Rachel Nuwer

Contributing Writer
Spectrum

Rachel Nuwer is a freelance science journalist who contributes to outlets such as the New York Times, Scientific American and New Scientist. She writes news articles for Spectrum. She lives in Brooklyn.

From this contributor

Spectrum Microphone

Lisa Croen: Autism’s first dedicated epidemiologist

By Rachel Nuwer
28 March 2022 | 9 min read
Humorous photograph shows a young man with plastic sunglasses on that match the patterns around him, surveys a tabletop scene of patterned objects.
Spectrum

Finding strengths in autism

By Rachel Nuwer
12 May 2021 | 21 min read
Spectrum

Meet the autistic scientists redefining autism research

By Rachel Nuwer
10 June 2020 | 18 min read
Illustration shows older person in chair in messy house, looking out the window at a sunset.
Spectrum

Growing old with autism

By Rachel Nuwer
18 March 2020 | 17 min read
Spectrum from The Transmitter.
Spectrum

Mouse study links gene to some autism symptoms

By Rachel Nuwer
22 April 2016 | 3 min read

Explore more from The Transmitter

Cell types

Nature retracts paper on novel brain cell type against authors’ wishes

A 2022 paper was retracted after an independent team of researchers reanalyzed the data and questioned its validity.

By Shaena Montanari
9 July 2025 | 4 min read
Research image of neural activity in mouse auditory cortices.
Spectrum

Rise in autism prevalence but not traits; and more

Here is a roundup of autism-related news and research spotted around the web for the week of 7 July.

By Jill Adams
8 July 2025 | 2 min read
A fly over a background of waves of different colors.
Sleep Microphone

Drosophila, like vertebrates, filter sensory information during sleep

Predictive sensory processing in sleeping Drosophila echoes vertebrate research, establishing an evolutionarily conserved neural signature of sleep.

By Siddhant Pusdekar
8 July 2025 | 5 min listen