Kathleen Davis is a producer and fill-in host at Science Friday, which means she spends her weeks researching, writing, editing, and sometimes talking into a microphone. She heads the show’s State of Science project, bringing local science stories to a national audience.
Before joining the Science Friday team in 2020, Kathleen reported on tech and breaking news at WESA, Pittsburgh’s NPR station. One time, her coworkers made her a dinosaur themed birthday cake, complete with a Rice Krispy meteor.
Kathleen is originally from the great state of Michigan, and is always eager to talk about freshwater lakes and Coney Island diners. She can often be found taking long walks to run errands that would be done much faster by other modes of transportation.
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7:30
Life Has Found A Way On The Great Pacific Garbage Patch
Researchers have found marine life colonizing the giant, swirling patch of trash in the Pacific Ocean.
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9:25
Enzymes Are Taking On Our Plastic Problem
Breaking PET down to its building blocks with enzymes could give it a better chance for a second (or third) life.
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12:13
Did ‘Soylent Green’s’ Predictions About 2022 Hold Up?
A classic film in the 1970s took on the collapse of civil society in 2022. Almost 50 years later, was it right?
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6:53
The Colorado River Misses Its Snow
Ongoing drought makes it more important to understand data about snow and rivers.
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11:53
The Future of Sustainable Farming Could Be Cold Plasma
The fourth state of matter makes plants grow faster. Scientists still don’t know why.
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8:15
An Oregon Lithium Deposit Could Help Power Clean Energy Tech
As the U.S. divests from Russian energy sources, it looks towards sites like a lithium deposit in Oregon. But mining it might take awhile.
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6:03
Millions Of Iowa Chickens Infected With Deadly Strain Of Bird Flu
It’s too early to tell how this will compare to 2015’s disastrous outbreak.
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11:10
Why Climate Change May Bring More West Nile Virus To The U.S.
Spring rain, summer drought, and heat are predicted to create better conditions for mosquitoes to spread the West Nile virus across the U.S.
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16:52
From Succulents To Bugs: Exploring Wildlife Crime
You may have heard about art heists, but what about succulent or bug heists? New stories from Nat Geo and Amazon Prime explore these crimes.
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8:16
U.S., Russia, and Canada Continue Collaboration On Wild Salmon Survey
Despite political tensions, researchers continue the 2022 Pan-Pacific Winter High Seas Expedition to track wild salmon.