Steve is a freelance writer based in Seattle who has had the good fortune to write about some of the most interesting and important topics of our time, including genetics, race, human origins, evolution, climate change, education, talent, competition, and punk rock music. Here’s a short bio. My most recent book (and the subject of my Geology Group lecture) is Eruption: The Untold Story of Mount St. Helens, which was named one of the 20 best nonfiction books of 2016 by Amazon, was nominated for The Boardman Tasker Prize for Mountain Literature, and was an Indie Next selection. In Jan. 2017 Steve lectured on his new book “Eruption—The untold story of Mt. St. Helens”.  (Updated Oct. 2017

Jim O’Connor is a Research Geologist at the U.S. Geological Survey in Portland, Oregon, where he has been stationed since 1996. His primary research focus is landscape evolution in the Pacific Northwest. He majored in Geological Science at University of Washington and earned M.S. and Ph.D. degrees at University of Arizona.

In Feb. 2017, Jim lectured on the Bridge of the Gods & the Bonneville Landslide.  (Updated Oct. 2021)