Science & Research - The Brown Daily Herald

Science & Research

Brown partnership with Broad Institute allows for new viral sequencing, studying of COVID-19 variants from testing program samples

By Gabriella Vulakh | June 13

Students in the COVID-19 testing program were asked to consent to new viral sequencing for variants through the Broad Institute, the University’s testing partner, in an email sent to on-campus students June 8. The Broad Institute is collaborating with state departments of health and universities ...

Science & Research

More than three-quarters of students on campus have documented their COVID-19 vaccinations with the University

By Gabriella Vulakh | June 6

The percentage of documented COVID-19 vaccinations increased to 76.8 percent and 69.3 percent, respectively, for students and employees on campus during the week of May 27 to June 2, according to the Healthy Brown COVID-19 Testing Update. Including students and employees not on campus, 50.6 percent ...

Science & Research

Brown ‘on a very good trajectory’: Vaccine documentation surpasses 60 percent for employees, students on campus as Brown begins lifting COVID-19 restrictions

By Gabriella Vulakh | May 31

The total percentage of students who have documented their COVID-19 vaccinations has increased to 40.6 percent, and the total number of employees has increased to 59.7 percent, according to the University’s May 28 COVID-19 Testing Update. Of the students and employees currently on campus, more than ...

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Science & Research

Brown research study finds decades-long decline in Black male, Native American, Alaskan Native medical students

By Kathleen Meininger | May 27

Despite efforts by medical schools to increase diversity in their student bodies, the percentage of students that make up medicine’s most underrepresented groups — Black men and Native American and Alaskan Native men and women — has decreased over the last four decades, according to a recent study ...

Science & Research

Nearly one third of all students, half of employees have documented COVID-19 vaccination with University

By Gabriella Vulakh | May 23

Almost a third of total students — 31.1 percent — and 44.7 percent of employees have documented their COVID-19 vaccinations with the University as of May 21, according to Executive Vice President for Planning and Policy Russell Carey ’91 MA’06. Of the students currently on campus, 44.6 percent ...

Science & Research

Brown’s new Center for Alzheimer’s Disease Research to expand studies on prevention, treatment methods

By Gabriella Vulakh | May 19

The University is establishing a Center for Alzheimer’s Disease Research with the support of two gifts totaling $30 million from anonymous donors. The center will combine clinical and laboratory-based research teams from the University and partner teams from Sweden to aid in the detection and treatment ...

Science & Research

The light at the end of the tunnel just got brighter

By Cate Ryan | April 28

In October 2020, The Herald launched a podcast with Ashish Jha, Dean of the School of Public Health at Brown University. At the end of our first call, Dr. Jha said: “If people stay focused, there’s a lot of good news coming in 2021.” Specifically, he added, “we’re going to have multiple vaccines ...

Science & Research

The COVID Pod with Dr. Ashish Jha: Approaching a More 'Normal' Fall 2021

By Cate Ryan, Emilija Sagaityte and Rahma Ibrahim | April 10

On the last episode of The COVID Pod, recorded on the morning of April 9, 2021, Dean of the School of Public Health Ashish Jha is back to comment on Brown’s plans toward a more traditional semester in fall of 2021. The COVID Pod team discusses advice for the incoming class of 2025, efforts to promote ...

Science & Research

Pandemic Journaling Project enables ordinary people to write their own history

By Anna Kim | April 9

In an effort to record the voices of ordinary people during the COVID-19 pandemic, Assistant Professor of Anthropology Katherine Mason and Sarah Willen, associate professor of anthropology at University of Connecticut, co-founded the Pandemic Journaling Project to predesign an archive of people’s ...

Science & Research

FDA-approved implant provides alternative ACL tear treatment

By Rahma Ibrahim | April 8

A newly approved medical implant — Bridge-Enhanced® ACL Repair — is providing an alternate treatment for Anterior Cruciate Ligament tears. The current standard of care for ACL tears, which are among the most common knee injuries, depends on the condition of the injured person, according to the ...

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Science & Research

Dangling by nylon threads: touchdown of Mars Perseverance Rover

By Lucas Fried | April 7

An unexpected snowfall closed schools in Huntsville, Alabama on the afternoon of Feb. 18. Despite the cold, NASA scientist Caleb Fassett MS’05 PhD’08 was grateful to have his two first-grade daughters home to witness a key moment in space exploration. When he was a graduate student nearly two decades ...

Science & Research

Journey to Jezero Crater: what Perseverance may uncover

By Lucas Fried | April 7

Several years ago, Jezero Crater was proposed as the landing site for NASA’s 2011 Mars rover Curiosity but was rejected because there were too many rocks that the rover might hit in the possible landing areas, according to Professor of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences Jack Mustard. When ...

Science & Research

Early life exposure to chemical group PFAS increases cardiometabolic risk through adolescence

By Kathleen Meininger | April 6

Early exposure to compounds known as Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances — also referred to as PFAS — can lead to cardiometabolic defects later in life, according to a study led by University researchers. The study was one of four nominated as papers of the month by the National Institute of Environmental ...

Science & Research

Virtual 2021 Brown Venture Prize awards $50,000 total to three start-up teams

By Jared Zhang | April 5

The winners of the 2021 Brown Venture Prize were announced following a virtual finalist pitch night on March 25. The BVP, which is a competition organized by the Nelson Center for Entrepreneurship, is designed to provide resources that assist the growth of ventures led by Brown students, said Executive ...

Science & Research

Researchers test treatments for mutations causing rare neurodevelopmental disease

By Gabriella Vulakh | April 5

Christianson syndrome, also referred to as CS, is a rare neurodevelopmental disorder associated with seizures, various degrees of intellectual disability and difficulty standing or walking. Research suggests that cells expressing characteristics related to the condition respond differently to treatment ...

Science & Research

2021 Salomon Awards grant funds 16 projects

By Jared Zhang | March 30

The Office of the Vice President for Research announced 16 recipients of the 2021 Richard B. Salomon Faculty Research Awards Mar. 10. The awards, named in honor of Chancellor of Brown 1977 to 1988 Richard Salomon, “recognize excellence in scholarship,” wrote Vice President for Research Jill Pipher ...

Science & Research

High rates of burnout burden lesbian, gay, bisexual medical students

By Kathleen Meininger | March 29

Lesbian, gay and bisexual medical students are more likely to experience burnout and to report perceived mistreatment by other members of the medical community than their heterosexual classmates are, according to a study published last month conducted by Brown and Yale researchers. Burnout, which ...

Science & Research

A cardiothoracic surgeon, aerospace researcher and professor: Peter Lee ’94 PhD’03 MD’05 on his path back to Brown

By Marlene Goetz | March 29

Peter Lee ’94 PhD'03 MD'05, cardiothoracic surgeon and an assistant professor of pathology and laboratory medicine, conducted his undergraduate, graduate and medical studies at the University and returns to College Hill from Ohio State University as an accomplished researcher and surgeon with varied ...

Science & Research

The COVID Pod with Dr. Ashish Jha: Getting Vaccinated (with a side of free donuts)

By Cate Ryan, Emilija Sagaityte, Rahma Ibrahim and Colleen Cronin | March 27

On March 26, 2021, the COVID Pod team welcomes Dr. Ashish Jha again to discuss expanded vaccine eligibility coming soon to Rhode Island, how to address ongoing vaccine hesitancy and what the summer and next few years will look like after more people are vaccinated. Dr. Jha also provides his perspective ...

Science & Research

Political science professor publishes “African American Political Thought: A Collected History”

By Kaitlyn Torres | March 25

In an effort to expand and nuance the literary canon of political theory, Associate Professor of Political Science Melvin Rogers published an essay collection last month titled “African American Political Thought: A Collected History.” The book, which Rogers co-edited with Jack Turner III, associate ...