Meet the Chief Scientist of NASA, Dr. Ellen Stofan. By training, Dr. Stofan is a planetary geologist who has studied volcanoes both here on Earth, and elsewhere in the solar system. In her current role, she helps coordinate scientific projects of all kinds, which means she has to keep up with a dizzying array of recent research topics. She also discussed how she helps communicate NASA's work to students and the public at large, before addressing that big question: Are we alone? 

And in a Slate Plus extra, Dr. Stofan tells us why she'd like to visit Titan, a moon of Saturn that is much like Earth in certain ways and profoundly alien in others. Start your two-week free trial at slate.com/workingplus.

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Twitter: @Jacob_Brogan

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