This is a drawing of Maria Temming a white female with blue eyes and smiling. Behind her is a space-themed background.

Maria Temming

Assistant Managing Editor, Science News Explores

Maria Temming is the Assistant Managing Editor at Science News Explores. Maria has undergraduate degrees in physics and English from Elon University and a master's degree in science writing from MIT. She has written for Scientific American, Sky & Telescope and NOVA Next. She’s also a former staff writer at Science News.

All Stories by Maria Temming

  1. Health & Medicine

    Let’s learn about vaccines

    These medical treatments have saved millions of lives and spared many others from seriously unpleasant infections.

  2. Animals

    Sheep, llamas and goats fall for optical illusions too

    These findings could help reveal when and why falling for optical illusions evolved in animals.

  3. Plants

    Let’s learn about plant movement

    Some plants use their powers of superspeed to spread spores, while others use it to snatch up prey.

  4. Brain

    Let’s learn about memory

    Brain injuries, drug use and other factors can impair our memory. But targeted practice and healthy habits can boost our ability to remember.

  5. Animals

    Lab-grown mosquitoes could help protect Hawaii’s native birds

    To curb the spread of avian malaria, a teen researcher found a way to make those mosquitoes grow faster and stronger.

  6. Earth

    Let’s learn about the carbon cycle

    The total amount of carbon on Earth doesn’t change. But what form those carbon atoms take is constantly changing.

  7. Brain

    Brain scans may offer clues to the mental health of trans youth

    A teen researcher identified a possible link between brain development and mental health in young trans people.

  8. Animals

    Let’s learn about bumblebees

    In the spring, queen bumblebees emerge from their winter hibernation to start new colonies.

  9. Health & Medicine

    This Indigenous herb may improve therapy for muscle disorder

    Treating weakened fruit flies with an herb-drug combo was more effective than the usual drug-only treatment.

  10. Physics

    Let’s learn about static electricity

    The effects of static electricity are all around us — from lightning strikes to clothes clinging together out of the drier. But scientists still don’t fully understand this phenomenon.

  11. Animals

    A changing Arctic current seems to be impacting bowhead whales

    A teen researcher investigated bowhead whales and found their migrations may be responding to a changing sea current.

  12. Animals

    Tiger beetles weaponize sound to ward off bat predators

    Some beetles make ultrasonic clicks that camouflage them as toxic tiger moths, warning hungry bats to stay away.