BARNES-SVARNEY, Patricia L(ou) 1953-

(Loutricia Barnes)

PERSONAL: Born May 10, 1953, in Binghamton, NY; daughter of William E. (an urbanist) and Helen M. (an artist; maiden name, Sherba) Barnes; married Thomas E. Svarney (an engineer), January 8, 1977. Education: Catawba College, B.A., 1975; State University of New York, M.A., 1983. Hobbies and other interests: Astronomy, rock collecting, weight training, cross-country skiing, motorcycling, biking, traveling, tending and experimenting with organic gardening and herbs, drawing, painting.

ADDRESSES: Home—2603 Smith Dr., Endwell, NY 13760. Agent—Barbara Kouts, P.O. Box 558, Bellport, NY 11713.

CAREER: Science writer, 1985—. Professional photographer, lecturer, and consulting editor to several major corporations and publishing companies; worked variously as a geochemist, astronomer, and physical oceanographer.

MEMBER: American Society of Journalists and Authors, National Association of Science Writers, American Geophysical Union, Gamma Theta Upsilon.

WRITINGS:

The National Science Foundation (part of the "Know Your Government" series), Chelsea House (New York, NY), 1989.

Zimbabwe (part of the "People and Places of the World" series), Chelsea House (New York, NY), 1989.

Clocks in the Rocks: Learning about Earth's Past (part of the "Earth Processes" series), Enslow Publishers (Hillside, NJ), 1990.

Born of Heat and Pressure: Mountains and Metamorphic Rocks (part of the "Earth Processes" series), Enslow Publishers (Hillside, NJ), 1991.

Fossils: Stories from Bones and Stones (part of the "Earth Processes" series), Enslow Publishers (Hillside, NJ), 1991.

Traveler's Guide to the Solar System, Sterling (New York, NY), 1994.

The New York Public Library Science Desk Reference, Macmillan (New York, NY), 1995.

Quarantine, Minstrel Books (New York, NY), 1997.

Junkyard Jitters!, Aladdin Library (New York, NY), 1997.

High Flyer, Minstrel Books (New York, NY), 1997.

Asteroid: Earth Destroyer or New Frontier?, Plenum Press (New York, NY), 1996.

Computer Crunch!, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1998.

(With Robert J. Cone) How the New Technology Works: A Guide to High-Tech Concepts, Oryx Press (Phoenix, AZ), 1998.

Teacher's Pet, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1998.

Magic Handbook, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1998.

(With husband, Thomas E. Svarney) The Oryx Guide to Natural History: The Earth and All Its Inhabitants, Oryx Press (Phoenix, AZ), 1999.

Sabrina's Guide to the Universe, Pocket Books (New York, NY), 1999.

The Handy Dinosaur Answer Book, Visible Ink Press (Detroit, MI), 1999.

Skies of Fury: Weather Weirdness Around the World, Simon & Schuster (New York, NY), 1999.

(With T. E. Svarney) The Handy Ocean Answer Book, Visible Ink Press (Detroit, MI), 2000.

Secrets of the Sun: A Closer Look at Our Star, Raintree Steck-Vaughn (Austin, TX), 2000.

(With Michael R. Porcellino) Through the Telescope: A Guide for the Amateur Astronomer, McGraw-Hill (New York, NY), 2000.

A House for Wanda Wood Duck, Ducks Unlimited (Memphis, TN), 2001.

(With T. E. Svarney) A Paranoid's Ultimate Survival Guide: Dust Mites to Meteorites, Tsunamis to Ticks, Killer Clouds to Jellyfish, Solar Flares to Salmonella, Prometheus Books (Amherst, NY), 2002.

Some work published under pseudonym Loutricia Barnes. Also author of test units for the American College Testing (ACT) program. Contributor to periodicals, including Astronomy, Cobblestone, Odyssey, Omni, Popular Astronomy, Ranger Rick, and Supercomputing Review.

SIDELIGHTS: Patricia L. Barnes-Svarney is the author of numerous books on scientific subjects, including astronomy, dinosaurs, rocks, and technology. Most of Barnes-Svarney's work is directed toward young readers. In addition to her nonfiction, she has written books based on popular television series, including Sabrina, the Teenage Witch and Star Trek: Voyager. Occasionally she has blended the two genres; for example, in a "Sabrina" book titled Magic Handbook, she provides readers with facts about natural science phenomena including rising bread, color stimulus, goose bumps, and photosynthesis. In Sabrina's Guide to the Universe, the teenage witch takes a trip into the universe to research a homework assignment. Real facts about stars, galaxies, and the International Space Station are presented by Sabrina and characters from real life, such as Albert Einstein. Barnes-Svarney presented some of the same information in her book Traveler's Guide to the Solar System,

Outer space was again the subject in her book Asteroid: Earth Destroyer or New Frontier?, in which she presented a summary of scientific knowledge about asteroids, including their possible threat to the earth. American Scientist reviewer Lucy-Ann McFadden rated Barnes-Svarney's book "very readable, thorough and accurate," and remarked: "Adding drama to the story is the very real statistical probability that civilization is poised on the edge of extinction."

In an interview for Writers Write, Barnes-Svarney recalled the origins of her writing career during her college days: "A very perceptive professor told me that many of the papers I wrote 'read like something from a magazine.' At first, I was insulted. Then she explained that I had a knack for interpreting difficult concepts in the sciences." Discussing the influences that helped her to become a writer, she said, "My parents are great readers and they always read to me when I was young. I was surrounded by books all my life—all types of books. And when I made my first trip to the library, I thought I was in heaven. At 4 years old, borrowing a book can be a heady experience! Even years later it is. I still seek out bookstores and libraries on all of our trips—they're like magnets to me. As for my favorite types of books, I like to read science fiction (of course) and mystery short stories; in nonfiction, it's usually about gardening, nature, or a good science book."

Barnes-Svarney once told CA: "I love writing for young readers, especially middle readers. I often lecture to students between fourth and ninth grades. Many are very interested in science and writing. Many of them ask, 'Has everything been discovered already?' (I say no.) 'Can we cure the common cold?' 'Is there other life in the solar system?' Or, 'Is there a better way to launch a rocket into space?' There is so much we do not know!

"Writing has led me to understand more about the world around me. I write because I never stop asking questions. I want to know about how the Sun shines. I want to know what it is like to be an astronaut. I want to know why a squirrel buries a nut just before the winter. And I want to help everyone else to understand."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

periodicals

American Scientist, January-February, 1998, Lucy-Ann McFadden, review of Asteroid: Earth Destroyer or New Frontier?, p. 83.

Analog Science Fiction and Fact, July-August, 1997, Tom Easton, review of Asteroid: Earth Destroyer or New Frontier?, p. 272.

Astronomy, June, 1994, review of Traveler's Guide to the Solar System, p. 86.

Booklist, March 1, 1994, Carolyn Phelan, review of Traveler's Guide to the Solar System, p. 1254; December 1, 1995, review of The New York Public Library Science Desk Reference, p. 660; July, 2000, Mary Ellen Quinn, review of The Oryx Guide to Natural History: The Earth and All Its Inhabitants, p. 2062.

Book Report, May-June, 1996, Charol Bomball, review of The New York Public Library Science Desk Reference, p. 54.

Library Journal, January, 1996, Laura E. Lipton, review of The New York Public Library Science Desk Reference, p. 86; February 1, 2000, Teresa Berry, review of The Oryx Guide to Natural History, p. 72.

School Library Journal, April, 1990, Jonathan Betz-Zall, Clocks in the Rocks: Learning about Earth's Past, p. 146; May, 1992, George Gleason, review of Fossils: Stories from Bones and Stones, p. 135; August, 1998, Gebregeorgis Yohannes, review of Zimbabwe, p. 170; February, 1994, John Peters, review of Traveler's Guide to the Solar System, p. 104.

online

Writers Write, http://www.writerswrite.com/ (April, 2000), "Talking to Ourselves: An Interview with Patricia Barnes-Svarney and Thomas Eugene Svarney."*