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. Brain

    Teen brains may have an advantage — better learning

    The teen brain is infamous for prizing rewards and encouraging risky behavior. But their reward-driven behavior may help those teens learn some things better than adults.

  2. Chemistry

    Scientists Say: Fatty acid

    Fats are important, especially fatty acids. These molecules serve many purposes, but they are all constructed the same way.

  3. Science & Society

    Women in science are living life by the numbers

    These women show that math, physics and technology are definitely a girl thing.

  4. Space

    Scientists Say: Comet

    Comets are small solar system objects. When they pass close to their sun, their melting gases and water give them a tail.

  5. Brain

    These scientists are getting inside your head

    You brain might only weigh few pounds, but there’s a whole world in there. Meet the women in science who are digging into the mysteries of the mind.

  6. Life

    Scientists Say: Autophagy

    Cells can break down and recycle their parts for later use. This process — called autophagy — won a scientist a Nobel Prize in 2016.

  7. Science & Society

    Women in science study earth and sky

    These scientists rock. Meet scientists who study snowstorms, earthquakes, fossils and more.

  8. Bring kids to the Broadcom MASTERS with a mini grant

    Get kids inspired to try their own science projects by bringing them to the Broadcom MASTERS project showcase.

  9. Plants

    Scientists Say: Bromeliad

    Bromeliads are plants with long spiky leaves. They are common houseplants, and we even see one in the grocery store — the pineapple.

  10. Science & Society

    Women in ecology, from forests to the sea

    These women study everything from the fish in the sea to the bugs on the land, and how all parts of an ecosystem come together.

  11. Health & Medicine

    Why trans fats became a food villain

    Trans fats are now known as a dietary villain. But in the beginning, scientists thought they were better than butter.

  12. Health & Medicine

    Healing the world with science and medicine

    Some people fear bacteria. Not these women. They are fighting disease with every tool science can give them.