Chikungunya virus can cause debilitating joint pain. More than a quarter million new cases have already surfaced in South America this year. A new study about how the virus infects cells could help inform future treatments. npr.org/sections/goats…

Something special happens in Belize in a spot that was once a Mayan metropolis. Dozens of researchers gather to study the stunning diversity of bats... because bats can teach us about our changing planet and ourselves. I went to Belize to see more. NPR npr.org/sections/goats…

It was an honor to meet Gliselle Marin, a Belizean bat researcher. She's looking to these fuzzy, flying mammals to act as emissaries to galvanize the people of Belize to protect their forests. NPR npr.org/2024/08/02/g-s…

Two individuals of a kind of comb jelly can fuse and become one with a shared nervous system and digestive system — which has implications for animal regeneration and immune systems. My story for NPR — npr.org/2024/10/08/nx-…

"Over the last year in Lebanon, the simmering conflict between Israel and Hezbollah has been ever present," writes 2016 Audio Gold Award-winner ari daniel. Reporting from Lebanon, Daniel has seen firsthand the impact this conflict has on local research: bit.ly/40s2T2E

Parrots are unique among birds in how they produce the pigmentation that makes their plumage so vibrant. It turns out a single enzyme calibrates the reds and yellows of a parrot’s brilliance. My story for NPR — npr.org/2024/10/31/nx-…

In New Jersey, a backyard teems with turtles. Many have been rescued and are now being nursed back to health to hopefully be returned to the wild one day. This is the story behind one man's efforts to ensure these turtles have a shot at a better life. npr.org/2024/09/24/nx-…

My family and I had been living in Lebanon. I wrote this essay about my effort to tell stories about scientists there — to offer something other than the usual narratives of instability and tragedy. Lost in all that darkness are the kernels of light. sjawards.aaas.org/news/lebanon-s…

This Thanksgiving, you might want to express gratitude for your local army of dung beetles. In addition to serving as "nature's cleanup crew," according to Clark University biologist Erin McCullough, they're also a sign of the health of their ecosystem. npr.org/2024/11/22/nx-…

Heart cockle shells beam light into their interiors via a design that resembles fiber optic cables. It could inspire everything from helping coral survive to designing new camera lenses. npr.org/2024/11/23/nx-…

Ancient DNA reveals that during the Iron Age, women in prehistoric Celtic societies were at the center of their social networks — unlike previous eras of human history. My story for NPR: npr.org/2025/01/15/nx-…

I'm hosting a podcast! It's called There's More to That from Smithsonian Magazine and PRX. We'll meet the magazine's journalists and their sources to hear about the big issues and ideas of our time. Find out how much more there is to… almost everything. smithsonianmag.com/podcast/

A group of scientists studying the San Fermín festival in Pamplona, Spain believe there’s a way to predict the motions of a large crowd, possibly pointing to ways to prevent human stampedes. My story, published in The New York Times nytimes.com/2025/02/05/sci…

Why are auroras suddenly everywhere all at once? Find out in our new episode of There's More to That from Smithsonian Magazine and PRX that just dropped today! smithsonianmag.com/podcast/

Dinosaurs tend to be viewed as giant, dominating beasts. But they almost certainly had a softer side. Researchers are making insights into these animals' sex lives. Check out "There's More to That" from Smithsonian Magazine and PRX featuring Riley Black smithsonianmag.com/podcast/

Why can't we remember anything from when we were a baby? Tristan Yates & Nick Turk-Browne Yale Psychology scanned infants' brains and found that they *do* make memories, suggesting that although these memories may exist, they remain inaccessible to us. npr.org/sections/shots…

If you're in Boston on Saturday eve, come to the The Story Collider show at the MIT Museum. Theme is: Fractures. We've got five true, personal stories about the ruptures in our lives and how science sometimes triggers — and sometimes heals — those breaks. mitmuseum.mit.edu/programs/the-s…

Brazil is investing in a pioneering effort to use specially engineered mosquitoes to shut down the transmission of certain diseases, including dengue. For NPR, I met health workers driving around in white Chevys, releasing thousands of these insects. npr.org/sections/goats…