Andrew Pohorille received Ph.D. in theoretical physics (with specialty in biophysics) from University of Warsaw. He did his postdoctoral work with Prof. Bernard Pullman at the institut de Biologie Physico-Chimique in Paris. Since 1992 he has been professor of Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Chemistry at the University of California San Francisco. In 1996 he joined the staff of NASA Ames Research Center, where he directs the NASA Center for Computational Astrobiology. In 2000 he received NASA Award for Astrobiology and in 2002 he was awarded NASA Exceptional Scientific Achievement Medal. In 2005 he was named Distinguished Lecturer at the Centre for Mathematical Modeling and the National Centre for Space Research in the U.K.

His main interests have been focused on modeling the origins of life, computer simulations of biomolecular systems, modeling genetic and metabolic networks, and statistical mechanics of condensed phases. He also works on the development of novel computational methods for parallel and distributed computing. Most recently, he has been working on developing concepts and designing instruments for microbiology experiments on small satellites and in the lunar environment, and on new ways to organize scientific information. His other research interests are rather eclectic — in recent years he published papers in diverse areas, ranging from the structure of comets to the mechanism of anesthetic action and risky decision-making. He coauthored nearly 100 peer-reviewed publications.