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Science Policy

COVID-19: from treatment to prevention

by Apurva Govande figures by Tal Scully COVID-19, the disease caused by the newly discovered virus SARS-CoV-2, is a national emergency. We need a vaccine to prevent severe outcomes of disease, to successfully combat future outbreaks of this virus,…

Should We Help NASA “Shoot for the Moon” Again?

by Christopher Rota figures by Hannah Zucker When the first Apollo program astronauts set foot on the Moon in 1969, their footsteps inspired a generation.  This opened a new realm of possibility for what humans can achieve with the necessary motivation…

Virtual Clinical Trials: Testing new drugs from afar

by Isabella Grabski figures by Jovana Andrejevic Clinical trials are critical to study the safety and effectiveness of new drugs, but they are no small endeavor. The cost of a clinical trial can range anywhere from $7 million to over $50 million, and…

Breaking Down Brexit: Potential impacts on science in the UK

by Michael Foley figures by Abagail Burrus When asked to describe the roles of a scientist, most people probably wouldn’t list ‘applying for grants’ or ‘travel’ very highly. However, modern science relies on significant efforts from researchers to obtain…

Arrival of Gene-Edited Babies: What lies ahead?

by Valentina Lagomarsino figures by Sean Wilson Nearly four months ago, Chinese researcher He Jiankui announced that he had edited the genes of twin babies with CRISPR. CRISPR, also known as CRISPR/Cas9, can be thought of as “genetic scissors” that can…