Science Journalist

food, agriculture, health

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About

I’m a biologist turned science reporter covering all things food–from how a quickly evolving pathogen is threatening the pickle industry to why robots aren’t delivering our dinners yet.

My writing has appeared in NPR, Science NewsUndark, The Washington Post, The Atlantic, Civil EatsTED-Ed, PNAS Front MatterYale E360 / Food and Environment Reporting NetworkSlateNew Scientist, and other outlets.

I earned a BA in English from Pennsylvania State University and a PhD in biology from the University of Virginia with a focus on plant ecology and evolution.

After graduating and working as a science writer for the National Institutes of Health, I made the leap to science journalism via an AAAS Mass Media Science & Engineering Fellowship at NPR’s science desk.

When I’m not hunting down the next story, I’m often running, attempting (and failing) to tame my wild garden, or searching for insects with my three young boys here in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

Carolyn Beans science journalist food agriculture health

Featured work

Pollen and Heat: A Looming Challenge for Global Agriculture

Yale Environment 360 / Food & Environment Reporting Network

(Republished in BBC, PBS NewsHour, Grist, and elsewhere)

2022

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