November 1, 2023 • 19 mins
In this captivating episode of the Inquiry Oasis we explore the fascinating journey of Dr. Corey Knox. Dr. Knox, newly appointed as the Deputy Director at the University of Arizona’s Astrobiology Center, shares her unique trajectory from education researcher to her role in this new center. Throughout our conversation, Dr. Knox illuminates the profound ways in which science interacts with local communities and cultures and reveals the interconnectedness of astrobiology with urgent global issues such as climate change. Knox’s reflections on her time at the College of Education and its vibrant community are as enriching as her insights into education as a tool for liberation. This episode is a must-listen for those intrigued by the confluence of science, education, and social equity.
Topics Discussed:
- The mission and vision of the University of Arizona's Astrobiology Center
- Interdisciplinary nature of astrobiology: Combining astronomy, biology, humanities, and indigenous knowledge
- Relevance of astrobiology to understanding and addressing climate change
- Connecting astrobiology discoveries with lived human experiences across cultures
- The foundational role of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) in astrobiology and education
- Incorporating Tucson's local community histories and innovative practices in educational initiatives
- Educators as facilitators: Bridging various disciplines in the university
- Influence and significance of Dr. Knox's recommended readings on her worldview
- Education as a tool for individual and societal liberation: Insights from 'Pedagogy of the Oppressed'
Books:
- Life on Other Planets: A Memoir of Finding My Place in the Universe by Aomawa Shields
- Pedagogy of the Oppressed by Paulo Freire
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Jeffrey (00:02):
Welcome to the Inquiry Oasis, a University of Arizona
College of Education podcast.
Here in the heart of theSonoran Desert, we bring
you conversations with ouresteemed faculty members
whose research impacts livesfrom Southern Arizona to the
far reaches of the globe.
Recording From the College ofEducation's Digital Innovation
and Learning Lab, we exploredthe transformative power of
(00:24):
education in this border townwhere diverse cultures and ideas
converge, weaving a tapestryof innovation with compassion
and a sense of wonder.
Join us as we journey throughthe sands of curiosity,
unearthing insightsthat enrich and inspire.
So, sit back and relaxas we invite you to dive
into The Inquiry Oasis.
(00:45):
Thank you for tuning into the Inquiry Oasis.
I'm your host, JeffreyAnthony, and today we're
thrilled to be joined by Dr.
Corey Knox.
For the past five years, Dr.
Knox has served as theeducational research scientist
and later the associatedirector of STEM Learning
Center, a proud alumna.
She received her PhD.
From the UA College ofEducation's Teaching,
learning and SocioculturalStudies Department in 2018.
(01:09):
This year, she's embarkingon an exciting new journey,
transitioning from the Collegeof Education to the brand
new Arizona AstrobiologyCenter, where she'll
serve as deputy director.
Our conversationwill delve into Dr.
Knox's impactful workranging from community-based
research to the developmentof programs addressing
social justice, youth, womenscience, and the environment.
(01:31):
Now her expertise will extendinto the realm of astrobiology.
So without further ado, let'sembark on this journey of
exploration and discoveryhere in the Inquiry Oasis.
Thank you for joining us, Corey.
Dr. Corey Knox (01:44):
Thanks, Jeffrey.
Glad to be here.
Jeffrey (01:46):
Before we jump into your research and
work with the brand newArizona Astrobiology Center.
Would you give us a bit ofbackground on your path to
becoming the educationalresearch scientist at
the College of Education?
Dr. Corey Knox (01:56):
sure.
Like you mentioned, I graduated,from this college in 2018 and,
before that I've worked hereat the U of A for 20 years
or so, as a social scienceresearcher, but switched to
education, and did my work here.
and so I stayed, I neverleft after I graduated and
(02:17):
worked on projects withscience faculty, integrating
education and inclusion,with different science
faculty all across U of A.
So it was a great experience.
I learned a lot.
I got to be a part of big.
Different, diversescience topics.
it was a great five yearsof learning and, working
(02:37):
people all over U of A
Jeffrey (02:39):
Can you tell us how you integrated your educational and
social science background withscience here at the college?
Dr. Corey Knox (02:45):
Sure.
So I have always lovedscience as a little kid.
I think that it really hithome when I was working on
education projects, abouthow science can tend to, push
certain groups of people out.
Women, people of color, asa, as a kid, even like no one
suggested going to collegefor me to be a scientist.
(03:08):
I didn't know scientists,I didn't even know it was
really a, career when Iwas a kid, growing up.
So I think the educationand my focus on inclusion
and people being able tofollow their passions.
Connected with this, feelinglike I want people to be
included in science, inwhatever way they want to.
(03:31):
I think we need diverse voices.
We need diverse ideas, andI think that sort of that
social justice and education,focus of mine, even before
I was in education, and thenconnecting with science and
science projects and seeingwho was and was not involved
in, some of these bigger grantsand as faculty and different
(03:52):
disciplines really struck meas okay, this is a great, path
and a role and I got to workwith amazing people here at the
college who are, very focusedon inclusion and social justice
in across fields and in society.
And I picked science as mysort of place that I wanted
to to sort of put my energyinto, related to inclusion.
Jeffrey (04:14):
We're lucky that you did choose science as that
field, and I was wondering whyis the College of Education
an important partner toscience and innovation at
the University of Arizona, I
Dr. Corey Knox (04:23):
Um, yeah, so I think that, our college
has nationally known andinternationally known scholars
on different pedagogical,theories and practices,
culturally relevant pedagogy,inclusive science, bilingual
education, social justice wehave at the College of Ed.
(04:43):
just amazing, scholars andpractitioners and educators.
And I feel through my workwith a lot of science faculty
and different science projectshere outside of the College of
Ed, they're looking for that.
They're asking for itcoming to us and to Dr.
Chavarria and saying, canwe get your education folks
(05:04):
involved in this big project?
But a lot of them aren'tknowing what they don't know.
So I feel like, there's just alot of emphasis right now on.
Diversity and equity andinclusion in stem, both for
workforce or future forcedevelopment, but also just to
make science more inclusive.
(05:25):
And representative ofdifferent worldviews and
indigenous knowledge.
And I think College ofEd is here and we've been
here, but I don't think.
People know about us enough,and I think that there's so
many folks here, faculty,staff who do this work on a
daily basis of inclusion andculturally relevant pedagogy
that it's just a great.
(05:46):
Partnership when it happens.
Jeffrey (05:48):
So I'm gonna throw a question in here that wasn't
prepared I was thinkingabout the ontologies of every
language that they have andhow they can bring a specific
view to a scientific questionthat may be, unanswerable,
but because they come froma different understanding
through their language, itopens up new potentialities
that we didn't know before.
Through your work in socialjustice and what you've done
(06:09):
here at the University ofArizona College of Education,
have you seen some of that,how broadening the, expansive
scope of who was included inscience education as, breaking
through some barriers thatmaybe haven't been able to break
through before because of theseother ways of seeing the world?
Dr. Corey Knox (06:24):
yeah.
Well, so I have acouple examples.
one example and we do thisa lot, in our work is people
bring the why question.
Why are you doing that?
Why is it important?
I think scientists and peoplein their own discipline, Are
focused on this is what I'mdoing and this is important.
And I think when you bringdiverse groups of people and
(06:45):
people who aren't necessarilyfrom that discipline, they
ask, why are you doing that?
We say, why shouldwe care often?
as a prompt for scientists.
So, tell us why weshould care about that.
so I think that's the, a big.
Sort of question thatscience could use more of.
.... People going, why shouldwe care about that?
(07:07):
... Can you explain it in a waythat connects to our community
or our people, or, you know,people on earth you know, a
very concrete example thatI've been running into lately
related to language is.
In space science, for example.
there's a lot of militaryterms that are used to describe
missions, change of command,like exploring other worlds.
(07:33):
so that kind of language isreally interesting to think
if you're talking to, a blackperson who's hearing that, or
an indigenous person who's goingoh, I've heard that before.
Jeffrey (07:45):
Right.
Dr. Corey Knox (07:45):
We're going to discover new worlds.
Jeffrey (07:48):
Mm-hmm.
Dr. Corey Knox (07:49):
Right.
So there's even that,that's like language, but
it's also philosophical.
Mm-hmm, and it has to do withtraditions of different fields.
So, that's a very concreteexample that I ran into
lately about sort ofmilitary language used in
different kinds of sciences.
Jeffrey (08:07):
Mm-hmm.
I, I think we're ready.
I think we are.
I think we're ready.
We're all excited to learnabout your recent appointment
as deputy director at theAstrobiology Center, could
you share the intriguingjourney that led you to
this remarkable opportunity?
Dr. Corey Knox (08:19):
sure.
So I've been working with, Dr.
Dante Loretta, who is aastrobiologist and the
PI of this big asteroidmission called Osiris Rex.
Um, for off and on for sixyears as the education person
on some of his projects,We were introduced by Dr.
Chavarria When he came lookingfor some education person to
(08:43):
help with a Boys and GirlsClub project, like, can you
help me design a servicelearning project that we can
do at the Boys and Girls Club?
So I started workingwith him on that.
we were working with, superdiverse group of both.
members of Boys and Girls Club,but also undergraduate students
who wanted to work with youth.
so I worked with him on thatWhile that was happening,
(09:05):
the Osiris Rex Big project,one of the biggest, projects.
have been funded at U of A ever.
This seven year mission toan asteroid, and connects
to astrobiology in thatastrobiology is defined as the
search for the origins of lifein the universe and on earth.
The diversity of life in theuniverse and the conditions by
(09:28):
which life can emerge Or not,is kind of the central science
questions of that discipline.
so, I was interested.
That is like a huge interesting,juicy question for me
since I was, again, a kid.
Where did we come from?
What is, um, and so I workedwith him in a class that he
taught, And did research,did a little participant
(09:51):
observation research onhow he was connecting
culture and, communitiesinto teaching this very,
general, astrobiology courseto freshman and sophomores,
really early, undergraduates.
so he had been working on thisidea in his head that this is
his next, after the asteroid.
(10:12):
Sample came back.
He wanted to start a center thatfocused on astrobiology, which
is a hugely booming and emergingfield across the US because
of James Webb Telescope andall the discovery of all these
exoplanets that, have just comeinto focus, so to speak, in the
last probably five years, right?
(10:32):
So, it is what's happeningthere, what's happening
in the universe, whatis, the spark of life?
And so it's a awesomefield for me because it's
super interdisciplinary.
It's astro astronomy, biology.
It involves, humanities,cultural studies, indigenous
knowledge about origins and allcultures have both astronomy
(10:56):
and have, knowledge about howthey view how we got here.
So he asked basically, wouldyou like to join this center?
And it was.
Like it was a hard decisionbecause one of 'em is, am I
ready to focus on one scienceat the College of Ed, I got to
work on environmental science.
(11:18):
I got to, work on projectsrelated to water and
environmental justiceand quantum mechanics,
and sort of move aroundand work with different
projects at different times.
And so this was aboutlike, In a way picking a
science, although it's a verybig, broad science topic.
And, Dr.
Loretta was very, committedto having d e i, diversity
(11:42):
equity inclusion at thefoundation and core foundation
of the center, attracting newstudents, new community voices.
basically our logo became theuniverse's calling come and talk
with us about this big question.
So there will be a lotof research and research
development related to differentdisciplines, scientific
(12:03):
disciplines, but also we'reviewing it as a place where
the community students, nomatter what their major or
career path is, can come andengage in these questions and
topics with us at this center.
Jeffrey (12:18):
That is fascinating.
know, in preparing forthis talk today, I read the
background information onthe new astrobiology center,
and your mission statementis really remarkable.
I would like to quote itfor our audience here.
to quote, 'Our mission is toprovide bold, interdisciplinary,
and transformative leadershipthrough cutting edge research,
inclusive training of futureleaders and collaborative
(12:39):
dialogue on the originand existence of life and
consciousness in the universe;and making astrobiology
discoveries relevant tothe lived experiences
of all people on Earth.'When it comes to a mission
statement that is aweinspiring, to say the least.
Can you unpack this for us?
To begin, let's focus on thesecond part of the mission
statement, 'making astrobiologydiscoveries relevant to the
(13:02):
lived experiences of allpeople on Earth.' Why is that
important and how does thismission influence the type of
activities the AstrobiologyCenter will focus on?
Dr. Corey Knox (13:12):
one of them I talked about before and that is
it is already relevant, to thelived experiences, histories,
and cultures of the world.
There is, as I said, mostcultures do have an origin
story and practices around howwe got here, our purpose here.
So, that's that sort ofhumanities conversation about
(13:34):
who we are and how we study.
What we study andknow what we know.
But, more immediate, it alsocontributes to research on
climate change, which is an areaI've been reading a lot about
now is astrobiology, involvesresearch and, planetary sort
of comparisons of climate,change of environment over
(13:57):
millions of years instead ofa hundred years so there are
a lot of examples of the waysthat research both astronomy,
astrobiology, evolution,biology and research connects
to concrete issues that we'refacing here like mass extinction
of many species, on earththat is occurring as we speak.
(14:17):
Climate change,habitability, right?
So, a lot of of astronomy andastrobiology focuses on what
are the conditions on these faroff stars or planets, and, what
would that mean for us here?
and there are also thisvery interesting subfield of
extremophiles, which is likethese biologists who study,
(14:38):
creatures on Earth that surviveand flourish in the most
extreme environments, likeat the bottom of the ocean,
in those black smoker ventsand in the Mojave Desert.
So I think it's relevantbecause of our imagination
of humans and sort of spaceand why are we here, and the
knowledge that already existsfrom cultures for millennia.
(15:01):
And it's relevant to veryspecific technologies and
science discoveries thatcould be, applied and help
us think through some ofthe environmental challenges
we're facing now as a planet.
Jeffrey (15:14):
What has been the most surprising insight or
discovery you have had duringthe journey you have had here
at the University of Arizona?
Dr. Corey Knox (15:21):
I think it's that there are so many
people Scientists, scholars,psychology, people working on
amazing projects, At U of A.
And often not connected.
I think that working with,College of Ed and with Dr.
Chavarria and getting to knowthe bigger community and not
(15:42):
just the science sort of STEMyfields, but humanities and
creative writing and poetrylike that, there's these
stories that are really amazing.
and, discoveries and historiesthat are very Tucson based.
Mm-hmm.
Um, that I don't thinkwe know about often the
larger community and.
That they're not connectedinto these cool stories like
(16:04):
climate change research andindigenous communities and say,
new agricultural techniques, butreally traditional agricultural
techniques that differentgroups in our area have been
using for millennia and nowit's being connected back
to agricultural innovation.
I think, I don't know if it wassurprising, but it's amazing.
I've been here for about20 years and the stories
(16:26):
and connections and work,That I've seen and been a
part of in a little way, ispretty, pretty astounding.
And I think that's,again, education, we're
science communicators,we're communicators.
I think of educators andeducation scholars as,
liaisons between differentsort of, endeavors
(16:48):
that might be going on.
And so I think that.
I've been able to seethat in action, working
here at the college.
Jeffrey (16:56):
We're getting to the end of our conversation here,
and as we ask each of ourguests, is there a book or a
paper that has been meaningfulto you, and could you share
one with our audience andexplain how it has impacted you?
Dr. Corey Knox (17:08):
So I have two.
That I'll share with you.
One I'm still reading and I justgot four days ago, which I love,
and it's called 'Life on OtherPlanets: A Memoir of Finding
My Place in the Universe.' Andthe author is a Aomawa Shields.
She is an African-Americanastrophysicist at uc, Irvine,
(17:32):
and also a professional actress.
Hi.
And also runs this amazingprogram for, black and brown
youth in LA called Star Girls.
And so it's this memoir abouther moving through science and
not being able to be in sciencebecause she was viewed as,
you're an actress type person.
(17:52):
It's really beautiful,and so I'm, I'm just
like halfway through it.
And I would just say it'sthe perfect mix of a science
book and it's like a storyof inclusion and becoming.
And then the other one, thestandard is, Pedagogy of the
Oppressed, which connectseducation to liberation.
And I think at core,education should be about
(18:13):
liberating individuals andtheir passions and where they
want to move, through theirlife, but also societies.
Mm-hmm.
And I would say those two thatall the education people already
have read 'Pedagogy of theOppressed,' but the 'Life on
Other Planets' is a nice, reallycontemporary recent memoir.
Jeffrey (18:30):
Corey, thank you for opening up
your world to us today.
Your titleless work fromcommunity-based research and
development programs to yoursignificant roles within the
College of Education, and now,the new Arizona Astrobiology
Center, is truly inspirational.
To our listeners, thankyou for joining us today
in The Inquiry Oasis.
It's conversations like these,filled with the profound
insights and dedication to thebroader impacts of education
(18:52):
that fuel our curiosity anddrive our thirst for knowledge.
We're here on the firstand third Wednesday of
every month with intriguingdiscussions and perspectives.
So be sure to keep tuningin as we shed light
on the transformativepower of education.
Until our next journey.
Until the inquiry oasis,keep your curiosity
alive and remember,knowledge is our oasis.
Welcome to the Inquiry Oasis, a University of Arizona
College of Education podcast.
Here in the heart of theSonoran Desert, we bring
you conversations with ouresteemed faculty members
whose research impacts livesfrom Southern Arizona to the
far reaches of the globe.
Recording From the College ofEducation's Digital Innovation
and Learning Lab, we exploredthe transformative power of
(00:24):
education in this border townwhere diverse cultures and ideas
converge, weaving a tapestryof innovation with compassion
and a sense of wonder.
Join us as we journey throughthe sands of curiosity,
unearthing insightsthat enrich and inspire.
So, sit back and relaxas we invite you to dive
into The Inquiry Oasis.
(00:45):
Thank you for tuning into the Inquiry Oasis.
I'm your host, JeffreyAnthony, and today we're
thrilled to be joined by Dr.
Corey Knox.
For the past five years, Dr.
Knox has served as theeducational research scientist
and later the associatedirector of STEM Learning
Center, a proud alumna.
She received her PhD.
From the UA College ofEducation's Teaching,
learning and SocioculturalStudies Department in 2018.
(01:09):
This year, she's embarkingon an exciting new journey,
transitioning from the Collegeof Education to the brand
new Arizona AstrobiologyCenter, where she'll
serve as deputy director.
Our conversationwill delve into Dr.
Knox's impactful workranging from community-based
research to the developmentof programs addressing
social justice, youth, womenscience, and the environment.
(01:31):
Now her expertise will extendinto the realm of astrobiology.
So without further ado, let'sembark on this journey of
exploration and discoveryhere in the Inquiry Oasis.
Thank you for joining us, Corey.
Dr. Corey Knox (01:44):
Thanks, Jeffrey.
Glad to be here.
Jeffrey (01:46):
Before we jump into your research and
work with the brand newArizona Astrobiology Center.
Would you give us a bit ofbackground on your path to
becoming the educationalresearch scientist at
the College of Education?
Dr. Corey Knox (01:56):
sure.
Like you mentioned, I graduated,from this college in 2018 and,
before that I've worked hereat the U of A for 20 years
or so, as a social scienceresearcher, but switched to
education, and did my work here.
and so I stayed, I neverleft after I graduated and
(02:17):
worked on projects withscience faculty, integrating
education and inclusion,with different science
faculty all across U of A.
So it was a great experience.
I learned a lot.
I got to be a part of big.
Different, diversescience topics.
it was a great five yearsof learning and, working
(02:37):
people all over U of A
Jeffrey (02:39):
Can you tell us how you integrated your educational and
social science background withscience here at the college?
Dr. Corey Knox (02:45):
Sure.
So I have always lovedscience as a little kid.
I think that it really hithome when I was working on
education projects, abouthow science can tend to, push
certain groups of people out.
Women, people of color, asa, as a kid, even like no one
suggested going to collegefor me to be a scientist.
(03:08):
I didn't know scientists,I didn't even know it was
really a, career when Iwas a kid, growing up.
So I think the educationand my focus on inclusion
and people being able tofollow their passions.
Connected with this, feelinglike I want people to be
included in science, inwhatever way they want to.
(03:31):
I think we need diverse voices.
We need diverse ideas, andI think that sort of that
social justice and education,focus of mine, even before
I was in education, and thenconnecting with science and
science projects and seeingwho was and was not involved
in, some of these bigger grantsand as faculty and different
(03:52):
disciplines really struck meas okay, this is a great, path
and a role and I got to workwith amazing people here at the
college who are, very focusedon inclusion and social justice
in across fields and in society.
And I picked science as mysort of place that I wanted
to to sort of put my energyinto, related to inclusion.
Jeffrey (04:14):
We're lucky that you did choose science as that
field, and I was wondering whyis the College of Education
an important partner toscience and innovation at
the University of Arizona, I
Dr. Corey Knox (04:23):
Um, yeah, so I think that, our college
has nationally known andinternationally known scholars
on different pedagogical,theories and practices,
culturally relevant pedagogy,inclusive science, bilingual
education, social justice wehave at the College of Ed.
(04:43):
just amazing, scholars andpractitioners and educators.
And I feel through my workwith a lot of science faculty
and different science projectshere outside of the College of
Ed, they're looking for that.
They're asking for itcoming to us and to Dr.
Chavarria and saying, canwe get your education folks
(05:04):
involved in this big project?
But a lot of them aren'tknowing what they don't know.
So I feel like, there's just alot of emphasis right now on.
Diversity and equity andinclusion in stem, both for
workforce or future forcedevelopment, but also just to
make science more inclusive.
(05:25):
And representative ofdifferent worldviews and
indigenous knowledge.
And I think College ofEd is here and we've been
here, but I don't think.
People know about us enough,and I think that there's so
many folks here, faculty,staff who do this work on a
daily basis of inclusion andculturally relevant pedagogy
that it's just a great.
(05:46):
Partnership when it happens.
Jeffrey (05:48):
So I'm gonna throw a question in here that wasn't
prepared I was thinkingabout the ontologies of every
language that they have andhow they can bring a specific
view to a scientific questionthat may be, unanswerable,
but because they come froma different understanding
through their language, itopens up new potentialities
that we didn't know before.
Through your work in socialjustice and what you've done
(06:09):
here at the University ofArizona College of Education,
have you seen some of that,how broadening the, expansive
scope of who was included inscience education as, breaking
through some barriers thatmaybe haven't been able to break
through before because of theseother ways of seeing the world?
Dr. Corey Knox (06:24):
yeah.
Well, so I have acouple examples.
one example and we do thisa lot, in our work is people
bring the why question.
Why are you doing that?
Why is it important?
I think scientists and peoplein their own discipline, Are
focused on this is what I'mdoing and this is important.
And I think when you bringdiverse groups of people and
(06:45):
people who aren't necessarilyfrom that discipline, they
ask, why are you doing that?
We say, why shouldwe care often?
as a prompt for scientists.
So, tell us why weshould care about that.
so I think that's the, a big.
Sort of question thatscience could use more of.
.... People going, why shouldwe care about that?
(07:07):
... Can you explain it in a waythat connects to our community
or our people, or, you know,people on earth you know, a
very concrete example thatI've been running into lately
related to language is.
In space science, for example.
there's a lot of militaryterms that are used to describe
missions, change of command,like exploring other worlds.
(07:33):
so that kind of language isreally interesting to think
if you're talking to, a blackperson who's hearing that, or
an indigenous person who's goingoh, I've heard that before.
Jeffrey (07:45):
Right.
Dr. Corey Knox (07:45):
We're going to discover new worlds.
Jeffrey (07:48):
Mm-hmm.
Dr. Corey Knox (07:49):
Right.
So there's even that,that's like language, but
it's also philosophical.
Mm-hmm, and it has to do withtraditions of different fields.
So, that's a very concreteexample that I ran into
lately about sort ofmilitary language used in
different kinds of sciences.
Jeffrey (08:07):
Mm-hmm.
I, I think we're ready.
I think we are.
I think we're ready.
We're all excited to learnabout your recent appointment
as deputy director at theAstrobiology Center, could
you share the intriguingjourney that led you to
this remarkable opportunity?
Dr. Corey Knox (08:19):
sure.
So I've been working with, Dr.
Dante Loretta, who is aastrobiologist and the
PI of this big asteroidmission called Osiris Rex.
Um, for off and on for sixyears as the education person
on some of his projects,We were introduced by Dr.
Chavarria When he came lookingfor some education person to
(08:43):
help with a Boys and GirlsClub project, like, can you
help me design a servicelearning project that we can
do at the Boys and Girls Club?
So I started workingwith him on that.
we were working with, superdiverse group of both.
members of Boys and Girls Club,but also undergraduate students
who wanted to work with youth.
so I worked with him on thatWhile that was happening,
(09:05):
the Osiris Rex Big project,one of the biggest, projects.
have been funded at U of A ever.
This seven year mission toan asteroid, and connects
to astrobiology in thatastrobiology is defined as the
search for the origins of lifein the universe and on earth.
The diversity of life in theuniverse and the conditions by
(09:28):
which life can emerge Or not,is kind of the central science
questions of that discipline.
so, I was interested.
That is like a huge interesting,juicy question for me
since I was, again, a kid.
Where did we come from?
What is, um, and so I workedwith him in a class that he
taught, And did research,did a little participant
(09:51):
observation research onhow he was connecting
culture and, communitiesinto teaching this very,
general, astrobiology courseto freshman and sophomores,
really early, undergraduates.
so he had been working on thisidea in his head that this is
his next, after the asteroid.
(10:12):
Sample came back.
He wanted to start a center thatfocused on astrobiology, which
is a hugely booming and emergingfield across the US because
of James Webb Telescope andall the discovery of all these
exoplanets that, have just comeinto focus, so to speak, in the
last probably five years, right?
(10:32):
So, it is what's happeningthere, what's happening
in the universe, whatis, the spark of life?
And so it's a awesomefield for me because it's
super interdisciplinary.
It's astro astronomy, biology.
It involves, humanities,cultural studies, indigenous
knowledge about origins and allcultures have both astronomy
(10:56):
and have, knowledge about howthey view how we got here.
So he asked basically, wouldyou like to join this center?
And it was.
Like it was a hard decisionbecause one of 'em is, am I
ready to focus on one scienceat the College of Ed, I got to
work on environmental science.
(11:18):
I got to, work on projectsrelated to water and
environmental justiceand quantum mechanics,
and sort of move aroundand work with different
projects at different times.
And so this was aboutlike, In a way picking a
science, although it's a verybig, broad science topic.
And, Dr.
Loretta was very, committedto having d e i, diversity
(11:42):
equity inclusion at thefoundation and core foundation
of the center, attracting newstudents, new community voices.
basically our logo became theuniverse's calling come and talk
with us about this big question.
So there will be a lotof research and research
development related to differentdisciplines, scientific
(12:03):
disciplines, but also we'reviewing it as a place where
the community students, nomatter what their major or
career path is, can come andengage in these questions and
topics with us at this center.
Jeffrey (12:18):
That is fascinating.
know, in preparing forthis talk today, I read the
background information onthe new astrobiology center,
and your mission statementis really remarkable.
I would like to quote itfor our audience here.
to quote, 'Our mission is toprovide bold, interdisciplinary,
and transformative leadershipthrough cutting edge research,
inclusive training of futureleaders and collaborative
(12:39):
dialogue on the originand existence of life and
consciousness in the universe;and making astrobiology
discoveries relevant tothe lived experiences
of all people on Earth.'When it comes to a mission
statement that is aweinspiring, to say the least.
Can you unpack this for us?
To begin, let's focus on thesecond part of the mission
statement, 'making astrobiologydiscoveries relevant to the
(13:02):
lived experiences of allpeople on Earth.' Why is that
important and how does thismission influence the type of
activities the AstrobiologyCenter will focus on?
Dr. Corey Knox (13:12):
one of them I talked about before and that is
it is already relevant, to thelived experiences, histories,
and cultures of the world.
There is, as I said, mostcultures do have an origin
story and practices around howwe got here, our purpose here.
So, that's that sort ofhumanities conversation about
(13:34):
who we are and how we study.
What we study andknow what we know.
But, more immediate, it alsocontributes to research on
climate change, which is an areaI've been reading a lot about
now is astrobiology, involvesresearch and, planetary sort
of comparisons of climate,change of environment over
(13:57):
millions of years instead ofa hundred years so there are
a lot of examples of the waysthat research both astronomy,
astrobiology, evolution,biology and research connects
to concrete issues that we'refacing here like mass extinction
of many species, on earththat is occurring as we speak.
(14:17):
Climate change,habitability, right?
So, a lot of of astronomy andastrobiology focuses on what
are the conditions on these faroff stars or planets, and, what
would that mean for us here?
and there are also thisvery interesting subfield of
extremophiles, which is likethese biologists who study,
(14:38):
creatures on Earth that surviveand flourish in the most
extreme environments, likeat the bottom of the ocean,
in those black smoker ventsand in the Mojave Desert.
So I think it's relevantbecause of our imagination
of humans and sort of spaceand why are we here, and the
knowledge that already existsfrom cultures for millennia.
(15:01):
And it's relevant to veryspecific technologies and
science discoveries thatcould be, applied and help
us think through some ofthe environmental challenges
we're facing now as a planet.
Jeffrey (15:14):
What has been the most surprising insight or
discovery you have had duringthe journey you have had here
at the University of Arizona?
Dr. Corey Knox (15:21):
I think it's that there are so many
people Scientists, scholars,psychology, people working on
amazing projects, At U of A.
And often not connected.
I think that working with,College of Ed and with Dr.
Chavarria and getting to knowthe bigger community and not
(15:42):
just the science sort of STEMyfields, but humanities and
creative writing and poetrylike that, there's these
stories that are really amazing.
and, discoveries and historiesthat are very Tucson based.
Mm-hmm.
Um, that I don't thinkwe know about often the
larger community and.
That they're not connectedinto these cool stories like
(16:04):
climate change research andindigenous communities and say,
new agricultural techniques, butreally traditional agricultural
techniques that differentgroups in our area have been
using for millennia and nowit's being connected back
to agricultural innovation.
I think, I don't know if it wassurprising, but it's amazing.
I've been here for about20 years and the stories
(16:26):
and connections and work,That I've seen and been a
part of in a little way, ispretty, pretty astounding.
And I think that's,again, education, we're
science communicators,we're communicators.
I think of educators andeducation scholars as,
liaisons between differentsort of, endeavors
(16:48):
that might be going on.
And so I think that.
I've been able to seethat in action, working
here at the college.
Jeffrey (16:56):
We're getting to the end of our conversation here,
and as we ask each of ourguests, is there a book or a
paper that has been meaningfulto you, and could you share
one with our audience andexplain how it has impacted you?
Dr. Corey Knox (17:08):
So I have two.
That I'll share with you.
One I'm still reading and I justgot four days ago, which I love,
and it's called 'Life on OtherPlanets: A Memoir of Finding
My Place in the Universe.' Andthe author is a Aomawa Shields.
She is an African-Americanastrophysicist at uc, Irvine,
(17:32):
and also a professional actress.
Hi.
And also runs this amazingprogram for, black and brown
youth in LA called Star Girls.
And so it's this memoir abouther moving through science and
not being able to be in sciencebecause she was viewed as,
you're an actress type person.
(17:52):
It's really beautiful,and so I'm, I'm just
like halfway through it.
And I would just say it'sthe perfect mix of a science
book and it's like a storyof inclusion and becoming.
And then the other one, thestandard is, Pedagogy of the
Oppressed, which connectseducation to liberation.
And I think at core,education should be about
(18:13):
liberating individuals andtheir passions and where they
want to move, through theirlife, but also societies.
Mm-hmm.
And I would say those two thatall the education people already
have read 'Pedagogy of theOppressed,' but the 'Life on
Other Planets' is a nice, reallycontemporary recent memoir.
Jeffrey (18:30):
Corey, thank you for opening up
your world to us today.
Your titleless work fromcommunity-based research and
development programs to yoursignificant roles within the
College of Education, and now,the new Arizona Astrobiology
Center, is truly inspirational.
To our listeners, thankyou for joining us today
in The Inquiry Oasis.
It's conversations like these,filled with the profound
insights and dedication to thebroader impacts of education
(18:52):
that fuel our curiosity anddrive our thirst for knowledge.
We're here on the firstand third Wednesday of
every month with intriguingdiscussions and perspectives.
So be sure to keep tuningin as we shed light
on the transformativepower of education.
Until our next journey.
Until the inquiry oasis,keep your curiosity
alive and remember,knowledge is our oasis.
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