|
ODYSSEY Magazine Article Wins 2011 AAAS Kavli Science Journalism Award
An article in ODYSSEY magazine by freelance writer Jeanne Miller has won the prestigious Kavli Science Journalism Award for Children's Science News Writing, administered by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). A spokesperson for the organization made the announcement this morning. The award recognizes excellence in reporting science news for readers up to age 14, and is open to journalists worldwide working in print, broadcast, and online media.
In "Skywalking for Science: Aloft in Redwood Space" (April 2011 ODYSSEY), Miller takes her readers to the top of the Pacific Coast's redwoods to learn how scientists study the canopy of these magnificent giants and the organisms that live there. She shows how to climb the 300-foot trees, using the step-by-step technique developed by the adventurer scientists, and explains their discovery of how water moves through the trees' trunks and branches.
"The story is a complete package with interesting sidebars, including one explaining how salmon and redwood forests benefit each other," says Mary Knudson, a freelance science writer and a member of the independent panel of judges for the contest. Miller links science to art in another sidebar about ecologist/artist Robert Van Pelt, who measures the largest tree specimens and then depicts them in accurate pen-and-ink drawings. She introduces a zoo of creatures that find their homes in the redwood canopies, and conveys the importance of maintaining the Pacific Coast's magnificent old-growth forests for future generations.
"I first went camping on the northern California coast in the 1970s," Miller says. "I was awestruck by the redwoods, but I didn't know then what was going on in the tops of the old-growth trees. Nobody did. It was a decade later that researchers discovered that the canopies supported thriving aerial ecosystems, with their own trees and bushes and animal life." Researching the story, she says, "felt like exploring a hidden world—and one that young readers would be just as thrilled by as I was."
Miller has written more than 30 articles for ODYSSEY since her first piece, a profile of astrophysicist Lawrence Krauss, appeared in the magazine in 1996. From her home in Berkeley, CA, and through her former administrative position at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratories, she has interviewed many of the world's leading scientists for ODYSSEY, including one of this year's Nobel winners in physics, Saul Perlmutter.
"Jeanne has a curiosity and zest for all areas of science that infects her young readers," says Elizabeth Lindstrom, ODYSSEY's editor. "Whether her topic is wild horses or wild fires, elusive electrons or the accelerating universe, her writing is crisp, clear, and always beautiful. You can hear her giggling with delight for her favorite subject in every word."
ODYSSEY, published by Carus Publishing, is the premiere general science magazine for ages 10 to 14. This year it celebrates its 20th anniversary of bringing cutting-edge science articles, interviews, and activities to young readers.
Administered by the AAAS since its inception in 1945, the Kavli Journalism Awards go to professional journalists for distinguished reporting for a general audience. Independent panels of science journalists pick the winners, who receive a prize of $3,000 and a plaque at the AAAS annual meeting, to be held in Vancouver, British Columbia, in February.
Alan I. Leshner, chief executive officer of AAAS and executive publisher of the journal Science, said the 2011 awards "show that journalists are providing excellent coverage of science, both locally and beyond, even as resources at many news organizations continue to be stretched."
You can read Miller's article at: http://cricketmag.com/ProductImages/articles/ODY1104_p6_13.pdf
Following is a full list of winners of the 2011 AAAS Kavli Science Journalism Awards:
CHILDREN'S SCIENCE NEWS
Jeanne Miller
ODYSSEY Magazine
"Skywalking for Science: Aloft in Redwood Space"
April 2011
PRINT
Large Newspaper—Circulation of 100,000 or more
Mark Johnson and Kathleen Gallagher
Journal Sentinel (Milwaukee)
"One in a Billion: A Boy's Life, a Medical Mystery" (series)
Dec. 19, 2010; Dec. 22, 2010; Dec. 26, 2010
The series also won a 2011 Pulitzer Prize.
Small Newspaper—Circulation less than 100,000
Christine Peterson, Kerry Huller, Wes Watson
Casper Star-Tribune (Wyoming)
"On Thinning Ice: A Look at Wind River Range's Shrinking Glaciers" (series)
Jan. 23, 24, and 25, 2011
Magazine
Adam Rogers
Wired
"The Angels' Share"
June 2011
TELEVISION
Spot News/Feature Reporting (20 minutes or less)
Rachel Silverman, Craig Miller, Lindsay Kelliher, Linda Peckham, Amy Miller, Paul Rogers
KQED QUEST/Climate Watch (San Francisco)
"Going Up: Sea Level Rise in San Francisco Bay"
Aug. 31, 2010
In-Depth Reporting (more than 20 minutes)
Two winning entries:
Richard Burke-Ward, Robert Strange, Callum Macrae, Stuart Carter, Howard Swartz
WGBH/NOVA
"Japan's Killer Quake"
March 30, 2011
Mark Davis
National Geographic Channel
"Death of a Mars Rover"
June 2, 2011
RADIO
Gabriel Spitzer, with Michael De Bonis
WBEZ Chicago
"Clever Apes" (series)
July 26, 2010; Nov. 24, 2010; May 24, 2011
ONLINE
Joshua Seftel, Tom Miller, Susan Lewis, Lauren Aguirre
PBS NOVA Online
"Secret Life of Scientists and Engineers"
Oct. 6, 2010; Feb. 2, 2011; Feb. 16, 2011
###
For further information about ODYSSEY magazine contact:
Lou Waryncia, 603-924-7209 ext 219
lwaryncia@caruspub.com
or Tina Derby, 603-924-7209 ext 260
tderby@caruspub.com
View an online sample of ODYSSEY magazine.
View online samples of all of Carus Publishing's 14 great childrens' magazines.
| 
