On a recent afternoon in Nairobi, Kenya, about two dozen scientists gathered, peering at a screen that to the untrained eye looked like gibberish — rows of letters but no coherent words.
But what they were looking at was the foundation of life — this scrambling of letters represents the DNA genetic blueprint of an organism.
The scientists were attending a training to advance skills in the analysis of genomic sequences — a process where the genetic code of an organism is turned into data which reveals information about its characteristics. It’s an important technique in public health to determine what pathogen is inflicting a community and whether it’s mutating.
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About the author
Sara Jervingsarajerving
Sara Jerving is a Senior Reporter at Devex, where she covers global health. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, The Wall Street Journal, VICE News, and Bloomberg News among others. Sara holds a master's degree from Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism where she was a Lorana Sullivan fellow. She was a finalist for One World Media's Digital Media Award in 2021; a finalist for the Livingston Award for Young Journalists in 2018; and she was part of a VICE News Tonight on HBO team that received an Emmy nomination in 2018. She received the Philip Greer Memorial Award from Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism in 2014.