Eva Harris won the MacArthur "genius grant" in 1997 for plenty of reasons. As a Pew Scholar in 2001, her bench work on the molecular virology and pathogenesis of dengue virus - specifically, the determinants for viral transmission - was tied purposefully to developing the epidemiological capacity of scientists in developing countries. Harris has helped many aspiring scientists in the developing world. They learn from her to create and sustain programs of bench science "on the cheap." And sometimes, it bears fruit in vaccines and even the promise of translating what might look like rudimentary science into the promise of a cure for the predominant arthropod-borne disease in the world.
Harris' genius, though, is in bioethics, although I find no record that she has ever used the term in her work. That's perhaps not surprising, given how much time bioethics seems to spend on "bad" scientists. I'm ready to tar ...
