Thank These Women for Helping Defeat COVID
Proof we should just put women in charge
Hi friends, happy Wednesday and December! I hope you said rabbit rabbit this morning if that’s a thing you do. This past week was rough for me because even though there were so many joyful things, we learned there is another *insert dramatic hand gestures* COVID variant. I think the only thing more hated in recent weeks than COVID is probably Jake Gyllenhaal. I don’t say this to diminish the very real impact COVID has had on you, your family, and your loved ones. This virus has devastated millions and killed thousands, many of which were unnecessary and preventable deaths. In an effort to ward off the renewed anxiety and dread spiral typically brought on by COVID updates, I wanted to share some awesome female scientists, medical professionals, and tech experts making huge strides to fight this virus and keep us safe and informed!
Anika Chebrolu
Did you know a 14-year-old girl helped discover an antiviral for COVID-19? Meet Anika Chebrolu. By day she’s a high school student in Texas, by night (and also probably by day) she’s an amazing scientist. Her amazing discovery began when Anika was working on a project for school about the flu. Specifically, she was looking to reduce deaths from the flu by doing some… science-y things (I read the articles about 10 times and still don’t quite understand it). When the pandemic hit, she switched gears and figured out her research was applicable to finding a way to reduce COVID spread. She entered her research into the 3M Young Scientist Contest and won. Again, I repeat, she is FOURTEEN.
She credits her science genius to a supportive family, specifically her grandfather who was a chemist and urged her to get into science. I wonder what would have happened if all young female scientists had been supported this way! She’s going to keep working on her research and hopes to help scientists create a COVID antiviral drug. I can’t wait to see what she does next.
Dr. Kizzmekia “Kizzy” Corbett
Dr. Corbett is a Black immunologist working at the National Institute of Health. She had a pretty uneventful 2020… she just helped DEVELOP THE COVID-19 VACCINE!!! Dr. Fauci has repeatedly stated how instrumental was she to the vaccine development process. In addition to her amazing work, she also works to combat vaccine hesitancy in the Black community. Also, did I mention she’s 35?? When you think about all the amazing things that are now possible and all the lives saved because of the vaccine, remember a Black woman did that!
Ramida Juengpaisal
While I was washing my groceries and panicking about the world shutting down in March 2020, Juengpaisal was building the first-ever COVID case tracker. She and her team created the technology to track COVID cases in ONE night. Juengpaisal came up with the idea when she couldn’t find an easily accessible database of COVID cases online. The tracker was key for helping people know how many COVID cases were in their area and debunking misinformation about the spread of the virus.
After reading this I just want to scream from a mountain top that women are so amazing! I hope you feel the same. Please check out the links below more other amazing women I couldn’t fit into this newsletter. Okay, that’s all for now. See ya next Wednesday!
Citations
“Women in science who are making a difference during the pandemic” UN Women
“Anika Chebrolu just discovered a potential COVID-19 treatment. She’s 14.” The Lily
“This COVID-vaccine designer is tackling vaccine hesitancy – in churches and on Twitter” Nature.com
“Meet the 24-year-old who helped build Bangkok’s first coronavirus tracker” Thomson Reuters