Professor Benjamin Pierce received a B.S. in Biology from Southern Methodist University and a Ph.D. from the University of Colorado. Dr. Benjamin is currently Professor of Biology and holder of the Lillian Nelson Pratt Chair at Southwestern University, Georgetown, Texas. Ben is a population geneticist who conducts ecological and evolutionary research on amphibians. He has authored a number of articles in research journals and several ebooks, including: A guide to genetics for the layperson; The Family Genetics Sourcebook, Genetics: A Conceptual Approach, A general genetics textbook; A brief genetics ebook; and Transmission and Population Genetics: A Short Course, An etextbook for courses in transmission’ Genetics Essentials: Concepts and Connections, and population genetics. Dr. Pierce is a member of the steering committee of the 21st Century Science Coalition, a group of scientists who support strong science standards for Texas public schools. Ben currently serves on the editorial board of Bioscience. He has received research and teaching grants from the W. M. Keck Foundation, Natural Science Foundation, the 3M Foundation, the National Park Service, the Williamson County Conservation Foundation, and the National Geographic Society.