Sujata Gupta

Sujata Gupta

Social Sciences Writer

Sujata Gupta is the social sciences writer for Science News. She was a 2017-18 Knight Science Journalism fellow at MIT. Her work has appeared in The New Yorker, Nature, Discover, NPR, Scientific American, and others. Sujata got her start in journalism at a daily newspaper in Central New York, where she covered education and small town politics. She has also worked as a National Park Ranger, completing stints at parks in Hawaii, California and Maine, and taught English in Nagano, Japan.

All Stories by Sujata Gupta

  1. Plants

    Cryopreservation is not sci-fi. It may save plants from extinction

    Not all plants can be stored in a seed bank. Cryopreservation offers an alternative, but critics question whether this form of conservation will work.

  2. Science & Society

    $1.8 billion in NIH grant cuts hit minority health research the hardest

    News of NIH funding cuts have trickled out in recent months. A new study tallies what’s been terminated.

  3. Psychology

    Chess players rely on familiar moves even when the game changes

    In chess as in life, people use memory as a shortcut for decision-making. That strategy can backfire when the present doesn’t resemblance the past.

  4. Psychology

    Uncertainty is on the rise. Here’s how people can cope

    Societal upheaval can trigger uncertainty, which makes people susceptible to cognitive traps. Experts suggest some simple tools can help.

  5. Psychology

    Loneliness is higher among middle-aged Americans than older ones

    Across much of the world, loneliness increases from middle age to later years. That trend is reversed in the United States, a new study shows.

  6. Health & Medicine

    A messed-up body clock could be a bigger problem than lack of sleep

    For a good night of sleep, consider getting your circadian rhythm back in sync with the sun. Here’s how to do it.

  7. Science & Society

    Married men are doing more cleaning and laundry than in the past

    Some scholars argue that efforts to equalize the time men and women spend on housework has stalled. An analysis reveals slow progress.

  8. Science & Society

    Why some chaos-seekers just want to watch the world burn

    A political scientist explains how a confluence of personality traits and perceived status loss can encourage some people to generate chaos as a solution to their woes.

  9. Psychology

    Breaking negative thought patterns could ward off anxiety, depression

    Getting stuck in a negative loop is part of many mental health disorders. A new therapy focuses more on these thought patterns than the thoughts themselves.

  10. Artificial Intelligence

    Are AI chatbot ‘personalities’ in the eye of the beholder?

    Defining AI chatbot personality could be based on how a bot “feels” about itself or on how a person feels about the bot they’re interacting with.

  11. Psychology

    Survivors of the LA fires will face a complex blend of mental health challenges

    Logistical needs, like employment and housing, along with psychological needs must be met after disasters like the LA wildfires, research shows.

  12. Health & Medicine

    Proposed time limits on anesthesia may have jeopardized patient safety

    Blue Cross Blue Shield’s now rescinded plan to put time limits on anesthesia put a spotlight on a poorly understood profession.