March 10, 2020: Alumni Experts on Coronavirus; Greenberg ’80’s New Broadway Play

Epidemiologist Celine Gounder ’97 answered common questions about the novel coronavirus in an interview on NPR. — NPR’s On Point
 
Princeton research scholar Laura Kahn *02 examined the history of smallpox outbreaks to glean lessons for cities dealing with the spread of coronavirus. — Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists
 
Playwright Richard Greenberg ’80 was profiled on the eve of two of his plays coming to Broadway — a revival of Take Me Out and a new work, The Perplexed. – T, The New York Times Style Magazine
 
Journalist Maria Ressa ’86 and former first lady Michelle Obama ’85 were among the newsmakers highlighted by Time’s “100 Women of the Year” project. — Time
 
University of Southern California professor Doris Sung ’86 will be the new leader of the school’s undergraduate architecture program. — The Architect’s Newspaper
 
The WFIRST space telescope mission, co-chaired by David Spergel ’82, passed an important design checkpoint, although NASA administrators want the program defunded. — Space News
 
Rebeca Clay-Flores ’97 advanced to a runoff election in her bid to become county commissioner in Bexar County, Texas. — San Antonio Express-News

“I’m filled with grief and sadness and anxiety and depression thinking about the wall and how it will rip through our city and these lands so flippantly with complete disregard to our history, our culture, our ties to the land, and our ties to the river.”

— Tricia Cortez ’96, who has become an “unlikely leader” in protests of the border wall in her home of Laredo, Texas. Read more in the Columbia Journalism Review.

Georgia Tech engineering Ph.D. student Matt McDonald ’15 is an elite marathoner; he competed in the U.S. Olympic Trials and finished 10th. — Atlanta Journal-Constitution
 
Veteran Canada women’s national socce- team player Diana Matheson ’08 returned to the team after a year-long recovery from injury. — Red Deer Advocate
 
Before interviewing for major-league managerial positions, Chicago Cubs third-base coach Will Venable ’05 sought advice from NFL coach Pete Carroll. — Chicago Tribune
 
Claire Jones ’18, a graduate student at the University of Oxford’s Wolfson College, has led her team to several victories on the British quiz show University Challenge. — Reality Tidbit