Alan Boyle

As MSNBC.com's science editor, Alan Boyle runs a virtual curiosity shop of the physical sciences and space exploration, plus paleontology, archaeology and other ologies that strike his fancy. His primary hangout on the Web is MSNBC's Cosmic Log, established in 2002. Alan grew up on a farm in Iowa and sorted through an ample share of B.S. during his early years. That was the perfect preparation for his journalistic career, which began with stints as an editor at newspapers in Cincinnati, Spokane and Seattle. Since joining MSNBC.com in 1996, Alan has won awards from the National Academies, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the National Association of Science Writers and more. He helped get an asteroid named for the late science-fiction humorist Douglas Adams, and counts the asteroid (11967) Boyle - named after his far-distant cousin Robert - as his own borrowed piece of the sky. "The Case for Pluto" is his first book.