Dr. Karmella Haynes

Reflections on NPR’s Science Friday: The Leap and the Power of Research Narratives

I recently had the opportunity to share my story on NPR’s Science Friday, as part of their series The Leap. In the episode, I spoke about the choices that led me to pursue research paths that don’t always follow traditional lines, paths that merge engineering with biology, and that explore questions at the molecular level using synthetic tools and big ideas.

Listen to the episode here: The Leap: Everything Else Is Boring

That phrase “everything else is boring” captures something important about how I approach science. I’ve always been drawn to problems that don’t fit neatly into one discipline, and to collaborations that challenge conventional thinking, especially in areas like chromatin, a deeply traditional field where new tools and perspectives can spark meaningful change in how we understand gene regulation and molecular design.

But doing bold, interdisciplinary science comes with a challenge: you have to explain your work clearly to people who don’t speak your scientific language yet, whether they’re grant reviewers, journal editors, or collaborators from different backgrounds. I’ve seen how hard that can be, but the results make all the effort worthwhile.

Over time, I’ve found a second passion alongside research: helping others find the words, structure, and strategy to tell their scientific stories. That’s why I now spend time coaching researchers on writing grants, manuscripts, and the narratives behind them. Interested? You can learn more about that here.

Thanks for reading.