I'm Erin Podolak. I like talking about science, a lot, and tend to do so to whoever will listen and often at inappropriate times. Not everyone in my life has the same appreciation for research on cricket promiscuity that I do, but the beautiful thing about having a blog is that I can hopefully find some kindred souls with as much passion for this weird, gross and extremely cool world we live in as I do. If you think you might be one of these people, let's talk.
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I'm not a scientist; I'm a science writer. Some scientists are science writers, but I'm of the science writing variety that does not have a doctorate. That means instead of conducting my own research, I focus on writing about research. I currently work for Dana-Farber Cancer Institute as a part of their narrative reporting team. You can read more about what I do for Dana-Farber here.
I graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2012 with my Master's degree in Journalism with a specialty concentration in science writing. I also have my Bachelor's degree with majors in Science Writing and English from Lehigh University, where I minored in Environmental Science. I'm also a member of the National Association of Science Writers.
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I have interned with Abrams Media Network as a writer for the blog Geekosystem. I also have experience as an intern in public relations at the DaVinci Science Center in Allentown, PA and I had a year-long writing internship with the journal BioTechniques. I've previously worked as a medical copywriter and editor for Points Medical, a marketing and consulting firm and Twin Boro Physical Therapy, the largest privately owned physical therapy practice in New Jersey. You can check out some of my work in the links tab, and be sure to read more about #sci4hels for the work the led up to presenting at the World Conference of Science Journalists in Helsinki, Finland. You can also check out #sciobeantown to learn more about science communication in Boston.
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There are so many disciplines that constitute science, but I tend to be drawn to topics in biology and environmental science, although I blog about it all (even things that scare me, like particle physics.) This blog has several different kinds of posts: research decoding where I pull apart a new study or coverage of a study to get to the heart of what it means, book reviews where I share what I'm reading and what I think of it, commentary on science writing as a profession and what I experience as a young journalist, and a recurring segment called Science For Six-Year-Olds where I blog back and forth with a first grade class in my hometown.
