2004 Science in Society Journalism Awards

Magazine

Robin Marantz Henig

“The Quest to Forget”

The New York Times Magazine

Description:

“The Quest to Forget,” which appeared in The New York Times Magazine, explores the ethics and practicalities of administering drugs to prevent painful memories from forming in people who have experienced a trauma. The judges praised writer Robin Marantz Henig for tackling such a “unique, fascinating subject.” In interviews with experts and survivors of an attack or other trauma, Henig examines whether drugs that block memories of a traumatic event can help people heal, or whether “editing out” horrible remembrances means losing the very experiences that make someone who they are.

Biography:

Robin Marantz Henig has written eight books, most recently Pandora’s Baby: How the First Test Tube Babies Sparked the Reproductive Revolution, about the early days of in vitro fertilization research. Robin began freelancing when her older daughter was born, specializing in writing books and articles about medicine and science. Her articles have appeared in The New York Times Magazine, Civilization, Discover, Scientific American and just about every woman’s magazine in the grocery store. She also writes book reviews and opinion pieces for New York Times and Washington Post, and has been a member of the board of contributors of USA Today. Since 1998 she has been a member of the board of directors of the National Association of Science Writers.

Robin’s honors include an Alicia Patterson Foundation fellowship, a Sloan Foundation grant, and a science writing fellowship from the Marine Biological Laboratory. She was a finalist for a National Book Critics Circle Award for her previous book, The Monk in the Garden: The Lost and Found Genius of Gregor Mendel. With her husband, Jeff, a professor at Teachers College and Columbia University, Robin moved to New York recently after spending 25 years in Washington, where Jeff taught political science at George Washington University. They have two daughters — Jessica, a doctoral student in English literature at the University of Maryland, and Samantha, a sociology major at Cornell.

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