Mordecai-Mark Mac Low

In college, Mordecai-Mark Mac Low decided to take science classes that looked like fun. So he chose astrophysics, which uses physics to understand how the universe works. Today, he's an astrophysicist, studying how stars, planets, and galaxies form. Since these process take millions of years, he models them using computer simula- tions. Then he compares the models to observa-tions of objects at different stages of formation.

Image credits: main image, © AMNH/D.Finnin; quote, © AMNH / D. Finnin.