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NPR Journalist Wins Science Broadcasting PrizeCOLLEGE PARK, MARYLAND, 13 April 2007 — Journalist David Kestenbaum has won the latest American Institute of Physics (AIP) Science Writing Award for Broadcast Media for "Einstein's Miraculous Year: How Smart Was Einstein?," a feature that was broadcast on NPR's Morning Edition on May 9, 2005. This is the second time Kestenbaum has won the AIP broadcast media award, which has only been in existence for nine years.
The piece aired during the 100th anniversary of Einstein's "miracle year" of 1905, in which, among other things, Einstein published the special theory of relativity, demonstrated the quantum nature of light, and introduced the famous equation, E=mc2. In his story, Kestenbaum explores what made Einstein a giant even among other great physicists: not so much for mathematical ability, but more for an exceptionally clear way of thinking and visualizing problems in ways that still astound scientists today. The AIP Science Writing Award committee that selected Kestenbaum for the prize cited the piece "for engaging listeners' interest in the intellectual process of modern physics and then clearly presenting essential specifics of Einstein's theories while providing refreshing and little-known details on his approaches for solving problems." Kestenbaum has been a science correspondent for NPR since 1999. He studied physics as an undergraduate at Yale and received his Ph.D. in physics from Harvard. In the 1990s, APS sponsored Kestenbaum to be an American Association for the Advancement of Science Mass Media Fellow. This led to a physics reporting job at the journal Science, and eventually, to his current post at NPR. The AIP Science Writing Awards aim to promote effective science communication in print and broadcast media in order to improve the general public's appreciation of physics, astronomy, and allied science fields. Other categories for the award include print journalism, children’s writing, and works written by scientists for the general public. For more information, please contact: Links: "Einstein's Miraculous Year: How Smart was Einstein?" PhysicsCentral Biography of David Kestenbaum AIP Science Writing Awards |
Kestenbaum will receive a prize of $3,000, an engraved Windsor Chair, and a certificate of recognition during a special awards ceremony at the American Physical Society's April Meeting in Jacksonville on April 15, 2007. In addition, NPR will receive a certificate honoring the work.