Kathiann Kowalski

Freelance Writer

Kathiann Kowalski loves talking with scientists and engineers about their work and why it matters. And she loves getting into the field — whether that’s at a lab, in a research forest, at a drilling site or on a research boat. She has written more than 700 articles, plus 25 books for young people. “There’s always something new happening — and something new to learn,” she says.

 

Kathi graduated from Hofstra University in New York and got her law degree from Harvard Law School in Massachusetts. She previously practiced environmental law with a large firm. Kathi enjoys hiking, sewing, reading and travel.

All Stories by Kathiann Kowalski

  1. Health & Medicine

    Racial discrimination may aggravate asthma, study finds

    Kids who suffer racial discrimination are more likely to develop a hard-to-treat form of asthma. New data suggest the stress of bigotry can affect the immune system, potentially making the disease worse.

  2. Animals

    Bee hotels are open for business

    Bee hotels are creating a buzz in conservation and research by offering nesting places for wild bees.

  3. Environment

    Tiny air pollutants inflame airways and harm heart

    New studies show how tiny bits of air pollution, called particulate matter, can lead to health problems ranging from chronic runny noses to heart disease.

  4. Tech

    How to safely watch a solar eclipse

    Certified safety glasses are a must for protecting your eyes when looking at the sun. Here’s how to safely enjoy a solar eclipse, like the one on August 21, 2017.

  5. Tech

    Father and son harness magnetic fields for new type of 3-D printing

    A dad and his son have developed a new 3-D printing method in their basement. It harnesses pulsed magnetic fields to build metal objects one tiny aluminum drop at a time.

  6. Science & Society

    What happens when you look at crime by the numbers

    Statistics can find crime hot spots or flag which police officers are more likely to shoot at crime scenes. Unfortunately, some data risk misleading the police.

  7. Science & Society

    Heartbeat can affect racial perception of threat

    Links between nerves in the heart and the brain shed light on why some police may be more likely to shoot an unarmed person who’s black than one who is white.

  8. Tech

    How to spin synthetic spider silk

    A new method for spinning artificial spider silk combines parts of proteins from two species and mimics what happens in a spider’s silk-forming gland.

  9. Genetics

    Explainer: How PCR works

    The polymerase chain reaction, or PCR, is like a DNA-copying machine. It duplicates genetic material over and over. Here’s how.

  10. Science & Society

    Racism hurts

    Hate crimes and harassment since the 2016 election affirm that racism still exists in America. Here’s what racism is, how it hurts and how people who witness it can respond.

  11. Science & Society

    Five things students can do about racism

    Racism plagues societies around the world and has since ancient times. But scientists who have studied its impacts offer suggestions on how to make it stop.

  12. Tech

    Water sensor quickly detects algal poison

    A new sensor can detect poisons from harmful algae within minutes so that drinking-water plants can start timely treatments.