Published by the Students of Johns Hopkins since 1896
September 3, 2026 September 3, 2026 | Published by the Students of Johns Hopkins since 1896

Science & Technology

BEANTIN WEBBKOMMUNIKATION/CC BY-SA 2.0 Researchers at the International Vaccine Access Center developed VIRA, a chatbot designed to give personal, confidential answers to over 150 questions.

Vaccine chatbot answers public health questions

By ZACHARY BAHAR | April 17, 2022

As the pandemic enters its third year, 23% of the U.S. population remains unvaccinated, many haven’t received a booster, and vaccine misinformation continues to spread. To address these issues, researchers at the Bloomberg School of Public Health’s International Vaccine Access Center (IVAC) developed the Vaccine Information Resource Assistant (VIRA): a chatbot designed to give personal, confidential answers to over 150 questions.

ROSIE JANG/CARTOONS EDITOR  Difficult classes can often have students feeling like they are sacrificing their physical or mental health.

Project MD 27: Do I really need to pass physics to be a doctor?

By ELLIE ROSE MATTOON | March 31, 2022

It feels like Trisha Parayil will be in school forever. Even during her two gap years between graduating from Hopkins and applying to medical school, Parayil opted to teach high school science in Bridgeport, Conn. through Teach for America. Outside of lab experiments and grading quizzes, Parayil is also working on getting a masters from the School of Education. 

GRÉGOIRE LANNOY/CC BY-NC 2.0 According to Grover, there is a lack of concern in the perception of vision care.

Hopkins alum Lori Grover speaks on importance of optometry

By RAHUL JAKATI | March 21, 2022

As part of the School of Public Health’s Spotlight Series, alum Lori Grover gave a virtual talk on March 16 that covered the broad intersections between optometry and public health. She expounded on the value of optometry toward aiding the overall health of individuals and communities alike.

THOMAS SPLETTSTOESSER / CC BY-3.0 NA Shan’s talk focused on the molecular mechanisms cells employ to selectively create different proteins out of the biochemical goop found in cells.

CalTech professor Shu-ou Shan speaks on nascent proteins

By RAHUL JAKATI | March 21, 2022

Researchers, students and faculty attended  the most recent installment of the Hopkins Department of Chemistry Colloquium Seminar Series  last week. Working at the interface of biology and chemistry, Shu-ou Shan, Altair professor of chemistry at the California Institute of Technology, gave a seminar detailing the methods cells use to create “order from chaos.”

ArchesNPS / CC PDM 1.0 The team has received $1.35 million dollars from an EPA grant to assess the exposure of children to dust and soil.

Hopkins team studying dust and soil exposures for children receives $1.35 million EPA Grant

By MARGERY CHEN | March 16, 2022

Recently the project INnovations to generate estimates of children’s soil/dust inTakes (INGEST) received a $1.35 million research grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). A team of researchers from Hopkins and the University of California, San Francisco will quantitatively assess children’s dust and soil exposures using a set of novel research approaches.

BERLIN MEDIA/CC BY 2.0 For International Women's Day, FastForward U hosted a panel with three female-founded startups. 

FastForward U hosts International Women's Day panel

By SRINITHI SRINIVASAN | March 15, 2022

FastFoward U’s first Ask a Female Founder Panel was held on March 8 in celebration of International Women’s Day. To discuss the factors, challenges and lessons learned from being a woman founder, Kristen Corlay Sanmiguel, co-founder of Cabilde, Nandita Balaji, co-founder of InfernoGuard, and Selena Shirkin, founder of StetPulse, came together for a discussion.

HEY PAUL STUDIOS / CC BY 2.0 The previous equation used in kidney function tests by the Hopkins Health System produced two different values depending on whether a patient was Black or not. 

Hopkins announces adoption of race-free kidney function algorithm

By ALICE ZHAO | February 24, 2022

This year, the Hopkins Health System will adopt a race-free kidney function equation in the hopes of allowing more Black patients to have early access to the diagnosis and treatment of kidney diseases. The change will be immediately implemented in hospitals and laboratories affiliated with Hopkins.

ROSIE JANG/CARTOONS EDITOR Students must confront many factors when deciding whether this is the year to apply to medical school. 

Project MD 2027: making the decision to apply to medical school

By ELLIE ROSE MATTOON | February 22, 2022

When Siena DeFazio was younger, she dreamed of opening a free veterinary clinic. Growing up in rural Florida with lots of official and unofficial pets, her family seldom had the means to pay to save an animal’s life after an illness or accident. Now that DeFazio is a junior at Hopkins, she is interested in treating a different set of patients.

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