David Kestenbaum
David Kestenbaum is a correspondent for NPR, covering science, energy issues and, most recently, the global economy for NPR's multimedia project Planet Money. David has been a science correspondent for NPR since 1999. He came to journalism the usual way — by getting a Ph.D. in physics first.
In his years at NPR, David has covered science's discoveries and its darker side, including the Northeast blackout, the anthrax attacks and the collapse of the New Orleans levees. He has also reported on energy issues, particularly nuclear and climate change.
David has won awards from the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Physical Society and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.
David worked briefly on the show This American Life, and set up a radio journalism program in Cambodia on a Fulbright fellowship. He also teaches a journalism class at Johns Hopkins University.
David holds a bachelor's of science degree in physics from Yale University and a doctorate in physics from Harvard University.
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Decades back, former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker had a radical idea to fight against inflation.
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Oil sits under a pristine swath of the rainforest. Ecuador promised to leave the forest untouched — if the rest of the world would pay up.
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In the early 1990s, Colombian drug cartels had a problem: They had more money than they knew what to do with. So a pair of federal agents created an offshore bank.
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In the early 1990s, Colombian drug cartels had a problem: They had more money than they knew what to do with. So a pair of federal agents created an offshore bank.
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China's foreign-exchange reserves are worth over $3 trillion. That's a problem for China, and for the U.S.
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It sounds ridiculous today. But not so long ago, the prospect of a debt-free U.S. was seen as a real possibility with the potential to upset the global financial system.
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The climate talks opened Monday in Copenhagen, with more than 190 nations represented. The U.S. and China have pledged some actions already, but negotiators so far haven't even agreed about what the overall deal will look like.
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In their 2004 book, Gary Stern and Ron Feldman, top executives at the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, cautioned the world about systemic financial risk and the need for more oversight. They admit to a fleeting sense of "I told you so."
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The DOJ says it's confident Army scientist Bruce Ivins sent the deadly anthrax letters in 2001. But Ivins' lawyer says dozens, if not hundreds, of scientists and contractors had access to those same anthrax spores. A detailed look at the government's allegations and Ivins' defense.
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Before Bruce Ivins became the focus of the anthrax investigation, suspicion had wrongly fallen on scientist Steven Hatfill. But the evidence against Ivins is much stronger. Investigators say he had the expertise, opportunity and access to carry out the attacks.