Nature lists the most important scientists of 2019:
RICARDO GALVÃO: Science defender – As chaos spiked in the Amazon, the physicist became a national hero by challenging Brazil’s government.
VICTORIA KASPI: Sky sleuth – An astrophysicist chased mysterious fast radio bursts with an innovative radio telescope.
NENAD SESTAN: Brain rebooter – A neuroscientist revived disembodied pig brains and challenged definitions of life and death.
SANDRA DÍAZ: Biodiversity guardian – An ecologist and her colleagues assess Earth’s ecosystems and call for drastic action.
JEAN-JACQUES MUYEMBE TAMFUM: Ebola fighter – The co-discoverer of Ebola faces his tenth battle with the virus in the DRC — his toughest yet.
YOHANNES HAILE-SELASSIE: Origin seeker – A palaeontologist shook up the human family tree with the discovery of a remarkably preserved 3.8-million-year-old skull.
WENDY ROGERS: Transplant ethicist – An academic revealed ethical failures in China’s studies on organ transplants.
HONGKUI DENG: CRISPR translator – A Chinese scientist shows that CRISPR gene editing can be used safely in adults with HIV.
JOHN MARTINIS: Quantum builder – A physicist led Google’s first demonstration of a quantum computer that could outperform conventional machines.
GRETA THUNBERG: Climate catalyst – A Swedish teenager brought climate science to the fore as she channelled her generation’s rage.
Source: Nature Website