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Starre Vartan on Muck Rack

Starre Vartan

Verified
  • Health and Science Journalist, Freelance
  • None, UNDARK
  • None, Freelance (CNN)
New York, Seattle, Sydney
As seen in: UNDARK, CNN, CNN en Español, CNN Travel, Elemental, Medium, MSN, MSN Canada, MSN India, OneZero, UOL and
Covers:  wildlife conservation, animals, health, technology, environmental science, conscious consumption, psychology, ethical travel, neuroscience, technology, design, astrobiology, geology
Doesn't Cover: babies, kids, money, relationships
Health & science journo: "The Stronger Sex" book on myths abt female bodies out July, 2025. Bylines: Undark, CNN, Nat Geo, SciAm. Dual US/AUS. She/Her.

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Starre Vartan’s Biography

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Based in the Seattle Area, Starre is a freelance science and environment writer with a focus on wildlife, technology, geology and water resources, medicine and astrobiology. Her work has been published in National Geographic, Scientific American, CNN, Medium, Slate, NASA's Astrobiology magazine, Gizmodo, Mental Floss, Hakai, and many more.

Starre also manages social media accounts for nonprofit science organizations.

Starre is the founder and editor of Eco-Chick.com, an award-winning 12-year-o…

Starre Vartan’s Journalist Portfolio

Ask the Experts: The Garden Designer

Ask the Experts: The Garden Designer

Many landscapers don't love working in urban environments. To me, working in the city is a piece of cake; the…

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South of the Border Cojones Test: Swim with 60' Whale Sharks

South of the Border Cojones Test: Swim with 60' Whale Sharks

Swimming with Whale Sharks: Cancun's Newest Lure. Could You Handle It? A Cancun whale shark. The biggest fish…

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All Natural

All Natural

Two Philadelphia University students successfully grow a lamp and a chair from mushrooms. DESIGNERS Merjan Si…

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What if you could have personal health care based on your genes?

What if you could have personal health care based on your genes?

If it seems like we've been hearing about how medicine is going to be more personalized in "the future," it's…

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Looking for Humane Angora? It Exists!

Looking for Humane Angora? It Exists!

In the wake of the PETA expose of the horrors of the angora industry, people were disgusted, saddened and ang…

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Guide to Mexico City

Guide to Mexico City

The glam go-to magazine for people in the know.

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Articles

Wild Boars in Brazil Are Spreading Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria, Scientists Warn Original

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By Starre Vartan Verified
| ScienceAlert Verified
If it feels like there are wild boars everywhere now, you're not imagining things. Feral pig populations are rapidly expanding in North America (especially Texas and Arizona), Europe, and South America. Now, besides causing damage to agricultural crops and invading suburban backyards, these wild boars could also be helping to spread antibiotic-resistant bacteria, according to a new study from Brazil.
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Are People Actually Getting Dumber? Introducing The Reverse Flynn Effect Original

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By Starre Vartan Verified
| ScienceAlert Verified
Just over a hundred years ago, the Binet IQ test was developed in France and soon after, brought to the United States, where it was given to public school kids, physicians, and immigrants at Ellis Island. From the 1930s, IQ scores seemed to be inching up – with each new generation scoring a little higher than the last. Throughout the 20th century, average intelligence scores rose by about 3 points a decade, even when researchers used different tests and metrics.
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Are People Actually Getting Dumber? Introducing The Reverse Flynn Effect

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By Starre Vartan Verified
| Flipboard
7 hours ago Readers gave the highest ratings to stories created by artificial intelligence (AI), believing they had been written by humans, according to new research. The study, published by Cambridge University Press, tested to see whether people aged 18 to 81 could tell the difference between human-written …
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Interview

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Have you ever used a typewriter?

Yes, I learned to type on one when I was 8.

How do you prefer to be pitched on stories?

Via email.

What's your favorite social network?

Instagram; the immediacy and beauty of photographs is something I admire so much as a writer!