In the novel, Victor Frankenstein sets out to "penetrate the secrets of nature." He succeeds but his work produces unexpected consequences which ultimately bring about the death of his loved ones. What is the purpose of science? Are there areas within nature that science should not explore?

Orland Park Panel Members
Moderator: Anne Donnersberger
Dr. Donnersberger holds an Ed.D. in higher education with a focus in allied health education from Nova University, Florida. In 2000 she coauthored the 7^th edition of A Laboratory Manual  of Anatomy and Physiology. She was department chair of Biology at Moraine Valley from 1984-2001.  Dr. Donnersberger was awarded Moraine Valley’s Professor of the Year Award in 1986.

Michelle Zurawski
Ms. Zurawski holds a master’s degree in ocean science with an emphasis in marine biology from Nova Southeastern University Oceanographic Institute in Ft. Lauderdale, where she did research on endangered species. She holds a Master of Education degree in curriculum studies from DePaul University.  Prior to teaching biology at Moraine Valley, Ms. Zurawski worked in the planning and design department at the Shedd Aquarium.

Edward Devine
Mr. Devine holds a master’s degree from Western Illinois University and a bachelor’s degree from Loyola University Chicago. He is an assistant professor of Biology at Moraine Valley, where he has been a faculty member since 1972. He is coauthor of the book Biological Investigations, which will be printed in its 11^th edition in August 2004.

Albert Wagner
Dr. Wagner received his Ph.D. in chemical physics from the California Institute of Technology. He is the director of the Chemistry Division at Argonne National Laboratory and was recently appointed to the rank of senior scientist at ANL, the highest scientific rank at the laboratory. Dr. Wagner’s 2002 article “The Challenges of Combustion for Chemical Theory” was published in The Proceedings of the Combustion Institute.

Moraine Valley Panel Members
Moderator: Tom McCague
Mr. McCague holds the master’s degree in biology from Chicago State University. He is the department chair of Biological Sciences at Moraine Valley. Mr. McCague is an amateur telescope maker and astronomer.

Scott Murdoch
Mr. Murdoch holds a master’s degree in environmental biology form Governors State University. He is an instructor at Moraine Valley and teaches Biology, Anatomy and Physiology, and Zoology. He also studies and volunteers at the Morton Arboretum, specializing in flora and fauna native to the Chicagoland region.

Sarah Bales
Ms. Bales holds the master’s degree in biology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She teaches biology, and human anatomy and physiology at Moraine Valley.

Judy Marwick
Dr. Marwick holds an Ed.D. in community college leadership from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and a master’s in mathematics from Purdue University. She is assistant vice president of Academic Programs at Moraine Valley.

Jan Hessler
Dr. Hessler earned his Ph.D. in solid state physics from Michigan State University and has conducted postgraduate work at the University of Chicago. He serves as a physicist on Argonne National Laboratory’s Gas Phase Chemical Dynamics Group. In 2003, Dr. Hessler coauthored the article “Spatially resolved small-angle X-ray scattering studies of soot inception and growth” which was published in the Proceedings of the Combustion Institute.