Bethany Brookshire

Bethany Brookshire was a longtime staff writer at Science News Explores and is the author of the book Pests: How Humans Create Animal Villains. She has a B.S. in biology and a B.A. in philosophy from The College of William and Mary, and a Ph.D. in physiology and pharmacology from Wake Forest University School of Medicine. She was a 2019-2020 Knight Science Journalism Fellow at MIT, the winner of the Society for Neuroscience Next Generation Award and the Three Quarks Daily Science Writing Award, among others.

All Stories by Bethany Brookshire

  1. Health & Medicine

    Is the Netflix show 13 Reasons Why linked to suicide?

    The Netflix show 13 Reasons Why attracted a lot of controversy for showing suicide. Two studies now look for signs that watching the show may elevate suicide risk.

  2. Genetics

    Scientists Say: Genealogy

    This is the study of someone’s ancestry. It could mean finding out about someone’s family tree or the history of evolution from one species to another.

  3. Scientists Say: Optogenetics

    This technique lets scientists control cell activity with light. The light triggers the cell to become more or less active.

  4. Health & Medicine

    Scientists Say: Relapse

    This is when a health condition comes back, or gets worse, after a period where it had disappeared or been improving.

  5. Ecosystems

    Scientists Say: Wetland

    Wetlands are land areas that are flooded with water some or all of the time. They’re more than just wet, though. They filter water, shelter young animals and much more.

  6. Animals

    Have we found bigfoot? Not yeti

    Believe in bigfoot or sasquatch? The scientific evidence says bears are to blame for traces of yeti and abominable snowmen. But it’s ok to keep searching.

  7. Space

    Scientists Say: Red Dwarf

    Red dwarfs are the most common kind of star in the Milky Way. They are much smaller and cooler than our own sun.

  8. Science & Society

    Using art to show the threat of climate change

    Climate change can sometimes seem like a huge pile of hard-to-grasp numbers and graphs. These artists are finding new ways to help people understand big changes.

  9. Scientists Say: Faraday cage

    A Faraday cage is an enclosure that distributes electrical charge all over its outside. That keeps the inside totally safe from electromagnetic waves.

  10. Life

    Explainer: Prokaryotes and Eukaryotes

    Prokaryotes tend to be small and simple, while eukaryotes have embraced a highly organized lifestyle. These divergent approaches to life have both proved very successful.

  11. Animals

    Could an elephant ever fly?

    Dumbo is known as the only elephant to take flight. He’s not real. But could he be?

  12. Earth

    Scientists Say: Geyser

    Geysers are underground springs with vents to the surface. When the water gets heated from nearby magma, the geyser blows.