Siri Carpenter

{{short description|American freelance science journalist (born 1971)}}

{{Infobox writer

| image = Siri Carpenter 2019-photo by Christie Aschwanden.jpg

| birth_date = {{birth year and age|1971}}

| website = {{URL|http://siricarpenter.com}}

| education = University of Wisconsin–Madison (BA)
Yale University (MS, PhD)

| genre = Journalism

| caption = Portrait of Carpenter, 2019
taken in Switzerland
by Christie Aschwanden

| name = Siri Jane Carpenter

| occupation = Freelance science journalist

}}

Siri Carpenter (born 1971) is an American freelance science journalist and editor living in Madison, Wisconsin. The author of multiple articles in Scientific American, Science, APA Monitor, and other publications, she is a co-founder and the editor-in-chief of The Open Notebook. In 2018 Carpenter was elected to a two-year term as president of the National Association of Science Writers.

Early life and education

Carpenter grew up in La Crescent, Minnesota. She is married, with two daughters, and lives in Madison, Wisconsin. She completed her undergraduate education at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, earning a B.A. in psychology in 1995.{{Cite web|last=Sakai|first=Jill|date=November 7, 2013|title=Science writer in residence visiting campus week of Nov. 11|url=https://news.wisc.edu/science-writer-in-residence-visiting-campus-week-of-nov-11/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151216064659/https://news.wisc.edu/science-writer-in-residence-visiting-campus-week-of-nov-11/|archive-date=December 16, 2015|access-date=2020-09-11|website=news.wisc.edu|language=en-US}} She earned an M.S. in 1997, and Ph.D. in 2000, both in social psychology at Yale University.{{Cite web|date=2020|title=Psychology Dept. Ph.D. Graduates {{!}} Department of Psychology|url=https://psychology.yale.edu/graduate/history/psychology-dept-phd-graduates|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141205054236/https://psychology.yale.edu/graduate/history/psychology-dept-phd-graduates|archive-date=December 5, 2014|access-date=2020-09-10|website=psychology.yale.edu}} Her dissertation, Implicit gender attitudes, was directed by Mahzarin R. Banaji.{{Cite book|last=Carpenter|first=Siri Jane|url=https://search.library.yale.edu/catalog/9843005|title=Implicit gender attitudes|publisher=Yale University|year=2000|isbn=978-0-599-98169-0|access-date=September 15, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200916232427/https://search.library.yale.edu/catalog/9843005|archive-date=September 16, 2020|url-status=live}}

Career

= Early career =

In 1998 Carpenter was a Science and Engineering Mass Media Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, at the Richmond Times-Dispatch in Richmond, Virginia.{{Cite web|date=June 17, 2020|title=Writers and Editors - Science and medical writing|url=http://www.writersandeditors.com/science_and_medical_writing_30796.htm|access-date=2020-09-12|website=writersandeditors.com|quote=The setting: The newsroom of the Richmond Times-Dispatch. A young Siri Carpenter, a bright-eyed graduate student trying her hands at journalism as a AAAS Mass Media Fellow, gets paired with editor A.J.Hostetler.
...Carpenter, Siri. The Craft of Science Writing: Selections from The Open Notebook.}} The following year she was a science writer intern at Science News in Washington, D.C.{{Cite news|last=Wood|first=Clark|date=1999-08-26|title=Cleanliness is not necessarily key to healthiness|pages=22|work=The Bangor Daily News|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/59481619/cleanliness-not-necessarily-key-to/|access-date=2020-09-17|quote=Indeed if a recent article by Siri Carpenter in Science News is any indication the character Pigpen in the popular Charlie Brown cartoon strip may be the epitome of childhood good health.}} After completing her Ph.D., Carpenter was hired as a senior science writer for the APA Monitor on Psychology in Washington, D.C., from 2000 to 2002.{{Cite news|last=Carpenter|first=Siri|date=Fall 2002|title=Becoming a Science Writer|work=Psychological Science Agenda|url=https://www.apa.org/careers/resources/profiles/carpenter|url-status=live|access-date=2020-09-16|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200917000417/https://www.apa.org/careers/resources/profiles/carpenter|archive-date=September 17, 2020}}

= Science journalist, editor =

Carpenter's career as a freelance science journalist began in 2002. From 2012 to 2014, she was a senior editor and then a features editor at Discover Magazine in Waukesha, Wisconsin.{{Cite web|date=2013|title=Discover Magazine Builds New Staff in Wisconsin|url=https://www.discovermagazine.com/the-sciences/discover-magazine-builds-new-staff-in-wisconsin|access-date=2020-09-11|website=Discover Magazine}}{{Cite web|last=Johnson|first=George|date=February 27, 2014|title=Farewell to Discover|url=https://www.discovermagazine.com/the-sciences/farewell-to-discover|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200917221113/https://www.discovermagazine.com/the-sciences/farewell-to-discover|archive-date=September 17, 2020|access-date=2020-09-11|website=Discover Magazine}} Since 2014 Carpenter has also worked as a freelance editor for several publications, including bioGraphic,{{Cite web|date=2019|title=The team|url=https://www.biographic.com/about/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200816160817/https://www.biographic.com/about/|archive-date=August 16, 2020|access-date=2020-09-13|publisher=bioGraphic, California Academy of Sciences}} and Science News for Students.{{Cite web|date=2017-12-22|title=Revisit 2017's most important stories|url=https://www.sciencenewsforstudents.org/article/revisit-2017s-most-important-stories|access-date=2020-09-11|website=Science News for Students|language=en-US|quote=Even though we’re often not aware of these implicit biases, they can lead us to treat other people unfairly," says SNS contributing editor Siri Carpenter.}}

''The Open Notebook''

{{Quote box

| quote = When it comes to freelance writing, some things are curiously taboo. Many of the most important aspects of freelancing, like pay rates and contract negotiation, are often shrouded in secrecy. Luckily there’s The Open Notebook, which was founded to shed light on these important topics.

| source = —Spencer Davis, The Freelancer

| align = right

| width = 50%

| fontsize = 100%

| qalign = left

| salign = right

}}

In 2010 Carpenter co-founded The Open Notebook (TON), a science journalism non-profit organization, magazine and publisher, with Jeanne Erdmann, a health science journalist.{{Cite web|last=Davis|first=Spencer|date=2016-05-05|title=The Open Notebook's Siri Carpenter Reveals What She Looks for in a Pitch|url=https://contently.net/2016/05/05/resources/career-advice/journalism/the-open-notebooks-siri-carpenter-reveals-pitch/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200716185705/https://contently.net/2016/05/05/resources/career-advice/journalism/the-open-notebooks-siri-carpenter-reveals-pitch/|archive-date=July 16, 2020|access-date=2020-09-11|website=The Freelancer}} Carpenter is president and editor-in-chief; Erdmann is vice president, secretary, and editor-at-large. Gary Price of Library Journal said The Open Notebook "provides unique tools and resources to help science journalists at all experience levels hone their craft".{{Cite web|last=Price|first=Gary|date=October 20, 2011|title=Journalism: Reference Tools: The TON Pitch Database|url=https://www.infodocket.com/2011/10/20/journalism-reference-tools-the-ton-pitch-database/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170607223102/https://www.infodocket.com/2011/10/20/journalism-reference-tools-the-ton-pitch-database/|archive-date=June 7, 2017|access-date=2020-07-15|website=Library Journal infoDOCKET|language=en-US}}

National Association of Science Writers

Carpenter was vice president of the National Association of Science Writers (NASW), 2016–2018,{{Cite web|date=September 13, 2016|title=2016-2018 Board election results|url=https://www.nasw.org/article/2016-2018-board-election-results|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190311145158/https://www.nasw.org/article/2016-2018-board-election-results|archive-date=March 11, 2019|access-date=2020-09-14|website=www.nasw.org}} and was elected to a two-year term as president in 2018.{{Cite web|date=January 2020|title=NASW officers, executive board, and key people|url=https://www.nasw.org/nasw-officers-executive-board-and-key-people|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200729045537/https://www.nasw.org/nasw-officers-executive-board-and-key-people|archive-date=July 29, 2020|access-date=2020-09-12|website=www.nasw.org}} NASW is "...a community of journalists, authors, editors, producers, public information officers, students and people who write and produce material intended to inform the public about science, health, engineering, and technology".{{Cite web|title=About the National Association of Science Writers Inc.|url=https://www.nasw.org/about-national-association-science-writers-inc|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200723151411/https://www.nasw.org/about-national-association-science-writers-inc|archive-date=July 23, 2020|access-date=2020-09-13|website=www.nasw.org|language=en}}

Publications

= Books =

In 2007, Carpenter and Karen Huffman wrote the textbook, Visualizing Psychology. A second edition was published 2010, and Wiley published the third edition in 2012.{{Cite web|last1=Carpenter|first1=Siri|last2=Huffman|first2=Karen|date=December 2012|title=Visualizing Psychology, 3rd Edition {{!}} Wiley|url=https://www.wiley.com/en-us/Visualizing+Psychology%2C+3rd+Edition-p-9781118388068|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200917225846/https://www.wiley.com/en-us/Visualizing+Psychology%2C+3rd+Edition-p-9781118388068|archive-date=September 17, 2020|access-date=2020-09-12|website=Wiley.com}}

In 2020, TON published The Craft of Science Writing: Selections from The Open Notebook, edited by Carpenter. Jonathan Wai wrote in Psychology Today, "...a new book edited by distinguished science writer Siri Carpenter seeks to illuminate The Craft of Science Writing by collecting numerous perspectives from science writers themselves about how to improve their own craft of science writing."{{Cite web|last=Wai|first=Jonathan|date=April 23, 2020|title=What Scientists Can Learn From Science Writers|url=https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/finding-the-next-einstein/202004/what-scientists-can-learn-science-writers|url-status=live|archive-url=https://archive.today/20200917230452/https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/finding-the-next-einstein/202004/what-scientists-can-learn-science-writers|archive-date=September 17, 2020|access-date=2020-09-14|website=Psychology Today|language=en-US}}

In 2024, a second, expanded edition of The Craft of Science Writing: Selections from The Open Notebook was published by the University of Chicago Press.{{Cite web |title=The Craft of Science Writing |url=https://www.theopennotebook.com/the-craft-of-science-writing/ |access-date=2025-03-11 |website=The Open Notebook |language=en-US}}

= Selected articles =

{{Cite journal|last=Carpenter|first=Siri|date=April 2008|title=Buried Prejudice: The Bigot in Your Brain|url=https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/buried-prejudice-the-bigot-in-your-brain/|url-status=live|journal=Scientific American Mind|doi=10.1038/scientificamericanmind0408-32|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140313164549/https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/buried-prejudice-the-bigot-in-your-brain/|archive-date=13 March 2014|access-date=2020-09-16}}
{{Cite journal|last=Carpenter|first=Siri|date=2009-02-06|title=Darwin's Legacy: Rich Collections, Deep Expertise|url=https://www.science.org/content/article/darwins-legacy-rich-collections-deep-expertise|journal=Science|volume=351|issue=6271|pages=346, 418|access-date=2020-09-16}}
{{Cite news|last=Carpenter|first=Siri|date=2009-03-30|title=Treating an Illness Is One Thing. What About a Patient With Many?|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/31/health/31sick.html|url-status=live|access-date=2020-09-15|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190208160013/https://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/31/health/31sick.html|archive-date=February 8, 2019|issn=0362-4331}}
{{Cite journal|last=Carpenter|first=Siri|date=2011-11-03|title=Is Your Parent Over-Medicated?|url=https://www.prevention.com/life/a20464694/is-your-parent-over-medicated/|url-status=live|journal=Prevention|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200903113652/https://www.prevention.com/life/a20464694/is-your-parent-over-medicated/|archive-date=September 3, 2020|access-date=2020-09-16}}
{{Cite journal|last=Carpenter|first=Siri|date=2012-03-30|title=Psychology's Bold Initiative|url=https://www.science.org/doi/abs/10.1126/science.335.6076.1558|journal=Science|volume=335|issue=6076|pages=1558–1561|doi=10.1126/science.335.6076.1558|issn=0036-8075|pmid=22461583|bibcode=2012Sci...335.1558C|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191017011454/https://science.sciencemag.org/content/335/6076/1558.summary|archive-date=October 17, 2019}}
{{Cite journal|last=Carpenter|first=Siri|date=2012-09-14|title=Scientific Misconduct. Government Sanctions Harvard Psychologist|url=https://www.science.org/doi/full/10.1126/science.337.6100.1283|url-status=live|journal=Science|volume=337|issue=6100|pages=1283|doi=10.1126/science.337.6100.1283|pmid=22984041|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180326152857/https://science.sciencemag.org/content/337/6100/1283.long|archive-date=March 26, 2018|access-date=2020-09-16}}
{{Cite journal|last=Carpenter|first=Siri|date=September 14, 2012|title=That Gut Feeling|url=https://www.apa.org/monitor/2012/09/gut-feeling|journal=APA Monitor|volume=43|issue=8|page=50|access-date=September 16, 2020}}
{{Cite web|last=Carpenter|first=Siri|date=2014-10-21|title=Seth Mnookin Follows a Family Battling a Rare Genetic Disease|url=https://www.theopennotebook.com/2014/10/21/seth-mnookin-rare-genetic-disease/|access-date=2020-09-16|website=The Open Notebook}}
{{Cite journal|last=Carpenter|first=Siri|date=2015-02-10|title=Adults with Autism Are Left to Navigate a Jarring World|url=https://www.sciencenews.org/article/adults-autism-are-left-navigate-jarring-world|url-status=live|journal=Science News|doi=10.1002/scin.2015.187004017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150211065816/https://www.sciencenews.org/article/adults-autism-are-left-navigate-jarring-world|archive-date=February 11, 2015|access-date=2020-09-15}}
{{Cite journal|last=Carpenter|first=Siri|date=2015-06-17|title=How Scott Walker Dismantled Wisconsin's Environmental Legacy|url=https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-scott-walker-dismantled-wisconsin-s-environmental-legacy/|url-status=live|journal=Scientific American|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150618191834/https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-scott-walker-dismantled-wisconsin-s-environmental-legacy/|archive-date=June 18, 2015|access-date=2020-09-16}}
{{Cite journal|last=Carpenter|first=Siri|date=2015-09-07|title=Why Do Some Children Seem to 'Outgrow' Autism?|url=https://www.spectrumnews.org/features/deep-dive/children-who-leave-autism-behind/|url-status=live|journal=Spectrum News|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151006102159/https://www.spectrumnews.org/features/deep-dive/children-who-leave-autism-behind/|archive-date=October 6, 2015|access-date=2020-09-15}}
{{Cite journal|last=Carpenter|first=Siri|date=2016-05-30|title=Biologist Kate Rubins' Big Dream Takes Her to the Space Station|url=https://www.sciencenews.org/article/biologist-kate-rubins-big-dream-takes-her-space-station|journal=Science News|access-date=2020-09-15}}
{{Cite web|last=Carpenter|first=Siri|date=2018-03-13|title=How to Do a Close Read|url=https://www.theopennotebook.com/2018/03/13/how-to-do-a-close-read/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180315051653/https://www.theopennotebook.com/2018/03/13/how-to-do-a-close-read/|archive-date=March 15, 2018|access-date=2020-09-16|website=The Open Notebook}}
{{Cite web|last=Carpenter|first=Siri|date=2019-01-29|title=Christie Aschwanden Tackles the Science of Exercise Recovery|url=https://www.theopennotebook.com/2019/01/29/christie-aschwanden-tackles-the-science-of-exercise-recovery/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200513203443/https://www.theopennotebook.com/2019/01/29/christie-aschwanden-tackles-the-science-of-exercise-recovery/|archive-date=May 13, 2020|access-date=2020-09-16|website=The Open Notebook}}
{{Cite web|last=Carpenter|first=Siri|date=2020-05-07|title=Editors' Roundtable: Managing Pandemic Coverage|url=https://www.theopennotebook.com/2020/05/07/editors-roundtable-managing-pandemic-coverage/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200511063745/https://www.theopennotebook.com/2020/05/07/editors-roundtable-managing-pandemic-coverage/|archive-date=May 11, 2020|access-date=2020-09-16|website=The Open Notebook}}

Awards and honors

2009 Outstanding Article Award for Reporting on a Significant Topic, American Society of Journalists and Authors,{{Cite web|date=April 24, 2009|title=2009-04-24: American Society of Journalists and Authors 2009 Writing Awards|url=https://asja.org/About/For-Media/2009-04-24-American-Society-of-Journalists-and-Authors-2009-Writing-Awards|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190331204409/https://asja.org/About/For-Media/2009-04-24-American-Society-of-Journalists-and-Authors-2009-Writing-Awards|archive-date=March 31, 2019|access-date=2020-09-12|website=asja.org}} for "Buried Prejudice", Scientific American Mind, April/May 2008.{{Cite journal|last=Carpenter|first=Siri|date=May 1, 2008|title=Buried Prejudice|url=http://wisdom.web.unc.edu/files/2015/09/Session-2-Buried-Prejudice-siri-Carpenter.pdf|journal=Scientific American Mind|volume=19|issue=2|pages=32–39|doi=10.1038/scientificamericanmind0408-32|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140313164549/https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/buried-prejudice-the-bigot-in-your-brain/|archive-date=13 March 2014}}
2009 National Magazine Award Finalist,{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eMQIeR9m2WgC&q=%222009+National+Magazine+Award%22 |title=The Best American Magazine Writing 2009 |publisher=Columbia University Press |others=Editors, American Society of Magazine Editors |year=2010 |isbn=978-0-231-14796-5 |location=New York |pages=416 |access-date=October 4, 2020 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20200917231916/https://books.google.com/books?id=eMQIeR9m2WgC&newbks=0&printsec=frontcover&dq=%222009+National+Magazine+Award%22&hl=en%23v=onepage&q=%222009%20National%20Magazine%20Award%22&f=false |archive-date=September 17, 2020 |url-status=live}} Prevention (December 2009) "Is Your Parent Over-Medicated?"{{Cite journal|last=Carpenter|first=Siri|date=December 2008|title=Is Your Parent Over-Medicated?|url=http://eldercarepharmacyconsultants.com/Articles/is-your-parent-over-medic.pdf|journal=Prevention|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200903113652/https://www.prevention.com/life/a20464694/is-your-parent-over-medicated/|archive-date=September 3, 2020}}
2023 Online News Association, Community Award{{Cite web |title=ONA Community Award |url=https://awards.journalists.org/awards/community-award/ |access-date=2023-11-25 |website=Online Journalism Awards |language=en-US}}

References

External links

{{Official website|http://siricarpenter.com/}}
[https://www.wpr.org/listen/1590171 Wisconsin Public Radio: The Science behind Writing about Science] (audio, 10:43 minutes)
[https://science.sciencemag.org/highwire/filestream/593562/field_highwire_adjunct_files/0/1558.mp3 AAAS podcast interview with Siri Carpenter on data replication in the field of psychology] (MP3, 8:35 minutes)
[https://media.nature.com/original/magazine-assets/d41586-020-01526-y/d41586-020-01526-y_17999654.mpga Working Scientist podcast: Science communication made simple] (MP3, 24:17 minutes)

Category:1971 births

Category:21st-century American women journalists

Category:21st-century American journalists

Category:21st-century American non-fiction writers

Category:21st-century American women writers

Category:American science journalists

Category:American psychology writers

Category:American social sciences writers

Category:Journalists from Wisconsin

Category:University of Wisconsin–Madison College of Letters and Science alumni

Category:Writers from Madison, Wisconsin

Category:Yale Graduate School of Arts and Sciences alumni