Our Team

Peter Dockrill is an award-winning science and technology journalist, formerly with Money, APC, TechLife, and PC User. He’s written thousands of articles for ScienceAlert since joining the company in 2015, and has managed the team since 2022.

Rebecca Dyer is a science journalist and editor who joined ScienceAlert in 2022. A firm believer in lifelong learning, she holds a Bachelor of Medical Science and has a strong interest in genetics research and emerging technology. Rebecca believes science can be fun and accessible to everyone when communicated clearly.

Michelle Starr is an award-winning journalist with over 15 years of experience in the science and technology sectors. At ScienceAlert, she loves exploring the vast cosmos through the spaceship of scientific curiosity. She is also a firm believer that ravens will one day rule the world.

Carly Cassella is a science journalist who writes, fact checks, and edits at ScienceAlert. As a freelancer, she has written for bioGraphic Magazine, High Country News, Australian Geographic, and more. If there’s a story about poop, she’s writing it.

Jess Cockerill is a science journalist with a Bachelor of Science in Conservation Biology, and a Graduate Diploma in Journalism. Their freelance writing has appeared in The Best Australian Science Writing, ScienceAlert, Overland, The Walkley Magazine and others. They were an intern with The Conversation before joining the ScienceAlert team in 2023.

Michael Irving has been a writer and journalist since 2011, covering science and technology for outlets such as ScienceAlert, New Atlas, Stack magazine, Kotaku, and Cracked, among many others. On the side he dabbles in kids fiction and comedy.

Clare Watson is an award-winning science journalist whose work has appeared in TIME, The Guardian, Nature, Australian Geographic, and more. She’s been reporting and fact-checking for ScienceAlert since 2020. She has a Bachelor of Science (Molecular and Cell Biology), and her stories have featured in the Best Australian Science Writing six times.

David Nield is a freelance journalist who has been reporting on science and technology for more than 10 years. His work can be seen on The Guardian, Gizmodo, TechRadar, Digital Trends and numerous other places.

Russell McLendon is a science journalist with more than 15 years of experience covering a wide range of topics, from human health and psychology to astronomy, ecology, climate science, and wildlife biology. His work has appeared in publications including Treehugger, Reader’s Digest, The Healthy, and Buzzfeed.

Ivan Farkas is a Contributing Journalist at ScienceAlert. Ivan has been writing for a diverse range of audiences for 15 years. He loves learning about as many things as possible and has written about almost every major subject that ends in ‘ology’, plus a few that don’t. Ivan has an academic background in exercise science, nutrition, and sports medicine.

Rachel Garner is a fact-checker at ScienceAlert. She has extensive experience in fact-checking popular science manuscripts, white papers, standardized testing material, and has worked with a variety of science communication outlets and non-profits such as Complexly, Cancer Today, Undark, and the Environmental Defense Fund.

Esra Öz is a science journalist and science communicator with 19 years of experience covering science, health, and technology. Her work has appeared in Science, New Scientist, CNN Türk, Forbes Türkiye, Inside Turkey, and Independent Türkçe. She holds a master’s degree in science communication and is the author of three books.

Starre Vartan is author of The Stronger Sex: What Science Tells Us About the Power of the Female Body (Seal Press/Hachette, 2025). She’s worked as a science journalist for over 15 years, regularly contributing to National Geographic, Scientific American, and New Scientist. She’s also a trail runner, weightlifter, wildswimmer, and ecstatic dancer.

Kate Mallord is a strategic leader with deep expertise in go-to-market and commercial growth. Passionate about making science news accessible for all, Kate joined ScienceAlert as CEO in 2024. Kate has held leadership roles at LinkedIn and Meta and is a former BBC.com editor.

Chris Cassella is an ex-Microsoft programmer and failed neuroscientist turned science communicator, dedicated to inspiring and engaging people with science. In 2006, as part of his Master of Science Communication, he modernized the ScienceAlert website, growing it into the world’s leading popular science news platform.

Fiona MacDonald is an award-winning science reporter who’s been with ScienceAlert since it began, helping to found its editorial team and strategy. Fiona has been a journalist and editor with ScienceAlert and was the CEO from 2017 to 2024. She has a Bachelor of Science with Honours in zoology and has written for publications including Australian Geographic, Harper’s Bazaar, GQ, and Popular Science.