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. Animals

    A bird that keeps the beat

    A dancing cockatoo shows that humans aren’t the only animals with rhythm.

  2. Health & Medicine

    Swine flu goes global

    The disease is likely to keep spreading, but a vaccine may be in sight.

  3. Life

    Life trapped under a glacier

    At Antarctica’s Blood Falls, scientists study microbes living in a dark and salty home.

  4. Space

    The hungry blob at the edge of the universe

    Scientists have observed one of the oldest objects in the sky, possibly a galaxy in a growth spurt.

  5. Fossils

    Have shell, will travel

    Fossilized tracks left by early land-dwelling animals reveal they brought shells ashore.

  6. Health & Medicine

    Fighting fat with fat

    Brown fat found in adults may help keep obesity at bay.

  7. Space

    The Earth-bound asteroid scientists saw coming

    History-making asteroid tracked from space to its fiery demise in an African desert.

  8. Animals

    A grim future for some killer whales

    An oil spill off the U.S. coast 20 years ago still threatens marine life.

  9. Fossils

    Meet the new dinos

    Fossil finds reveal a tiny, meat-eating species and another with featherlike features.

  10. Health & Medicine

    Treating peanut allergy bit by bit

    New study offers a little hope in reducing an allergy to peanuts, but don't try this at home.

  11. Space

    The most popular stars

    Dwarf stars come in many colors, and aren't so small after all

  12. Brain

    Reading a mind’s memories

    By looking at patterns on brain scans, scientists can "see" where a person has been.