Mark A. Newhouse

Manager, Web & Graphics and AZ Education & Engagement Teams

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Academic Experience

Areas of Expertise

Significant Contributions

Mark Newhouse was an early pioneer in web design, writing and speaking on the topic in the early 2000s. His article, “Taming Lists,” on A List Apart (an early online web design publication), and professional web design conference presentations changed the way web site navigation was coded, quickly becoming the standard as the design techniques taught ensured accessible navigation while retaining flexibility and interactivity.

Prior to his work with NOAO/NOIRLab, Mark was a curriculum developer with the Image Processing for Teaching Project at the University of Arizona. While there, he was the primary author and editor of the HIP Mathematics 1 Image Processing CD-ROM and Workbook, which was the School Winner of the Technology and Learning Software Award of Excellence in 2000.

Current Position

Management of the Web and Graphics Team

General duties include the management of the NOIRLab Public, Science, and Intranet websites, as well as several mini-sites (globeatnight.org, visitkittpeak.org, etc.), which includes managing the contracted web team in charge of maintenance and development of the sites. Management of the graphics team includes daily prioritization of tickets (and quality assurance of solutions), managing workflows for publications and audiovisuals against available in-house and outsourced resources.

Management of the Arizona Education and Engagement (E&E) Team

Includes oversight and management of the following E&E activities in Arizona:

These activities include professional development and training of teachers and informal educators as well as the development of partnerships between educators and scientists. Many of these programs require our staff to develop and test new instructional materials for teachers, informal educators, students, and the public.

Currently also leading the development of the Windows on the Universe Center for Astronomy Outreach exhibit team tasked with delivering a Statement of Work for exhibit design consultants to use as they develop and implement the final exhibit plan.

Professional Experience

Manager, Web & Graphics and AZ Education & Engagement Teams, NSF’s NOIRLab

October 1, 2019-Present

Responsibilities include:

  • Lead AZ Education & Engagement team (2 FTEs + 1-4 part time students)
  • Lead Web & Graphics team (2 FTEs + coordinating team of web contractors and multiple graphics contractors)
  • Set up the above groups in the months following the creation of NOIRLab
  • Plan and track work of the above groups
  • Contribute to quarterly reports to NSF
  • Represent and/or oversee appropriate representation of NOIRLab’s Communications, Education & Engagement (CEE) group in various local partnerships (including Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, University of Arizona MESCIT program, Ha:san Preparatory School, various Tohono O’odham partners)
  • Run effective meetings from across geographic locations
Acting Head, Education and Public Outreach, National Optical Astronomy Observatory

November 1, 2018-September 30, 2019

Responsibilities include day to day oversight of the department, managing employees, budget, representation of NOAO on various committees (e.g., the NCOA Communications Working Group)

Senior Web Developer, National Optical Astronomy Observatory

April, 2015-September 2019

  • Designs, develops, implements, and maintains NOAO and related web sites (e.g., globeatnight.org).
  • Researches existing and new technologies for implementation on web sites.
  • Designs and develops user interfaces to associated databases.
  • Consults/advises users regarding accessibility, usability, and aesthetic appeal of web sites.
  • Designs, develops, and implements web applications.
Web Designer, National Optical Astronomy Observatory

September, 1999-March, 2015

Responsibilities include design, maintenance and creation of new sub-sites of the current web site with a view to standards compliance, accessibility and usability.

Science Education Outreach, Image Processing for Teaching Project, University of Arizona

November, 1995-September, 1999

Developed science and mathematics curriculum using scientific image processing software. Responsible for the project's web site.

Classroom Teacher, Middle Level, Tucson Unified School District

August, 1989-November, 1995

Developed curriculum and taught math, science and technology at several middle schools in the district. Served on the Textbook and Technology Adoption Committee. Coached girl’s track.

Professional Activities

Web Apps

flotr2Configurator https://github.com/gnuhaus/flotr2Configurator
Graphical User Interface for configuring Flotr2 charts and graphs. It currently includes modules for 4 types of charts: Line, Pie, Bar, and Stacked Percentage.
Globe at Night Interactive Infographic http://www.globeatnight.org/infographic.php
This dynamic webpage queries our database for up to the minute information about the Globe at Night campaign. It then takes that data and generates an infographic with interactive charts and graphs, as well as an interactive map (see below), centered on the viewer’s current location.
Globe at Night Web App http://www.globeatnight.org/webapp/
This web application collects data for the Globe at Night dark skies inventory program. It was designed to be mobile device friendly and adapts to a variety of devices, both phones & tablets running iOS or Android. The web app takes full advantage of these devices’ location services to provide an accurate location, which is important for the integrity of the data being collected. It harnesses the power of Google’s maps API to accomplish this.
Globe at Night Interactive Map Viewer http://www.globeatnight.org/map/
View and interact with Globe at Night data from any year since the campaign began in 2006. Data can be loaded by year and each of the 8 limiting magnitudes can be turned off and on for comparison. Zoom in and pan around to see more detailed views of particular areas. I programmed the interface between the datbase and Google Maps, which is used to display the data.
Globe at Night Regional Map Generator http://www.globeatnight.org/mapapp/
This web app takes a map loaction input, along with a radius to generate a map of the data for a given year in the area definied by the point and radius. I designed the front-end to the database query that returns the resulting data. Google maps handles the map creation from the returned data.

Web Sites (selected URLs)

The National Optical Astronomy Observatory http://www.noao.edu/
My current job. Site architecture is standards compliant, accessible, and usable. I am responsible for the design as well as ensuring that it all works with (X)HTML, CSS and ECMAScript (JavaScript 1.3).
NOAO Astronomer pages http://ast.noao.edu/
This site is directed at professional astronomers and was developed using the Drupal platform. We had a custom theme built from my design.
Globe at Night http://www.globeatnight.org/
The website was redesigned in 2013 and launched at the beginning of 2014. It is a responsive site, with many interactive features that work across platforms and devices. The site takes advantage of modern web technologies, such as location, to deliver a customized experience to each visitor.
Spanish Language Astronomy Materials Education Center http://www.astronomyinspanish.org/ and http://www.astronomiaenespanol.org/
This older bilingual site that strives to answer the question, “Where can you find the best advice on the most engaging astronomy-related books and teaching materials in Spanish?” takes advantage of PHP and CSS to deliver the content. More about this site...
Tumblr/Instagram photoblog http://gnuhaus.tumblr.com/
Primarily a collection of images taken with my iPhone and shared with Instagram.

Older Sites - no longer actively maintained
The Magic of Tucson http://magicoftucson.com/
A photographic celebration of the city of Tucson, AZ.
iBlog http://gnuhaus.com/iblog/
The daily musings of a Mac enthusiast web designer (that would be me...).
Low End DSLR http://lowenddslr.com/
Digital photography on a budget.
Real World Style http://realworldstyle.com/
Style. In the real world. This is where I give back. I've already spent hours figuring out how to get CSS to work across browsers and operating systems. Now you don't have to.

Publications

Conference Speaker

Mobility and Modern Web Conference Los Angeles [September 16-18, 2015]
Mobility and Modern Web Conference Los Angeles [September 17-19, 2014]
Mobile Matters 3: Innovation in Action [October 21, 2013]
Mobile Meeting Schedule: a Responsive Table in the Real World
Mobility and Modern Web Conference, Los Angeles [September 10-12, 2013]
Digital Design World 2004, San Francisco [February 18-20, 2004]
  • From Tables to Styles: CSS-Based Redesign
  • Patent Pains: New Coding Challenges for Rich Media
  • Webcasting: From Zero to Live in 60 Minutes
Web Design World 2003, Seattle [July 28-30, 2003]
From Tables to Styles: CSS-Based Redesign
WebVisions3, Portland [July 18, 2003]
CSS, Markup and Standards: Back to the Future
Web Design World 2002, Boston [November, 2002]
Real World Style
Web Design World 2002, Seattle [July, 2002]
Practical CSS Layout Techniques and Tips
Web2001 Show, San Francisco [September, 2001]
Arbiters of Style, Panel featuring Jeffrey Zeldman, Eric Meyer, Todd Fahrner, and Christopher Schmitt

January, 2023

Photo of author courtesy Moriah Newhouse