on the search for life and lyfe / Newstalk National Radio in Ireland / August 13, 2020 • Is there lyfe on Mars? New concept broadens search for alien organisms by Zahaan Bharmal / The Guardian / July 30, 2020 • Livet, som vi ikke kender det by Gunver Lystbæk Vestergård/ Weekendavisen / June 24, 2020 • ‘The Science of Star Trek’ Lecture Coming To Caltech / Redshirts Always Die / February 1, 2017 • The Caltech musical parody of ‘Star Trek’ you never knew you always wanted is here by Jason Henry / San Gabriel Valley Tribune / February 21, 2016 • Pluto Flyby May Reveal Secrets of Saturn’s Moon Titan by Nola Taylor Redd / SPACE.com / July 24, 2015 • Saturn's largest moon was once a titanic snowball by Jeff Hecht/ New Scientist / June 18, 2014 PUBLIC SPEAKING

Strange New Worlds: A Science & Star Trek Podcast I am the creator and host of Strange New Worlds, a podcast that examines science, technology, and culture through the lens of Star Trek. To date, I have produced over 100 episodes. LISTEN ON SOUNDCLOUD / LISTEN ON iTUNES

THEATER

The Science of Star Trek I’ve given public talks on “The Science of Star Trek” at numerous venues, from LOCAL LIBRARIES to CALTECH to ASTRONOMY ON TAP. I also appeared on a “Star Trek Science” VIRTUAL TREK CON PANEL.

Other Speaking Events In September 2019, I gave a lecture at the Rose City Astronomers’ General Meeting titled “A Planetary Perspective of Life.” And, in October 2019, I served on a You can also WATCH me portray Lt. ComicCon LA panel called “Our Sci-Fi Future.” Sulu in Boldly Go!, Caltech’s hit Star Trek parody musical from 2016. Later photo by PETER GAO that year, I would also play the lead role in Planet Between the Stars: Clyde Tombaugh, discoverer of Pluto. Design Workshops In 2015, 2016, and 2018, I gave design workshops on behalf of the Caltech Graduate Student Council to teach the basics of graphic design for scientists.

PHD THESIS DEFENSE, MAY 2018 SCIENCE OF STAR TREK PANEL, FEB. 2017

photo by NOELLE DAVIS photo by BOB PAZ OUTREACH EVENTS Public talks, panels, podcasts, and more: • Is Anybody Out There? (Podcast) / December 8, 2020 / Flash Forward Podcast • The Science of Star Trek (Virtual Talk) / December 2, 2019 / King County Library System • Skype-A-Scientist (Talk) / October 12, 2020 / Lafayette Upper Elementary School, Fredericksburg, VA • Skype-A-Scientist (Q&A) / July 26, 2020 / US Earth Science Organization, Junior Girl’s Camp • Skype-A-Scientist (Talk) / July 24, 2020 / STEMasational Friday: Planetary Habitability with Michael Wong • Star Trek Science (Panel) / July 15, 2019 / Virtual Trek Con • Skype-A-Scientist (Q&A) / May 29, 2020 / Westgate School, 6th Grade Science • Skype-A-Scientist (Q&A) / April 19, 2020 / School-from-Home, 6th Grade • Skype-A-Scientist (Q&A) / April 6, 2020 / School-from-Home, 1st Grade • Andorians on Enceladus (Podcast) / March 17, 2020 / Trek FM’s Earl Grey, Ep. 316 • UW Physics Slam (Talk) / October 19, 2019 / University of Washington • Our Sci-Fi Future (Panel) / October 12, 2019 / Los Angeles Comic Con • Origins of Life with Michael Wong (Podcast) / December 16, 2019 / Spellbound, Ep. 94 • A Planetary Perspective of Life (Talk) / September 16, 2019 / Rose City Astronomers General Meeting • The Science of Star Trek (Talk) / July 28, 2019 / Kent Library • AGU Narratives Interview / July 26, 2019 / Recorded by StoryCorps at the 2018 AGU Fall Meeting • The Science of Star Trek (Talk) / July 24, 2019 / Woodmont Library • The Science of Star Trek (Talk) / May 18, 2019 / Mensa Western Washington • The Science of Star Trek (Talk) / April 1, 2019 / North City Tech Meetup • The Science of Star Trek (Talk) / February 20, 2019 / Astronomy On Tap, Seattle • Where Do We Come From? The Origin of Life (Podcast) / January 30, 2019 / Planetary Radio • Exotic Solar Systems (Podcast) / July 24, 2018 / Trek FM’s Earl Grey, Ep. 237 • 50% Banana (Podcast) / March 2, 2018 / Trek FM’s Warp Five, Ep. 136 • It’s All Shady in the Mirror Universe (Podcast) / January 19, 2018 / Trek FM’s The Edge, Ep. 28 • Don’t Tap the Glass (Podcast) / January 5, 2018 / Trek FM’s Warp Five, Ep. 128 • Deep Cuts (Podcast) / December 8, 2017 / Trek FM’s The Edge, Ep. 23 • The Science of Star Trek (Talk & Panel) / February 3, 2017 / Caltech Astro Outreach Lecture & Stargazing

DESIGN . Cosmic Motivations ) and I started a line of @AstroKatie In early 2018, Professor Katie Mack ( inspirational astronomy-themed posters called WRITING

Larger than Life: How a New Conceptual Framework of “Lyfe” Can Widen Scientific Understanding for Caltech Letters | December 8, 2020 An essay about how the pillars of “lyfe” came to be.

image CECILIA SANDERS

Ernie’s Al Fresco: A Caltech Favorite for Caltech Magazine | Fall 2020 A 2014 profile of Ernesto Almeyda Mercado, better known as Ernie, for The California Tech, Caltech’s student newspaper. Republished in 2020 in Caltech Magazine.

image MICHAEL L. WONG

Thinking About Life (or Lyfe) Through The Prism of “Star Trek” for Many Worlds | June 17, 2020 A guest blog post on how to characterize life in the universe—both as we do and do not know it—for the NASA NExSS website Many Worlds.

image CBS Studios

The “Uninhabitable” Mini-Conference for NExSS Newsletter | June 2020 A recap of a scientific meeting about what makes planets uninhabitable.

image NASA/NExSS

The Making of Life for The Planetary Report | Dec. 2018 An invited article about the emergence of life for The Planetary Society’s flagship magazine,The Planetary Report.

image LOREN A. ROBERTS

Stolen for Caltech Letters | April 10, 2018 A story about New Horizons’ encounter with Pluto and an unexpected way to describe the stunning dwarf planet.

image NASA/JHUAPL/SwRI SCIENCE CONSULTING I have been a technical consultant for: • Kevin Brotman / Screenwriter / Lost in Space (Netflix series) • Shann D. Smith / Author / Mars • Jill M. Murray / Author / Escape Velocity • Adam Korenman / Author

SUMMER SCHOOLS A recap of the KISS workshop

Workshop I: December 7–11, 2015, Pasadena, CA Workshop II: June 14–17, 2016, Pasadena, CA methane on mars In addition to my research PRESENTED BY detection :: variation :: sources MICHAEL L. WONG sinks :: sequestration :: release PHD CANDIDATE IN PLANETARY SCIENCE, experiences in the United DIVISION OF GEOLOGICAL & PLANETARY SCIENCES, CALTECH the big picture States, I have attended MYSTERIOUS European astrobiology- MEASUREMENTS + tunable laser spectrometer related summer schools/ onboard Mars Science Laboratory 1 conferences every year from 2015–2020. These experiences played a vital role in the breadth of my

knowledge and my growth ~0.7 ppb background with ~7 ppb spikes as a scholar. CONCEIVABLE PROVENANCES

+ geochemical: Serpentinization followed by Fischer–Tropsch-type process + biological: Microbes reduce CO2 with H2 from serpentinization + exogenous: Influx of organic carbon on meteoritic material followed by UV degradation + volcanic: Magmatic outgassing HETEROGENEOUS FUTURE INVESTIGATIONS CHEMISTRY UNDERGROUND exomars trace + heterogeneous chemistry: gas orbiter: LEAKAGE reactions between components of 1 Will provide different phases better spatial & temporal + The surface area of dust in Mars’s + microseepage: Low-flux passive coverage of CH4 seepage; undetectable far from the surface atmosphere is greater than the surface + macroseepage: Release of gas at area of the planet fractures, faults, mud volcanoes, mounds + wind erosion of quartz grains can 3 + glacial springs: Pressurized fluids form Si–CH3 bonds released by fracture systems at toes of Sequestration & release from solids glaciers may account for shorter apparent CH4 heterogeneous subsurface lifetimes in the atmosphere chemistry: Lab modeling: experiments relevant Geochemical & CLASSICAL 2to Mars; test for isotopic 4geodynamical modeling for OTHER fractionation; repeat modeling redox evolution and water PHOTOCHEMISTRY studies with new processes activity for biology POSSIBILITIES atmospheric terrestrial + above 60 km: UV directly photolyzes transport: Modeling analogs: Identify CH4 to CH3 + Chemistry with ice particles in the 3to higher spatial 5best environments to + below 60 km: UV photolyzes H2O, atmosphere resolution (e.g. WRF); 3D search for seepage; calculate producing OH, which oxidizes CH4 to + triboelectricity in dust devils may meteorological sampling for expectations for fluxes; formaldehyde (CH2O) create oxidants that can destroy CH4 wind maps of Mars develop detection methods + Classical photochemistry results in a 2 This poster was created on the author’s personal MacBook Pro using Adobe InDesign CC 2015. It CH4 lifetime of ~300 years 1. webster et al. (2015) Science 347 (6220), 415–417 was printed by the Caltech GIS Lab’s HP5500PS Printer on Photofinish Satin paper. Header text 2. summers et al. (2002) Geophys. Res. Lett. 29 (24), REFERENCES COLOPHON was set in Freight Sans Pro; body text was set in Abril Text. This work was made possible by the 24-1–24-4 | 3. jensen et al. (2014) Icarus 236, 24–27 Cannot possibly explain the temporal generous intellectual and monetary support of the Keck Institute for Space Studies. variations we see

JOURNALISM & DESIGN

The Big T Yearbook (2012–2018) YEARBOOK Graduate Student Editor (2012–ongoing) Yearbook was an important professional aspect and Blue & Gold Yearbook (2008–2012) creative outlet throughout Editor-in-Chief/President (2010–2012) high school, college, and graduate school. Through Managing Editor (2009–2010) serving on yearbook staffs, Copy Editor (2008–2009) I discovered and refined my passions for design, photography, and writing. The Olympian (2006–2008) As an editor, I gained Editor-in-Chief (2007–2008) valuable experience as a leader and a mentor. Assistant Editor-in-Chief (2006–2007)