Anna Gibbs

Science writing intern, Spring 2022

Anna Gibbs was the spring 2022 science writing intern at Science News. She holds a B.A. in English from Harvard College.

All Stories by Anna Gibbs

  1. pov image of someone dipping a nasal swap into a covid test tube
    Health & Medicine

    What experts told me to do after my positive COVID-19 at-home test

    Rapid at-home tests mean many COVID-19 cases go unreported, but they’re a great tool for deciding when to leave isolation. I found that out firsthand.

  2. image of an object glowing blue from Cerenkov light
    Particle Physics

    A new nuclear imaging prototype detects tumors’ faint glow

    Nuclear imaging that relies on Cerenkov light could supplement standard-of-care technology for identifying location of tumors.

  3. two fragment so of a Maya mural showing a drawing of the 7 Deer hieroglyph
    Archaeology

    This hieroglyph is the oldest known record of the Maya calendar

    Plaster fragments with the markings date to at least 200 B.C. and indicate that the calendar system, still used today, might be centuries older.

  4. triceratops
    Paleontology

    A hole in a Triceratops named Big John probably came from combat

    The nature of the wound and signs of healing suggest that the dinosaur's bony frill was impaled by a Triceratops rival.

  5. a Hill’s horseshoe bat in a green gloved hand
    Animals

    How scientists found an African bat lost to science for 40 years

    African researchers had been searching for the Hill’s horseshoe bat since 2013. Now, the first recording of its echolocation call may help find more.

  6. image of a scoop of ice cream
    Chemistry

    Grainy ice cream is unpleasant. Plant-based nanocrystals might help

    The growth of large ice crystals in ice cream produces a coarse texture. A cellulose nanocrystal stabilizer could help keep the unwelcome iciness away.

  7. kindergartners in a classroom, wearing masks
    Health & Medicine

    School mask mandates in the U.S. reduced coronavirus transmission

    Mandatory masking lowered transmission rates to nearly one-fourth those of schools where masks were optional, data from over 1 million children show.

  8. illustration of a brown Christmas Island rat with tufts of grass
    Genetics

    An extinct rat shows CRISPR’s limits for resurrecting species

    Scientists recovered most of the Christmas Island rat’s genome. But the missing genes signal a problem for using gene editing to de-extinct species.

  9. cephalopod fossil
    Paleontology

    Scientists are arguing over the identity of a fossilized 10-armed creature

    An ancient cephalopod fossil may be the oldest ancestor of octopuses, but the interpretation hinges on the identification of one feature.

  10. a dirty kitchen sponge on a white background
    Life

    Why kitchen sponges are the perfect home for bacteria

    Sponges are remarkably diverse hot spots for bacteria, in part because of the mixed-housing environment that the tools offer their tenants.

  11. a Schmidt's fringe-fingered lizard crawling on sand
    Animals

    How lizards keep detachable tails from falling off

    A hierarchical structure of micropillars and nanopores allows the tail to break away when necessary while preventing it from easily detaching.

  12. photo of orcas stripping the flesh off a blue whale calf’s flank
    Animals

    Gory footage confirms orca pods can kill adult blue whales

    For the first time, three recorded events show that orcas do hunt and eat blue whales using coordinated attacks that have worked on other large whales.