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. Health & Medicine

    The rest of your DNA

    Surprise: Scientists find most of human DNA molecule carries out important functions.

  2. Fossils

    Tiny fossil tells big tale

    Scientists use a single finger bone from ancient, humanlike Denisovans to study their connection to modern people and Neandertals.

  3. Brain

    Learning in your sleep

    Sleeping people can be taught to make connections between sounds and smells.

  4. Climate

    Seal scientists

    Elephant seals help climate scientists understand deepwater heating around Antarctica.

  5. Chemistry

    An oil filter for water

    A new screen can separate oil and water after they’ve mingled.

  6. Climate

    A record Arctic melt

    Satellites show summer 2012 sea ice covering the Arctic Ocean shrunk to a record low.

  7. Young scientists make the cut

    Thirty middle school students are selected for final round of Broadcom MASTERS science competition.

  8. Space

    Super star-maker

    A distant galaxy cluster churns out stars at a whopping rate.

  9. Physics

    Crime-solving camera

    Criminals can’t hide their crimes with paint anymore, thanks to a lighting trick and an ordinary camera.

  10. Humans

    The origins of mummies

    Scientists speculate on why ancient South Americans started preserving their dead.

  11. Climate

    Hot summer for a cold island

    A rare heat wave rolled over Greenland in July, thawing its ice and snow.

  12. Physics

    Elephant songs

    Scientists figure out how elephants make their low, low rumble.