I am a writer and editor with more than 30 years of experience in newspapers, magazines, and on the Internet. Based in the San Diego area, I write about astronomy & astrophysics, space exploration, climate change, and other topics. I’ve also written travel stories about Brazil, Hawaii, and Mt. Whitney, and reviewed several science books. 

I’ve traveled to the remote Atacama Desert of Northern Chile to report on astronomers searching for the signature of the universe's first moments, tracked blue whales with marine scientists in the Pacific, and camped in Baja’s forested high country with biologists struggling to save the California condor from extinction. I’m equally at home in medical labs where scientists are exploring the nature of the human brain, stem cells, and human evolution, and in Yosemite where climate researchers are tracking dwindling snow pack and a warming climate. 

In 1998, I earned a master's degree from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism. In 1988, I earned my bachelor's in Rhetoric from U.C. Berkeley. 

Apart from my work as a journalist, I've worked since 2010 with several public and private sector organizations as a writer and editor. Among them are colleges and universities, private foundations, biomedical labs, and Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs).

Experience

• Freelance Writer & Editor. I've worked with Air & Space magazine, Sky & Telescope, Space.com, Scientific American, Nature, The Kavli Foundation, Yale Climate Connections, The Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego's Physics Department, the Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute, the San Diego Association of Governments, and the Southern California Association of Governments - among other organizations. Writing projects also have included book reviews and travel writing. (2003-Present)

• Reporter, The San Diego Union-Tribune, San Diego, CA. (5/99-6/10) Beats and issues covered included: Education (2/07-6/10), Science (3/02-2/07), and Environmental Affairs in San Diego’s backcountry (5/99-2/02)

Five years on the science beat included coverage of molecular biology and genetics, neuroscience, stem cell research, oceanography, marine biodiversity, climate change, astronomy and astrophysics, space exploration, engineering, and advanced computing. Three years on the backcountry beat included coverage of wildlife conservation issues, water, and agriculture.

• Reporter, The Press-Enterprise, Riverside, CA. (10/98-5/99) Education.

• Stringer, The Daily News, New York City. (6/98-9/98) General Assignment.

• Reporter, North County Times, Oceanside, CA. (12/95-8/97) City Government, Education.

• Reporter, The Blade-Citizen, Oceanside, CA. (5/91-12/95) Education, General Assignment.

• Reporter, The Argus, Fremont, CA. (9/90-5/91) Crime, Breaking News.

• Freelance Reporter and Speechwriter, San Francisco Bay area. (3/90-9/90) Clients included the San Jose Mercury News and MacUser Magazine.

• Account Coordinator, Foote, Cone & Belding Advertising, San Francisco, CA. (7/88-7/89).

Fellowships & Professional Engagements

• Fellow, University of California High Performance Astro-Computing Center (UC-HiPACC), June 24-27, 2012. "Computational Astronomy: From Planets to Cosmos" at UC Santa Cruz provided an intensive backgrounder on how advanced computer simulations are transforming planetary science, stellar astronomy, explosive and high-energy astrophysics, dark matter and dark energy projects, and cosmology.

• Fellow, Institutes for Journalism & Natural Resources, Nov. 8-15, 2009. Energy Country Institute in New Mexico examined regional and national challenges of moving toward a low-carbon economy, climate changes in the Southwest, and natural resources and economic development on Native American lands, among other topics.

• Invited panelist, Woodrow Wilson Center, Washington, D.C. July 26, 2006. Media workshop on science journalism and covering climate change, sponsored by the National Science Foundation and the Metcalf Institute for Marine and Environmental Reporting.

• Moderator, UCSD forum on global warming, May 18, 2006. Panel included climate researchers, energy experts, and political scientists. Audience included about 400 students, faculty and members of the public.

• Professional Fellow: Biomedical Engineering Seminar at UCSD, National Press Foundation, Aug. 16-18, 2004. Studied how the convergence of engineering and biology are leading to more targeted drugs for cancer, novel approaches to replacing joints, advances in growing replacement tissue in the lab, and fighting bioterrorism.

• Journalist Participant, Workshop on Science Communication and the News, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, La Jolla CA, March 17-19, 2004. Sponsored by the National Science Foundation and the Metcalf Institute for Marine and Environmental Reporting.

• New York Times Professional Fellow: “Exploring the Brain: Today’s Science, Tomorrow’s Headlines,” Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, Dec. 2-7, 2002. One of 12 selected nationwide for a week-long seminar on covering the latest news in neuroscience.

• Professional Fellow, Jack R. Howard Science Reporting Institute, CaliforniaInstitute of Technology, June 24-29, 2002. One of 24 selected nationwide for a week-long course on science reporting.

Professional Affiliations & Social Media

• National Association of Science Writers

• LinkedIn

• Twitter

Education

• Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, M.S. May 20, 1998

• University of California, Berkeley, B.A. in Rhetoric May 20, 1988