Resume
DAN FERBER 6111 Terrytown Parkway
Indianapolis, IN 46254
(317) 347-9480
ferber@nasw.org
EXPERIENCE: I am a freelance journalist and author who specializes in science, technology, health and the environment.
• Book. I am the coauthor of Changing Planet, Changing Health: How the Climate Crisis Threatens Our Health and What We Can Do About It (University of California Press, 2011), a book that will provide groundbreaking coverage of the public-health impacts of climate change. I wrote the book with Paul Epstein, M.D., associate director of Harvard Medical School’s Center for Health and the Global Environment. Changing Planet, Changing Health will put a human face on climate change and will present a suite of solutions designed to fight climate and keep people healthy.
• Magazine journalism. My work includes reportage, investigations, profiles, essays, Q&As and light-hearted service journalism. My stories have appeared Reader’s Digest, Popular Science, Audubon, Nature Conservancy, Sierra, New Scientist, USA Weekend, Seed, Women’s Health, and many other magazines.
• News writing. As a contributing correspondent for Science, I have covered scientific and medical news on a wide range of topics, working on weekly, daily, and sometimes shorter deadlines. I've covered a wide range of topics, but I tend to specialize in the life sciences, including biomedical research, biotechnology, drug development, ecology, public health, and science policy. I have also written medical news for both doctors and consumers for WebMD, BioMedNet and other publications, and I've covered more than two dozen scientific and medical conferences.
EDUCATION
• M.S. in journalism, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois, 1999. Elected to Kappa Tau Alpha honor society.
• Ph.D. in biology, Johns Hopkins University, 1993. Specialization in biochemistry.
• B.S. in zoology, Duke University, 1984. Graduated magna cum laude.
AWARDS AND HONORS
National honors:
• "Will Artificial Muscle Make You Stronger?" a feature article I wrote for Popular Science, was reprinted in The Best of Technology Writing 2006, an anthology published by the University of Michigan Press.
• Outstanding Article Award, Magazine Profile, from the American Society of Journalists and Authors, 2004, for “The Man Who Mistook His Girlfriend for a Robot,” a story I wrote for Popular Science.
• “The Man Who Mistook His Girlfriend for a Robot” appeared in the September 2003 issue of Popular Science, one of three issues that helped the magazine win a National Magazine Award in the General Excellence category.
• “Duck Soup,” a feature article I wrote, ran in the May-June 2006 issue of Audubon, one of three issues that made the magazine a finalist for the 2007 National Magazine Award in the General Excellence category.
• Fund for Investigative Journalism grant: Chemical industry influence on Bush administration science agencies, 2002. Broke story of Bush administration influence on federal science advisory agencies.
Regional honors:
• Best Coverage of the Environment, Society of Professional Journalists’ Best in Indiana Journalism Awards, 2010, for “Downwind of the Big Dairy Farm,” a cover story ran in Nuvo Newsweekly, Indianapolis' alternative weekly.
• Best Print Feature, magazine category, Society of Professional Journalists’ Best in Indiana Journalism Awards, 2006, for “Will Artificial Muscle Make You Stronger?”
• Best Medical/Science Reporting, Society of Professional Journalists’ Best in Indiana Journalism Awards, 2006, for “Re-engineering Your Body,” a feature that appeared in Reader’s Digest.
TEACHING
• I teach an online course for professional journalists called “Science Writing: How to Strengthen Your Writing with Science.”
TALKS, WORKSHOPS, SERVICE
• Board member (elected), National Association of Science Writers. 2008-present.
• Co-chair, Awards Committee, National Association of Science Writers. 2010-present.
• Chair, Grievance Committee, National Association of Science Writers. 2005-2010.
• Co-chair, Freelance Committee, National Association of Science Writers. 2004-2007.
• Panelist, “Press Room Confidential: How to Cover a Scientific Meeting” National Association of Science Writers annual workshops, Baltimore, MD, October 27, 2006.
• Panel organizer and moderator, “May I Quote You? Finding Sources and Getting Them to Talk,” American Society of Journalists and Authors’ 2006 Writers Conference, New York, NY, April 29, 2006.
• Panelist, “Strategies For Building Your Freelance Business From Any Location” National Association of Science Writers annual workshops, St. Louis, MO, October 22, 2005.
• Panel organizer and moderator, “The Art of the Interview,” National Association of Science Writers annual workshops, Washington, D.C., February 16, 2005.
• Panel organizer and moderator, “Science for Sale: How to Cover Conflicts of Interest,” National Association of Science Writers annual workshops, Seattle, WA, February 12, 2004.
• Panel organizer and moderator, “The Art of the Interview,” National Association of Science Writers annual workshops, Boston, MA, February 12, 2002.
• Keynote speaker, “The Risks and Benefits of Genetically Modified Crops” (a talk based on an article I wrote for Science), Symposium on Pennsylvania Agriculture in the 21st Century, Pennsylvania State University, Hershey, PA, March 8, 2000.
• Invited speaker and panelist, “Science Writing as a Career.” Purdue University, Alternative Careers in Science Colloquium Series, Purdue University Interdisciplinary Life Sciences Organization; West Lafayette, IN; January 31, 2007.
• Invited speaker and panelist, “Non-Bench Science Careers for Developmental Biologists”; Society for Developmental Biology, Southeast Regional Meeting; Athens, GA; June 29, 2005.
• Invited speaker and panelist, “Have Laptop, Will Travel: The Journey of a Freelance Science Writer,” University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, Career Symposium, Urbana, IL, July 13, 2002.
OTHER EXPERIENCE
• Postdoctoral research in microbiology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1993-1996.
• Doctoral research in biochemistry, Johns Hopkins University, 1987-1993.
• Laboratory technician and undergraduate researcher, 1982-1986.
• Taught biology laboratory classes; supervised undergraduate researchers, 1988-1997.
PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS
• National Association of Science Writers
• Society of Environmental Journalists
• Investigative Reporters and Editors
• American Society for Journalists and Authors
REFERENCES: Available upon request.