Science Journalist Dennis Overbye Awarded 2026 Andrew Gemant Award

WASHINGTON, Sept. 8, 2026 — AIP is pleased to announce Dennis Overbye as the winner of the 2026 Andrew Gemant Award.

Overbye, the longtime cosmic affairs correspondent at the New York Times before retiring in December 2024, was chosen for “being a beacon of science communication over many years, illuminating the frontiers and history of physics through eloquent storytelling and informed journalism, and bringing the science and the human endeavor behind it to life for audiences worldwide.”

“Dennis Overbye’s distinguished career as a science journalist exemplifies the legacy of the Andrew Gemant Award, which celebrates the artistic and humanistic side of the physical sciences,” said Michael Moloney, CEO of AIP. “He is a storyteller of the highest caliber, and his Pulitzer Prize-nominated reporting for the New York Times has shone a spotlight on crucial moments in scientific history.”

Overbye was born in Seattle, Washington, and grew up on Mercer Island, a small town in the middle of Lake Washington. After earning a Bachelor of Science in physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1966, he attended the University of California, Los Angeles to study astronomy.

“First, I wanted to be a cowboy, then I wanted to play second base for the Yankees, then I wanted to be Einstein. But somewhere in there, I wanted to be a journalist,” Overbye said.

While at UCLA, Overbye enrolled in a fiction writing workshop, where he discovered a love of creative writing and began working on a novel. His first job — and his first foray into science journalism — was at Sky and Telescope Magazine, where he worked as an assistant typesetter.

Eventually, Overbye became an editor at Sky and Telescope, then worked at Discover Magazine, Time Magazine, and New York University’s Science and Environmental Reporting Program, before landing at the New York Times in 1988.

At the New York Times, Overbye published the story “Chasing the Higgs Boson,” a piece detailing the multiyear search for the elusive particle. This was later selected as a finalist for the 2014 Pulitzer Prize in explanatory writing.

Overbye is also the author of two books, “Lonely Hearts of the Cosmos: The Scientific Search for the Secret of the Universe” (1991) and “Einstein in Love: A Scientific Romance” (2000).

While he’s covered many topics over the course of his career, Overbye said he enjoys writing profiles of scientists, some of whom have gone on to win Nobel Prizes.

“Science is done by humans,” Overbye said. “It’s a human adventure, and so everything that you associate with humans — emotions and passions — it all comes out in the work in the lab.”

Overbye’s work was featured in the annual editions of “The Best American Science and Nature Writing” from 2002-2003 and the “The Best American Science Writing” from 2003-2005. He was also a recipient of AIP’s Science Writing Award in 1980 and 1992.

“I’m delighted that Dennis has been chosen as the 2026 AIP Gemant Award winner,” said David Helfand, chair of the AIP board of directors. “He has a transcendent ability to describe our expanding knowledge of the universe in language that is both lyrical and tightly tethered to the humans who contribute to that knowledge. In an age when expertise is denigrated and science is viewed as optional, having such a talented interlocutor between scientists and the reading public is invaluable.”

Overbye currently lives in Manhattan with his wife, Nancy Wartik, a former New York Times journalist.

As part of his award, Overbye selected the Science Club for Girls to receive funding to further the public communication of physics. He will give a free public lecture at the American Center for Physics’ downtown Washington, D.C., offices Nov. 4. For more information, and to RSVP, visit this link .

“I’m grateful,” Overbye said. “I feel like this is a lifetime award. I can think of many people who could easily get this prize, so I’m lucky.”

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ABOUT THE AWARD

The Andrew Gemant Award recognizes the accomplishments of a person who has made significant contributions to the cultural, artistic, or humanistic dimension of physics and is given annually. The award is made possible by a bequest of Andrew Gemant to AIP.

The awardee receives a $5,000 cash award, designates an academic institution to receive a grant of $3,000 to further the public communication of physics, and is invited to deliver a public lecture in a suitable forum.

ABOUT AIP

As a 501(c)(3) non-profit, AIP is a federation that advances the success of our Member Societies and an institute that engages in research and analysis to empower positive change in the physical sciences. The mission of AIP (American Institute of Physics) is to advance, promote, and serve the physical sciences for the benefit of humanity.

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