Episode 6: On this episode of the Minsanity Podcast, we will talk to geology professor, collector, and educator Dr. Geoff Cook. Geoff turned a childhood fascination with minerals into a career as a volcanologist and petrologist, studying the earth and the processes that led to what we see today. After obtaining a PhD in geology from Washington State University, he ended up at the University of California San Diego, where he is currently a teaching professor, inspiring the next generation of geoscientists to get into the field. His childhood obsession with mineral has not gone away, and today he finds ways to use his collection not only as a personal hobby but as a teaching tool, along with his wife who also teaches university level geology courses. The recipient of numerous awards for outstanding instruction and teaching, Geoff loves nothing more than using minerals and geology as tools to inspire the next generation of scientists. Join us as we delve into Geoff’s origin story as a mineral collector and geologist, and why his students give him hope for the future!

*Recorded in Tucson, AZ February 2024