Alan was all set on majoring in biology, but then he realized he liked writing about science more than doing research, so he left Hong Kong and went to study journalism in the U.S. After interning at NPR and WBEZ in Chicago, he has never wanted to work anywhere outside of public radio. He covers space and all other kinds of innovation. He enjoys comic books, LEGO, and dragon boating.
More from the Contributor
Hurricane Helene shut down a factory in North Carolina that makes more than half of the U.S. supply of intravenous fluids. Hospitals use them everyday.
5 days ago
Listen 1:39Penn Medicine residents vote to approve union contract, a first for Pennsylvania
The negotiations took more than a year and included a large public rally and a recent incident where hospital security drove residents off a sidewalk.
2 weeks ago
Listen 1:26Penn researchers develop new gene therapy for previously untreatable eye disorder
The gene therapy comes seven years after another research group at the university helped come up with the first FDA approved gene therapy for an inherited disease.
2 weeks ago
Listen 1:44Some parents say their children are not supported enough. The School District of Philadelphia says they need more staff and resources.
3 weeks ago
Listen 12:02Air pollution at Philadelphia’s 15th Street subway station ‘considerably higher’ than EPA standard
Local researchers say it’s unclear what the health impact is, but public transit is still preferable to driving.
1 month ago
Resident doctors at Penn Medicine to demand contract both inside and outside the hospitals this week
After almost a year of negotiations, the big sticking point now is over wages. Residents say they make a little above minimum wage after accounting for long hours.
2 months ago
Listen 1:27Workers in Philly's Old City hit upon a historic cemetery with hundreds of people. It took years to study, identify and rebury them.
2 months ago
Listen 5:32Former Mütter Museum forensic anthropologist launches research institute
Longtime Mütter Museum forensic anthropologist Anna Dhody will continue her work analyzing historic samples, but now in a research institute of her own.
2 months ago
Meet two companies vying to make the next generation air conditioner
Air conditioning is a century-old technology, but now companies are racing to reinvent it and lower its large environmental footprint.
2 months ago
Listen 11:45How Philly area hospitals are dealing with a national shortage of blood culture bottles
Hospitals routinely use these bottles to check for infections in patients’ blood — now they are cutting back on tests.
2 months ago
Listen 1:51In Pa., spotted lanternflies’ knack for hitchhiking is proving crucial to their staying power
The invasive insect appeared in Pennsylvania 10 years ago and continues to spread west, as far away as Illinois.
3 months ago
Listen 1:39Meet a shark fisherman who structured his life around catching, and saving, sharks
13 years ago, AJ Rotondella realized he could catch sharks from the beach. He’s been hooked ever since, even moving across states to chase sharks.
3 months ago
Listen 12:02