Writing, Editing, and Teaching
Astronomy magazine, Kalmbach Publishing Co.
ASSOCIATE EDITOR (September 2008 – August 2014)
ASSISTANT EDITOR (January 2005 – July 2006)
At Astronomy, I pitched, wrote, and edited feature science articles, which included checking and correcting factual content, grammar, and readability in addition to developing a comprehensive graphics package for each article. I managed Kalmbach’s first all-digital full-length special issue, Cosmic Origins (released March 5, 2014), as Editor, and oversaw all interactive content and functionality. At Astronomy, I was also in charge of the magazine’s “Astro News” department where I wrote hundreds of news stories. When not working on print pieces, I wrote scripts and presented information for online explanatory astronomy videos and also co-developed an online video series to showcase the fun side of astronomy, “Cosmic Adventures.”
National Instruments
TECHNICAL WRITER (June 2007 – September 2008)
As a technical writer, I edited and wrote radio frequency (RF) software and hardware user manuals, specifications documents, and online help files for grammar, technical accuracy, and consistency among products.
Iowa State University, Department of Physics & Astronomy
TEACHING ASSISTANT (August 2006 – May 2007)
As a teaching assistant in the physics and astronomy department, I educated both science and non-science majors in the principles of astronomy, physics, and math.
EDUCATION
Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa
- August 2006 – May 2007
- Graduate courses in astrophysics and science communication
Lawrence University, Appleton, Wisconsin
- Bachelor's degree, June 2004
- Physics major with English minor
Columbia University, Oracle, Arizona
- September – December 2002
- Off-campus astronomy study at Columbia University’s Biosphere 2 center
Research
Iowa State University, Department of Physics & Astronomy
RESEARCH ASSISTANT (August 2006 – May 2007)
During the academic year, I worked on the Very Energetic Radiation Imaging Telescope Array System (VERITAS) gamma-ray experiment.
University of Chicago, Physics Department
RESEARCH ASSISTANT (Summer 2002 & Summer 2003)
I spent the summer of 2002 recalibrating the electromagnetic calorimeter detector from the HEAT balloon flight of 1994 – 1995 (a cosmic-ray experiment), which is where my love of high-energy astrophysics was born. The following summer, I assisted in the construction and testing of electronics for a cosmic infrared background detector; this project introduced me to awesome field of cosmology.
Awards and Fellowships
2013: David N. Schramm Award for High-Energy Astrophysics Science Journalism
Presented by the High-Energy Astrophysics Division of the American Astronomical Society for feature article “How we know black holes exist,” Astronomy magazine April 2012
2012: University of California, Santa Cruz, UC-HiPACC Journalism Boot Camp
Computational Astronomy: From Planets to Cosmos
2010: Knight Science Journalism Boot Camp
- Kavli Workshop: The Universe