Mary S. Tyler is a Professor in the Biological Sciences Department at the University of Maine, Orono. She earned her Ph.D. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1975, under the direction of W. E. Koch. From there she undertook a NATO Postdoctoral Fellowship at Dalhousie University, working with Dr. B. K. Hall, before joining the University of Maine faculty in 1976. Among several awards, she received the University's Distinguished Maine Professor Award in 1981 and the Most Inspiring Professor of the Year Award from University of Maine Student Government in 1997. In 2011, she received the Viktor Hamburger Oustanding Educator Prize from the Society for Developmental Biology. Dr. Tyler's research interests have been primarily in vertebrate embryonic development, studying organ development and tissue interactions using in vitro experimental techniques. She has examined interactions in a variety of organs in the facial region, including the palate, mandible, maxilla, and skull. More recently her interests have included the history of science, and the genetics of development, using Drosophila as a model system.

Ronald N. Kozlowski is Director of the Biology New Media Lab at the University of Maine, Orono. Working with Dr. Mary S. Tyler, he received an M.S. in Biology in 2000. He was project manager of a National Science Foundation-funded project called Environmental Engineering Process Dynamic Laboratory, directed by Dr. L. Katz, University of Texas, Austin. This resulted in the production of an educational Web site showcased by NSF at the ASEE conference in Seattle,1998, as a model site for distant education. Ron has also instructed Apple Computer employees in how the "engagement process" works between clients and developers in higher education. He is a board member of Silva Borealis, a non-profit biology-based foundation in which he also serves as the chief technical officer.