Erika Check Hayden is an award-winning, San Francisco-based science and technology reporter. She writes for Nature, and on a freelance basis for a variety of publications, and is a lecturer in the University of California, Santa Cruz Science Communication Program.
Erika Check Hayden
Freelance writer
From this contributor
For studies, size matters: Let us count the ways
In autism research, as in other fields, small sample sizes can lead to false findings. The size of the sample needed for statistical significance depends on the type of study.
For studies, size matters: Let us count the ways
By
Erika Check Hayden
17 October 2018 | 6 min read
Preprint server bioRxiv gets boost from Facebook billionaire
The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative has pledged to provide financial support for bioRxiv, a website where researchers can share manuscripts before peer review.
Preprint server bioRxiv gets boost from Facebook billionaire
By
Erika Check Hayden
28 April 2017 | 5 min read
Book review: ‘Rigor Mortis’ reveals rampant sloppiness in science
In his new book, journalist Richard Harris writes that lack of reproducibility in research poses a serious threat to science.
Book review: ‘Rigor Mortis’ reveals rampant sloppiness in science
By
Erika Check Hayden
4 April 2017 | 5 min read
Rising star: Somer Bishop fine-tunes autism diagnosis
Somer Bishop is launching a revolution in autism diagnosis, creating faster, more precise tools that speed research and better capture the full spectrum of autism symptoms.
Rising star: Somer Bishop fine-tunes autism diagnosis
By
Erika Check Hayden
28 April 2016 | 8 min read
Explore more from The Transmitter
Autism-linked variants rewire protein networks
The myriad proteins tied to autism cluster in previously unrecognized ways that can be disrupted by specific variants in the proteins.
Autism-linked variants rewire protein networks
The myriad proteins tied to autism cluster in previously unrecognized ways that can be disrupted by specific variants in the proteins.
By
Claudia López Lloreda
27 August 2026 | 5 min read
Future remains uncertain for U.S. federal funding of behavioral, cognitive science
The National Science Foundation did not include any solicitations for its social, behavioral and economic sciences directorate in its latest round of funding opportunities, nor replace any outgoing program officers—which poses an existential threat for the program, says nonprofit executive Wendy Naus.
Future remains uncertain for U.S. federal funding of behavioral, cognitive science
The National Science Foundation did not include any solicitations for its social, behavioral and economic sciences directorate in its latest round of funding opportunities, nor replace any outgoing program officers—which poses an existential threat for the program, says nonprofit executive Wendy Naus.
By
Calli McMurray
26 August 2026 | 5 min read
How energy determines where proteins are produced in neurons
Tatjana Tchumatchenko explains how mathematical modeling elucidates whether ion-channel proteins are produced locally in the soma or in the dendrites.
How energy determines where proteins are produced in neurons
Tatjana Tchumatchenko explains how mathematical modeling elucidates whether ion-channel proteins are produced locally in the soma or in the dendrites.
By
Gaute Einevoll
26 August 2026 | 104 min listen