In addition to the fun and adventure of AphidTrekking in the forests, mountains, and natural systems, aphids can be serious and study of them supremely practical. Andy Jensen graduated Oregon State University with a Ph.D. in aphid systematics in 1996 after working in practical pest management research in potato research plots in Oregon for 8 years.  Since then, Andy has 25 further years of experience working with aphids and other small insects in the field, understanding how to recognize important pests, assessing the likely pest ecology in agro-ecosystems, offering training to farmers and others on insect sampling and recognition, and of course helping people around the world with aphid identification.  Andy is currently employed as Manager of the Northwest Potato Research Consortium and is also adjunct faculty with the Washington State University Department of Entomology and a research associate with the California Academy of Sciences.