People + Profiles
Alton Brown's Secret Workshop
I met with Food Network star/culinary "mad scientist" Alton Brown at his home studio in Georgia, where we filmed two videos and did a Q&A covering everything from his love of "hacking" tools to his approach to social media to if (when) his next album would drop.
I met with Food Network star/culinary "mad scientist" Alton Brown at his home studio in Georgia, where we filmed two videos and did a Q&A covering everything from his love of "hacking" tools to his approach to social media to if (when) his next album would drop.
How SciShow Explains The Science Of The World Around Us
YouTube and TikTok sensation Hank Green has been creating education content for well over a decade. For this piece, I spoke with Green—as well as several of the staff at the YouTube channel SciShow—to discuss the intricacies of science education outside of a classroom setting.
YouTube and TikTok sensation Hank Green has been creating education content for well over a decade. For this piece, I spoke with Green—as well as several of the staff at the YouTube channel SciShow—to discuss the intricacies of science education outside of a classroom setting.
Daniel Radcliffe And Paul Dano On Science And 'Swiss Army Man'
As part of the press junket for the 2016 film Swiss Army Man, I spoke with stars Daniel Radcliffe and Paul Dano about the psychology of isolation, the science of decomposition, and how they felt about science growing up.
As part of the press junket for the 2016 film Swiss Army Man, I spoke with stars Daniel Radcliffe and Paul Dano about the psychology of isolation, the science of decomposition, and how they felt about science growing up.
The head of the U.S.’s largest mosquito control program has science on her side
A profile on Jodi Holeman, the head of Debug Fresno, and the experiment to reduce mosquito populations by infecting males with a bacteria that ensures the eggs they fertilize never hatch. This piece ran as a part of Popular Science's "Best of What's New 2017".
A profile on Jodi Holeman, the head of Debug Fresno, and the experiment to reduce mosquito populations by infecting males with a bacteria that ensures the eggs they fertilize never hatch. This piece ran as a part of Popular Science's "Best of What's New 2017".
I created the first digital meme
Any Ally McBeal fan will remember "the dancing baby." It's considered to be the world's first meme. I spoke with its creator, Michael Girard, who says that he regrets creating this digital animation and the celebrity status that it's gained.
Any Ally McBeal fan will remember "the dancing baby." It's considered to be the world's first meme. I spoke with its creator, Michael Girard, who says that he regrets creating this digital animation and the celebrity status that it's gained.
Pop Culture
The Sonic Science of 'Hamilton'
I met with Hamilton sound designer Nevin Steinberg and assistant sound designer Jason Crystal to discuss all the technology that goes into sound designing a broadway smash hit in a year that the TONY Awards did not give out a prize for sound design.
I met with Hamilton sound designer Nevin Steinberg and assistant sound designer Jason Crystal to discuss all the technology that goes into sound designing a broadway smash hit in a year that the TONY Awards did not give out a prize for sound design.
Product Reviews
Personal Rise Garden review: A simple solution for bad plant parents
Rise Garden's Personal Indoor Garden arrived at our doorstep as my fiancee was determined to become a gardener. This nifty tabletop gadget allowed her to safely fulfill her dreams during the first peak of COVID in 2020.
Rise Garden's Personal Indoor Garden arrived at our doorstep as my fiancee was determined to become a gardener. This nifty tabletop gadget allowed her to safely fulfill her dreams during the first peak of COVID in 2020.
Essential gear to start your own podcast studio
The number one question I'm asked by anyone who learns that I've produced podcasts professionally is "What equipment can I use to make my own podcast at home?" For more than four years, I've pointed everyone who's asked to this article, which still holds true that you don't need fancy equipment to make great content.
The number one question I'm asked by anyone who learns that I've produced podcasts professionally is "What equipment can I use to make my own podcast at home?" For more than four years, I've pointed everyone who's asked to this article, which still holds true that you don't need fancy equipment to make great content.
Thought Provoking Science Questions
What will we name the solar system's next planet?
Astronomer Michael Brown, the astronomer who (in his own words) "killed Pluto" has said for years that he believes a true ninth planet is orbiting our Sun somewhere beyond Neptune. Despite that, it became clear as I began to interview members of the International Astronomical Union, the body that decides the official names of everything found in space, that no one in the body had discussed what that planet might be named if we ever find it and how that decision would be made. After speaking with multiple IAU members, I wrote out a loose step-by-step process based on the IAU's guidelines at the time.
Astronomer Michael Brown, the astronomer who (in his own words) "killed Pluto" has said for years that he believes a true ninth planet is orbiting our Sun somewhere beyond Neptune. Despite that, it became clear as I began to interview members of the International Astronomical Union, the body that decides the official names of everything found in space, that no one in the body had discussed what that planet might be named if we ever find it and how that decision would be made. After speaking with multiple IAU members, I wrote out a loose step-by-step process based on the IAU's guidelines at the time.
What happens if Earth gets 2°C warmer?
Often in discussions on climate change and global warming, it's stated that if the global average temperature increases temperature by 2°C, the effects on the planet will be irreversible. In this piece, I researched where that number originated and what effects we would face, based on the 2018 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Less than a year after the publication of this piece, economist William Nordhaus (the first person to write about man-made climate change and a 2°C threshold) won a Nobel Prize.
Often in discussions on climate change and global warming, it's stated that if the global average temperature increases temperature by 2°C, the effects on the planet will be irreversible. In this piece, I researched where that number originated and what effects we would face, based on the 2018 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Less than a year after the publication of this piece, economist William Nordhaus (the first person to write about man-made climate change and a 2°C threshold) won a Nobel Prize.
Could brighter clouds make hurricanes less destructive?
After 2017's historic hurricane season, I learned of engineer Stephen Salter and his proposal to slow climate change through brightening clouds. The theory, called Marine Cloud Brightening, proposes that spraying droplets of seawater into the air could make clouds imperceptibly brighter to the human eye, but enough to reflect more sunlight and cool the planet.
After 2017's historic hurricane season, I learned of engineer Stephen Salter and his proposal to slow climate change through brightening clouds. The theory, called Marine Cloud Brightening, proposes that spraying droplets of seawater into the air could make clouds imperceptibly brighter to the human eye, but enough to reflect more sunlight and cool the planet.