Ellen is a Ph.D. student in Science Education at Oregon State University. While getting her M.S. in Geosciences at University of Oregon, she spent time studying the chemistry of magmas from cinder cones in northern California and Mexico. Although she now does research in education, she will always love geology because it gave her a lens through which to appreciate the beautiful outdoors! That's why she's giving this mud pot in Lassen National Park a thumbs up.