Simon Lab Spotlight! Anna Miller

Anna Miller, Associate Researcher, from Philadelphia, PA 
M.S. in Conservation Medicine from Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University in Boston, MA      

Q. Cats, Dogs or other? 
A. Cats! I love both but cats are such special little creatures.  

Q. What sparked your interest in virology research or led you to join the Simon and Mulder Lab? 
A. Coming from a veterinary background, I’ve always been interested in zoonotic viruses, especially HPAI. I decided I was more interested in working behind the scenes, and research ended up being a natural fit. Virology felt like the perfect niche for me to connect animal, human, and environmental health.   

Q. What is the most interesting part of your job? 
A. Being one of the first people to see real time data on which viruses are actively circulating in the population. It’s exciting to know what we do directly contributes to public health responses. 

Q. What is your favorite spot in New York? 
A. The Jackie Kennedy Onassis Reservoir! I love spending time there watching the waterfowl and turtles.  

Q. How did the Pandemic impact your position on research and virology? 
A. Before the pandemic, I was leaning towards a more clinical career path, but the pandemic truly highlighted the critical role of research in virology and global health to me. Seeing the importance of research in a global pandemic inspired me to go down a research path.  

Q. What does a day in the lab look like? 
A. As the Pathogen Surveillance Program (PSP) point person, most of my day involves coordinating and collecting positive viral and bacterial samples from both collecting positive virology and bacteria samples from the clinical and molecular microbiology lab to support ongoing surveillance efforts.  

Q. Aside from being a great scientist, what would you describe as your personal superpower? 
A. My memory! I have a pretty strong memory, especially patterns and details, which is surprisingly helpful when it comes to birding!  

Q. If you could share one piece of advice with people interested in research, what would it be? 
A. Be curious and learn as much as you can from your peers and mentors! Research is truly a collaborative effort, and you grow by learning from the people around you.  

Thank you Anna for sharing your story and also Aidan Vera for helping with the Spotlight Series!