pandemics

The pandemic’s slowing of research productivity may last years—especially for women and parents | Science

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The pandemic led to a surge in COVID-19 research, but it severely disrupted other fields—shuttering labs, restricting travel, and leaving scientists with young children struggling to work without adequate child care. A flurry of studies indicates the productivity of women scientists slowed during the pandemic to a greater extent than their male colleagues. Now, a … Read more

New Studies Support Wuhan Market as Pandemic’s Origin Point

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Scientists have released three studies that reveal intriguing new clues about how the COVID-19 pandemic started. Two of the reports trace the outbreak back to a massive market that sold live animals, among other goods, in Wuhan, China and a third suggests that the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 spilled over from animals—possibly those sold at the market—into … Read more

The Black Death Plague Didn’t Actually Kill Half of Europe, New Study Claims

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In popular imagination, the Black Death is the most devastating pandemic to have ever hit Europe. Between 1346 and 1353, plague is believed to have reached nearly, if not every, corner of the continent, killing 30-50 percent of the population.   This account is based on texts and documents written by state or church officials … Read more

This scientist blew the whistle on Trump’s COVID-19 response—now he aims to stop future pandemics | Science

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In May 2020, with anonymous callers vowing to kill him and similar threats mounting on social media, Rick Bright gave up his cellphone and went into hiding for more than a month. “If I heard tires rolling over the road in the middle of the night in the driveway where I was staying, it was … Read more