Dennis Overbye  Dennis Overbye (born June 2, 1944, in Seattle, Washington) is a science writer specializing in physics and cosmology. Overbye received his B.S. in physics from M.I.T.—where he was a member of the Alpha Mu chapter of Phi Kappa Sigma—in 1966. He started work towards a master's degree in astronomy from U.C.L.A. in 1970. Overbye started his career by working as a scientist for Boeing and then other companies. In 1976 he became assistant editor at "Sky and Telescope" magazine. From 1976 to 1980 he was a senior editor at "Discover" magazine. Subsequently, he embarked on a freelance career, during which time he published articles in "Time", "Science", the "Los Angeles Times", and "The New York Times", among other publications. He has written two books: "Lonely Hearts of the Cosmos", about scientists and their quest to understand the universe, and "Einstein in Love", dealing with Albert Einstein's youth and the controversy surrounding the degree to which Einstein's first wife, Mileva Marić, contributed to the theory of relativity. He joined the staff of "The New York Times" in 1998 as deputy science editor, then switched to full-time writing. In 2014 he was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Explanatory Reporting. Overbye lives in New York City with his wife, Nancy Wartik, their daughter Mira Overbye and two cats.