20-21 Magazine

Addressing Pandemic Problems

September 17, 2020

While COVID-19 has shaken the world, it has also pushed society to be more innovative and creative — two attributes that have been essential to the success of researchers at UNC. Carolina students, faculty, and staff are engaged in an abundance of projects, making UNC the most cited university in the nation for coronavirus research.

Carolina’s Coronavirus Lab

September 10, 2020

UNC virologists Timothy Sheahan and Ralph Baric have been working around the clock to develop new treatments and vaccines to fight the novel coronavirus. In this Q&A, Sheahan discusses current projects, new discoveries, and the challenges that come with studying a virus like SARS-CoV-2.

Doing COVID-19 Dirty Work

September 8, 2020

Employing wastewater epidemiology — proven useful in outbreaks of polio and opioid use — UNC microbiologist Rachel Noble is leading a state-wide collaboration tracking novel coronavirus outbreaks across North Carolina, gaining insight that testing individuals does not offer. Preliminary results have shown that by using wastewater, researchers can identify COVID-19 hot spots five to seven days before they are reflected by clinical testing results.

For the Love of Language

June 17, 2020

Since 1984, over 100,000 Karen refugees have fled their homeland of Myanmar to escape civil war. Since then, more than 40,000 have resettled in the U.S., and more than 5,000 live in North Carolina. Such displacement greatly affects lives, and even language — within just three generations their native tongue is barely spoken. Linguistics PhD students Amy Reynolds and Jen Boehm strive to understand this shift and hope to preserve the Karen people’s histories in the process.

Editing Along Ethical Boundaries

May 18, 2020

Imagine a tool that could cure thousands of genetic illnesses by replacing faulty strands of DNA. What if that same invention could enhance traits like height and intelligence in children through the manipulation of DNA in embryos? CRISPR, a gene-editing technology, is tricky business — and geneticists at UNC are addressing the ethics surrounding it.

Self-Care Success at Work

March 11, 2020

American work culture can be demanding and intense — so much so that people often put their jobs before their physical and emotional needs. But taking care of ourselves makes us better workers and improves how companies function, according to organizational behavior professor Mike Christian.

The Head and the Heart

January 7, 2020

Todd Cohen and Jonathan Schisler — a neuroscientist and a heart researcher — began working together in 2016 after meeting for coffee in Marsico Hall. By combining their expertise in protein studies, they strive to develop a potential treatment for Alzheimer’s disease.

Researching the Limelight

November 14, 2019

When the actors of PlayMakers Repertory Company step onto the stage, they become someone new. Taking on a character is a science all its own — one that requires art, imagination, and research to accomplish. And it doesn’t hurt to have a dramaturg handy, either.