Environment reporter, CALmatters
(May 2019 – present)
To see my complete portfolio for CALmatters, please click here.
Highlights
Coronavirus detectives: Here’s how counties try to track everyone exposedCalifornia needs thousands of contact tracers. But counties and cities are overwhelmed and understaffed. "Woefully inadequate,” said one public health director.
April 23, 2020 |
Could a blood test for coronavirus antibodies get California back to normal? Lots of questions remainFiguring out who is immune is essential. "The whole country is waiting for a good antibody test. We're operating with blinders on now," said one researcher.
April 7, 2020 |
Here’s what happens to science when California’s researchers shelter in placeCalifornia’s scientists are sheltering in place because of coronavirus restrictions, shutting down research, or switching to study the novel coronavirus.
March 26, 2020 |
Drought or dangerous flooding? Research to save California’s rainStore water for a drought, or prepare for floods? How atmospheric river research helps California decide.
February 25, 2020 |
California weighs controversial rule to tackle truck tailpipe pollution
California's clean air enforcers want major truck manufacturers to sell zero-emission vehicles in the state — but the agency's proposal faces criticism from environmentalists and truck makers alike.
December 11, 2019 |
California says it won’t buy cars from GM, Toyota, others opposing tough tailpipe standardsCalifornia's decision to buy only from carmakers that have agreed to follow its clean car rules may well cost GM's Chevrolet tens of millions of dollars.
November 15, 2019 |
California’s fight over tailpipe emissions, explainedAs global temperatures climb, the federal government is threatening to blunt a major weapon in California’s fight against climate change: the power to police tailpipe emissions.
August 31, 2019 |
Tired of plastic junk? California's recycling bills propose dramatic new rulesWith plastic packaging heading to landfills and recycling centers shutting down, California lawmakers use a trio of bills to take aim at the stuttering recycling economy.
Aubust 8, 2019 |
Seabirds eating plastic, recyclers struggling. This is what California's waste crisis looks like.With China no longer a market for our disposables, the stuff we recycle increasingly winds up in landfills anyway. Localities across California are struggling to cope—and hoping not to undo the decades of work that made household recycling a habit.
August 1, 2019 |
Science reporter, The Verge
(August 2016 – May 2019)
Highlights
To see my complete portfolio for The Verge, please click here. |
Why Big Tobacco and Big Vape love comparing caffeine to nicotineIntuition isn’t the only thing at the root of the association: a concerted public relations effort by Big Tobacco has helped make it stick.
April 26th 2019 |
Scott Kelly's year in space highlights risks to DNA and brains‘One of the best examples of human plasticity and adaptability that we’ve ever seen’
April 11th, 2019 |
Who’s to blame for the toxic algae that’s invading the Pacific?Why a Pacific coast fishing organization is suing 30 fossil fuel companies
March 19th, 2019 |
Students ‘strike for climate’ across the United StatesSkipping school to save the future.
March 15th, 2019 |
Today’s floods in California may be a preview of a more extreme futureFloodwaters have surrounded two California towns
Feb 27, 2019 |
How the government shutdown could harm the future of American scienceThe threat of weeks without pay could make federal jobs less appealing to a generation of young scientists.
January 13th, 2019 Photo: Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images |
Why so many of us wanted to believe in an ocean cleanup system that just broke‘It moves the proposed solution to ‘out there,’ where the trash is, rather than into our own lives, where the trash is being generated.’
January 9th, 2019 Photo: The Ocean Cleanup |
Juul's nicotine salts are dominating the market, and other companies want inThe crown Juuls
November 21st, 2018 Illustration: Alex Castro/The Verge |
How humans are transforming the hurricanes of the futureGlobal warming is already increasing hurricane rainfall, a new study says — and it could get worse
Nov 14, 2018 |
Two people with paralysis walk again using an implanted device‘It was like watching fireworks, but from the inside’
September 24th, 2018 Photo: University of Louisville |
How a nuclear stalemate left radioactive waste stranded on a California beachNuclear waste is all dressed up with nowhere to go
August 28, 2018, |
Hurricane Florence has scientists packing up their labs and hoping the power stays on‘Science will go on if we lose everything in the freezer — we’ll make it’
Sept. 13th, 2018 Image credit: Photo by Alexander Gerst / ESA / NASA |
How a volcano scientist set out to change American politicsInside a scientist's run for office.
June 7th, 2018 Image credit: Wes Reel/The Verge |
Inside the climate change lawsuit pitting Big Oil against San Francisco and OaklandOil companies are trying to get the suit tossed out of court
May 25, 2018 Image credit: Alex Castro/The Verge |
Meet the scientists keeping a global watch for nuclear explosionsIf anyone blows up a nuke, this is how we’ll know.
May 9th, 2018 |
Today wasn’t Day Zero in Cape Town, but the water crisis isn’t overDay Zero has been postponed until 2019, but without enough rain, Cape Town’s water supply could still dry up
May 11th, 2018 Photo: John Snelling/Getty Images |
Chevron's lawyer, speaking for major oil companies, says climate change is real and it's your faultIn a court hearing in San Francisco, oil companies publicly backed the science of climate change — but there's a catch
Mar 22, 2018 |
Fire escape: How California's wildfires forced this baby condor to fly“Our little phoenix”
February 3rd, 2018 |
Grad students protest GOP's tax hike and prepare to fight about tuitionUC Berkeley graduate students want to know how the university will protect them if the GOP’s grad tax goes through.
December 1st, 2017 |
California burns until it rains — and climate change may keep future rains awayDry weather looms ahead as fires rage across Southern California
Dec 6, 2017 |
Trying to communicate after the hurricane: 'It's as if Puerto Rico doesn't exist'With ham radios and spotty WiFi, Puerto Rico struggles to communicate after Hurricane Maria.
September 29th, 2017 Photo by Hector Retamal / AFP / Getty Images |
Weaponizing sound: could sonic devices have injured diplomats in Cuba?Scientists still have a big mystery to solve.
September 16th, 2017 Illustration by Alex Castro |
Science doesn't explain tech's diversity problem — history doesYou can’t fix something by ignoring it.
August 16th, 2017 Illustrations by William Joel |
Wonder Woman's chemical weapon makes no scientific sense, but it evokes real and horrifying historyJune 6th, 2017
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Apple’s needleless blood sugar tracker has an uphill battle in front of itMay 25th, 2017
Illustration by Rosy Warren |
The detonation detectivesMar 24, 2017
Illustration by Will Joel |
California's huge storms still haven't ended the drought’s impactsReservoirs are filling up, but a hidden drought continues deep underground.
February 24th, 2017 Photo by NOAA |
Extreme droughts and floods will be California’s future — is the state ready?California is in dam trouble
Feb 22nd, 2017 Photo by the California Department of Water Resources |
What 720,000 years of ice can tell us about climate change in the past — and the futureAn Antarctic ice core details changes in the Earth’s temperature, rainfall, and wind over hundreds of thousands of years
Feb 10, 2017 Photo: National Institute of Polar Researc |
Trump’s immigration ban stranded a scientist with no job and no homeIs this the start of the scientific brain drain?
Jan 29, 2017 Photo by Yana Paskova/Getty Images |
Police barricades still stand between DAPL protesters and emergency servicesDecember 22nd, 2016
Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images |
One man wants to turn every porn watcher in California into a condom vigilanteNovember 7th, 2016
Photo by David McNew/Getty Images |
Freelancing
The mystery of imperceptible slow earthquakesSmithsonian
August 30, 2016 Slow earthquakes regularly move more earth than deadly fast quakes, but no one feels a thing. Read more... Photo credit: Flickr/Andrew Larsen (CC-BY-ND) |
Seismic Slowdowns Could Warn of Impending Earthquakes Smithsonian
August 8, 2016 An "earthquake machine" in the lab is helping scientists understand what goes on just before a quake. Read more... Photo credit: Flickr/Michael R. Perry (Creative Commons) |
Black Market Caviar Threatens California's Giant FishNational Geographic
July 11, 2016 When wildlife officers with California’s Department of Fish and Wildlife raided two houses in the Sacramento area earlier this year, they found a live sturgeon gasping for breath, barely alive, on the floor in the garage. Read more... Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons/Cliff from Arlington, Virginia, USA (CC BY 2.0) |
Publisher under fire for fake article webpages Nature
June 29, 2016 'Trap’ URLs can help publishers to catch automated downloading, but critics say that the approach is clumsy. Read more... Photo Credit: Flickr/Selena N. B. H |
Bird wings trapped in amber are a fossil first from the age of dinosaursNature
June 28, 2016 Preserved feathers and tissue provide a picture of hatchlings from the Cretaceous. Read more... Photo Credit: Shenna Wang |
How Much Wine Is Really in Your Glass?National Geographic
June 23, 2016 People aren’t great at guessing how much they’re drinking, and that can be bad for health—but new devices may help. Read more... Photo Credit: Dave Dugdale |
March of the FlamingosbioGraphic
June 21, 2016 In the harsh, hot soda lakes of East Africa, flamingos thrive, and now scientists are beginning to understand how these birds live where other species die. Read more... Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons/Steve Garvie (CC BY 2.0) |
Diamonds Illuminate the Origins of Earth's Deepest OceansSmithsonian
June 21, 2016 Crystals could be the key to where our water came from, and what that means for finding life on other planets. Read more... Photo credit: Graham Pearson |
Deer Prion in MooseNature
June 15, 2016 The discovery in Norway of two moose infected with chronic wasting disease suggests that the neurodegenerative disorder might be gaining traction in Europe. Read more... Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons/ Ryan Hagerty (public domain) |
Edible Six-Pack Rings Replace Plastic for Florida MicrobrewerySlate
June 14, 2016 A Florida microbrewery, a New York–based advertising agency, and a Mexico-based biodegradables company have teamed up to make six-pack rings that don’t strangle and choke marine creatures. Read more... Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons/Staeker (public domain) |
A Shocking Electric Eel Myth, ConfirmedSlate
June 6, 2016 The way eels leap out of the water to defend themselves is completely crazy. Read more... Photo Credit: Ken Catania |
Tiny Drone Learns to Fly—and LandSlate
May 19, 2016 Scientists have developed a tiny, insect-sized drone that can stop, take a break, then take off again. Read more... Photo credit: Credit: Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) |
Watch Lions Go Bonkers Over Giant Paper RopesSlate
May 18, 2016 The zookeepers weren’t just toying with these creatures. Games like these are a key part of the zoo’s animal enrichment program, designed to keep their captive animals physically and mentally active. Read more... Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons/Tambako the Jaguar (CC BY 2.0) |
Beyond building proteins: tRNA synthetases outside of translationNature Medicine
May 5, 2016 In 1999, Paul Schimmel published the newly discovered functions of the tyrosyl-tRNA synthetase fragments. In so doing, he helped to launch a research field devoted to uncovering what these moonlighting tRNA synthetases do when they are not helping to synthesize proteins. Read more... Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons/Frédéric Dardel (CC-BY SA 3.0) |
Cattle drug threatens thousands of vulturesNature
April 29, 2016 A veterinary drug blamed for driving vultures to the brink of extinction on the Indian subcontinent could cause thousands of bird deaths now that it is being used in Spain. Read more... Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons/Pierre Dalous (CC-BY-SA 3.0) |
Hell-bent on SurvivalbioGraphic
April 26, 2016 Despite growing environmental threats, North America’s largest—and weirdest—salamander fights on. Read more... Photo Credit: Flickr/USDA (CC-BY-2.0) |
The Problem with PythonsbioGraphic
April 26, 2016 Burmese pythons are slowly, inexorably eating their way through Florida’s small birds and mammals—is hunting them the answer? Read more... Photo Credit: Flickr/Bobosh_t (CC-BY-2.0) |
Deadly animal prion disease appears in EuropeNature
April 18, 2016 A highly contagious and deadly animal brain disorder has been detected in Europe for the first time. Scientists are now warning that the single case found in a wild reindeer might represent an unrecognized, widespread infection. Read more... Photo Credit: Flickr/Brian Gatwicke (CC-BY-2.0) |
Why This April Fools’ Kiwi Hybrid Is BananasNational Geographic
April 1, 2016 In a video that went viral last week, a bearded, plaid-wearing man named Robert Mahar earnestly describes how to make a banana-kiwi hybrid by squishing together chunks of the two fruits, burying them in soil, watering them, and waiting. But that's really not how hybridization works. Read more... Photo Credit: Public Domain |
Watch a Giant Submarine Break Through the Arctic IceSlate
March 30, 2016 Thought scraping ice off your windshield was bad? Try shoveling it off the top of your submarine. Read more... Photo Credit: Screenshot, the U.S. Navy |
Washington D.C. Has a New Animal Obsession Slate
March 25, 2016 Mr. President and the First Lady—the bald eagle versions, that is—hatched two chicks recently in the U.S. National Arboretum in Washington D.C. Read more... Photo Credit: Screenshot, the American Eagle Foundation |
How Did a Quail Chick Hatch From a Supermarket Egg?National Geographic
March 19, 2016 We all learn about the birds and the bees when we’re children—but it turns out the birds can be a little confusing. Especially when they unexpectedly hatch from breakfast foods. Read more... Photo Credit: Public Domain |
Toxins in the Food ChainHakai Magazine
MARCH 10, 2016 What does the first-known detection of an algal toxin in Alaska’s marine mammals mean for food security in the North? Read more... Photo Credit: NOAA Fisheries/NWFSC |
Wild Otter Pops Out Pup Outside of Monterey Bay AquariumSlate
MARCH 8, 2016 A very pregnant wild sea otter swam into the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Great Tide Pool on Sunday morning, and popped out a little slime-covered pup. Read more... Photo Credit: Monterey Bay Aquarium |
Missing link: Animal models to study whether Zika causes birth defectsNature Medicine
March 3, 2016 As public health officials scramble to decide what measures to implement to curb the spread of Zika, scientists have begun to accelerate their efforts to model the effects of the virus in cell lines and animals. Read more... Photo credit: Pubic Domain |
Watch Doctors Deliver a Baby Gorilla By Emergency C-SectionSlate
FEBRUARY 24, 2016 It’s not every day that a baby gorilla is born in captivity—and it’s even rarer for that baby gorilla to be born by cesarean section. Read more... Photo Credit: Bristol Zoo Gardens |
Fighting the menstruation taboo in the fieldNature
FEBRUARY 12, 2016 Something that many scientists experience, but few discuss, became a popular topic online this week: the challenges of menstruating while doing fieldwork. Many scientists were happy to see a sometimes-taboo topic covered so candidly. Read more... Photo Credit: Public Domain |
Why Cockroaches Are So Difficult to CrushSlate
FEBRUARY 9, 2016 The cockroach’s incredible resistance to flattening by shoes, books, bottoms of frying pans, and pressurized plungers (seriously, watch the video above!) may suck for those of us who want them gone from our kitchens, but it’s great news for the scientists who used these little bugs as models for new compressible rescue robots. Read more... Photo Credit: Tom Libby, Kaushik Jayaram and Pauline Jennings, courtesy of PolyPEDAL Lab, UC Berkeley. |
A Rare Glimpse of America's Only Wild JaguarSlate
FEBRUARY 5, 2016 The only known wild jaguar in the United States made a rare, unwitting appearance in front of the cameras last fall, and he’s one good-looking cat. The Center for Biological Diversity released the video on Wednesday. Read more... Photo Credit: Conservation CATalyst and Center for Biological Diversity |
Why Shark Ate SharkSlate
FEBRUARY 4, 2016 The famous shark-on-shark feeding at a Seoul Aquarium wasn't exactly normal behavior. Read more... Photo Credit: Screenshot, COEX aquarium |
Is Chipotle Getting More Scrutiny Than Other Restaurants for Food Safety Problems?National Geographic
FEBRUARY 3, 2016 In a country where foodborne illnesses sicken 48 million people, hospitalize 128,000, and kill 3,000 each year, does Chipotle deserve the scrutiny it’s been getting? Read more... Photo Credit: Flickr/Laine Trees (CC BY-SA 2.0) |
Insider’s view of faculty search kicks off discussion onlineNature
JANUARY 13, 2016 A Harvard professor reveals how his hiring committee whittles down the pile of job applications. Read more... Photo Credit: Flickr/Flazingo Photos (CC BY-SA 2.0) |
How to Track a Brutal Cereal Killer: Extreme WeatherNational Geographic
JANUARY 12, 2016 With climate change messing with the frequency and intensity of at least some extreme weather events, we may be seeing more trouble for food security to come. Read more... Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons/Justin Hobsn (CC BY-SA 3.0) |
How Food-Obsessed Millennials Shape the Future of FoodNational Geographic
DECEMBER 29, 2015 Are millennials obsessed with food? Millennial author Eve Turow Paul certainly thinks so. Read more... Photo Credit: Pexels/CC0 |
Who Built Stonehenge? Big-Time Meat-EatersNational Geographic
DECEMBER 9, 2015 Stonehenge’s construction crew came together from across Britain for some epic barbecues, a feat of social organization millennia before mobile phones made it easy for people to connect. Read more... Photo Credit: Flickr/Johanna van de Woestijne |
US government approves transgenic chickenNature
DECEMBER 12, 2015 The eggs of the genetically engineered animal contain an enzyme that can treat a rare disease. Read more... Photo Credit: Flickr/Johanna van de Woestijne |
Climate, kissing and computer art: studies that set social media abuzz in 2015Nature
DECEMBER 17, 2015 The hottest papers of 2015 covered topics ranging from cancer risk and autism to mass extinctions and reproducibility in science, according to Altmetric. Nature rounds up a few of the papers on the list. Read more... Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons/Petr Stefek |
Scientist disinvited from speaking at conference because of her pregnancyNature
DECEMBER 4, 2015 Researchers expressed outrage on social media, and conference organizer, the European Commission, apologized. Read more... Photo Credit: Flickr/Tatiana Vdb (CC-BY-2.0) |
Should DNA donors see their genomic data?Nature
DECEMBER 3, 2015 Geneticists discuss on social media the pros and cons of giving genome results to study participants. Read more... Photo Credit: Flickr/University of Michigan SNRE (CC-BY-2.0) |
Software Creates New Flavors, Some Not for the SqueamishNational Geographic
DECEMBER 1, 2015 Jonathan Brill, founder of Special Projects Agency, an innovation and design consulting firm based in Sausalito, California, is trying to shake up culinary traditions by creating a program that combines unexpected flavors based on their chemical makeups. Read more... Photo Credit: Matthew Ryder and Jamie Simpson, with permission |
What’s Killing Alaska’s Sea Otters?Hakai Magazine
NOVEMBER 24, 2015 A mystery disease is stranding sea otters in Alaska’s Kachemak Bay region. Read more... Photo credit: Flickr/Mike Baird (CC-BY-2.0) |
U.S. Approval of GMO Salmon May Set PrecedentNational Geographic
NOVEMBER 20, 2015 There’s a new fish in town—but not everybody’s ready to make room on their plates for it. Read more... Photo credit: Public Domain |
7 Things You Always Wanted to Know About SpacewalksNational Geographic
NOVEMBER 5, 2015 What’s it like to spend hours in Earth’s orbit, when your spacesuit is the only thing between you and a frigid vacuum? Astronaut Douglas Wheelock describes the experience. Read More... Photo Credit: NASA |
Scientists debate mega-microbiome initiativesNature
OCTOBER 30, 2015 Research standards will advance the field, proponents say, but critics counter that they will stifle creativity. Read More... |
New Giant Tortoise Species Found on Galápagos IslandNational Geographic
OCTOBER 21, 2015 The reptiles evaded detection as a distinct species for over a hundred years. Read More... Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons/Charlesjsharp (CC-BY-SA 3.0) |
Preprints called on to support controversial talksNature
OCTOBER 15, 2015 Scientists on social media grapple with the idea of posting preprints of provocative research presented at meetings. Read More... |
Meet the Giant Rats That Are Sniffing out LandminesNational Geographic
OCTOBER 7, 2015 A Belgian nonprofit has found African giant pouched rats are much better at detecting TNT than people or dogs. Read more... Photo Credit: Gooutside (Public Domain) |
How infection can cause leukaemiaNature | Research Highlights
OCTOBER 7, 2015 Infection can trigger leukaemia in genetically susceptible mice, suggesting an environmental cause for the most common type of childhood cancer. Read more... |
Gene-Swapping Cheese Molds are Ripe for InvestigationNational Geographic
OCTOBER 1, 2015 Cheese turns out to be a miniature barnyard, teeming with microorganisms. So cheese is ripe for investigations into how an environment created by humans can shape microbial genes. Read more... Photo Credit: Tatiana Giraud |
The Autumn Equinox is Here! Wait, What's the Autumn Equinox?National Geographic
SEPTEMBER 22, 2015 It comes twice a year and is related to the change in seasons, but a lot of people don't understand this celestial alignment. Read more... Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons/ATSZ56 (public domain) |
Extremely Rare Baby Rhino Captured in Camera TrapNational Geographic
SEPTEMBER 23, 2015 New footage reveals three Javan rhino calves, increasing the population of the critically endangered subspecies to 60, worldwide. Read more... Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons/Jo Oh (CC-BY-SA 3.0) |
Six Months in Space From an Astronaut’s Point of ViewNational Geographic
SEPTEMBER 15, 2015 We’ve picked 10 of our favorite shots shared by astronaut Scott Kelly aboard the International Space Station to celebrate the halfway point of his mission. Read more... Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons/Scott Kelly, NASA (Public Domain) |
Meet the Man Who Gives Ancient Human Ancestors Their FacesNational Geographic
SEPTEMBER 14, 2015 Paleo artist John Gurche created Homo naledi’s face by making hundreds of minute anatomical calculations. Read more... Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons/Lee Berger (CC-BY-SA 4.0) |
How Did Rare Pink Dolphin Get Its Color?National Geographic
SEPTEMBER 9, 2015 Pinky the bottlenose dolphin recently surfaced again in Louisiana, making a splash on social media. Read more... Photo Credit: Erik Rue |
4 Ways Polar Bears Are Dealing With Climate ChangeNational Geographic
SEPTEMBER 4, 2015 A few of these opportunistic predators have found new sources of food as their regular sources diminish—but is it enough to save them? Read more... Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons/US Fish and Wildlife |
When Single Male Rodents Settle Down, They're Changed ForeverNational Geographic
SEPTEMBER 03, 2015 Forget soulmates. Male prairie voles have no idea who they’re raising kids with—at least, not until they mate. Read More... Photo Credit: Flickr/theNerdParol CC BY 2.0 |
9 Animals You Didn’t Know Were Cute Until #CuteOff HappenedNational Geographic
SEPTEMBER 02, 2015 We weigh in on the critical question of critter cuteness with in-house expert Jonathan Kolby. Read More... Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons/Grant Palmer (CC BY-SA 2.0) |
See Which Animals Have the Most Enormous—and Tiniest—BabiesNational Geographic
AUGUST 28, 2015 A giant panda mom is 900 times more massive than her baby, while a giraffe baby is one-tenth the size of its mom. Read More... Photo Credit: (CCO) |
How Female Frogs Get Tricked Into Choosing An "Ugly" MateNational Geographic
AUGUST 27, 2015 Picking the right wingman could make or break the chances for a less desirable male túngara frog to find a mate, a new study says. Read More... Photo Credit: Flickr/Santiago Ron (CC BY-ND 2.0) |
Why Dung Beetles Watch the Sky While Rolling Poop BallsNational Geographic
AUGUST 24, 2015 The poop-hoarding insects have an amazingly advanced internal GPS that allows them to navigate by day or night. Read More... Photo Credit: Flickr/Bernard Dupont (CC BY-SA 2.0) |
WATCH: Extreme Diver Discovers Ancient Whale SkullNational Geographic
AUGUST 21, 2015 How did a six foot whale skull get into a Virginia swamp? Read More... Photo Credit: NOAA |
Do Whales Get the Bends?National Geographic
AUGUST 19, 2015 Scientists take a deeper look at decompression sickness in marine mammals. Read more... Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons/Whit Welles Wwelles14 (CC BY-SA 3.0) |
Plague Warning Closes Campground in YosemiteNational Geographic
AUGUST 18, 2015 Risk of deadly disease is low, but squirrel deaths in park raise alarm. Read more... Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons/Smtunli, Svein-Magne Tunli (CC BY-SA 3.0) |
Watch: Octopuses Filmed Mating Face-to-Face—A FirstNational Geographic
AUGUST 12, 2015 A new study of a bizarre octopus species reveals never-before-seen behaviors that have stunned scientists. Read more... Photo Credit: EurekAlert/Roy Caldwell |
Your Photos Say Where You’ve Been … And Where You’re GoingNational Geographic
AUGUST 12, 2015 Data in photos posted online can help scientists make a pretty good guess about where users are headed. Read more... |
Drivers Worry the End of Utah Salt Flat Racing is NearNational Geographic
AUGUST 10, 2015 Cancellations of Speed Week two years in a row raise concerns about the health of the salt flats. Read more... Photo Credit: BLM Utah/Flickr (CC BY 2.0) |
New GIF Shows Far Side of the Moon Passing by EarthNational Geographic
AUGUST 06, 2015 The images come from the same spacecraft that recently captured new views of the entire Earth’s surface. Read more... Photo Credit: NASA/NOAA |
This Bonsai Survived Hiroshima But Its Story Was Nearly LostNational Geographic
AUGUST 05, 2015 The Japanese white pine weathered four centuries of history, including the atomic bomb. Read more... |
Meet the Microbats: Winged Creatures' Secrets RevealedNational Geographic
AUGUST 04, 2015 For starters, old females are tougher than young males, according to a new study on these little-known mammals. Read more... Photo Credit: Merlin Tuttle/http://www.merlintuttle.com/ |
Ilana Brito, the Biologist Who Flew to Fiji for FecesOZY
AUGUST 02, 2015 Microbes maladjusted to modern lifestyles have been implicated in everything from obesity and diabetes to neurological conditions. Read more... Photo Credit: Merbabu/Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0) |
Cecil the Lion’s Death Spurred Donations to Wildlife Groups … Now What?National Geographic
PUBLISHED AUGUST 01, 2015 After a trophy hunter killed one of Africa’s most famous lions, interest in conservation soared. Read more... Photo Credit: HamishPaget-Brown/Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0) |
World Population Expected to Reach 9.7 Billion by 2050National Geographic
PUBLISHED JULY 31, 2015 The United Nations released projections of global population growth over the coming century. In the year 2100, the world’s demographics will look very different from today’s. Read More... Photo Credit: NASA |
We May Have Been Wrong About How African Pygmies GrowNational Geographic
PUBLISHED JULY 28, 2015 New research suggests that there may have been not one but two separate evolutions of African Pygmies. Read more... Photo Credit: Kwamikagami/ Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0) |
Tiny Owl Getting Talking-To From Sheriff Has Huge AppetiteNational Geographic
JULY 27, 2015 This young creature is a northern saw-whet owl, and is one of nature’s more adorable rat-catchers. Read more... |
Pages of Ancient Koran Among Oldest Yet DiscoveredNational Geographic
JULY 22, 2015 Manuscript found by student may date to Islam’s earliest era. Read more... |
Dealing with the Health Data DelugeNOVA Next
MAY 20, 2015 There’s a revolution afoot in medicine. It has been simmering below the surface for the last decade or so, but like many revolutions, you won’t really take notice until it’s all but over. Read more... Photo credit: Tom Page/Flickr (CC BY-SA) |
Scientists Created a Dino-Skulled Chicken to Explore EvolutionNOVA Next
MAY 14, 2015 It’s not quite a dinosaur, but maybe it could play one on T.V. Read more... Photo credit: Bhart-Anjan Bhullar |
Cuba’s Inventive Vaccine Could Treat More Than Just Lung CancerNOVA Next
MAY 12, 2015 A cancer vaccine first tested in Cuba nearly 20 years ago may finally be making its way into the American health system. Read more... Photo Credit: National Cancer Institute |
Origins of Complex Life Uncovered in the Ocean DeepNOVA Next
MAY 7, 2015 Scientists have just discovered a missing link between two branches on the evolutionary tree of life hiding deep under the sea, one that we’ve been looking for since 1977. Read more... Photo credit: NOAA Ocean Explorer / Flickr (CC BY-SA 2.0) |
For a Healthy Heart, You May Have to Eat More CheeseNOVA Next
APRIL 28, 2015 Go ahead, finish off that wheel of Brie, that brick of cheddar, or that blob of mozzarella. Your heart may thank you. Read more... Photo credit: Gunnar Magnusson (CC BY-ND 2.0) |
Brontosaurus Is Back From the DeadNOVA Next
APRIL 7, 2015 We missed you, big guy. Read more... Photo credit: Liam d'Noit / Flickr (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0) |
Quick Test That Measures a Patient’s Own Proteins Could Slash Antibiotic OveruseNOVA Next
MARCH 19, 2015 If you’ve ever been prescribed antibiotics to fight the flu, you’ve experienced first-hand how difficult it is for doctors to distinguish between bacterial infections and viral infections. Read more... Photo credit: lamentables/Flickr (CC BY-NC-SA) |
In Once-Mysterious Epigenome, Scientists Find What Turns Genes OnNOVA Next
FEBRUARY 19, 2015 How cells develop vastly different functions using the same genetic instructional text has remained largely a mystery. As of yesterday, it became a bit less mysterious. Read more... Photo Credit: ynse / Wikimedia Commons |
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Patent Suits that Held Up Personalized Medicine Are Being SettledNOVA Next
PUBLISHED January 29, 2015 Myriad might finally be loosening its chokehold on the market for BRCA diagnostics. Read More... Photo credit: Joe Gratz / Flickr (CC BY-NC-SA 2.0) |
Ancient Mesopotamian Texts Show PTSD May Be as Old as Combat ItselfNOVA Next
PUBLISHED January 26, 2015 Mesopotamian texts more than 3,000 years old reveal that post-traumatic stress disorder may be as ancient as combat itself. Read more... Photo credit: ChrisO / Wikimedia Commons (Public Domain) |
Massive Oil Spill in Yellowstone River Contaminates Drinking WaterNOVA Next
PUBLISHED January 23, 2015 A ruptured oil pipeline leaked up to 40,000 gallons of crude into the Yellowstone River in Montana, contaminating the drinking water for the nearby town of Glendive. Read more... Photo credit: Environmental Protection Agency/epa.gov |
Our Solar System May Have Two Undiscovered PlanetsNOVA Next
PUBLISHED January 21, 2015 On the outer reaches of our solar system, well past Neptune and Pluto, lurk dozens of asteroids and possible minor planets, dimly lit by the faint glow of our sun. Last week, that strange place got even stranger. Read more... Photo credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech |
X-ray Vision Unveils Hidden Text in Vesuvius-Blasted PapyrusNOVA Next
PUBLISHED January 21, 2015 After two millennia, scientists wielding X-rays have finally revealed the text of an ancient library long thought to be unreadable. Read more... Photo credit: D. Delattre © Bibliothèque de l'Institut de France |
Why Use a Better Microscope When You Can Just Make Cells Bigger?NOVA Next
PUBLISHED January 20, 2015 Diapers are revolutionizing how scientists examine brains under the microscope by expanding the brain cells themselves, making them easier to see. Read more... Boyden Lab @ MIT, Nick Moore and Julie Pryor |
Scientists Finally Prove Why Cold Weather Makes You SickNOVA Next
PUBLISHED January 12, 2015 Scientists may finally be able to confirm the widely-held suspicion that bad weather can make you sick. Read more... Photo credit: William Brawley/Flickr (CC BY 2.0) |
Powerful, Promising New Molecule May Snuff Antibiotic Resistant BacteriaNOVA Next
PUBLISHED January 9, 2015 A potent new weapon hiding in the ground beneath our feet kills drug resistant bacteria, and might itself be resistant to resistance. Read more... Photo credit: NIAID |
Cyber Attack on German Steel Mill Leads to ‘Massive’ Real World DamageNOVA Next
PUBLISHED January 8, 2015 Sometime in the last several months, a steel mill in an undisclosed location in Germany lost control of its blast furnace. Read more... Photo credit: Třinecké železárny/Wikimedia Commons |
Your Last Moments May Be Imprinted on Your Brain After DeathNOVA Next
PUBLISHED January 6, 2015 Ever close your eyes and have an image burned into your retina? Our brains may do the same thing after we die. Read more... Photo credit: Frances S. Chance/Janelia Farm Research Campus/HHMI/Sandia National Laboratory |
Why We’re Good at Identifying Smells, But Horrible at Describing ThemNOVA Next
PUBLISHED December 18, 2014 The simple smell of a childhood staple, peanut butter, is surprisingly complex. Read more... Photo credit: Anna/Flickr (CC BY-NC-ND) |
Water-Repellent Coating Could Make Power Plants GreenerMIT Technology Review
PUBLISHED November 24, 2014 A startup has created a water-repellent coating that could significantly increase power plants’ efficiency. Read more... Credit: Wikimedia Commons/Davide Restivo CC-BY-SA 2.0 |
Transparent Bandage Allows Scientists to Detect Suffocating WoundsNOVA Next
PUBLISHED November 24, 2014 A new paint-on bandage that can map the oxygen levels in injuries could help doctors make important clinical decisions from when to amputate limbs, to how much charred flesh to remove from a burn. Read more... Photo Credit: Egelberg / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0) |
Weekend AdventuresMIT News
PUBLISHED November 7, 2014 Members of a longstanding student group, the Assassins’ Guild, roam an MIT building each Saturday night. Read more... Photo Credit: Wikimedia Commons/Fcb981 CC BY-SA 3.0) |
Bioengineers Hack PCs and Phones to be Cheap Disease DetectorsNOVA Next
PUBLISHED October 6, 2014 Scientists have reinvented the technology that makes analyzing crime scene DNA and diagnosing infectious diseases possible—for 1/500th the cost. Read more... Photo credits: J.S. Townsley/Flickr (CC BY-NC-ND), Kareem Ahmad |
Pharmaceuticals Found in Low Levels in Wastewater-Irrigated ProduceNOVA Next
PUBLISHED October 3, 2014 With 99% of California’s agricultural lands ravaged by drought, some farmers in the state are considering an alternative to freshwater: treated sewage. Read more... Photo credit: swong95765/Flickr (CC BY) |
You can find more of my articles on MIT's Scope Blog. |
ARTICLES UPDATED OR REPORTED BY RACHEL A. BECKER
Why Insects Are Drawn to Corpse Flower's Stench
National Geographic
PUBLISHED July 28, 2015
(updated)
We Just Learned How 'Crazy Ants' Ever Get Anything Done
National Geographic
PUBLISHED July 28, 2015
(contributed reporting)
'Mutated' Daisies Really Caused by Fukushima Radiation?
National Geographic
PUBLISHED July 23, 2015
(contributed reporting)
Scientists Genetically Modify Human Embryos
NOVA Next
PUBLISHED April 23, 2015
(contributed reporting)
National Geographic
PUBLISHED July 28, 2015
(updated)
We Just Learned How 'Crazy Ants' Ever Get Anything Done
National Geographic
PUBLISHED July 28, 2015
(contributed reporting)
'Mutated' Daisies Really Caused by Fukushima Radiation?
National Geographic
PUBLISHED July 23, 2015
(contributed reporting)
Scientists Genetically Modify Human Embryos
NOVA Next
PUBLISHED April 23, 2015
(contributed reporting)