Erika Engelhaupt

Erika Engelhaupt is a freelance science writer and editor based in Knoxville, Tenn. She began her blog, Gory Details, while she was an editor at Science News. She continues the blog at National Geographic, where she was online science editor and managed the Phenomena science blog network. Her work has also appeared at NPR, the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Story Collider podcast, and in other newspapers and magazines. 

All Stories by Erika Engelhaupt

  1. cup of coffee
    Health & Medicine

    The science behind cancer warnings on coffee is murky at best

    The risks of acrylamide in coffee are not as clear as a California court ruling may suggest.

  2. drawing of a female scientists
    Science & Society

    Kids are starting to picture scientists as women

    An analysis of studies asking kids to draw a scientist finds that the number of females drawn has increased over the last 50 years.

  3. Przewalski’s horses
    Genetics

    The last wild horses aren’t truly wild

    The ancestor of today’s domesticated horses remains a mystery after a new analysis of ancient horse DNA.

  4. body in morgue
    Genetics

    Genes could record forensic clues to time of death

    Scientists have found predictable patterns in the way our genetic machinery winds down after death.

  5. Vanitas Still Life With Flowers and Skull
    Science & Society

    ‘Death: A Graveside Companion’ offers an outlet for your morbid curiosity

    A coffee-table book explores how humans have tried to understand death through the ages.

  6. lion's mane jellyfish
    Animals

    Here’s the real story on jellyfish taking over the world

    In 'Spineless,' a former marine scientist reconnects with the seas and science through her obsession with these enigmatic creatures.

  7. old photo of woman at grocery store
    Science & Society

    How science has fed stereotypes about women

    A new book, Inferior, shows how biased research branded women as inferior and aims to set the record straight.

  8. parched landscape
    Science & Society

    Does doom and gloom convince anyone about climate change?

    New York magazine spurred conversation with a recent article on climate change. Will its apocalyptic approach have an impact?

  9. human skull and Neandertal skull
    Anthropology

    How humans (maybe) domesticated themselves

    Prior to taming other species, humans selected for more docile traits among fellow Homo sapiens, a slew of recent studies suggest.

  10. painting of Caesar’s last moments
    Chemistry

    Every breath you take contains a molecule of history

    In 'Caesar’s Last Breath', best-selling author Sam Kean tells vivid stories about the gases we can’t see.

  11. illustration of brain as marionette
    Psychology

    You’ve probably been tricked by fake news and don’t know it

    In the fight against falsified facts, the human brain is both the weakest link and our only hope.

  12. feet with toe tag

    For Halloween, Gory Details favorites and farewell

    Gory Details blogger Erika Engelhaupt left Science News earlier this year. In a farewell post and in honor of Halloween, she reminisces about some of her favorite, and scariest, posts.