Amber Dance is an award-winning freelance science writer and editor based in Southern California. She is a contributor at Knowable Magazine, program director for the New Horizons in Science briefings at the ScienceWriters annual conference for the Council for the Advancement of Science Writing, and a science writing instructor UCLA Extension. She is also a Fictionary StoryCoach Certified Editor.
Amber Dance
Science writer and editor
From this contributor
Measuring plastic in the brain: Improving, but incomplete
Meanwhile, researchers are publishing papers without “sufficient quality control,” says analytical chemist Dušan Materić.
Measuring plastic in the brain: Improving, but incomplete
By
Amber Dance
18 September 2026 | 9 min read
Maternity induces lasting gene-expression changes in mouse brains
The findings add to a small but growing body of research on neurological changes linked to pregnancy, birth and parenting.
Maternity induces lasting gene-expression changes in mouse brains
By
Amber Dance
12 June 2026 | 5 min read
Levels of autism severity in diagnostic manual track with intelligence
A rating of high severity of autism from the DSM-5, the latest version of the “Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders,” tracks with low intelligence scores.
Levels of autism severity in diagnostic manual track with intelligence
By
Amber Dance
26 March 2018 | 4 min read
Explore more from The Transmitter
Highly cited autism paper earns expression of concern over data duplications
The notice, published in Nature last week, also addressed an image duplication identified by a prominent research-integrity sleuth.
Highly cited autism paper earns expression of concern over data duplications
The notice, published in Nature last week, also addressed an image duplication identified by a prominent research-integrity sleuth.
By
Madeline Shaw
16 October 2026 | 4 min read
Govern neurodata by how it’s used, not where it’s from
New neurodata laws will shape how researchers gather, share and reuse brain data. A use-based governance protects basic researchers and those whose data are being used, without freezing science.
Govern neurodata by how it’s used, not where it’s from
New neurodata laws will shape how researchers gather, share and reuse brain data. A use-based governance protects basic researchers and those whose data are being used, without freezing science.
By
José M. Muñoz
16 October 2026 | 7 min read
How new technologies can bring primatologists and systems neuroscientists together
The two groups study the same behavioral phenomena yet rarely interact or read each other's work—a mutual blind spot that weakens both fields. New technologies offer a chance to bring them together.
How new technologies can bring primatologists and systems neuroscientists together
The two groups study the same behavioral phenomena yet rarely interact or read each other's work—a mutual blind spot that weakens both fields. New technologies offer a chance to bring them together.
By
Sjoerd Murris
15 October 2026 | 6 min read