Jon Hamilton
Jon Hamilton is a correspondent for NPR's Science Desk. Currently he focuses on neuroscience and health risks.
In 2014, Hamilton went to Liberia as part of the NPR team that covered Ebola. The team received a Peabody Award for its coverage.
Following the 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan, Hamilton was part of NPR's team of science reporters and editors who went to Japan to cover the crisis at the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant.
Hamilton contributed several pieces to the Science Desk series "The Human Edge," which looked at what makes people the most versatile and powerful species on Earth. His reporting explained how humans use stories, how the highly evolved human brain is made from primitive parts, and what autism reveals about humans' social brains.
In 2009, Hamilton received the Michael E. DeBakey Journalism Award for his piece on the neuroscience behind treating autism.
Before joining NPR in 1998, Hamilton was a media fellow with the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation studying health policy issues. He reported on states that have improved their Medicaid programs for the poor by enrolling beneficiaries in private HMOs.
From 1995-1997, Hamilton wrote on health and medical topics as a freelance writer, after having been a medical reporter for both The Commercial Appeal and Physician's Weekly.
Hamilton graduated with honors from Oberlin College in Ohio with a Bachelor of Arts in English. As a student, he was the editor of the Oberlin Review student newspaper. He earned his master's degree in journalism from Columbia University, where he graduated with honors. During his time at Columbia, Hamilton was awarded the Baker Prize for magazine writing and earned a Sherwood traveling fellowship.
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Researchers have identified 46 genes that can disrupt a process that is critical to early brain development. The finding could help scientists find new treatments for disorders including autism. -
Scientists have used brain organoids to show one way that genes associated with Autism Spectrum Disorder disrupt brain development.
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An effort to diversify genetic studies has led to a discovery about Parkinson's disease: a gene variant that raises the risk of Parkinson's in people of African ancestry.
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People seek out art and music that combine sadness and beauty. Scientists and artists say there's good reason why we're drawn to it.
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Why are humans attracted to art that combines sadness and beauty? A brain scientist says sadness has benefits like helping elicit empathy and purging negative emotion.
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Scientists have genetically engineered a see-through squid, allowing researchers to study its brain activity and other biological processes. (Story aired on All Things Considered on Aug. 25, 2023.)
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A see-through squid is giving scientists an unprecedented view of the brain and other organs in a living animal.
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Two studies show how technology is allowing people to generate speech using only their thoughts. (This story first aired on All Things Considered on August 23, 2023.)
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Scientists have genetically engineered a squid that is almost as transparent as the water it's in. The squid will allow researchers to watch brain activity and biological processes in a living animal.
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Two studies show how technology is allowing people to generate speech using only their thoughts.
