Trying to understand the hidden world from beneath our feet to the tallest trees.

Dr. Deborah Giles sees killer whales as better versions of us.

Dr. Matt Kaeberlein studies how we can live forever … sort of.

Dr. Shawn Larson spends her days in the field watching her favorite fuzzy sea mammal ride the waves of the Pacific Ocean. The curator of conservation research at the Seattle Aquarium has studied sea otters for 27 years. She’s fascinated by the unique properties that allow them to survive in ice cold waters and how they help recover some of our most imperiled ecosystems in the sea.

Dr. Lyda Harris studies how microplastics affect our waters and creatures.

University of Washington computer scientist Zoran Popovic wants to revolutionize the way people learn. He teamed up with biochemist David Baker to create a video game that enables tens of thousands of people to contribute to scientific research by folding three-dimensional protein configurations on their home computers. Users help advance how scientists understand and predict the structure of proteins that cause and advance diseases like cancer, HIV/AIDS and Alzheimer’s.

Aquatic ecologist Emily Howe is drawn to the messiness of the food web.