Bethany Brookshire

Bethany Brookshire was a longtime staff writer at Science News Explores and is the author of the book Pests: How Humans Create Animal Villains. She has a B.S. in biology and a B.A. in philosophy from The College of William and Mary, and a Ph.D. in physiology and pharmacology from Wake Forest University School of Medicine. She was a 2019-2020 Knight Science Journalism Fellow at MIT, the winner of the Society for Neuroscience Next Generation Award and the Three Quarks Daily Science Writing Award, among others.

All Stories by Bethany Brookshire

  1. Brewing a cup of chemistry

    Andrew West and Aaron Sickel wanted to help teachers combine engineering and chemistry in the classroom. They developed an experimental approach using the power of coffee.

  2. Students compete to stop cyber crime

    The Air Force Association’s yearly CyberPatriot competition trains middle and high school students to defeat cyber bad guys trying to get in to their computer systems.

  3. A hand-held, crank operated chemistry set

    A new competition hoped to find a chemistry set for a new generation. And the winner looks nothing like the sets your parents played with.

  4. Mayim Bialik shares her STEM inspiration

    The Big Bang Theory’s neuroscientist Amy Farrah Fowler is played by a real neuroscientist. Mayim Bialik told educators at the National Science Teachers Association meeting what inspired her to go into science: an inspiring biology tutor.

  5. Teachers’ meeting brings birds, bones and robots

    The National Science Teachers Association meeting draws educators from all over the country. Exhibitors brought in everything from robots to iguanas to steal their attention.

  6. A wheelchair doesn’t stop this scientist from soaring to the treetops

    Rebecca Tripp talks about studying tardigrades, extreme organisms that live in the tallest of trees, and how she continues to pursue her dream to be a conservation biologist.

  7. Cartoons help make basic genetics fun

    Genetics is far more than the letters in your textbook. A former high school aims to bring some fun to learning about your DNA.

  8. Students find science answers through Twitter

    By submitting questions on Twitter to the hashtag #scistuchat, students can connect with scientists and talk about science.

  9. Health & Medicine

    Intel STS finalist uses math to predict breast cancer spread

    Intel STS finalist Esha Maiti developed a model to calculate the probability of cancer spreading to different areas of the body.

  10. Computing

    Intel STS finalist’s computer program models social life

    Ajay Saini has brought together math and computer science to show how habits spread within social groups. His new computer program could help promote healthy habits.

  11. Health & Medicine

    Intel STS finalist uses math to help the blind

    Intel Science Talent Search finalist Alec Arshavsky has built a computer program to help make sure people receive the right eye transplants to help reverse blindness.

  12. Health & Medicine

    Teen uncovers new weapons to stop Huntington’s disease

    David Seong, an Intel Science Talent Search finalist, is studying how tiny pieces of genetic material might be used to lock up a dangerous protein in Huntington’s disease.