Alex Klippel is a true geographer with eclectic research and teaching interest. Alex started as an applied physical geographer but developed an early interest in cartography and especially human-computer interaction. He joined a cognitive science program in Hamburg, Germany, for his dissertation which (long story short) he received from one of Germany's rare Elite Universities (Bremen) in Informatics and Mathematics. After a postdoc at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and at the University of Melbourne, Australia, he joined Penn State's famous Geography Department where he received early tenure in 2013.
Alex is currently the Associate Head and Director of the (residential) Graduate Program, he is the founder of ChoroPhronesis - Applied Spatial Intelligence, a research unit that has a particular focus on 3D modeling and virtual reality. ChoroPhronesis offers students access to cutting edge technologies such as Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, Samsung GearVR, and other tools to develop and access 3D content.