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Elizabeth Quill

Elizabeth Quill

Editor, Special Projects

Elizabeth Quill is the special projects editor for Science News. She has overseen efforts including the SN 10: Scientists to Watch and the Year in Review, and is the editorial coordinator for the  program, which puts Science News and related resources into the hands of teachers and students at more than 4,000 high schools across the United States and worldwide. She has edited special collections on topics ranging from consciousness to general relativity, and recently took a deep dive into the stories behind the periodic table of the elements. Originally from the Finger Lakes region of New York, Elizabeth studied journalism at Ithaca College and received her master’s degree in science writing from MIT. This is her second tour at Science News. She started her career here more than a decade ago and returned in 2015 after serving as the senior editor for science at Smithsonian magazine.

All Stories by Elizabeth Quill

  1. Two monkeys standing on a tree branch; a juvenile monkey is being groomed by a female silvered-leaf monkey
    Life

     These science discoveries from 2022 could be game changers

    Gophers that farm, the earliest known hominid, a strange hybrid monkey and the W boson's mass are among the findings awaiting more evidence.
  2. Huijia Lin portrait
    Computing

     Huijia Lin proved that a master tool of cryptography is possible

    Cryptographer Huijia Lin showed that the long-sought “indistinguishability obfuscation” is secure from data attacks.
  3. Science & Society

    How we got from Gregor Mendel’s pea plants to modern genetics

    Philosopher Yafeng Shan explains how today's understanding of inheritance emerged from a muddle of ideas at the turn of the 20th century.

  4.  Looking back on science can refocus our attention

    Special projects editor Elizabeth Quill shares her thoughts on how the history of science can help us sharpen our focus on its future.
  5. neutron star illustration
    Cosmology

     Einstein’s theory of general relativity unveiled a dynamic and bizarre cosmos

    Albert Einstein’s theory of general relativity foretold space-bending beasts, cosmic shock waves and mysterious forces.
  6. Monika Schleier-Smith
    Physics

     Monika Schleier-Smith leads elaborate quantum conversations

    Monika Schleier-Smith forces atoms to interact in ways that could offer insights into quantum computing, precision timekeeping and perhaps black holes.
  7. periodic table
    Chemistry

     150 years on, the periodic table has more stories than it has elements

    The organized rows and columns of the Periodic Table hide a rich and twisting history.
  8. illustration of a fetus and placenta
    Health & Medicine

     Though often forgotten, the placenta has a huge role in baby’s health

    Recent research in mice suggests that a lot of early problems in the embryo may actually have roots in the placenta.
  9. Science & Society

     In play, kids and scientists take big mental leaps

    Acting Editor in Chief Elizabeth Quill explores the science behind children's play and how kids like to mimic the same things adults do.
  10. Science & Society

     Memory remains elusive, but the search continues

    Acting Editor in Chief Elizabeth Quill explores the history of memory and scientists' search for its physical trace in our brains.
  11. Science & Society

     We’ll be watching the skies, plus a lot more, this year

    Acting Editor in Chief Elizabeth Quill predicts 2018 could be a year full of important space discoveries.
  12. composite image of top science stories of 2017
    Science & Society

     2017 delivered humility, and proved our potential

    Acting Editor in Chief Elizabeth Quill reflects on some of the top scientific stories of 2017.