Taylor Miller-Ensminger joins the lab!

We are thrilled to welcome Taylor from the Microbiology, Virology and Parasitology graduate group to the lab! Taylor received her bachelors and masters degree of science in Bioinformatics from the Loyola University before starting at Penn. We are so happy to welcome her to the group!

Learn more about Taylor:

Why Microbiology?
The small things really matter. More and more studies are showing how our world and health is shaped by microscopic organisms. For every destructive microorganism, there is a protective one. We really live in balance with the things that we can’t “see”, but we still know so little about them. I’m particularly interested in how viral pathogens interact with the immune system. I think the more we examine the “small things”, the better equipped we will be to answer big questions in medicine and public health.

Where do you see the greatest opportunities in science?
I think there is an opportunity for science to become more accessible. Currently, we write papers for a small scientific audience and fail to communicate our findings in layman’s terms. Yet, our findings can directly impact the medical care and lives of those outside of our scientific audience. As scientists, we should seize opportunities to interact with and effectively communicate out findings to communities that our research impacts. I think this would increase scientific literacy and break down barriers for communities that are underrepresented in the sciences.

What’s on your in-the-zone playlist?
I have an in-the-zone queue, so it changes every day. Whenever I need to focus, I add a bunch of songs to my queue that fit the mood I’m in before I get started. However, I almost always include some Fleetwood Mac, ABBA, the Neighbourhood, and PVRIS (my favorite band).