Biography

Jorge Cham is the Emmy-nominated and best-selling cartoonist creator of several STEM-focused books and media. He is the co-creator, Executive Producer and Creative Director of “Elinor Wonders Why,” one of the highest-rated animated shows on PBS Kids, and the co-author of several popular science books: the best-selling and award-winning “We Have No Idea: A Guide to the Unknown Universe,” and “Frequently Asked Questions about the Universe”. Jorge is also the co-host and co-creator of “Daniel and Jorge Explain the Universe” an ongoing popular podcast and radio show on iHeart Radio. His book series for kids, “Oliver’s Great Big Universe,” was named a “best book of the year” by Kirkus, Science Friday, and the Children’s Book Committee. He obtained his Ph.D. in robotics from Stanford University and was an Instructor and Research Associate at Caltech. Jorge was born and raised in the Republic of Panama.

While growing up, he learned English by reading comic books that his father, an engineer at the Panama Canal, had bought at garage sales of American families that were returning to the U.S. While getting his Ph.D. at Stanford, Jorge started drawing comics for the student newspaper, and soon posted them online where they attracted a following of millions of readers. The comics, known as “PHD Comics,” were featured in the New York Times, USA Today, Washington Post, and Science and Nature Magazines among others, and were adapted into two movies. At Caltech, his research focused on Brain-machine Interfaces, and he taught courses in creativity, engineering design, and kinematics.

Jorge lives in Los Angeles with his wife and two kids.