Katherine J. Wu

Katherine J. Wu

 

Katherine J. Wu is a Boston-based science journalist and Story Collider senior producer whose work has appeared in National Geographic, Undark magazine, Popular Science and more. She holds a Ph.D. in Microbiology and Immunobiology from Harvard University, and was Smithsonian magazine's 2018 AAAS Mass Media Fellow.

The top ten include To Kill a Mockingbird, The Hungry Caterpillar and The Cat in the Hat.

New York Public Library Announces Its Most Borrowed Books of All Time

The list, dominated by children's literature, spans 125 years of reading

A "living machine" containing frog stem cells in a new configuration designed by a computer algorithm. Parts shown in green are made up of frog skin cells, while parts in red are frog heart cells.

Scientists Assemble Frog Stem Cells Into First 'Living Machines'

The so-called 'xenobots' could replace traditional metal or plastic robots without polluting the planet, but they raise ethical questions

These scavenging bird could use a lesson or two in manners.

Vulture Poop Has Compromised a Customs and Border Protection Radio Tower in Texas

Officials are scrambling for a solution to the fecal fiasco

The high-status 16th-century woman (right) appears to have suffered from leprosy, a disfiguring disease that likely left its mark on her skin, tissues and bone.

Artists Reconstruct Centuries-Old Faces of Early Edinburgh Residents

Skulls uncovered beneath St. Giles' Cathedral gave faces to a 12th-century man and a 16th-century woman

The venomous Indian cobra (Naja naja) is one of the deadliest snakes in the world.

Newly Sequenced Indian Cobra Genome Could Lead to Better Antivenoms

A genetic approach could circumvent the pitfalls associated with current antivenom synthesis techniques

Sweden's 1,200-year-old Rök stone is inscribed with more than 700 runes, some of which may discuss climate change.

Viking Runestone May Trace Its Roots to Fear of Extreme Weather

Sweden’s Rök stone, raised by a father commemorating his recently deceased son, may contain allusions to an impending period of catastrophic cold

The bicolored white-toothed shrew (Crocidura leucodon), a small mammal known to carry and transmit Borna disease virus to other animals.

A Shrew-Borne Virus Is Responsible for Deadly Brain Infections in Humans

First discovered in livestock hundreds of years ago, Borna disease virus has apparently been claiming human lives for decades

The Heslington brain, revealed intact within a 2,600-year-old skull unearthed near modern day York, England

Super Resilient Protein Structures Preserved a Chunk of Brain for 2,600 Years

After death, most brains decompose within months or years. This one lasted millennia

African grey parrots are highly social, and may benefit from establishing reputations for generosity.

Parrots Will Share Currency to Help Their Pals Purchase Food

Animals often share food, but these birds understand that metal rings can be exchanged for treats, and they share the rings with no promise of reward

Vera C. Rubin, who advanced our understanding of dark matter, operating the 2.1-meter telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory.

For the First Time, a National U.S. Observatory Has Been Named for a Female Astronomer: Vera Rubin

The Vera C. Rubin Observatory will image the entire visible night sky every few nights

Cuttlefish are calculating hunters, and need depth perception to efficiently snare their prey.

Scientists Velcroed 3-D Glasses to Cuttlefish to Study Their Depth Perception

The results of the eye-popping study suggest cuttlefish see the world in surprisingly human ways

“Becoming Jane: The Evolution of Dr. Jane Goodall” is a multimedia exhibition charting the life and career of the world’s foremost expert on chimpanzees.

Immerse Yourself in Jane Goodall's Wondrous, Chimpanzee-Filled Life

A new multimedia show includes the primatologist's childhood possessions, a 3-D film and a "Chimp Chat" station

The excavation at Border Cave in the Lebombo Mountains on the Kwazulu-Natal/eSwatini border

Humans Were Roasting Root Vegetables 170,000 Years Ago, Study Suggests

The find may challenge modern notions about the starch-starved “paleo diet”

An undated composite sketch of Joseph Henry Loveless, whose headless torso was found in a remote Idaho cave 40 years ago

DNA Evidence Identifies Headless Corpse in Cave as 1916 Axe Murderer

Joseph Henry Loveless murdered his wife with an axe more than 100 years ago. Now, his dismembered remains have been identified

Maat Mons, Venus' highest volcano, one of several that may still be active in present day

Active Volcanoes May Still Exist on Venus

Scientists baked volcanic minerals in a box furnace to model how quickly lava ages on the planet’s harsh surface

Formalin-fixed lung collected in 1912 in Berlin from a 2-year-old girl who died of measles-related pneumonia

Century-Old Lungs May Push Origin of Measles Back 1,500 Years

The viral infection may have made its first hop into humans when large cities arose

Engineered with genes that boost its beta-carotene content, golden rice (top) comes with a yellowish hue that makes it stand out from typical white rice (bottom)

Golden Rice Approved as Safe for Consumption in the Philippines

The genetically modified crop could help combat the country’s vitamin A deficiency

John Addington Symonds, whose 1873 essay "A Problem in Greek Ethics" helped lay the foundation for the modern gay rights movement

Researchers Recover an Early Copy of a 19th-Century Gay Rights Essay

This once-lost copy of "A Problem in Greek Ethics" is only the sixth of its kind

An artist's illustration of juvenile Tyrannosaurus rex, which were more fleet-footed than their adult counterparts

Teenage T. Rex Fossils Reveal Haphazard Growth Spurts

A new study reaffirms that two debated dinosaur fossils named Jane and Petey weren’t a separate species

Composer and pianist George Gershwin, whose 1924 composition "Rhapsody in Blue" entered the public domain on January 1, 2020

Start of 2020 Ushers Thousands of Once-Copyrighted Works Into the Public Domain

After 95 years of exclusivity, these films, books and compositions are now free for use by everyone

Page 10 of 17