Twelve Accomplished Journalists Named 2023 MBL Logan Science Journalism Fellows

Learning by Doing

In the program’s Biomedical Hands-On Research Course, fellows learn fundamental techniques and approaches that underpin current biomedical science. Guided by senior scientists, they undertake pioneering technologies for imaging and analyzing the human microbiome; genome editing using CRISPR/Cas9; and DNA sequencing and analysis. They will also have ample opportunity to discuss concepts and innovations in biological and biomedical science with the program’s faculty.

In the Environmental Hands-On Research Course, fellows conduct field research at a barrier beach, salt marsh, and watershed ecosystem on Cape Cod. They discover the complex ways that added nitrogen alters coastal ecosystems, including their capacity to keep up with sea-level rise and impacts on marine life and coastal food webs.

All fellows collect, analyze, and interpret research data, which they present at a mini-symposium at the close of the fellowship. They also have opportunities to explore the rich scientific resources in Woods Hole.

The Biomedical Hands-On Research Course is co-directed by Joshua Rosenthal, Ph.D., senior scientist in the MBL’s Bell Center, and Scott Chilimeski, Ph.D., research scientist in the MBL’s Bay Paul Center. The course’s journalism advisor is Maryn McKenna, journalist, author, senior writer at WIRED, and Senior Fellow of the Center for the Study of Human Health at Emory University.

The Environmental Hands-On Research Course is directed by Anne Giblin, Ph.D., senior scientist and director of the MBL Ecosystems Center, with faculty Javier Lloret, Ph.D., research scientist in the Ecosystems Center. Science journalist/producer Angela Posada-Swafford is the course’s journalism advisor.

Over the years, the Logan Science Journalism Program has granted fellowships to hundreds of journalists from prominent news organizations, including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Science, National Public Radio, The Washington Post, USA Today, CNN, and Scientific American.

—###—

The Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) is dedicated to scientific discovery – exploring fundamental biology, understanding marine biodiversity and the environment, and informing the human condition through research and education. Founded in Woods Hole, Massachusetts in 1888, the MBL is a private, nonprofit institution and an affiliate of the University of Chicago.