Cornelia Dean is a fellow at the Shorenstein Center at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard where she is working on a book about the misuse of scientific information in American public life.

From January 1997 until June 2003, she was science editor of The New York Times, where she was responsible for coverage of science, health and medical news in the daily paper and in the weekly Science Times section. She also writes occasionally for the paper, usually on environmental issues. After completing her book, she expects to return to the newspaper's Science Department as a reporter and commentator.

Before becoming science editor at The Times she worked in the newspaper's Washington bureau as deputy Washington editor. Her portfolio was domestic policy. She began her newspaper career at the Providence Journal.

Her first book, Against the Tide: The Battle for America's Beaches, was published in 1999 by Columbia University Press and was a New York Times Notable Book of the year. She has taught seminars and courses at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, Vassar College and the University of Rhode Island, and has spoken to a wide variety of government, journalism and scientific organizations.

She is a member of the advisory board of the Metcalf Institute for Environmental and Marine Reporting and the Corporation of Brown University, her alma mater.