Contributors

Comfort Dorn

Comfort Dorn
Comfort Dorn has been the managing editor of ASBMB Today since 2017. Before that, she had a 20-year career in newspaper editing. She studied liberal arts at St. John’s College and has lived for most of her life in Maryland and Washington, D.C. She likes working with writers to craft honest, engaging articles and essays with commas in all the correct places. She also likes gardening, cooking, reading and spending time with her perfect granddaughter.
 

Articles by Comfort Dorn

In memoriam: Bruce Ames
In Memoriam

In memoriam: Bruce Ames

Oct. 28, 2024
He invented a cheap and easy way to assess mutagenicity that helped identify many environmental and industrial carcinogens; it became known as the Ames test.
We're saving some trees
Society News

We're saving some trees

Feb. 5, 2024
ASBMB Today will now be printed four times a year.
Thank you for surprising me
Editor's Note

Thank you for surprising me

Jan. 24, 2024
“I’ve learned that there’s healing power in sharing stories of pain and loss … So, I asked for stories. Honestly, I didn’t know what to expect.”
Season’s greetings
Editor's Note

Season’s greetings

Dec. 21, 2023
“I always think of the December issue of ASBMB Today as our holiday gift to you, our wonderful members. And I want to give you something you’ll like — and maybe even a little surprise.”
Greetings from San Antonio
Annual Meeting

Greetings from San Antonio

Nov. 2, 2023
Meet some of the ASBMB members who live and work in the city where we’ll meet for Discover BMB 2024.
Wellness and trauma
Editor's Note

Wellness and trauma

Aug. 31, 2023
Telling stories helps us heal. Here’s my trauma story. Now I want to read yours.
Science will suffer
Editor's Note

Science will suffer

June 1, 2023
We wondered if laws targeting LGBTQIA+ rights were affecting the career decisions of our members. It wasn’t easy to get answers.
Those who care and engage
Editor's Note

Those who care and engage

May 18, 2023
Being an ASBMB fellow isn’t just about hanging around together; it’s about engaging with others and moving together into the unknown.
Take a breath
Wellness

Take a breath

Jan. 12, 2023
“At the heart of it, I think we all take care of ourselves as a gift to those around us as much as to ourselves.”
It’s all about making connections
Annual Meeting

It’s all about making connections

Oct. 11, 2022
Five grad students who received ASBMB travel awards talk about their experiences at the 2022 annual meeting.
BMB stories from Africa
BMB in Africa

BMB stories from Africa

July 28, 2022
How the June/July issue of ASBMB Today came to be.
Good fellows
Editor's Note

Good fellows

May 18, 2022
“To be a fellow, a member must be generous with time and talent — not just someone whose CV includes pages of individual BMB achievements.”
Building community
Editor's Note

Building community

March 29, 2022
“One of my most important jobs is helping people feel like they know what’s going on with the members of their community.”
Diversity matters
Editor's Note

Diversity matters

Feb. 23, 2022
As we move through life, all of us need to see people who look like us doing work that we and our society value.
Our gift to you
Editor's Note

Our gift to you

Dec. 23, 2021
“This month’s issue is the ASBMB Today team’s gift to you, our members and readers. We are so grateful for your unflagging interest and enthusiasm, especially over the past two years.”
Six months from now
Editor's Note

Six months from now

Oct. 6, 2021
The 2022 annual meeting finds us at a hello–goodbye moment. It will be a one-of-a-kind event — and here at ASBMB central, we’re getting excited.
Be special with us
Editor's Note

Be special with us

Aug. 5, 2021
As we were mailing our special Careers Issue this month, we were already thinking about the next one: our Wellness Issue in January 2022.
Reimagining a best-case scenario
Editor's Note

Reimagining a best-case scenario

June 23, 2021
As the pandemic turned our lives upside down, we suddenly could see all the cobwebs under the furniture, not to mention cracks in the floor.
Hidden talents
Editor's Note

Hidden talents

April 16, 2021
Witty drawings by ASBMB staff member Vic De Luz are a bonus feature of our April focus on science and art.
One year later
Editor's Note

One year later

March 19, 2021
Since mid-March 2020, the way we do everything has been shifted by the COVID-19 pandemic, layered with all the ordinary changes of work and life and coping.
It’s the little things
Editor's Note

It’s the little things

Jan. 15, 2021
The essays in January wellness issue emphasize small actions to ease pandemic stress.
We’ve got a new way of meeting
Editor's Note

We’ve got a new way of meeting

Nov. 11, 2020
The logistics of the ASBMB’s annual meeting have always been impressive. With the move to an all online meeting in 2021, it’s a whole new ballgame.
What is success for women in STEM?
Interview

What is success for women in STEM?

Oct. 22, 2020
A conversation with Marilee Benore and Rana Dajani about their lives as women in science and their recent research projects.
Wellness — we need it now more than ever
Editor's Note

Wellness — we need it now more than ever

Sept. 30, 2020
ASBMB Today will publish its third wellness issue in January. The editors want to know how you are keeping mentally and physically well in a pandemic.
A time for reimagining
Editor's Note

A time for reimagining

Sept. 10, 2020
The world will be a different place next spring — a year after COVID-19 began to shutter much of the planet. Why not make this a time for rethinking structures in ways that are more sensible and just?  We want your ideas for how to do that. 
Breaking the news
Editor's Note

Breaking the news

May 15, 2020
On her third anniversary as our managing editor, Comfort Dorn reflects on how the pace of ASBMB Today has changed, thanks in part to COVID-19.
Caution: Tchotchkes at work
Editor's Note

Caution: Tchotchkes at work

March 13, 2020
For our 2020 careers issue, we want to see — and share — the accumulated objects you have in your workspace.
Picking up the slack
Editor's Note

Picking up the slack

Feb. 10, 2020
Like many black scientists, Marion Sewer overcome negativity through hard work, then took on the job of supporting underrepresented minorities.
Well, to be honest
Editor's Note

Well, to be honest

Jan. 4, 2020
In January, we focus on wellness — and we roll out a dynamic new website.
Ending an elemental year
Editor's Note

Ending an elemental year

Dec. 1, 2019
Throughout 2019, Quira Zeidan has educated readers about important biochemical elements from the periodic table. It’s not too late to catch up!
It's about time
Editor's Note

It's about time

Nov. 1, 2019
Here at ASBMB central, we constantly think and talk about the society’s biggest event; the next annual meeting is forever looming, even the day after the last one ends.
Wellness, again
Editor's Note

Wellness, again

Sept. 1, 2019
Wellness is such a big topic in the scientific community that ASBMB Today plans to devote another special issue to how you care for your mind, body and spirit. Managing Editor Comfort Dorn invites you to contribute.
2020 annual meeting thematic sessions
Annual Meeting

2020 annual meeting thematic sessions

Sept. 1, 2019
The 2020 ASBMB annual meeting will include eight thematic tracks largely highlighting foundational areas of chemistry and molecular biology. Read on for details of these tracks — including scheduled speakers, key words and theme songs.
J. Thomas August (1927 — 2019)
Retrospective

J. Thomas August (1927 — 2019)

Sept. 1, 2019
Colleagues and family remember a Johns Hopkins researcher and pioneer in immunology.
2020 annual meeting tracks
Annual Meeting

2020 annual meeting tracks

Aug. 1, 2019
The ASBMB annual meeting will include tracks on eight themes.
Ph.D. outcomes — one university at a time
Education

Ph.D. outcomes — one university at a time

Aug. 1, 2019
Six university graduate schools across the U.S. share information on where their student head after earning a doctorate in the biosciences.
Magazine life
Editor's Note

Magazine life

June 1, 2019
"As much as I love running stories about amazing science, I have a special fondness for stories about issues," writes ASBMB Today Managing Editor Comfort Dorn.
Working knowledge
Editor's Note

Working knowledge

May 1, 2019
As an undergrad, grad student and (maybe) postdoc, you’ve learned a whole lot about science. But how much were you taught about having a career as a scientist? More to the point, how much were you not taught?
Be a writer
Editor's Note

Be a writer

March 1, 2019
ASBMB Today Managing Editor Comfort Dorn invites submissions for two essay series: “Night shift” and “What I wish people understood about ___.”
What I wish people understood about writing and editing
What I Wish People Understood

What I wish people understood about writing and editing

March 1, 2019
ASBMB Today managing editor Comfort Dorn takes on one of the magazine’s 2019 essay topics in a bid to encourage readers to become writers.
Vital fluids
Editor's Note

Vital fluids

Feb. 1, 2019
Plasma, the yellowish fluid in which blood cells and platelets are suspended, is essential for treating trauma patients and those with a number of other medical conditions.
ASBMB members elect six to council and other offices
Society News

ASBMB members elect six to council and other offices

Jan. 1, 2019
Members of the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology have elected some new and some familiar faces to leadership positions in the society.
How mentoring moments are made
Annual Meeting

How mentoring moments are made

Nov. 1, 2017
The ASBMB annual meeting offers opportunities for students and early-career scientists to connect with professionals who can help them develop their interests and chart a career path.
Behind the scenes of the annual meeting
Annual Meeting

Behind the scenes of the annual meeting

Oct. 1, 2017
1,001 tasks precede the ASBMB annual meeting, and there's always at least one surprise.
15 minutes of fame
Annual Meeting

15 minutes of fame

Sept. 1, 2017
Presenters from the 2017 Spotlight Sessions at the ASBMB annual meeting describe the many benefits of telling a crowd about your science.