Amber Dance Wins 2010 Evert Clark/Seth Payne Award

by Kerry Buker 0 comments

The winner of the 2010 Evert Clark/Seth Payne Award, an annual prize for young science journalists, is Amber Dance, a writer in Pasadena, Calif.

Dance received the award and its $1000 prize for four stories: “Bacterial Waists: Bacteria living in our guts may play a role in obesity,” in the Los Angeles Times; “From Pond Scum to pharmacy shelf,” in Nature Medicine;  “DNA Referees,” in the Los Angeles Times; and “Illegal Whale Meat Traced Back to Japan,” in Nature.

The panel of judges cited Dance for her impressive package of stories, which showed her versatility and mastery of topics that ranged from epigenetics to intestinal fauna. The judges said that Dance brought the reader deep into complex subjects with engaging writing, good organization, and the use of colorful quotes. The story on pond scum was a particular favorite.

The judges also awarded an Honorable Mention to Sadie Dingfelder for what they called a “wonderful” tale of a cellist who develops and successfully tests novel ideas about the evolution and effects of music. The story, entitled “Play that Monkey Music,” appeared in the Washington City Paper. The judges commended the story for using vivid characters and a compelling narrative to illuminate the often surprising twists and turns in the pathways and processes of science.

 The award will be presented by the Evert Clark Fund and the National Association of Science Writers, in conjunction with the National Press Foundation. The ceremony will take place in early November during the annual meeting of the National Association of Science Writers and the Council for the Advancement of Science Writing in New Haven, CT.

Judges for the 2010 award were Susan Milius, writer at Science News; Liz Pennisi, writer at Science; Laura Helmuth, senior editor at Smithsonian; Eugene Russo, editor at Nature; and Gary Ellis, editor at the Congressional Research Service. 

The Clark/Payne Award encourages young science writers by recognizing outstanding reporting in all fields of science. It is given each year in memory of journalists Ev Clark and Seth Payne, who offered friendship and advice to a generation of young reporters. This is the 21^th year of the award.

All entrants must be age 30 or younger. The deadline for submissions is now the end of June each year. For more information, contact the Evert Clark Award Fund or the Evert Clark website (now in the process of being revised).