Natalie Angier /ænˈdʒɪər/ (born February 16, 1958 in the

Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

) is an American nonfiction writer and a science journalist for ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

''. Her awards include the Pulitzer Prize for Beat Reporting in 1991 and the AAAS Westinghouse Science Journalism Award in 1992. She is also noted for her public identification as an atheist and received the

Freedom from Religion Foundation The Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) is an American nonprofit organization, which advocates for atheists, agnostics, and nontheists. Formed in 1976, FFRF promotes the separation of church and state, and challenges the legitimacy of many ...

’s

Emperor Has No Clothes Award The Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) is an American nonprofit organization, which advocates for atheists, agnostics, and nontheists. Formed in 1976, FFRF promotes the separation of church and state, and challenges the legitimacy of many ...

in 2003.

Early life

Angier was born in the Bronx, New York City, on February 16, 1958, to Keith Angier and Adele Angier, née Rosenthal. She was raised in the Bronx and New Buffalo, Michigan.

Education

Angier began her college studies at age 16 at the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

. After completing two years at the University of Michigan, she studied

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

physics Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge which ...

, and

astronomy Astronomy () is a natural science that studies celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and evolution. Objects of interest include planets, moons, stars, nebulae, g ...

Barnard College Barnard College of Columbia University is a private women's liberal arts college in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It was founded in 1889 by a group of women led by young student activist Annie Nathan Meyer, who petitioned Columbia ...

, where she graduated magna cum laude in 1978. She also studied medieval literature, post graduation.

Career

Angier began her writing career as a technical writer for Texas Instruments. She was then hired as a founding staff member of ''

Discover Magazine ''Discover'' is an American general audience science magazine launched in October 1980 by Time Inc. It has been owned by Kalmbach Publishing since 2010. History Founding ''Discover'' was created primarily through the efforts of ''Time'' m ...

'' in 1980 and largely wrote about evolutionary biology and animal behavior during her four years there. After ''Discover'', she worked as a senior science writer for ''

Time Magazine ''Time'' (stylized in all caps) is an American news magazine based in New York City. For nearly a century, it was published weekly, but starting in March 2020 it transitioned to every other week. It was first published in New York City on Ma ...

''; as an editor at the women's magazine, ''Savvy'' (now defunct); and as a professor at the

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then- Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, th ...

’s Graduate Program in Science and Environmental Reporting. In 1990, Angier joined ''

'' as a science writer and remains on staff. She won the

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made ...

for Beat Reporting in 1991 and the AAAS Westinghouse Science Journalism Award in 1992., among many other awards detailed in the Awards and honors section below. Her writing has appeared in print and on-line magazines: ''

The American Scholar "The American Scholar" was a speech given by Ralph Waldo Emerson on August 31, 1837, to the Phi Beta Kappa Society of Harvard College at the First Parish in Cambridge in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He was invited to speak in recognition of his gro ...

'', ''

The Atlantic ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher. It features articles in the fields of politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 in Boston, ...

'', '' GEO'', ''

National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly the ''National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as NAT GEO) is a popular American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. Known for its photojournalism, it is one of the most widel ...

'', '' O'' magazine, ''

Parade A parade is a procession of people, usually organized along a street, often in costume, and often accompanied by marching bands, floats, or sometimes large balloons. Parades are held for a wide range of reasons, but are usually celebrations of s ...

'', ''

Slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. It is the finest grained foliated metamorphic rock. ...

'', '' Smithsonian'', ''

Washington Monthly ''Washington Monthly'' is a bimonthly, nonprofit magazine of United States politics and government that is based in Washington, D.C. The magazine is known for its annual ranking of American colleges and universities, which serves as an alternat ...

'', among others. Angier's books and anthology contributions are detailed in the

Books A book is a medium for recording information in the form of writing or images, typically composed of many pages (made of papyrus, parchment, vellum, or paper) bound together and protected by a cover. The technical term for this physic ...

section below. Angier is a voting member of the usage panel of ''

The American Heritage Dictionary ''The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language'' (''AHD'') is an American dictionary of English published by Boston publisher Houghton Mifflin, the first edition of which appeared in 1969. Its creation was spurred by the controversy o ...

''.

Philosophical views

Angier first publicly described herself as an

atheist Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...

in 2001: This, in part, is why Angier was presented with the

’s

in 2003.

Personal life

Angier married Rick Weiss on July 27, 1991. Rick Weiss is a former science reporter for ''The Washington Post''. Angier and Weiss live in

Takoma Park, Maryland Takoma Park is a city in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. It is a suburb of Washington, and part of the Washington metropolitan area. Founded in 1883 and incorporated in 1890, Takoma Park, informally called "Azalea City", is a Tree C ...

and have a daughter, Katherine Weiss Angier, who graduated ''

summa cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sou ...

'' in 2018 from Princeton with a degree in Biology.

Awards and honors

* '' Natural Obsessions'' named AAAS Notable Book of the Year, 1988 * '' Natural Obsessions'' named ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' Notable Book of the Year, 1988 * Pulitzer Prize for Beat Reporting, 1991 * AAAS Science Journalism Award (Large Newspaper), 1992 * New York Times Bestseller (Nonfiction), 1999: ''Woman: An Intimate Geography'' *

’s

, 2003 * A. D. White Professor-at-Large at Cornell University, six-year appointment, 2006–2012 *

Committee for Skeptical Inquiry The Committee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSI), formerly known as the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP), is a program within the US non-profit organization Center for Inquiry (CFI), which seeks to "pro ...

’s Robert P. Balles Prize in Critical Thinking, 2007, for ''The Canon: A Whirligig Tour of the Beautiful Basics of Science'' * New York Times Bestseller (Nonfiction), 2007: ''The Canon: A Whirligig Tour of the Beautiful Basics of Science'' * AAAS/Subaru SB&F Prize for Excellence in Science Books Finalist, 2008, for ''The Canon: A Whirligig Tour of the Beautiful Basics of Science'' *

American Library Association The American Library Association (ALA) is a nonprofit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world, with 49,727 members ...

’s Notable Book for Adults Award, 2008, for ''The Canon: A Whirligig Tour of the Beautiful Basics of Science'' * Keynote speaker for the 2009

Washington & Jefferson College Washington & Jefferson College (W&J College or W&J) is a private liberal arts college in Washington, Pennsylvania. The college traces its origin to three log cabin colleges in Washington County established by three Presbyterian missionaries t ...

commencement exercises *

Distinguished Alumna Award *

General Motors The General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is the largest automaker in the United States and ...

International Award for Writing about Cancer * Lewis Thomas Award for Distinguished Writing in the Life Sciences *

Exploratorium The Exploratorium is a museum of science, technology, and arts in San Francisco, California. Characterized as "a mad scientist's penny arcade, a scientific funhouse, and an experimental laboratory all rolled into one", the participatory natu ...

Public Understanding of Science Award * Voting member of the usage panel of ''

Books

* Author: '' Natural Obsessions: Striving to Unlock the Deepest Secrets of the Cancer Cell'', 1988, 1999 Paperback * Contributor: ''New Science Journalists'', 1995, Paperback * Author: ''The Beauty of the Beastly: New Views on the Nature of Life'', 1995, 1996 Paperback * Author: ''Woman: An Intimate Geography'', 1999, 2014 Paperback * Contributor: ''The Best American Science Writing 2000'', 2000, Paperback * Contributor: ''The Best American Science Writing 2001'', 2001, Paperback * Contributor: ''The Best American Science Writing 2002'', 2002, Paperback * Editor: ''The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2002'', 2002, Paperback * Contributor: ''The Bitch in the House: 26 Women Tell the Truth About Sex, Solitude, Work, Motherhood, and Marriage'', 2002, Paperback * Contributor: ''When Race Becomes Real: Black and White Writers Confront Their Personal Histories'', 2002, Hardcover * Contributor: ''Sisterhood Is Forever: The Women’s Anthology for a New Millennium'', 2003, Paperback * Contributor: ''The Best American Science Writing 2003'', 2003, Paperback * Contributor: ''The Best American Science Writing 2005'', 2005, Paperback * Contributor: ''The Best American Science Writing 2005'', 2005, Paperback * Contributor: ''Axelrod & Cooper’s Concise Guide to Writing, 4th Edition'', 2006, Paperback * Author: '' The Canon: A Whirligig Tour of the Beautiful Basics of Science'', 2007, Paperback * Editor: ''The Best American Science Writing 2009'', 2009, Paperback * Author: ''Woman: An Intimate Geography, Revised and Updated Edition'', 2014, Paperback

External links

*
Video: Angier interview
by

Charlie Rose Charles Peete Rose Jr. (born January 5, 1942) is an American former television journalist and talk show host. From 1991 to 2017, he was the host and executive producer of the talk show '' Charlie Rose'' on PBS and Bloomberg LP. Rose also co- ...

on 5/5/1999, discussing the female body and her book, ''Woman''
Video: Angier reads from ''The Canon: A Whirligig Tour of the Beautiful Basics of Science'' on a book tour

Video: ''Science, Sex and Society: A Conversation with Natalie Angier''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Angier, Natalie Living people 1958 births Barnard College alumni University of Michigan alumni American science journalists Pulitzer Prize for Beat Reporting winners American atheists The New York Times writers American women journalists Women science writers Writers from the Bronx People from Takoma Park, Maryland 21st-century American women