The Life of José María Sobral

Mary R. Tahan is a writer, producer, and documentarian, with a professional background in journalism and marketing. Internationally renowned for her educational and informational series, she has authored many scholarly articles and historical books, and produced/directed documentary films. Her scholarly articles and lectures/presentations focus on Antarctica and the "heroic age of exploration", and cover many countries and she has documented individuals and organizations as well as cities and historical events. As part of her research for her series of films and books on Polar exploration, Mary R. Tahan traveled to Antarctica by invitation of the Dirección Nacional del Antártico (Instituto Antártico Argentino), where she performed on-site photography and videography of the Antarctic landscape and historical sites, as well as conducted interviews with scientists and curators. Her research has also taken her to Argentina, Norway, France, Russia, and England, where she has also interviewed Polar historians and descendants of the early explorers of the Arctic and Antarctic. Mary R. Tahan obtained her bachelor´s degree in English at the University of California at Los Angeles and participated in the UCLA master´s program in Motion Pictures & Television, with an emphasis in Critical Studies. Her current memberships and activities include the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG); the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) History, Humanities and Social Sciences Expert Group; Dirección Nacional del Antártico; Historiadores Antárticos Latinoamericanos; and the National Library of Norway. She was nominated as Honorary Historian with the Argentine Navy.