The Story Collider celebrates eight years!

The crowd goes wild!

Last week, on May 1, The Story Collider celebrated eight years of stories about science with its first-ever fundraising event! Scientists, storytellers, journalists, and other friends and supporters of Story Collider gathered at Caveat in New York City to enjoy stories from journalist Arielle Duhaime-Ross (VICE News Tonight), comedian Josh Gondelman (HBO's Last Week Tonight), and microbiologist Jo Handelsman (associate director of science under President Obama). [Note: Look for these stories on our podcast in the coming weeks!]

Story Collider directors Liz Neeley and Erin Barker also shared their own journeys to discovering the importance of stories about science that night. Erin's presentation featured clips of stories by mathematician Piper Harron, environmental engineer Siddhartha Roy, sociologist Rashawn Ray, marine ecologist Madhavi Colton, and criminologist Heith Copes.

The Story Collider team wishes to thank everyone in attendance for their generous contributions, as well as the night's sponsors -- Avenue Capital, Burroughs Wellcome Fund, Wheeler Farms, Bang & Olufsen, and Caveat. Here's to eight more years of stories about science!

For more photos from the event, check out our slideshow below! (Photos by Carly Hoogendyk.)

The Story Collider's 8th Birthday

The stage is set!

Gift bags and wine are all ready for our guests, thanks to Story Collider volunteers who worked diligently on setup! (Special thanks to Lavender Wind Farm for providing accessories for our gift bags!)

Story Collider board members John Rennie and Louie Rivers III catch up before the show. John is an editor at Quanta Magazine as well as former chief editor of Scientific American, and Louie is an assistant professor in the Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources at North Carolina State University.

Neuroscientist Heather Berlin and her partner, peer-reviewed rapper Baba Brinkman, settle in to enjoy the show. (Look for them on the Story Collider podcast soon!)

From left to right: Shannon Palus, journalist for Wirecutter/New York Times; Sarah Austin Jenness, executive producer of The Moth; Jenifer Hixson, senior director of The Moth; and Ben Lillie, chairman of The Story Collider’s board.

Guests visit Caveat’s bar before the show. Highly recommended as a measure to prevent learning.

Erin Barker and Ed Yong

After an intro video, hosts Erin Barker (artistic director of The Story Collider) and Ed Yong (journalist and bestselling author of I Contain Multitudes) take the stage! “Our first show was eight years ago in the basement of a bar in Queens… and look how far we’ve come — now we’re in a basement in Manhattan!”

Ed Yong, host with the most

Ed introduces our first storyteller, Arielle Duhaime-Ross, climate correspondent for VICE News.

Arielle Duhaime-Ross, journalist for VICE News Tonight

Our first storyteller, Arielle Duhaime-Ross, took the stage to share a story from her work reporting on climate change for VICE News Tonight.

Arielle Duhaime-Ross

“I got this job, working as a climate correspondent for VICE News Tonight, and suddenly I was spending a lot of time outside Brooklyn. And that was amazing. Because the very existence of a job like mine meant that nightly news was finally going to take climate change coverage seriously. And that mattered to me.”

Arielle Duhaime-Ross

“But as I learned really quickly, traveling a lot also meant that I’d get called “sir” multiple times a day — and not always as a sign of respect…”

Arielle’s wife, Meredith, applauds her spouse!

Erin Barker and Ed Yong

After Arielle’s story, Ed reflects on his own journalistic adventures in Peru, and Erin reflects on her adventures spending 24 hours at the San Diego airport.

Josh Gondelman, comedian and writer for Last Week Tonight

Our second storyteller, Josh Gondelman, is ready for his close-up. Josh is a standup comedian and Emmy-winning writer for HBO’s Last Week Tonight.

Josh Gondelman

“This is a story of defeating a nemesis. Normally when you defeat a nemesis it takes decades… my nemesis I vanquished in three days.”

Josh Gondelman

“My nemesis was the CEO of a pharmaceutical corporation, which sounds like a formidable opponent. Until I tell you he was the CEO of a company that manufactured a penis-numbing spray targeted toward premature ejaculaters...”

Story Collider DC producer Maryam Zaringhalam “loses her shit” during Josh Gondelman’s story.

Celebrating a hilarious performance by Josh Gondelman (center): Story Collider NYC producers Paula Croxson (also a neuroscientist at Mt. Sinai) and Tracy Rowland (also an Emmy-winning TV producer), SC artistic director Erin Barker, journalist Ed Yong, and SC executive director Liz Neeley.

Josh Gondelman with Story Collider St. Louis producer Eli Chen, also a science reporter for St. Louis Public Radio.

Meredith and Arielle, with Eric Jankowski, assistant professor of materials science and engineering at Boise State University and longtime supporter of The Story Collider.

Story Collider producer Paula Croxson (second from right) and engineer Eric Jankowski (right) mingle with guests.

Story Collider supporters Sandi Marx (right), New York-based storyteller, and Danny Miller (center), MIT astrophysicist. (Check out Danny’s story on our podcast here.)

Jo Handelsman, director of the Wisconsin Institute for Discovery at UW-Madison and our third storyteller of the night, chats with her former colleague, Yale psychiatrist David Ross, also a Story Collider partner and donor.

New York Times journalists Carl Zimmer and Andy Revkin. (Both are Story Collider alums — find their stories here and here.)

Emma Parry and Melissa Flashman of Janklow and Nesbit (outside) with storyteller Steve Zimmer, winner of more than 20 Moth StorySlams, and Justin D’Ambrosio, elegant man about town and one of the First Gentlemen of Story Collider.

Host Ed Yong with two guests.

Story Collider board member Sally Wheeler Maier chats with Josh during intermission.

Story Collider executive director Liz Neeley chats with Meredith Cornelius, Arielle Duhaime-Ross, and Story Collider board member Louie Rivers.

Each of our storytellers assembled a package of books for our raffle, with themes ranging from comedy to microbiology.

Story Collider DC producer and biologist Maryam Zaringhalam keeps an eye on the valuables.

Maryam and Story Collider roving producer Nisse Greenberg were two of the amazing volunteers who pitched in that night. (Check out their stories on our podcast, here and here.)

Story Collider executive director Liz Neeley (left) and host Ed Yong (right) chat with SC DC producer Maryam Zaringhalam’s delightful parents during intermission.

Story Collider executive director Liz Neeley makes her way to the stage.

Dessert is served!

Caveat’s signature Nerd shots are delivered to guests for the second half of the show.

Story Collider artistic director Erin Barker savors her signature Red Bull while preparing to go on for the second half.

Director Time

Co-directors prepare to take the stage.

Ed Yong, First Gentleman of Story Collider

Host Ed Yong introduces his favorite person, executive director Liz Neeley.

Liz Neeley, executive director of Story Collider

Story Collider executive director Liz Neeley introduces the second half of the show. A former marine biologist, Liz reflects on her journey from science to story.

Meanwhile, Erin lurks off-stage.

Liz Neeley

Liz introduces a presentation from Story Collider’s artistic director, Erin Barker.

Co-director love

Story Collider’s executive director and artistic director hug as the latter comes on stage for her presentation.

Erin Barker, artistic director of Story Collider

Story Collider artistic director Erin Barker reveals, with help from cinematic masterpiece X-Men Origins: Wolverine, that she will be flagrantly violating a key rule of Story Collider by using slides.

Erin Barker

Erin tells the story of her journey to understanding scientists. (Ed later objects to one element of the visuals.)

Erin Barker

Erin shares impactful clips from Story Collider stories by mathematician Piper Harron, environmental engineer Siddhartha Roy, sociologist Rashawn Ray, marine ecologist Madhavi Colton, and criminologist Heith Copes.

Jo Handelsman, microbiologist

Host Ed Yong adjusts the mic for our final storyteller, Jo Handelsman. Jo shared a story about her time as associate Director for Science in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy under President Obama.

Jo Handelsman

“About 45 minutes after the swearing in, I was sitting in my gorgeous Victorian office looking at my massive mahogany desk with nothing on it. I had just started thinking about which part of my agenda I should work on first...  And then a member of my staff knocked on my door…”

Jo Handelsman

“She asked how I liked my job so far. I responded that the first 45 minutes had been quite fine. She closed the door and told me she hoped I’d still like my job when she was done sharing her news…”

Storyteller Jo Handelsman assists with our raffle drawing!

Story Collider NYC producer Paula Croxson celebrates her raffle victory! (It wasn’t rigged, we swear!)

Photos by Carly Hoogendyk.