Headshot of Jill Adams.

Jill Adams

Contributing writer

Jill U. Adams is a freelance science journalist based in Albany, New York. She covers health, mental health and biomedical research for such publications as The Transmitter, The Washington Post, Scientific American, Undark and The Scientist. She has a Ph.D. in pharmacology from Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia.

From this contributor

Research image of mouse brains showing altered migration of upper-layer neurons.
Spectrum

Restoring excitation-inhibition balance in a mouse model of autism; and more

By Jill Adams
18 March 2025 | 2 min read
Illustration of an open journal featuring lines of text and small illustrations of eyes and mouths.
Spotted

Analyzing automation: Two studies test methods that track rodents’ social interactions, children’s speech characteristics

By Jill Adams
11 March 2025 | 2 min read
Research image of enlarged brain ventricles in a mouse model of hydrocephalus.
Spectrum

Vocal language development in genetically different twins; gaze behavior in face-to-face conversation

By Jill Adams
4 March 2025 | 3 min read
Illustration of an open journal featuring lines of text and small illustrations of eyes and mouths.
Spectrum

Attention and IQ link; AUTS2-related syndrome; Glyx-13 for fragile X

By Jill Adams
25 February 2025 | 1 min read
Research image of brain signaling.
Spectrum

Depression perception; MYT1L mice; brain signal variability

By Jill Adams
18 February 2025 | 1 min read

Explore more from The Transmitter

Illustration of a woman sitting on a branch with a singing bird.
This paper changed my life

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.

By Stephanie Palmer
18 March 2025 | 5 min read
Tiger in a brain scanner.
Animal models

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.

By Christine J. Charvet
17 March 2025 | 5 min read
Composite of brain imaging techniques.
Human neurotechnology

Thanks to new technologies, neuroscientists have more direct access to the human brain than ever before

Model systems continue to offer us tremendous insight, but it’s time for basic researchers to train their sights on the human brain. If I were starting my career today, I would focus on human neurobiology.

By Joshua R. Sanes
17 March 2025 | 7 min read