Other Writings
Diana has written news and feature articles, essays, and book reviews for a wide range of print and online media. Her writing portfolio also includes travel guides, annual reports, newsletters, and even legends for National Geographic maps. A sample of her work follows.
Book Reviews
Q&A with Janice P. Nimura, author of Daughters of the Samurai
Washington Independent Review of Books, May 27, 2016
Without You There Is No Us: My Times With the Sons of North Korea’s Elite
Washington Independent Review of Books, Jan. 1, 2015
Eating Mud Crabs in Kandahar
Washington Independent Review of Books, November 2011
Indigo: In Search of the Color That Seduced the World
Washington Independent Review of Books, Aug. 12, 2011
A Covert Affair: Julia Child and Paul Child in the OSS
Washington Independent Review of Books, May 10, 2011
Ravenous: A Food Lover’s Journey From Obsession to Freedom
Washington Independent Review of Books, March 23, 2011
Articles on Book Project
“Eliza Ruhamah Scidmore,” Sierra Club’s John Muir Website
“From Early ‘Lady Writer,’ Washington Cherry Blossoms and a National Geographic Legacy”
National Geographic Blog, Jan. 16, 2018
“Eliza Scidmore, the Woman Behind the Planting of Washington’s Cherry Trees in 1912”
Viral History Blog, March 28, 2012
“Cherry Tree Planting in March 1912 Shaped Public Face of Washington, D.C.”
National Geographic Blog, March 26, 2012
National Geographic News
“In Africa, Decoding the Language of Elephants”
National Geographic News, Feb. 21, 2003
“Maya Hieroglyphics Recount ‘Giant War’ ”
National Geographic News, 19, 2002
“Crossbow Rivalry of Two Italian Towns Dates to Middle Ages
National Geographic News, 6, 2002
Skull Fossil Opens Window onto Early Human Origins”
National Geographic News, July 11, 2002
“City Occupied by Inca Discovered on Andean Peak in Peru”
National Geographic News, March 18, 2002
“High-Tech Fishing Is Emptying Deep Seas, Scientists Warn”
National Geographic News, 26, 2002
” ‘SuperCroc’ Fossil Found in Sahara”
National Geographic News, 25, 2001
“Skeleton of New Dinosaur ‘Titan’ Found in Madagascar”
National Geographic News, Aug. 1, 2001
“Tiny Fossil From Early Jurassic Fills New Niche in Mammal Evolution”
National Geographic News, May 24, 2001
Legends for National Geographic Maps
Special Places of the World: New York City, Sept. 1990
Special Places of the World: Holy Land, Dec. 1989
Travel Guides
National Geographic Traveler: Washington, D.C.
2005, 2007 and 2010 editions
The Jakarta Explorer
Indonesian Heritage Society, 1999
Annual Reports and Newsletters
World Fish Center, Penang, Malaysia
Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), Bogor, Indonesia
- Annual Report 1998
- CIFOR News, Nos. 19-27, June 1998 to March-April 2001
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
- Annual Reports 1994, 1995
Essays
“On the Porch”
Washingtonian, Aug. 1, 2009
“Carried Away”
Potomac Review, Fall 2007
Articles on Science & Medicine
“Giant Footprint”
Smithsonian.com, Jan. 28, 2008
“Monumental Shift”
Smithsonian.com, July 31, 2007
“Palm-Nut Problem: Asian Chewing Habit Linked to Oral Cancer”
Science News, Jan. 15, 2005
“Remnants of the Past: High-Tech Analyses of Ancient Textiles Yield Clues to Cultures”
Science News, Dec. 11, 2004
“Assault on Autism”
Science News, Nov. 9, 2004
“Maternal Death Rate Tough to Reduce”
Indonesian Observer, April 12, 1998
“Medicine and the Humanities”
Humanities, Jan.-Feb. 1992
“Injury Surveillance in Four States”
Childhood Injury Prevention Quarterly, Summer 1991
“Towns Taking Pains to Plant, Preserve Trees as Environmentalism Branches Out”
The Washington Post, 5, 1990
“The Animal Rights Movement Has Closed Down and Stalled Research”
NIDA Notes, Spring/Summer 1989
“Laser Joins Fight Against Cancer, Heart Disease”
NIH Record, Feb. 7, 1989
“Patient Logjam in New York—Could It Spread?”
Health Care Competition Week, 11, 1988
“AIDS: Piecemeal Precautions Aren’t Good Enough”
Health Care Competition Week, 16, 1987
“Crossroads (South Africa): In a Rural Settlement, Medical Students Are Learning Both Medicine and the Realities of Politics”
The New Physician, July 8, 1984
Articles on Education
“Teaching Freshmen Sets a College Administrator on the Path to a Presidency”
Chronicle of Higher Education, 16, 2014
“Design College’s New Provost Hopes to Contribute to Another Detroit Renaissance”
Chronicle of Higher Education, 6, 2014
“Grand Experiment” (on science discovery center)
Baltimore Style, March-April 1997
“Helping Students Learn Science the Way Science Works”
Science, Sept. 30, 1994
“To Police or to Protect?”
Educational R&D Preview, Sept. 1993
“Human Retooling” (on K-12 school reform in West Virginia)
Agenda, Winter 1992
“Stalking the Elusive Monarch”
The Washington Post, 7, 1990
“Community Colleges Exhibit New Spirit of Fund-Raising Aggressiveness”
Trustee Quarterly, Winter 1989
“Putting Geography Back on the Map”
The Washington Post, April 20, 1986
“There’s always room for a story that can transport people to another place.”