Nell Greenfieldboyce
Nell Greenfieldboyce is a NPR science correspondent.
With reporting focused on general science, NASA, and the intersection between technology and society, Greenfieldboyce has been on the science desk's technology beat since she joined NPR in 2005.
In that time Greenfieldboyce has reported on topics including the narwhals in Greenland, the ending of the space shuttle program, and the reasons why independent truckers don't want electronic tracking in their cabs.
Much of Greenfieldboyce's reporting reflects an interest in discovering how applied science and technology connects with people and culture. She has worked on stories spanning issues such as pet cloning, gene therapy, ballistics, and federal regulation of new technology.
Prior to NPR, Greenfieldboyce spent a decade working in print, mostly magazines including U.S. News & World Report and New Scientist.
A graduate of Johns Hopkins, earning her Bachelor's of Arts degree in social sciences and a Master's of Arts degree in science writing, Greenfieldboyce taught science writing for four years at the university. She was honored for her talents with the Evert Clark/Seth Payne Award for Young Science Journalists.
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Medical amputation isn't a uniquely human form of medicine, it turns out. Some ant species will cut off the limbs of injured buddies when it's necessary to save them. -
NASA and other federal agencies recently did a tabletop simulation of an Earth-threatening asteroid to see how they'd handle it -
Forget names like "Dumbo"—wild elephants appear to have their own unique names that other elephants use while talking to them in low rumbles. -
Research on the rumbles of wild elephants suggest that these animals address each other with unique, name-like vocalizations. (Story aired on All Things Considered on June 10, 2024.)
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NASA is shifting the way the Hubble Space Telescope points. The change is a work-around for a piece of hardware that's become intolerably glitchy. Officials say Hubble will continue to do 'ground breaking science,' for about another decade. -
Some otters rely on tools to bust open hard-shelled prey items like snails, and a new study suggests this tool use is helping them to survive as their favorite, easier-to-eat foods disappear. -
Whatever happened to a wealthy private astronaut's plan to save the Hubble Space Telescope? NPR has obtained internal NASA emails that reveal concerns about the proposed mission.
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When a private space traveler said he wanted to take a SpaceX capsule on a mission to improve the aging Hubble telescope, NASA studied the options. Internal emails show concern about the risk. -
Some birds kill their siblings soon after hatching. Other birds spend their whole lives with their siblings and will even risk their lives to help each other. -
In mid-November, Voyager 1 suffered a glitch, and it's messages stopped making sense. But the NASA probe is once again sending messages to Earth that make sense.
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After a nasty computer glitch five months ago, Voyager 1 is once again able to communicate with Earth in a way that mission operators can understand. -
Wild birds have some of the most complicated sibling relationships around, with everything from murder to long-term alliances.
