Many writers know what they want to do from a young age, but when I was growing up, I loved science. As a biology major in college, I discovered that most professional scientists chose a specialty and spend their whole careers doing research in that area. But I wanted to know more about everything — plants and animals and geology and outer space. That’s how I knew I wasn’t cut out to do research. Luckily, one of my professors pointed me in the right direction. One day, she handed me an article from Discover magazine. It was about sequencing fruit fly DNA — the same topic as my senior honors thesis. “You could have written this article,” she said. “I think you’re a good writer, and maybe that’s the job for you.” A few days later, I applied to New York University’s Science, Health and Environmental Reporting Program, and that launched me into a career that meshed my talent as a writer with my love of science.