Stephen Ornes

Freelance Writer

Stephen Ornes has been writing for Science News Explores since 2008, and his 2014 story "Where Will Lightning Strike?" won an AAAS/Kavli Gold Award. He lives in Nashville, Tenn., and he has three children, who are inventing their own language. His family has a cat, six chickens, and two rabbits, but he secretly thinks hagfish are the most fascinating animals. Stephen has written two books. One is a biography of mathematician Sophie Germain, who was born during the French Revolution. The other, which was published in 2019, features art inspired by math. Visit him online at stephenornes.com.

All Stories by Stephen Ornes

  1. Fossils

    Hot-blooded dinos? Try lukewarm

    New study finds these reptiles may have had an internal furnace that sort of resembled some sharks. It appeared to run neither hot nor cold.

  2. Physics

    Hazing: How to hide in nearly plain sight

    A new system takes advantage of a translucent fog of particles to hide otherwise obvious objects.

  3. Animals

    Salted butterflies

    The salt used on winter ice can alter the bodies of summer's butterflies. Males develop larger muscles and females get bigger brains.

  4. Brain

    Hunger’s little helpers

    Astrocytes were thought to be nothing more than support cells for neighboring nerve cells. A new study suggests they do much more. These brain cells may help control appetite, too.

  5. Planets

    First mega-Earth found

    Astronomers are puzzled by Kepler-10c. This exoplanet is rocky like Earth — but as massive as Neptune. And that challenges their accepted ideas about how planets form.

  6. Environment

    Native ‘snot’

    The ‘rock snot’ choking rivers may be native algae. Experts blame its sudden and dramatic emergence on changes in Earth’s atmosphere, soils and climate.

  7. Fossils

    These prehistoric fliers likely nested together

    Fossils in nest of newfound pterosaur species suggest these animals were part of a social network — and may even have lived communally.

  8. Space

    Sun sibling spotted

    Separated at birth: Astronomers find a star 110 light-years away. It was born at the same time as our sun and from the same cloud of gas and dust.

  9. Science stars are on display at the White House

    One hundred students from 30 states participated in the fourth annual White House Science Fair in Washington, D.C.

  10. Earth

    Thirst for water moves and shakes California

    Here’s a scary cost to pumping up groundwater to slake the thirst of crops in California’s Central Valley: It may uplift nearby mountains and trigger tiny earthquakes, experts find.

  11. Brain

    Football hits the brain hard

    The brain’s hippocampus helps store memories. It is smaller in college football players — especially if they have suffered concussions.

  12. Tech

    Saving vanishing ‘tongues’

    More than 3,000 world languages face extinction. Linguists are turning to mobile apps and other tech tools to preserve these endangered languages.