Susan La Flesche Picotte: Leader in tribal health with eye toward sovereignty

Aparna Nathan is a fourth-year Ph.D. student in the Bioinformatics and Integrative Genomics Ph.D. program at Harvard University. You can find her on Twitter as @aparnanathan. Wei Wu is a graduate student in the Design Studies program at Harvard University Graduate School of Design. Her concentration is Art, Design and the Public Domain. Cover image by Gordon Johnson from Pixabay. Continue reading Susan La Flesche Picotte: Leader in tribal health with eye toward sovereignty

Susan La Flesche Picotte: Leader in tribal health with eye toward sovereignty

by Aparna Nathan In 1873, an eight-year-old girl sat by the bedside of an elderly Omaha woman, waiting for the white doctor she had called for four times. But the doctor never arrived and the woman died in pain.  That girl, Susan La Flesche Picotte, would go on to credit that moment as the catalyst for her barrier-breaking career in medicine, public health, and advocacy … Continue reading Susan La Flesche Picotte: Leader in tribal health with eye toward sovereignty

John Dabiri: The oceanic adventures of a bioengineer

Manasvi Verma, 1st year PhD student in the Biological and Biomedical Sciences Program at Harvard Medical School. Jovana Andrejevic is a fifth-year Applied Physics Ph.D. student in the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences at Harvard University. cover Image by Vlad Vasnetsov from Pixabay. This biography is part of our “Picture a Scientist” initiative. To learn more about the amazing men and women who paved … Continue reading John Dabiri: The oceanic adventures of a bioengineer

John Dabiri: The oceanic adventures of a bioengineer

Those of us privileged enough to frequent aquariums have probably experienced the physical inability to move past the illuminated jellyfish enclosures. Something about their mesmerizing movements holds us captive. Most of us, however, admire the jellyfish, murmur incoherently about how majestic they are, and move on. John Dabiri, fortunately, is not most of us. Born to Nigerian immigrant parents in 1980, Dabiri is an aeronautics … Continue reading John Dabiri: The oceanic adventures of a bioengineer

Erich Jarvis: What birds can teach us about ourselves

Hannah Smith is a Biology PhD student at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Hannah is interested in the biological pathways that regulate aging, and whether we can target these pathways to make people healthier in old age (but she’s currently doing experiments on the microscopic nematode worm C. elegans, not humans). Wei Wu is a graduate student in the Design Studies program at … Continue reading Erich Jarvis: What birds can teach us about ourselves

Erich Jarvis: What birds can teach us about ourselves

by Hannah Smith Have you ever wondered why you can teach a parakeet to talk, but you can’t teach a dog or a cat? Dr. Erich Jarvis has spent his scientific career studying the brain pathways required for this behavior, called vocal learning, and trying to decipher how this trait evolved only in a handful of animals. But before he was well known around the … Continue reading Erich Jarvis: What birds can teach us about ourselves

Herman Branson: a pivotal figure in protein biology

Koby Ljunggren is a first-year Ph.D. student in the Biophysics Program at Harvard University. Abby Knecht is a second year graduate student in the Molecules Cells and Organisms program at Harvard University where she is studying self versus non-self recognition in bacteria. Cover image by Image by stokpic from Pixabay. This biography is part of our “Picture a Scientist” initiative. To learn more about the amazing … Continue reading Herman Branson: a pivotal figure in protein biology

Herman Branson: a pivotal figure in protein biology

by Koby Ljunggren Proteins are much more complex than the number on a nutrient label. They serve as the building blocks for every process that keeps your cells alive. To do this, proteins must be able to mold into many different shapes to carry out their intended function. In every fundamental biology classroom around the globe, students are taught about two major 3D shapes in … Continue reading Herman Branson: a pivotal figure in protein biology

Dr. Hildrus Poindexter — Making a difference through science and inspiration

Mahaa M. Ahmed is an Environmental Health MS student at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Jovana Andrejevic is a fifth-year Applied Physics Ph.D. student in the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences at Harvard University. Cover Image by Emphyrio from Pixabay. This biography is part of our “Picture a Scientist” initiative. To learn more about the amazing men and women who paved … Continue reading Dr. Hildrus Poindexter — Making a difference through science and inspiration

Dr. Hildrus Poindexter — Making a difference through science and inspiration

by Mahaa Ahmed Dr. Hildrus Poindexter, a specialist in tropical diseases, epidemiology, and public health, was the first African American to receive both an MD and PhD. He earned his MD from Harvard Medical School in 1929 and his PhD in immunology and microbiology from Columbia University in 1932. Eager to begin his career, Dr. Poindexter applied for a job at a U.S. laboratory in … Continue reading Dr. Hildrus Poindexter — Making a difference through science and inspiration