Combining science, technology and business, Jan Dutton is setting out to start his own company.

Meteorology and business risk management might sound radically different, but Dutton is meshing the studies together to create his brainchild: Weather Venture Ltd.

Dutton majored in both science and technology studies and physics at Colby College in Waterville, Maine. Just last semester, the 28-year-old graduated from Penn State with both a doctorate in meteorology and an M.B.A.

"Weather Venture is going to help companies assess their risk in relation to variability in climate," he said.

Dutton's story begins after graduating with his bachelor's in physics. Both his undergraduate adviser and his father, John Dutton, Penn State professor of meteorology and dean of the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences, led him to pursue his master's in meteorology.

"There are quite a few meteorology students who studied physics in their undergrad," Jan Dutton said, explaining that the jump from studying physics to studying meteorology was not as great as one might imagine. "The study of meteorology is the study of physics in the weather."

Still, Jan Dutton did not always plan to study the meteorology.

"There are meteorology students who absolutely love the weather. I'm not one of them," he said.

But early in his meteorology studies at Penn State, Jan Dutton saw the potential and benefit of earning an M.B.A., especially with the birth of the now three-year-old weather derivatives market. "There's more to weather than The Weather Channel," he said.

Professors and mentors in both the Smeal College of Business Administration and the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences recognized Jan Dutton's hard work and potential.

"He's a fine young man and he figured out a long time ago that the intersection between meteorology and business is what he wanted to do," said John Dutton.

Assistant dean for Smeal's Professional Masters Program Rocki-Lee Dewitt agreed. "He was a very dedicated and committed student," she said.

"He was involved not only in his studies but also student leadership activities," she said, adding that most other Ph.D. candidates have little time for anything outside of their research and studies.

Dewitt was pleased when Jan Dutton decided to pursue an M.B.A. "As a consequence, it created a win-win. Other students in the (M.B.A.) program could see how business, science and technology come together."

She also said Jan Dutton's combined science and business studies were notable for his "very rigorous numerical analysis," taking weather-related risk management to a new level.

Eric Barron, director of Earth and Mineral Sciences Environment Institute and Jan Dutton's advisor, praised his accomplishments and vision. "He's hardworking, dedicated, and has a sense of the future," said Barron, adding, "Pretty early in his Ph.D. he decided to do this double (degree) thing."

Barron said businesses are beginning to realize the impact of weather and meteorology on their companies. However, people who know business can't relate it to the weather, and people who know the weather can't relate it to business. Jan Dutton has endeavored to know both.

The idea behind Weather Venture Ltd. is quickly gaining an audience, despite the fact that it has not been around long in the financial marketplace. Jan Dutton explains that companies are becoming more and more interested in long-term weather forecasts that affect their companies.

For instance, an energy-providing company might want to know what the winter is predicted to be like. Obviously, it wants a cold winter so it can sell more energy to homeowners.

But although a cold winter might mean higher profits for the energy-providing company, it could spell trouble for the agricultural or transportation sectors of the economy, because they might lose money in the cold winter.

Thus, many companies have some amount of risk related to weather. Weather Venture will help other companies assess and minimize their weather-related risk, Jan Dutton said.

"The private sector is much more into the mitigation of weather risk effects" than before, said John Dutton. "Jan's business is into long-term mitigation, risk management."

One part of the weather derivatives market is the idea of companies pooling their weather-related risks and resources, to "manage risk by taking advantage of the fact that some people's weather could be bad for one segment but good for another segment of the economy," Barron said.

Barron was optimistic about the new business.

"People are beginning to recognize that this is very viable," Barron added. "The people (currently) doing the weather derivatives are not as educated as Jan. He can do a better job understanding these connections."

Dutton's father agreed, expressing confidence in his son. "Any startup company is difficult to make a forecast," John Dutton said, but he added that people have already approached his son interested in Weather Venture, which Jan Dutton hopes to have fully launched by Feb. 1.

As for Jan Dutton himself, no one doubts his competence or future achievements. "My first reaction was 'I hope this works,' " Barron said, recalling when Jan Dutton first approached him about Weather Venture. "As we've gone along, I'm sure he'll be successful."