Search

Wilhelm Roux promoted the newly emerged field of developmental mechanics by establishing the journal 'Archiv für Entwicklungsmechanik', currently known as 'Development, Genes and Evolution'. The founder and supporters of the journal were all men, as were the authors in the first 3 years of the journal's existence. We therefore addressed the question—in what ways did women scientists contribute to this new research field and what impact did they have. By investigating the careers and research environment of women authors in the first 50 years of the journal, we show that women contributed to all research areas of developmental mechanics and shaped its future direction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Why do women remain underrepresented in some science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields? Research has uncovered various situational factors such as belongingness cues, but one understudied (and related) factor may be outperformance-related discomfort. Specifically, when people outperform others who are upset about being outperformed, they may experience sensitivity about being the target of a threatening upward comparison (STTUC; Exline and Lobel, in Psychological Bulletin 125:307–337, 1999). Three studies examined the potential role of STTUC among women in STEM and how STTUC relates to feelings of belongingness. Study 1 recruited a large internet sample of undergraduate women and found that the tendency to experience STTUC corresponded with relatively low levels of belongingness in both STEM and arts/humanities courses. Replicating prior research, results also showed significantly lower levels of belongingness in STEM vs. arts/humanities courses. Study 2 found higher anticipated levels of perceiving the outperformed person as upset and experiencing STTUC-related concerns among undergraduate women (vs. men) who imagined academically outperforming others. Study 3 examined women and non-binary first-year undergraduates in STEM and found that the tendency to experience STTUC corresponded to relatively low levels of belongingness in STEM at two time points. Taken together, results suggest that experiencing outperformance-related discomfort in STEM may predict relatively low levels of belongingness, which, over time, may contribute to weakening women's interest in pursuing STEM. The present research may be of particular interest to educators, administrators, and policy makers interested in improving women's representation in STEM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simulated microgravity (SMG) is an environmental condition that affects bone density in vertebrates. Ground-based studies typically use a random positioning machine in either a 2D or a 3D mode to assess the effects of SMG, however the meaning of these results is difficult to compare between studies due to different experimental parameters. Here, we exposed larval Danio rerio at 3dpf to 23 h of SMG using a 2D and a 3D mode of rotation, using the same experimental setup. Zebrafish larvae were anaesthetized during the experiment. Our results showed that anesthesia (MS222) did not affect the amount of ossification while SMG-2D treatment slightly reduced the amount of ossification compared with the controls. On the other hand, SMG-3D treatment significantly reduced the overall ossification level of the skeleton. Specifically, the anterior end of the notochord, the ceratobranchial-5, the lower jaw articulation, the pharyngeal teeth, and the operculum were affected compared with control treatments. Overall, these results indicate that SMG-3D produced a more effective SMG effect compared with the SMG-2D. This research provides valuable insight into how different external stimuli such as SMG can cause negative effects on ossification in the developing skeleton in zebrafish. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mechanical influencers have long been shown to affect mature bone. Bone mechanosensation is a key feature that allows the skeleton to adapt to environmental constraints. In this study, we describe the response of immature, developing bones to a mechanical stimulus. To do so, zebrafish larvae at different stages of development were exposed to whole-body vibration (WBV) at a low frequency of 20 Hz, for up to 4 days. Whole mount Alizarin red and Alcian blue staining revealed age-related and bone type-specific defects. Specifically, the parhypural and hypural 1 caudal fin endoskeletal elements were affected when the exposure to WBV started early during their development. We show that these WBV-induced parhypural and hypural 1 patterning defects are triggered by a Sox9-independent pathway, potentially by reducing the distance separating adjacent chondrogenic condensations in the developing tail skeleton. The remaining hypurals were unaffected by the WBV treatment. Altogether, our results indicate that, upon exposure to vibration, chondrogenic cell progenitors can react to mechanical stimuli early during their development, which ultimately affects the skeletal patterning of the growing zebrafish larvae. These findings open a new research avenue to better understand the cellular processes involved in developing, patterning, and maintaining skeletal tissue. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The attitudes teenagers have towards Math, as well as their knowledge of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM)–based careers will affect their likelihood of pursing these careers in the future. The purpose of this study was to examine the attitudes that youth (girls and boys) aged 12–14 hold towards Math, their knowledge of Math, and Science requirements for future careers as well as their likelihood of choosing a STEM-based career. This research also examined the responses of girls who attended a week-long intensive Science summer camp compared with those who did not attend this camp. To do this, students' attitudes and knowledge were explored using a gender-based analysis (GBA) in four sample groups: (1) public school boys, (2) public school girls, (3) public school girls who do well in math, and (4) a specialized sample of girls who had attended a female-only Science summer camp. Our results show that more grade 7 girls in Nova Scotian public schools feel tense doing Math problems compared with similarly aged boys, yet the average self-rating of getting good marks, learning Math quickly, and looking forward to Math were similar for girls and boys. Furthermore, girls had a better knowledge of careers that required Math and/or Science than boys. In relation to the Science camp, significantly more girls attending the Science camp indicated that they would be very likely to pursue a STEM career in the future, compared with girls, with equally good Math grades, in the non-camps group. These findings show that enabling girls to interact with female STEM professionals and to attend an all-girls Science dedicated camp significantly impacts their interest in STEM professions and is a concrete way in to break down stereotypes in male-dominated fields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To enhance understanding of factors that might improve STEM career participation, we assessed students' self-perceptions of competency and interest in science/math, engagement in STEM activities outside of school, and knowledge of STEM career requirements. We show that the primary positive influencer directing students to a STEM career is high engagement in STEM activities. Our data also indicate that Grade 7 students do not grasp the importance of science/math requirements for future STEM careers. Further research is required to more fully explore the correlations between education and community influencers on the likelihood of choosing a STEM career identified in this study. Afin de mieux comprendre les facteurs susceptibles d'influencer l'orientation vers les professions liées aux disciplines STEM, nous avons évalué la perception des étudiants quant à leur niveau de compétence et leur intérêt pour les sciences et les mathématiques, leur participation à des activités de type STEM hors de l'école, et leur connaissance des prérequis menant à des carrières dans les domaines des STEM. Nous montrons que le principal facteur d'influence positive qui dirige les étudiants vers les professions STEM est la participation élevée à des activités STEM. Nos données indiquent également que les élèves de 7ième année ne comprennent pas encore l'importance des prérequis de sciences et de mathématiques pour une future carrière en STEM. Des recherches ultérieures sont nécessaires pour mieux explorer les corrélations entre l'enseignement et les influences provenant de la communauté sur la probabilité de s'orienter vers les STEM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: A sample of 1448 students in grades 7 and 9 was drawn from public schools in Atlantic Canada to explore students’ knowledge of science and mathematics requirements for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) careers. Also explored were their mathematics self-efficacy (MSE), their future career interests, their preferences for particular career activities, and their likelihood to pursue a STEM career.Results: Analysis revealed that while older students had more knowledge about mathematics/science requirements for STEM careers, this knowledge was lacking overall. Also, students with higher MSE were more knowledgeable about STEM career requirements. Furthermore, students with higher MSE and STEM career knowledge were more likely to choose a STEM career. Students with greater interest in technical and scientific skills were also more likely to consider a STEM career than those who preferred career activities that involved practical, productive, and concrete activities.Conclusions: The results of this study show that students in middle school have a limited STEM career knowledge with respect to subject requirements and with respect to what sort of activities these careers involve. Furthermore, students with low MSE have a declining interest in STEM careers. Our data thus support the need to improve access to knowledge to facilitate students’ understanding of STEM careers and the nature of STEM work. Exposure of students to STEM careers can enhance their interest in pursuing careers involving science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]