James F. Kasting is a Distinguished Professor of Geosciences at Pennsylvania State University, and an acknowledged expert on atmospheric and climate evolution. He is the author of How to Find a Habitable Planet (2010) and coauthor of the introductory textbook, The Earth System, 3rd edition (2009). Dr Kasting is a Fellow of the American Geophysical Union, the Geochemical Society, the International Society for the Study of the Origin of Life (ISSOL), the American Academy for the Advancement of Science, and the American Academy of Sciences. He received the Oparin Medal from International Society for the Study of the Origin of Life in 2008.