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
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
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
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
Explore more from The Transmitter
This paper changed my life: Stephanie Palmer on the ties between human speech and birdsong—and her ‘informal life coach’
A groundbreaking review by Allison Doupe, who was Palmer’s mentor, and Patricia Kuhl helped shape the field’s understanding of the neural and evolutionary dynamics of speech.

This paper changed my life: Stephanie Palmer on the ties between human speech and birdsong—and her ‘informal life coach’
A groundbreaking review by Allison Doupe, who was Palmer’s mentor, and Patricia Kuhl helped shape the field’s understanding of the neural and evolutionary dynamics of speech.
Restoring excitation-inhibition balance in a mouse model of autism; and more
Here is a roundup of autism-related news and research spotted around the web for the week of 17 March.

Restoring excitation-inhibition balance in a mouse model of autism; and more
Here is a roundup of autism-related news and research spotted around the web for the week of 17 March.
Lions and tigers and bears: Long-lived zoo animals offer a promising venue to study mental health and neurodegenerative disorders
These animals’ lifestyles often mirror those of people, making them a more relevant milieu than lab mice for determining how environmental factors influence mental health and cognitive decline. Studying them could improve animal welfare in the process.

Lions and tigers and bears: Long-lived zoo animals offer a promising venue to study mental health and neurodegenerative disorders
These animals’ lifestyles often mirror those of people, making them a more relevant milieu than lab mice for determining how environmental factors influence mental health and cognitive decline. Studying them could improve animal welfare in the process.