2020 in Scientists’ Own Words

The world was rocked by the COVID-19 pandemic this year, but researchers rose to all manner of challenges.

Written byAbby Olena, PhD
| 5 min read

Register for free to listen to this article
Listen with Speechify
0:00
5:00
Share

ABOVE: Scanning electron micrograph of SARS-CoV-2 (gold) emerging from the surface of cells cultured in the lab. Image captured and colorized at NIAID’s Rocky Mountain Laboratories in Hamilton, Montana
FLICKR, NIAID

Maciej Boni, a biologist at Penn State University, speaking to The Scientist about how the high number of undetected cases makes it difficult to track viral spread based on confirmed infections (March 12)

Abdul Mannan Baig, a researcher at Aga Khan University in Pakistan, speaking to The Scientist about indications that SARS-CoV-2 can target the nervous system (March 24)

Kishana Taylor, a postdoc in microbiology and molecular genetics at the University of California, Davis, speaking to The Scientist about pandemic-related hiring freezes in academia (March 26)

­—Kathleen Millen, a neuroscientist at Seattle Children’s Hospital Research Institute, in an email to The Scientist about how pandemic-related lab shutdowns affected the scientific community (March 27)

—Anthony Fauci, director of the US National ...

Interested in reading more?

Become a Member of

The Scientist Logo
Receive full access to more than 35 years of archives, as well as TS Digest, digital editions of The Scientist, feature stories, and much more!
Already a member? Login Here

Related Topics

Meet the Author

  • abby olena

    As a freelancer for The Scientist, Abby reports on new developments in life science for the website. She has a PhD from Vanderbilt University and got her start in science journalism as the Chicago Tribune’s AAAS Mass Media Fellow in 2013. Following a stint as an intern for The Scientist, Abby was a postdoc in science communication at Duke University, where she developed and taught courses to help scientists share their research. In addition to her work as a science journalist, she leads science writing and communication workshops and co-produces a conversational podcast. She is based in Alabama.  

    View Full Profile
Share
Image of a woman with her hands across her stomach. She has a look of discomfort on her face. There is a blown up image of her stomach next to her and it has colorful butterflies and gut bacteria all swarming within the gut.
November 2025, Issue 1

Why Do We Feel Butterflies in the Stomach?

These fluttering sensations are the brain’s reaction to certain emotions, which can be amplified or soothed by the gut’s own “bugs".

View this Issue
An image of a DNA sequencing spectrum with a radial blur filter applied.

A Comprehensive Guide to Next-Generation Sequencing

Integra Logo
Golden geometric pattern on a blue background, symbolizing the precision, consistency, and technique essential to effective pipetting.

Best Practices for Precise Pipetting

Integra Logo
Olga Anczukow and Ryan Englander discuss how transcriptome splicing affects immune system function in lung cancer.

Long-Read RNA Sequencing Reveals a Regulatory Role for Splicing in Immunotherapy Responses

Pacific Biosciences logo
Research Roundtable: The Evolving World of Spatial Biology

Research Roundtable: The Evolving World of Spatial Biology

Products

Labvantage Logo

LabVantage Solutions Awarded $22.3 Million U.S Customs and Border Protection Contract to Deliver Next-Generation Forensic LIMS

The Scientist Placeholder Image

Evosep Unveils Open Innovation Initiative to Expand Standardization in Proteomics

OGT logo

OGT expands MRD detection capabilities with new SureSeq Myeloid MRD Plus NGS Panel