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Byrd Pinkerton

Senior Producer / Reporter, Unexplainable Podcast

Byrd Pinkerton is a senior producer and reporter on Unexplainable, Vox’s science podcast, which she co-created. She covers everything scientists don’t yet know but are trying to figure out, so her work explores everything from the inner workings of the human body to the distant edges of the universe. She’s especially drawn to stories about the ocean, bugs, human health, the history of science, and how our scientific metaphors shape our understanding of the world.

Before Unexplainable, Byrd produced all three seasons of Vox’s The Impact podcast and three seasons of Vox’s Future Perfect podcast, working with journalists to cover health care, education, philanthropy, and other policy issues.

If you have a great history of science book you think Byrd should read or a fact about the ocean you think she’d enjoy, you can email her at byrd@vox.com, or reach out on Twitter (@byrdala) or Threads (@byrdest).

Latest articles by Byrd Pinkerton

Who’s the father? For these baby animals, one doesn’t exist.
Audio
Unexplainable

More animals can occasionally reproduce asexually than scientists realized.

By Byrd Pinkerton
Menstrual fluid’s underexplored medical treasures
Menstrual fluid’s underexplored medical treasures
Audio
Unexplainable

From wound healing to disease diagnosis, “this stuff is like gold dust.”

By Byrd Pinkerton
Mud libraries hold the story of the Earth’s climate past — and foretell its future
Climate

 Mud can be surprisingly clear.

By Byrd Pinkerton
How to catch a scientific fraud
How to catch a scientific fraud
Audio
Unexplainable

Elisabeth Bik has made a career of being a data vigilante. What should mainstream scientific journals learn from her? 

By Byrd Pinkerton
4 unexplainable mysteries of pregnancy and parenting
4 unexplainable mysteries of pregnancy and parenting
Audio
Unexplainable

Why do we know so little about pregnancy — one of the most common experiences on Earth?

By Brian Resnick and Byrd Pinkerton
How scientists discovered the universe is really freaking huge
Audio
Unexplainable

Edwin Hubble’s name is everywhere in astronomy. Henrietta Leavitt’s should be too.

By Brian Resnick, Amanda Northrop and 1 more
The ovarian “biological clock” and other reproductive health metaphors that have led science astray
The ovarian “biological clock” and other reproductive health metaphors that have led science astray
Audio
Podcasts

And why even the phrase “reproductive health” might be kind of misleading.

By Byrd Pinkerton
The underwater “eye” that is unlocking ocean secrets
The underwater “eye” that is unlocking ocean secrets
Audio
Science

A marine biologist built a stealth camera that’s collected images of some of the most elusive deep sea animals.

By Byrd Pinkerton
What romance novels can teach us about attraction
Audio
Culture

Romance authors are philosophers of love. Here’s how they think about chemistry.

By Byrd Pinkerton
How technology has inspired neuroscientists to reimagine the brain
How technology has inspired neuroscientists to reimagine the brain
Audio
Unexplainable

Telegraphs and computers helped scientists reimagine the mind, writes Matthew Cobb in The Idea of the Brain.

By Byrd Pinkerton