Researcher, Asimov Press (Contractor)

Our mission at Asimov Press is to tell compelling stories about the science and technologies that enable a flourishing future. We publish essays, science fiction, and books that highlight progress, argue for new ways of thinking, and explain how engineered living systems are enabling outsized benefits to humanity. We are searching for a part-time Researcher on a 3 month contract to help build this publishing initiative. The ideal candidate has experience in biology and an absurd amount of attention to detail. More importantly, though, they have a passion for learning; they are able to triangulate toward compelling people, piece together disparate information, and arrive at a deep understanding of ideas. Your contributions will be acknowledged in each article to which you add reporting.

About the Role:

• Contribute reporting to Asimov Press’ long-form coverage.
• Continuously speak with scientists and engineers to learn and discover new ideas. 
• Investigate, scrape, and curate interesting datasets from diverse sources for our Data Briefs (~2x per month) series.
• Write social media posts for each article (no experience required).
• Contribute to the long-term, strategic planning strategy at Asimov Press. Join our team and meetings, if desired, and learn our editorial workflows.
• Be directly involved in building a publishing platform, while striving to maintain incredibly high standards for truth, writing, and originality.
• This role will begin as a part-time (up 20 hours per week), 3 month contract. Dependent on business needs, there is potential for the contract to be extended.

About You:

• You have a demonstrated passion for the biosciences, with 3+ years of experience in research (academic, industry, or independent).
• You have the ability to work with data in Jupyter notebooks or spreadsheets. 1+ years of Python/Pandas experience is strongly preferred, but we’re also glad to work with R users.
• You have a proven track record of conveying complex ideas in clear, compelling prose, either on your own blog or in media outlets.
• You are serious about learning and thrive with a high degree of autonomy. 
• You grasp the fundamental principles of molecular biology and living systems, and are able to hold deep conversations with scientists at the forefront of this research. You embrace ambiguity and strive to push deeper to fully understand open-ended questions.
• You strive to produce rigorous, high-quality work that will stand the test of time. 
• You have an eye for compelling ideas, and know how to tell accessible stories that deeply resonate with readers.

We're fueled by a desire to use storytelling as a means to shape scientific discourse and directly impact the future of biotechnology and humanity. Company culture is key to Asimov Press, and ours is a culture of recombination; we believe that our mission can only be achieved by bringing together a diverse team with a mixture of backgrounds and perspectives.