Ted Audio Collective

This is Ted Health. I'm your host, Dr. Shoshana Ungerleiter.

It took less than a year for scientists to develop and distribute COVID-19 mRNA vaccines,

with public reactions to this quick turnaround, ranging from fascination to fear.

But it turns out that technology at work in these vaccines comes from years of scientific research.

In her 2021 Ted Monterey Talk, engineer, teacher and innovator, Catherine A. Whitehead,

breaks down how and why the success of the COVID-19 mRNA vaccines will pave the way for future generations

to treat or even cure future diseases.

There's another podcast you might enjoy. It's called Am I Normal from the Ted Audio Collective.

It's back with a new mini-series all about the stories behind the statistics.

What does adulthood mean in a place where more than three-quarters of people between ages 18 and 35 live with their parents?

What defines joy when you live in one of the top ranked countries for happiness?

Here from the people that make up every interesting data point.

Listen to Am I Normal, wherever you get your podcasts.

What if I told you that the pandemic will save the lives of millions of people?

It's a difficult thing to consider, given how many loved ones we've already lost.

But throughout the course of human history, massive public health crises have resulted in innovation in healthcare and technology.

For example, the Black Death gave rise to the Gutenberg Press and the 1918 flu pandemic led to modern vaccine technology.

The COVID-19 pandemic has and will be no different.

Just look at our vaccines, normally developed over many years and the mRNA vaccines were deployed in a mind-blowing 11 months.

How is that even possible?

It was possible because scientists have been working for many years to get us to the point where we could use mRNA quickly in an emergency situation.

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