Laura Helmuth
Laura Helmuth Laura Helmuth

Laura Helmuth is Slate's science and health editor. 

Slate Voice
Feb. 3 2015 7:30 AMSlate Voice: “James Watson Throws a Fit”Listen to Laura Helmuth read her piece about the tarnished legacy of a Nobel laureate.Laura Helmuth
Science
Dec. 16 2014 6:18 PMMerry and BrightChristmas decorations are visible from space.Laura Helmuth
Behind the Scenes
Nov. 28 2014 5:00 PMOur Media Thanksgiving ListThe podcasts, websites, and apps Slate-sters are thankful for.L.V. Anderson, Jeff Friedrich, Aisha Harris, Laura Helmuth, Chris Kirk, Dan Kois, Jennifer Lai, Rachael Larimore, Abby McIntyre, Ayana Morali, David Plotz, June Thomas, Julia Turner, Katy Waldman, Forrest Wickman, and Betsy Woodruff
TV Club
Nov. 17 2014 8:00 AMThe Slate Doctor Who Podcast: Final Thoughts on Series 8    Phil Plait and Mac Rogers on the finale and the season.Phil Plait, Mac Rogers, Laura Helmuth, Gabriel Roth, and June Thomas
Better Summer
Aug. 26 2014 11:47 PMGet SmashedBadminton is the best party icebreaker (well, next to alcohol).Laura Helmuth
Science
July 20 2014 2:54 PMDon’t Feel Sorry for Robert F. Kennedy Jr.A Washington Post profile portrays him as passionate and sympathetic. He’s actually obsessive and dangerous.Laura Helmuth
Slate Picks
June 11 2014 10:14 AMSome Capital EatsSlate-sters dish on their favorite restaurants in Washington, D.C.Jamelle Bouie, Nicole L. Cvetnic, James Dasinger, John Dickerson, Laura Helmuth, Joshua Keating, Chad Lorenz, Abby McIntyre, Heidi Strom Moon, David Plotz, David Stern, Ryan Vogt, David Weigel, Megan Wiegand, and Emily Yoffe
Slate Plus
May 12 2014 1:09 PMThe Editor’s CreedTwo Slate editors debate their very different editing philosophies.Dan Kois, Laura Helmuth, and Jennifer Lai
The Slatest
April 17 2014 9:44 PMHere's How Long That Teen Would Have to Pee in the Portland Reservoir to Make It Unsafe to DrinkLaura Helmuth
Slate Picks
March 17 2014 11:00 AMLions and Hippos and Jellyfish, Oh MyThe best animal stories in books, articles, and movies, from Slate’s Wild Things writers.Laura Helmuth, Ben Mirin, Jason Bittel, and Lance Richardson
Human Genome
Oct. 30 2013 2:14 PMWatch Francis Collins Lunge for the Nobel PrizeAn underhanded attempt by the National Institutes of Health to claim full credit for sequencing the human genome.Laura Helmuth
Science
Oct. 10 2013 8:14 AMWho Will Win a Nobel Prize?Everything you need to know about the contenders, rivalries, scandals, and politics of the famous awards.Laura Helmuth
Two Lives
Sept. 12 2013 5:42 AMWhat Saved Your Life?Slate readers shared fascinating, heartwarming stories. Here are 50 fun ones.Laura Helmuth
Two Lives
Sept. 11 2013 8:06 AMThe Best Critique of Alternative Medicine EverIt’s an animated video. And it’s hilarious.Laura Helmuth
Two Lives
Sept. 10 2013 5:15 AMThe Disturbing, Shameful History of Childbirth DeathsIf you are pregnant, do not read this story.Laura Helmuth
Behind the Scenes
Dec. 31 2014 1:16 PMSlate Staffers Pick Their Out-of-Left-Field Favorite Slate Articles of 2014Allison Benedikt, Jamelle Bouie, David Haglund, Laura Helmuth, Dan Kois, Joshua Keating, Chris Kirk, Miriam Krule, Dahlia Lithwick, and Katy Waldman
Science
Dec. 1 2014 10:26 AMJames Watson Throws a FitThe disgraced co-discoverer of DNA is selling his Nobel Prize.Laura Helmuth
Science
Nov. 26 2014 3:07 PMSpecies Worth SavingWhy we should be thankful for the red-cockaded woodpecker.Laura Helmuth
Medical Examiner
Oct. 26 2014 1:29 PMHugger-in-ChiefIn embracing an Ebola victim, Barack Obama succeeded where Ronald Reagan failed.Laura Helmuth
Slate Picks
Aug. 13 2014 7:31 AMSongs That Make Slate NostalgicA roundup of the music from high school that staffers still love.L.V. Anderson, Eliza Berman, Jamelle Bouie, David Haglund, Aisha Harris, Laura Helmuth, Jane C. Hu, Derreck Johnson, Dan Kois, Rachael Larimore, Dahlia Lithwick, Dee Lockett, Rebecca Onion, Vivian Selbo, Mark Joseph Stern, June Thomas, Julia Turner, Lindsey Underwood, and Katy Waldman
Science
July 4 2014 6:03 AMWhat Happened at Slate This Week?Slate’s science editor on her favorite reads from Slate this week.Laura Helmuth
Faith-based
May 12 2014 2:24 PMWitness to an ExorcismHow Pope Francis and the Vatican deal with the devil.Laura Helmuth
Behind the Scenes
May 8 2014 4:40 PMDear Prudence Talks Moms, Moms-in-Law, and MoreA Slate Plus exclusive: Listen to the Dear Prudence Mommy Dearest event, recorded live in Washington, D.C.Emily Yoffe and Laura Helmuth
Behind the Scenes
March 19 2014 2:12 PMShould Slate Change Its G.D. Profanity Policy? Three Editors Debate.David Plotz, Dan Kois, Laura Helmuth, and Jennifer Lai
Science
Dec. 23 2013 10:34 AMAnimals of the YearSlate’s best stories about other species.Laura Helmuth
Doublex
Oct. 17 2013 12:06 PMDon’t Be a CreepLessons from the latest terrible, sad, fascinating scandal in the science blogging world.Laura Helmuth
Science
Sept. 12 2013 5:15 PMWatch the Ig Nobel PrizesTonight is the weirdest night in science.Laura Helmuth
Two Lives
Sept. 12 2013 5:41 AMJust How Long Can People Live?It’s one of the juiciest debates in science.Laura Helmuth
Two Lives
Sept. 11 2013 5:10 AMFourteen Oddball Reasons You’re Not Dead YetA selection of underappreciated people, innovations, and ideas that save lives.Laura Helmuth
Two Lives
Sept. 9 2013 5:45 AMLong Lives Made Humans HumanOld people were invented in the Paleolithic Age and perfected in the 20th century.Laura Helmuth

READ MORE STORIES

  News & Politics
Politics
March 6 2015 7:21 PM Defenseless Secretary Hillary Clinton hasn’t offered a reasonable explanation for her private email account. That’s because there isn’t one. Josh Voorhees
Wisconsin’s Unions Just Died With a Whimper
Ferries Are Antiquated, Inefficient, and Mostly Help the Well-Off. Why Do Mayors Love Them?
Why the Civil Rights Legacy of Selma Is Waning Once Again
Why No One Can Afford to Skip Iowa This Time
Suddenly, Great Britain Is Disappearing From the World Stage
If Obamacare Survives, Thank Sonia Sotomayor
Cairo’s Famed Islamic Art Museum Still Hasn’t Recovered From Last Year’s Terrorist Bombing
  Business
Moneybox
March 6 2015 6:46 PM Naming Wrongs David Geffen paid $100 million to get his name on a concert hall at Lincoln Center. Yes, that’s kind of gross.  Felix Salmon
American Apparel’s Sleazy Former CEO Is Leading a Worker Revolt Against the Company
Ice Cream Startup That Ripped Off Ben & Jerry’s Isn’t Worried About Being Sued
The Russian Economy's Screwed, So Putin Is Taking a Pay Cut
Why Staples’ Terrible Sales Might Be a Godsend for the Company
Bureaucracy as a Force for Good
We’re Adding Jobs Aplenty. But Why Aren’t Workers Getting Bigger Raises?
McDonald’s Is Finally Phasing Out Antibiotics in Chicken. Thank Chipotle.
  Life
The Eye
March 6 2015 7:51 PM How the Design of a Selma Bridge Became a Metaphor for the Civil Rights Movement Connor Towne O’€™Neill
Albert Maysles Made a Great Contribution to Gay Culture With Grey Gardens
A Ton of Republicans Just Asked the Supreme Court to Rule for Marriage Equality
Why Do We Love Paris but Hate Frankfurt? A Swiss Author’s Six Qualities of Beautiful Cities.
Incredible Hulks: The Ship Graveyard of Mauritania
What Was It Like to Work With Martin Luther King Jr. on the “I Have a Dream” Speech?
Florida Bill That Would Imprison Trans People for Using Public Bathrooms Passes Major Hurdle
Wellesley Is Right to Admit Transgender Women. Women’s Colleges Should Be for All Women.
  Double X
The XX Factor
March 6 2015 1:31 PM Two Moody Bitches Discuss Moody Bitches Jessica Grose and Hanna Rosin
On Wikipedia, Gamergate Refuses to Die
Catholic Bishops Want to Deny Raped Migrant Girls Access to Health Care. How Compassionate.
How Evangelicals Took Sex Trafficking From Feminists and Made It a Christian Cause Célèbre
This Gender Discrimination Trial Reveals the Subtle Way Sexism Happens in Silicon Valley
Unintended Pregnancy Is Expensive. For Taxpayers.  
There Are More Men Named John Than Women Running Large Companies
CPS Finds “Free Range” Parents Responsible for Unsubstantiated Child Neglect. Now What?
  Slate Plus
Plus Roundups
March 6 2015 1:17 PM “You Can Call Me Laura” Here are L.V. Anderson’s favorite reads from Slate this week, from #teamweasel to the discovery of thiamin.  L.V. Anderson
This Week’s Best of the Web, Curated by Slatesters
Why It’s Wrong to Fondle Fido
Gabfest Bonus Segment: Why Parks and Rec Was a National Treasure
I Was a Slate Commenter; Now I’m a Slate Writer. Ask Me Anything.
  Arts
Brow Beat
March 6 2015 9:20 PM Albert Maysles (1926-2015) Pushed Documentary Filmmaking Forward to the Very End Charles Loxton
Google’s New Cocktail Recipes Are Terrible—But You Can Help Make Them Better
Slate’s Cartoonist Studio Prize Announces the Best Print and Web Comics of the Year
Prince Is Doing a “Hit & Run” Tour in the U.S., Could Play Near You at Any Time
Why Scandal’s Ferguson-Themed Episode Was So Frustrating
You Should Watch Errol Morris’ New ESPN Shorts, Even if You Don’t Care About Sports
H Is for Hawk Is Like No Book I’ve Ever Read Before
  Technology
Future Tense
March 6 2015 7:01 PM Airbnb's Ritzy SF Offices Are Surrounded by Homeless People Will Oremus
Can Playing This Video Game Help Cure Lazy Eye?
Why Did It Take Microsoft So Long to Acknowledge a Huge Security Hole That It Found?
How the Campaign to Eradicate ISIS Twitter Accounts Could Backfire
People With Disabilities Shouldn’t Be Defined by the Technologies They Do or Don’t Use
France Wants to Punish Facebook for Censoring a Painting of a Vagina. Terrible Idea.
The Cops Can Pretty Much Always Search Your Smartphone in Canada
  Health & Science
Science
March 6 2015 12:31 PM The Kids Are All Right Have we made our children into moral monsters? Daniel Engber
It Took a Horrible Wasting Disease—and Lots and Lots of Chickens—for Scientists to Discover Vitamins
Time and Tide: Crash Course Astronomy Episode 8
Four Planets Await After Sunset
Pregnant Women Have a Right to Work, and That Right Is Often Trampled On
Galaxy on the Edge
If You Shake With Someone, Do You Sniff Your Hand Afterward?  
  Sports
Sports Nut
Feb. 26 2015 7:41 PM Game, Set, and (Fixed) Match Pro tennis has a match-fixing problem in its lower ranks. Ben Rothenberg
What’s the Hardest Shot in Bowling? It’s Not the 7-10 Split.
Has ASU Discovered the Holy Grail of Free-Throw Distraction?
How John Wall Became the Most Entertaining Player in the NBA
Dean Smith’s Political Approach to Being a Coach Is Missed Now More Than Ever
Why Handball’s World Championship in Qatar Should Worry World Cup Fans
Seattle Didn’t Throw Away the Super Bowl. The Patriots Won It.