Thanks for visiting this site and this page, and giving me the opportunity to tell you something about myself.
The short version: Since 1981, I have plied my trade as a writer, editor and content specialist in a variety of staff and freelance positions spanning science, scientific publishing, business and finance—taking a bit of time off along the road to earn an Ph.D. in geology and geophysics from Columbia University. Although I retired from full-time work in October 2024, I continue to pursue freelance projects and assignments where my blend of skills and experience can add unique value.
The longer version, in reverse-chron order:
- From December 2013 to October 2024, I served as the editor of Optics & Photonics News (OPN), the print and online news and feature magazine published 11 times a year by Optica (formerly The Optical Society).
In that capacity I supervised a small but fantastic editorial and creative team, managed relations with the magazine’s editorial board, solicited a majority of the magazine’s content, and edited and reshaped a wide range of technical feature articles and columns to ensure a lively, interesting read for a diverse nonspecialist audience. I also conceived and authored/reported 19 feature articles, 11 columns and hundreds of news stories for the magazine and its website (a few samples are here).
- Before joining OPN, I spent nearly 14 years as the online editor of Science, one of the world’s preeminent journals of scientific research, news, and commentary, eventually reaching the senior position of Editorial Director, Web and New Media. In that very diverse role, among many other things, I edited a section of technical communications/debates on research papers published in the journal, which gave me experience and confidence in shaping and improving scientific content across the full span of physical and life sciences.
In 2005, I launched the magazine’s weekly podcast—developing the format; conducting interviews; editing, publishing and tracking usage of the show in its early days; and building an audience until we were able to hire staff to take over the project. (Two decades after launch and more than a decade after I left the organization, I’m happy to say that the Science podcast is still going strong.) And I got Science’s editorial operation started with online video, interactive data visualization, social media and other Digital Age goodies, with the help of a very talented team of developers and editors.
- From 1981 to 1999, I worked as a writer and editor in both staff and deadline-driven freelance roles, with a particular emphasis on to-the-trade publications in business, finance and environment. Also during this period, pursuing a personal interest, I took a hiatus of about six years to earn a Ph.D. in geology/geophysics from Columbia University’s Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory.
As the bullet points above suggest, my career has encompassed work across a broad array of topics, to a range of audiences, in both print and online media. Building on that long experience and the perspective it enables, I’m confident that I can execute swiftly and expertly on a wide variety of freelance writing and editorial assignments, especially in science communication and journalism. If you see a potential fit with a project you have coming up and would like to learn more/start a conversation, send me a message via LinkedIn or text.