John Pearson was born just outside of Washington, DC, but moved to Texas as quickly as he could. Growing up with a passion for math, science, and calculator watches, he obtained engineering degrees and basketball (watching) accolades from Duke University and Texas A&M. His first job out of college was designing small solid-state heat pumps, where his cubicle simply was not big enough to contain him. When the engineering market went sour, he decided to try his hand as a teacher, and he educated one diverse group of kids after another, mostly in math and science, but also in Star Wars quotes, bad puns, and life in general. Those students (the Good, the Bad, and the Apathetic) provided the material for Learn Me Good and its sequels. He now uses his mad math skills as an analyst in a really tall building downtown. John Pearson won the Jeopardy! Teachers Tournament in 2013 and lost to the eventual grand winner in the Tournament of Champions in 2014. He was an alternate in the 2019 All-Stars Tournament and fulfilled that role admirably.