He has three sons, Leland, Bryson and Chason Gordon and three stepchildren Justin, Alan and Lana Hunstad.
He is retired and currently volunteers as a scientist for the Gulf Specimen Marine Laboratory in Panacea, Florida where he winters, and he holds an adjunct position in the Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Wayne State University.
[5][6] He is best known for interdisciplinary and cross disciplinary work bridging biology with fields such as mathematics, engineering, physics and chemistry.
[9] He has also published about algal biofuels,[10] computed tomography,[11][12] AIDS prevention,[13] neural tube defects,[14][15] embryo physics,[16][17] astrobiology[18] as well as research[19][20] and social ethics.
[28] He started the work after developing an intense interest in Afghanistan as his personal response to the September 11 attacks.