Science Writing

Hearing the Hidden Meanings of Woodpeckers

March 1, 2025 | Scenic Hudson Viewfinder | 755 Words

"As winter moves into spring, we often hear the repeated tapping of woodpeckers that echoes from distant trees..."

Sculpting Big Metal in Rock Tavern

February 1, 2025 | Scenic Hudson Viewfinder | 1023 Words + 2 Photos

"Along an otherwise unremarkable roadside in Orange County, a collection of large metallic sculptures towers over an open field..."

The Secret Lives of Wetlands in Wintertime

February 1, 2025 | Scenic Hudson Viewfinder | 1037 Words

"A whole range of wetland habitats can be found between the estuaries and the highlands of the Hudson River Valley..."

Inside N.Y.’s First-in-the-Nation Neonic Pesticide Nix

October 1, 2024 | Scenic Hudson Viewfinder | 1088 Words

"Since the 1940s, farmers and landscapers alike have used synthetic pesticides that are sprayed on plants and crops. But in the early 1990s, a new class of pesticides came on the market that can be coated on the seeds of crops instead."

The International Rights of Nature Movement Gets Regional Attention

August 1, 2024 | Scenic Hudson Viewfinder | 1003 Words

"In stories like “Rip Van Winkle,” writer Washington Irving coined the phrase “the lordly Hudson” to describe the river’s majestic flow..."

Beyond “Wishcycling”: What Is Really, Truly Recyclable?

June 1, 2024 | Scenic Hudson Viewfinder | 1477 Words

"If you’ve ever felt confused about what to put in the recycling bin, you are undergoing a near-universal modern human experience."

More Trees, More Needs: The Challenges to New York’s Modern Reforestation

March 1, 2024 | Scenic Hudson Viewfinder | 1431 Words

"When Europeans first stepped onto the Northeastern shores of what is now known as North America, the enormity of the blue ocean behind them was matched by the wooded green frontier that expanded before them. But as the colonial population grew over time,..."

What Less Lake Ice In Winter Could Mean for Summer

February 1, 2024 | Scenic Hudson Viewfinder | 941 Words + 1 Graph

"On a rainy and foggy morning a few days after Christmas, I met Dave Richardson at a dock on Mohonk Lake, steps from the historic Mohonk Mountain House resort. Richardson is a professor of biology at SUNY New Paltz, and every week he comes to this same spot to measure..."

The Tiny, Mossy Forest Below

November 2, 2023 | Scenic Hudson Viewfinder | 985 Words + 3 Photos

"As the weather cools and seasons change, bryophytes can continue growing year-round by harvesting any sunlight that filters through fallen leaves and snow. Evergreen and ever-present, they mingle with fungi and lichens along the forest floor and tree trunks where they often go unnoticed."

Floatovoltaics Make Waves Approaching the Valley

October 1, 2023 | Scenic Hudson Viewfinder | 1045 Words

"About 10 miles north of Albany, the small city of Cohoes sits at the confluence of the Hudson and Mohawk Rivers, marking where New York’s Hudson Valley region begins expanding southward. Cohoes is also positioned at the beginning of something else that could be big..."

Top 10 Favorite Viewfinder Story in 2023: #7

The Remarkable Resilience of Utah's State Crustacean

Spetember 3, 2023 | KSL.com | 764 Words + 1 Photo

"Utah became the first landlocked state to designate a state crustacean this year: the upside-down swimming, 22-legged, beady-eyed, magnificently funky little brine shrimp."

Making a Big Effort to Save a Little Turtle

April 26, 2023 | Scenic Hudson Viewfinder | 896 Words

"Around late April, bog turtles began to emerge from their muddy hibernacula, or winter shelters, to greet another season in upstate New York."

Big Trees and the Humans Who Find Them

April 3, 2023 | Scenic Hudson Viewfinder | 972 Words + 1 Graphic

"Near Coeymans, N.Y., there is a floodplain that flanks the Hudson and extends out to a well-kept property that a couple has owned for many years. Nearby is a dock. That’s where Fred Breglia found himself on a spring morning in 2022, getting ready to go fishing for striped bass..."

Top 10 Favorite Viewfinder Story in 2023: #3

As Temps Warm, Can the Hudson Valley Salvage Snowy Fun?

January 30, 2023 | Scenic Hudson Viewfinder | 942 Words + 1 Graph

"A snowflake is a complicated thing. The shape that makes each one unique is also a sensitive record of the changing conditions that occur as an ice crystal forms in the cloud and falls to the ground."

What caused the mighty return to 'the Mighty 5' national parks?

April 17, 2022 | KSL.com | 871 Words + 2 Graphs + 1 Photo

"As National Park Week begins, we look at the factors driving more visitors to Utah's National Parks, and how Arches plans to manage the crowds in 2022."

The Remarkable Voyage of the Sweet Potato

November 25, 2021 | KSL.com | 777 Words + 1 Graph + 1 Photo

"Although native to Central and South America, the sweet potato hadn't been introduced to New England by the time the first Thanksgiving celebration happened. But like those on the Mayflower, it had nonetheless sailed across the salty seas to other places."

The Science of Keeping Up with COVID-19 Science

September 4, 2020 | KSL.com | 962 Words + 1 Graph

"It’s a flood of new information, and the interpretation of it can get muddled downstream in the currents of public discourse where there is much at stake and much still unknown."

Here's What a Coronavirus Actually Looks Like, and How to Kill It

March 18, 2020 | KSL.com | 804 Words + 1 Graphic

"In the art of war against plagues and pathogens, the proverb about knowing your enemy has submicroscopic relevance."

Study Shows Distance Between Children and Autism Services

October 4, 2019 | KSL.com | 785 Words + 1 Graph + 1 Photo

"I hug him, but he can’t say goodbye when he departs with my wife on a weekly 130-mile journey along a forested highway to another town."

A Faithful Shift Toward Evolution

February 2, 2019 | By Common Consent | 943 Words + 3 Graphs + 2 Photos

"Although the bulk of Latter-day Saints are not overly fond of Mr. Darwin’s ideas, it appears that their attitudes may be shifting toward acceptance."

Viruses Have Belly Buttons

January 9, 2019 | Cosmos Magazine | 1117 Words + 1 Image

"While most people would not think of a virus as a beautiful manifestation of nature, scientists who map their molecular shape and structure are more easily smitten."

Ask a Scientist: "Who Made Science?"

December 3, 2018 | Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin | 398 Words

"Although we can name many great scientists like Aristotle and Newton, we can’t say that any one of them made science on their own."

The Mysterious Origin of Oolitic Sand

August 23, 2018 | Hakai Magazine | 450 Words + 1 Photo

"On the shores of the Bahamas, Great Salt Lake in Utah, and a handful of other locations, oolitic sand is built up, layer by layer, by a process that remains somewhat mysterious."

Ask a Scientist: "How Do Plants Grow?"

April 20, 2018 | Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin | 398 Words

"But no matter what, all plants need the same four things to grow: water, air, sunlight and nutrients."

Ask a Scientist: "Can Animals Be Frozen and Brought Back to Life?"

March 16, 2018 | Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin | 330 Words

"The answer is yes, some animals can be frozen and brought back to life…sort of. Let me explain with one really amazing example: the wood frog."

Fenced Nature Preserves Have Benefits Beyond their Boundaries

December 15, 2017 | Hakai Magazine | 700 Words

"The only places on the mainland that have a semblance of New Zealand’s prehuman ecology are fenced nature preserves—protected spaces surrounded by fencing designed to prevent mammals from entering."

Constantly Expanding, Unfathomably Small

November 30, 2017 | Catalyst Magazine | 1835 Words

"Science, art and faith have each painted their colors on the Wasatch Front’s unique canvas."

Is There Caffeine in Chocolate?

November 7, 2017 | KSL.com | 573 Words + 1 Graph + 1 Figure

"Chocolate has a bit of caffeine and a lot of theobromine, but whether or not that affects your mood or drives your holiday cravings depends..."

The Science Behind the 2017 Nobel Prizes

October 4, 2017 | KSL.com | 1210 Words

"This is a tradition that has continued since 1901, bringing attention to innovators who have stood on the proverbial shoulders of giants."

Saturn Swan Song

September 15, 2017 | KSL.com | 1110 Words + 1 Image Gallery

"Early this morning, an unmanned spacecraft traveling at 77,000 miles per hour sent its final data transmissions back to earth as it willingly plunged into Saturn’s gaseous atmosphere and disappeared forever.

After 30 Years, the Montreal Protocol Is Paying Ozone Dividends

September 15, 2017 | The Revelator | 1335 Words + 1 Graph

"September 16 marks the anniversary of perhaps the most successful achievement in environmental policy."

Zebrafish May Be the Next Ally in the Fight Against Opioid Addiction

September 1, 2017 | KSL.com | 658 Words + 1 Graph

"Active and hardy, they not only make great aquarium pets but wonderful research subjects for scientists."

Prebiotic Brings Infant Formula One Step Closer to Breast Milk

May 9, 2017 | KSL.com | 1052 Words + 1 Graphic

"The most recent development in the quest to bridge the biochemical gap between breast milk and bottle-feeding is the addition of human milk oligosaccharides to infant formula."

The Antiquities Act: From Roosevelt to Obama

January 30, 2017 | Catalyst Magazine | 1074 Words + 1 Photo

"It is also likely that he will be found on occasion in snorkel gear exploring the underwater landscapes that he has now protected, just as perhaps Roosevelt explored the vast western landscapes that he preserved."

Seven Ways Zika Can Spread

September 29, 2016 | KSL.com | 949 Words + 1 Graphic

"During the past year, we have been learning a lot about the Zika virus."

Taking the Initiative on Single Particle Imaging

August 18, 2016 | BioXFEL News | 803 Words + 1 Graphic

"But the reach of X-ray crystallography is limited by its very nature because not all proteins are inclined to form crystals..."

Something Strange: Great Salt Lake Is a Living Laboratory

August 1, 2016 | Catalyst Magazine | 1727 Words + 1 Graph

"Salt Lake City is just far enough removed from the lake for which it was named that the salty shorelines are easily forgotten."

2nd Place: Medical/Science, Division B - 2017; Utah Headliners Chapter, Society of Professional Journalists

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