David Kestenbaum
David Kestenbaum is a correspondent for NPR, covering science, energy issues and, most recently, the global economy for NPR's multimedia project Planet Money. David has been a science correspondent for NPR since 1999. He came to journalism the usual way — by getting a Ph.D. in physics first.
In his years at NPR, David has covered science's discoveries and its darker side, including the Northeast blackout, the anthrax attacks and the collapse of the New Orleans levees. He has also reported on energy issues, particularly nuclear and climate change.
David has won awards from the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Physical Society and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.
David worked briefly on the show This American Life, and set up a radio journalism program in Cambodia on a Fulbright fellowship. He also teaches a journalism class at Johns Hopkins University.
David holds a bachelor's of science degree in physics from Yale University and a doctorate in physics from Harvard University.
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The DOJ says it's confident Army scientist Bruce Ivins sent the deadly anthrax letters in 2001. But Ivins' lawyer says dozens, if not hundreds, of scientists and contractors had access to those same anthrax spores. A detailed look at the government's allegations and Ivins' defense. -
Scientist Bruce E. Ivins was respected by his colleagues at the Army biodefense research center at Fort Detrick in Maryland. His death, and his possible connection to an FBI investigation in the 2001 anthrax killings, hits a tight-knit community.
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Advocates of NASA's plan to return to the moon are concerned that Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama has said he will raid NASA's budget to fund education. While the issue of space exploration hasn't gotten much attention this campaign season, it is a topic on which the candidates do differ.
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Now that space shuttle Atlantis has safely returned to Earth, the Pentagon plans to shoot down a failing spy satellite as early as Wednesday night. The Navy will launch a missile in an attempt to destroy the satellite before it crashes to Earth.
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For most people, a makeover means losing weight and getting new clothes, hairstyle and makeup. But the body does its own extreme makeover each year, regularly replacing 98 percent of its atoms. The atomic makeover prompts a more philosophical question: Are people still themselves if their atoms are always new? -
Policymakers and scientists are strongly criticizing comments by Michael Griffin, the head of NASA. In an earlier interview with NPR, he said that he's not sure global warming is an issue that the space agency — or humans — need to "wrestle with."
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In the coming weeks, the Environmental Protection Agency is expected to issue a regulation that will extend 1 million years into the future. But the EPA doesn't even know if humans will exist a million years from now.
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In a stunning reversal of fortune, it now seems likely that Pluto will lose its title of planet. Scientists meeting in Prague were presented with a new definition of the word "planet" last week, which would have included Pluto as a planet. But the proposal met with fierce protests. Opponents say there are hundreds of objects like Pluto.
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An international panel has unanimously recommended that Pluto retain its title as a planet, and it may be joined by other undersized objects that revolve around the sun.
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The space shuttle Discovery lands at the Kennedy Space Center after a successful visit to the International Space Station. NASA now turns its attention to the launch of Atlantis. That mission may go as early as Aug. 27 and will haul a major addition to the space station.
