Allie Wilkinson

Allie Wilkinson is a freelance science writer. She has a bachelor’s degree in environmental studies from Eckerd College and a master’s degree in journalism from Hofstra University. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, National Geographic, Popular Science, Scientific American, and elsewhere. She’s also an award-winning baker and freelance cheesemonger.

All Stories by Allie Wilkinson

  1. Microbes

    Meet some of the microbes that give cheeses flavor

    Knowing which genus of bacteria is responsible for which flavor could open the door to new types of cheese.

  2. Microbes

    Meet the fungal friends and foes that surround us

    Keith Seifert’s book The Hidden Kingdom of Fungi explores how microfungi shape our world.

  3. Animals

    Why you should care about ‘The Insect Crisis’

    A new book explains why insect populations are dwindling and why that’s a problem.

  4. Environment

    50 years ago, American waterways were getting more protections

    A 1970 bill that became the Clean Water Act helped to double the number of U.S. waterbodies clean enough for swimming and fishing. In January, the U.S. administration changed how waters were defined, effectively removing those protections for half the country’s wetlands.

  5. Health & Medicine

    In ‘The Perfect Predator,’ viruses vanquish a deadly superbug

    In ‘The Perfect Predator,’ an epidemiologist recounts the battle to save her husband from an antibiotic-resistant infection.

  6. Health & Medicine

    50 years ago, people thought MSG caused ‘Chinese restaurant syndrome’

    In the 1960s, people blamed monosodium glutamate in Chinese food for making them sick, but the claim hasn't stood up to time or science.

  7. Animals

    50 years ago, DDT pushed peregrine falcons to the edge of extinction

    In 1969, peregrine falcons were at risk of extinction. But a ban on the pesticide DDT and new captive breeding programs allowed the raptors to recover.

  8. Climate

    Bull sharks and bottlenose dolphins are moving north as the ocean warms

    Rising temperatures are making ocean waters farther north more hospitable for a variety of marine species.