High Research Activity Research Articles

Assessing the forms of integration of the higher education system in Mozambique

The forms of integration and articulation at tertiary education are debated around the world including studies those discuss expansion, differentiation, diversity, and fragmentation of higher education. The forms of integration are evaluated here by reviewing selected Mozambican higher education literature and database from 1962 to 2021. The higher education (HE) background research in Mozambique helped assessing trends and expansion, fragmentation, differentiation, and diversity processes. These processes were described using data assessed from the Ministry of Science and Technology of Mozambique in 53 public and private universities. Statistical analyses by Excel Sheets were based on the integrated data of enrolments, new admissions, and graduations to infer the performance of isomorphism through the process of differentiation, diversity, and fragmentation. The expansion and fragmentation of HE in Mozambique is well reflected on total students enrolled in public and private systems. Results indicated slight difference of new admissions between public and private system. While we registered more graduations in public system than in private. Comparison assessed demonstrated the absence of significant differences, at 5% of confidence level, between new-admissions and graduated students, reflecting the intensification of fragmentation of the mother institutions. Additionally, evidence supporting the differentiation and diversity practices in public and private institutions was not found. Moreover, the expansion and fragmentation processes detected suggest the need of decentralization to offset the heavy concentration of resources and higher activities outside Maputo. While differentiation and diversity processes were absent in higher education system in Mozambique, nevertheless, may ensure educational quality and produce high quality graduate outputs, research, and community outreach activities.

Evaluating the forms of integration of the tertiary education in Mozambique

The forms of integration and pedagogical articulation at tertiary education are debated around the world including studies those discuss expansion, differentiation, diversity, and fragmentation of higher education. The forms of integration are evaluated here by reviewing selected higher education literature and database from 1962 to 2021. The higher education (HE) background research in Mozambique helped assessing trends and expansion, fragmentation, differentiation, and diversity processes. These processes were described using data assessed from the Ministry of Science and Technology of Mozambique in 53 public and private universities. Statistical analyses by Excel Sheets were based on the integrated data of enrolments, new admissions, and graduations to infer the performance of isomorphism through the process of differentiation, diversity, and fragmentation. The expansion and fragmentation of HE in Mozambique is well reflected on total students enrolled in public and private systems. Results indicated slight difference of around 700 students of new admissions between public and private system. While we registered more graduations in public system than in private. Comparison assessed demonstrated the absence of significant differences, at 5% of confidence level, between new-admissions and graduated students, reflecting the intensification of fragmentation of the mother institutions. Additionally, evidence supporting the differentiation and diversity practices in public and private institutions was not found. Moreover, the expansion and fragmentation processes detected suggest the need of decentralization to offset the heavy concentration of resources and higher activities outside Maputo. While differentiation and diversity processes were absent in higher education system in Mozambique, nevertheless, may ensure educational quality and produce high quality graduate outputs, research, and community outreach activities.

Decompensated Liver Cirrhosis Research Network (UK-CLIF): Building consensus for hepatology trials in the UK

Liver disease is a major, and increasing, cause of death in the UK. The UK Chronic Liver Failure network (UK-CLIF) was developed as a multi-stakeholder network with the aim to advance cirrhosis research, with emphasis on geographical areas of high disease prevalence or limited research activity. The process involved network development through dissemination and snowball sampling techniques, with monitoring of network development and connections between participants, developed over two online meetings. Network membership included representatives from patients, carers, clinicians, researchers, R&D professionals, industry representatives, and the third sector. Subsequently, two facilitated in-person workshops were conducted with network participants. World Café methodology and participant dot voting was used to develop areas of priority and consensus in: (i) research infrastructure for cirrhosis clinical trials, (ii) clinical factors affecting research delivery, and (iii) research priorities for future trials. Thematic analysis demonstrated that the need for patient-centric trial materials, a lack of resource for clinicians to participate in research, and variability in the standard of inpatient care for cirrhosis, were barriers for cirrhosis clinical trials. Future activities for UK-CLIF include participation in a process of quality standard setting for inpatient care for cirrhosis, and coordination of a James Lind Alliance Priority Setting Partnership to develop research questions for liver cirrhosis.

Practicing intentional mentorship: An unfinished journey of a language teacher educator and her (future) mentees

AbstractAs a language teacher educator (LTE) at a Doctoral Universities ‐ High Research Activity (R2) institution, this invitation to document how the first author (Gloria) has come to (re)construct and (re)negotiate her identity as an LTE is both timely and necessary, as the academic year 2024–2025 marks her 17th year at her institution. In this conceptual feature article, she begins this narrativized journey as one way to reflect on who she is and who she has become as an LTE, and she has invited four of her former mentees (Silvia, Marie, Shannon, and Sarah) who have become her co‐authors and co‐editors in various publication opportunities. Using poetic and narrativized writing, Gloria and her mentees share snapshots of their reflections and reflexivity in working together to understand and define intentional mentoring practices. The authors conclude with their own definitions of intentional mentoring practice and invite the journal audience to collectively engage in our unfinished journey.

Socioeconomic prerequisites determine national long-term biomonitoring efforts

In the current anthropogenic era characterised by human-induced environmental changes, long-term biomonitoring has become a crucial component for understanding ecological patterns and detecting shifts in biodiversity. However, spatiotemporal inconsistencies in biomonitoring efforts hinder transboundary progress in understanding and mitigating global environmental change effectively. The International Long-Term Ecosystem Research (ILTER) network is one of the largest standardised biomonitoring initiatives worldwide, encompassing 44 countries globally, including 26 European countries that are part of the European Long-Term Ecosystem Research network (eLTER). To better understand the establishment and development of such long-term biomonitoring efforts, we analysed spatial and temporal trends within the eLTER network. Additionally, we evaluated the environmental, social, and economic factors influencing engagement in biomonitoring activities within this European network. Our findings reveal a spatial imbalance, with biomonitoring efforts concentrated in Central and Western European countries, where monitoring initiatives have typically been established for a longer duration. Furthermore, our analyses underscore the complex interplay of economic, geographic, and cultural factors in the development of long-term ecological research infrastructures. Countries with greater geographic connectivity, slower economic growth, and higher research activity are more likely to be involved in the eLTER network. The intensity of biomonitoring significantly increased with greater research investments, economic growth, and elevated levels of tourism. In contrast, it decreased in countries that are more inward-facing and exhibit a belief in their ability to control environmental outcomes independently. Addressing spatial gaps in monitoring necessitates enhanced support and funding to ensure comprehensive ecological monitoring over extended time periods. This is essential for achieving transboundary sustainability and effective biodiversity conservation in the face of global change drivers.

Team Factors in Ethical Decision Making: A Content Analysis of Interviews with Scientists and Engineers

The ethical decision making of researchers has historically been studied from an individualistic perspective. However, researchers rarely work alone, and they typically experience ethical dilemmas in a team context. In this mixed-methods study, 67 scientists and engineers working at a public R1 (very high research activity) university in the United States responded to a survey that asked whether they had experienced or observed an ethical dilemma while working in a research team. Among these, 30 respondents agreed to be interviewed about their experiences using a think-aloud protocol. A total of 40 unique ethical incidents were collected across these interviews. Qualitative data from interview transcripts were then systematically content-analyzed by multiple independent judges to quantify the overall ethicality of team decisions as well as several team characteristics, decision processes, and situational factors. The results demonstrated that team formalistic orientation, ethical championing, and the use of ethical decision strategies were all positively related to the overall ethicality of team decisions. Additionally, the relationship between ethical championing and overall team decision ethicality was moderated by psychological safety and moral intensity. Implications for future research and practice are discussed.

Addressing Systemic Barriers to Timely Degree Completion through the Establishment of a Graduation Help Desk

This practice report details a large, four-year, public, research 1 (very high research activity), Hispanic Serving Institution’s (HSI) approach to tackling barriers to timely graduation through the implementation of a virtual support center, the Graduation Help Desk (GHD). The GHD, established in late 2017, operates at the level of the provost’s office and tackles graduation obstacles through individual referral cases, proactive outreach, and institutional policy review. By collaborating with academic departments, colleges, and support services, the GHD ensures solutions align with degree integrity and institutional standards of excellence. Its organizational position allows it to quickly elevate institution-wide issues and make recommendations for systemic changes. The GHD’s impact, specifically the number of referral cases, students served, institutional policies changed, cost savings to students, and increased graduation rates is provided. As a successful, cost-effective, virtual service model, the GHD is instrumental in supporting undergraduate students, specifically at-risk and difficult-to-reach student populations, preventing graduation delays and lowering student costs. GHDs are a scalable intervention with a high return on investment for both students and institutions through improved operations and student success outcomes.

Diverse Mentoring Connections Across Institutional Boundaries in the Biomedical Sciences: Innovative Graph Database Analysis.

With an overarching goal of increasing diversity and inclusion in biomedical sciences, the National Research Mentoring Network (NRMN) developed a web-based national mentoring platform (MyNRMN) that seeks to connect mentors and mentees to support the persistence of underrepresented minorities in the biomedical sciences. As of May 15, 2024, the MyNRMN platform, which provides mentoring, networking, and professional development tools, has facilitated more than 12,100 unique mentoring connections between faculty, students, and researchers in the biomedical domain. This study aimed to examine the large-scale mentoring connections facilitated by our web-based platform between students (mentees) and faculty (mentors) across institutional and geographic boundaries. Using an innovative graph database, we analyzed diverse mentoring connections between mentors and mentees across demographic characteristics in the biomedical sciences. Through the MyNRMN platform, we observed profile data and analyzed mentoring connections made between students and faculty across institutional boundaries by race, ethnicity, gender, institution type, and educational attainment between July 1, 2016, and May 31, 2021. In total, there were 15,024 connections with 2222 mentees and 1652 mentors across 1625 institutions contributing data. Female mentees participated in the highest number of connections (3996/6108, 65%), whereas female mentors participated in 58% (5206/8916) of the connections. Black mentees made up 38% (2297/6108) of the connections, whereas White mentors participated in 56% (5036/8916) of the connections. Mentees were predominately from institutions classified as Research 1 (R1; doctoral universities-very high research activity) and historically Black colleges and universities (556/2222, 25% and 307/2222, 14%, respectively), whereas 31% (504/1652) of mentors were from R1 institutions. To date, the utility of mentoring connections across institutions throughout the United States and how mentors and mentees are connected is unknown. This study examined these connections and the diversity of these connections using an extensive web-based mentoring network.

Undergraduates have few science instructor role models with concealable stigmatized identities

Concealable stigmatized identities (CSIs) are identities that can be kept hidden and carry negative stereotypes depending on the culture of a particular context; common examples of CSIs in the U.S. are struggling with mental health and LGBTQ+ identities. In order to understand the potential influence instructors have as role models for their students based on CSIs, we must first explore the identities instructors have and whether they disclose those identities to their students. To address this gap in the literature, we conducted a study to examine (1) to what extent science instructors hold concealable identities, (2) whether they reveal those identities to undergraduates, and (3) how the prevalence of CSIs among science instructors compares to their prevalence among science undergraduates. We contacted every science instructor whose email we could find from very high research activity (R1) institutions and a subset completed the survey (N = 1,248); the survey began with a suite of demographic questions, including potential CSIs. For each CSI reported, instructors indicated the extent to which they revealed these identities to undergraduates. We surveyed a national sample of science undergraduate students from R1 institutions (N = 2,428) and asked whether they identified as having any of the CSIs included on the instructor survey. The most common CSIs among instructors were currently or previously having anxiety (35.4%) and being a first-generation college student (29.0%). Across all CSIs, relatively few instructors revealed their identities to students. When compared to the prevalence of the CSIs among undergraduates, we found the largest mismatches, calculated by subtracting the percent of undergraduates from the percent of instructors with each CSI, in reporting struggling academically in college (-30%), anxiety (-25%), and depression (-24%). For all identities, the mismatch between instructors and undergraduates grew when accounting for whether instructors revealed the CSI to their students. Given the potential for instructors to act as role models for students, understanding what identities instructors hold and the extent to which they share them with students is important to consider as we work toward creating a more diverse and inclusive scientific community. National Science Foundation. This is the full abstract presented at the American Physiology Summit 2024 meeting and is only available in HTML format. There are no additional versions or additional content available for this abstract. Physiology was not involved in the peer review process.

Analysis of neurosurgery resident research activity in the United States.

Evaluation of the demographic and academic characteristics of current neurosurgery residents may provide prospective students with insight into factors that affect research output. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the research output among neurosurgery residents. US neurosurgery residency programs were abstracted from the American Association of Neurological Surgeons website. Demographic data on 1690 current residents across 119 programs were collected using publicly available institutional websites, Doximity, and LinkedIn. The h-index of each resident was recorded using Scopus and exported into the NIH iCite tool to determine the weighted relative citation ratio (w-RCR) and mean relative citation ratio (m-RCR). The total number of publications, h-index, and w-RCR were used as a proxy for research output, while m-RCR was used to measure research impact. One-way ANOVA and Kruskal-Wallis H-tests were used to assess the statistical significance of relationships between demographic data and measures of research activity. A total of 1690 residents (25.4% female), representing 119 programs, were evaluated. Neurosurgery residents had an average of 17 publications, h-index of 5.5, m-RCR of 1.4, and w-RCR of 16.9, with an upward trend of research activity by postgraduate year (PGY) class. Male residents on average had a greater total number of publications (p < 0.001), higher h-index (p < 0.001), and higher w-RCR (p = 0.002) compared with their female peers. Significant differences in research activity were also observed by degree (Doctor of Medicine [MD], Doctor of Osteopathy [DO], or other), where those with MD and other degrees had higher metrics than those with DO degrees. International medical graduates (IMGs) also had higher research output than American medical graduates (AMGs) (p < 0.001). Differences in all measures of research activity except impact were also observed in research activity when pre-residency medical school ranks were compared. The authors observed overall high research activity among neurosurgery residents. Factors such as gender, degree, PGY, IMG/AMG status, and medical school rank may therefore be related to the success of matching within neurological surgery. Although large disparities in gender representation have been identified in neurosurgery, newer classes are trending toward shrinking the gap. These data may be used by prospective residents to gauge changes and progress occurring in the neurosurgery match.

Analysis of Research Activity Among Ophthalmology Fellows

ABSTRACT Purpose The academic success of ophthalmology fellows may be significantly impacted by their research engagement. Evaluating the research activity of fellows by subspecialty may provide insight into trends useful for prospective applicants. The objective of this study was to assess the research activity of ophthalmology fellows in the year 2023. Methods Ophthalmology fellowship programs were compiled using the Association of University Professors of Ophthalmology and the American Society of Ophthalmic Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery websites. Program subspecialties were categorized as: Cornea and External Disease [CED]; Cornea, External Disease, and Refractive Surgery [CEDRS]; Glaucoma; Medical Retina [MR]; Neuro-Ophthalmology [NO]; Oculoplastics; Pediatric Ophthalmology [PO]; Surgical Retina [SR]; Uveitis; and Other. “Other” consisted of Oncology, Pathology, combined Oncology and Pathology fellowships. We identified current fellows using publicly available online information. Programs and fellows that did not have information available were excluded. Total publications, Hirsch index (h-index), and weighted-relative citation ration (w-RCR) were utilized as measures of research output, while total citations and mean-RCR (m-RCR) served as proxies for research impact. Duration of publishing was calculated using the years of the oldest and most recent publications. Statistical analysis was performed using Kruskal–Wallis H tests with an alpha value of .05. Results A total of 373 fellows from 229 programs met our inclusion criteria. More than half of fellows were men (54.4%), and the most common degree type was MD (93.0%). Across all subspecialties, the median h-index was 3.0 (IQR = 4), m-RCR was .9 (IQR = 1.2) and w-RCR was 3.2 (IQR = 9.8). The median number of publications was six (IQR = 10, with 34 citations (IQR = 110) and 4 years of publishing (IQR = 6). We observed significant differences in h-index (p = .038), total publications (p < .001), and w-RCR (p = .028) by subspecialty. Conclusion We observed significant differences in research output, but no differences in research impact by subspecialty. Overall, Uveitis and Oculoplastics fellows had higher research activity, while Medical Retina and Other fellows had the lowest. This data is pertinent to better understand the landscape of ophthalmology fellowship applications.

User Experience Research Techniques Facilitate Improvements for Access and Discovery Tools Managed by Technical Services Librarians

A Review of: Hill, K. (2020). Usability beyond the home page: Bringing usability into the technical services workflow. The Serials Librarian, 78 (1–4), 173–180. https://doi.org/10.1080/0361526X.2020.1702857 Objective – To demonstrate how user experience research techniques can be incorporated into technical services work. As proof of this concept, the author describes a case wherein a team of librarians, including one in a technical services role, deployed a user experience study to determine if students were able to successfully use LibGuides and the A-Z Database List to find subject-specific resources. The study also aimed to gauge the potential for several A-Z Database List interface redesign options. Design – A case study of user experience techniques applied to technical services projects, including a classic usability test of existing tools and an A/B/C comparison of potential interface redesigns. Setting – The library at the University of North Carolina Greensboro (UNCG), a public R2 university (doctoral university with high research activity). Subjects – Eleven student participants recruited through convenience sampling. Methods – The research team recruited study participants who were in the library at the time of the study, deselecting students from UNCG’s library school and those who were not currently affiliated with the university through an initial questionnaire. Eleven student participants were ultimately selected and led through a series of tasks related to finding subject-specific databases using the A-Z Database List and LibGuides. After the tasks for the A-Z Database List were completed, students were asked for their impression of two additional database list interfaces. Students were recorded throughout the tasks using the “talk aloud” method to provide researchers with insights on their thought processes and preferences. Following the study, researchers listened to the recordings, coding them as successful or incomplete and noting their observations for use in generalized findings. Main Results – Eight of eleven participants used the library’s main search box to locate a general resource for their major on the library’s homepage. When shown the A-Z Database List, ten out of eleven participants used the list to find a database for their major, while one used the link to “Research guides by subject” from that page. Comparisons of three A-Z Database List interfaces showed that most students preferred the Springshare Content Management System that allowed for filtering by subject area. When asked to find a research guide for their subject or major from the library’s homepage, nine out of eleven students clicked on the link labeled “Research guides by subject.” Starting from their subject guide, ten out of eleven could find a tab listing article databases. Nine participants noted that the number of databases listed on the guides was daunting. Conclusion – Results from the user experience study were used to support a redesign of the A-Z Database List using the Springshare Content Management System. The author regarded the experience as a whole as demonstrating how technical services librarians can become involved in user experience work and incorporate findings from usability studies into their management and design of tools that promote access and discoverability.

University Instructors Use of, and Satisfaction with, Library Services in the Year Following the COVID-19 Outbreak

A Review of: McClure, J. (2023). The COVID-19 pandemic and the rapid shift to an exclusively online format: Tracking online instructors’ utilization of library services over a year of virtual learning at the University of Memphis. College &amp; Research Libraries, 84(1), 100–120. https://doi.org/10.5860/crl.84.1.100 Objective – To determine online instructors' satisfaction with and level of use of library services during the year following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Design – Survey questionnaire and follow-up interview. Setting – The University of Memphis (UofM) is a medium-sized, public, urban, R2 (doctoral university with high research activity) university. At the time of publication, UofM employed 930 full-time faculty and—through UofM Global—the option to earn degrees entirely online. Subjects – Survey respondents (n = 56) were online instructors at the University of Memphis. Methods – A confidential survey was distributed to all deans and department chairs at the UofM with instructions to disseminate the survey to all instructors teaching online course(s). Respondents were invited to participate in a follow-up interview. Main Results – Three common themes identified from the data were 1) respondents would have used the enhanced library services but were not aware of them; 2) respondents were very grateful for the services offered, in particular library instruction, Kanopy, and interlibrary loan; and 3) respondents did not feel like their courses would benefit from the library or its offered services. Conclusion – Based on the research results, the author concludes that the UofM Library must focus efforts on increasing visibility and communication, embedding the library in course design and assessment, as well as improving hybrid library instruction and offering purchase-on-demand collection development. The author has begun work on a follow-up study looking at ways to enhance the embedded librarianship service and increase communication between the UofM librarians and online teaching faculty.

학교 내 아침체육활동 관련 연구 동향과 과제

Objectives The purposes of this study were to analyze the research trends related to morning physical activities within schools and to explore the challenges for future research directions.&#x0D; Methods 68 studies were selected as the final research targets by searching the domestic academic database ‘RISS’ from 2010 to 2021, under the theme of “Morning Sports Activities, 0 Period Physical Education, and Morning Exercise.” These include 26 domestic academic papers and 42 dissertations. The final selected documents were analyzed by dividing the research status of morning sports activities (publishment year, research subject, research method), morning sports activity program (operational event, period, number of operations, operating time), and morning sports activity effect (cognitive effect, affective effect, psychodynamic effect).&#x0D; Results In the research status of morning physical activities, the publication years with the highest research activity were 2013 (11 studies) and 2015 (11 studies). The study subjects were primarily elementary students (33 studies), followed by high school students (15 studies), middle school students (12 studies), and teachers (4 studies). In terms of research methods, quantitative research (52 studies) was the most common, followed by qualitative research (12 studies) and mixed-methods research (4 studies). Regarding morning physical activity programs, many programs incorporated a mix of activities rather than single activities, with a duration of 12 weeks being the most common (10 studies). The frequency of activity sessions per week included 5 sessions (12 studies), 3 sessions (9 studies), 2 sessions (8 studies), and some cases of voluntary participation. The duration of each activity session was often 40 minutes (18 studies), followed by 30 minutes (11 studies), 50 minutes (5 studies), and 60 minutes (5 studies). In terms of the effects of morning physical activities, they were categorized into cognitive effects related to academic achievement and concentration (21 studies), affective and attitude-related effects, as well as interpersonal relationship-related effects (42 studies), and physical health and fitness-related effects (20 studies).&#x0D; Conclusions Future research challenges were proposed, including diversifying the research subjects, overcoming research biases, and enhancing the expertise and systematic nature of research.

Disciplinary and institutional diversity of federally funded academic research on climate solutions in the United States

To meet the demands of technological change required for climate change mitigation, academic research must cover a broad range of climate solutions. Diverse participation in this research is important because research shows that a variety of backgrounds and problem-solving approaches are important to solving complex problems such as climate change. In our study, we examine the discplinary and institutional diversity of federal funding for academic research on climate solutions (ARCS) in the United States. We identify $1.42 billion in federal funding for ARCS in fiscal years 2019 and 2020. Our findings reveal that 85% of federal ARCS grants are awarded to Principal Investigators in engineering and the natural sciences. Additionally, institutions classified as having high research activity (R1s) receive over 60% of the ARCS funding per student. Tribal institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and Hispanic Serving Institutions collectively receive only $109.20 in ARCS funding per student, compared to $334.30 per student for other institution types. These disparities in federally funded ARCS grants are, in part, a consequence of the absence of policies that promote interdisciplinary collaboration and broader participation in academic research. We discuss the policy implications that have contributed to the identified inequities in ARCS funding and current policies that could enhance the distribution of ARCS in the future. We propose strategies for federally funded ARCS to support an equitable energy transition that addresses the needs of contemporary society and beyond.

Why They Intend to Leave: The Role of Burnout Between the Faculty Work Environment and Intent to Leave Academia

Though faculty are crucial to university success, faculty work motivation research often lacks a theoretical basis and discounts potential affective influences like burnout. Such limitations reduce the ability to understand faculty work motivation and, thus, to facilitate its development. To overcome these, the Affective Events Theory was applied to the domain of faculty work motivation. The resultant model was tested using faculty participants from 24 doctoral universities. Participants completed a survey assessing work-related characteristics, affect (burnout), and cognitions. Results revealed that faculty at doctoral universities (i.e., High and Very High Research Activity Universities) experienced less burnout when they received support from their institution, had autonomy in structuring their daily tasks, viewed their job as important, completed their tasks from beginning to end, experienced less skill and task variety, and were in good health. Those who experienced burnout reported diminished job satisfaction, reduced commitment, and less intention to stay in academia. The implications for theoretical research, institutional policy, and practice are discussed.

The Performing Arts in Institutional Repositories: An Analysis of Policies and Holdings

Institutional repositories aim to capture the intellectual output of a specific institution. Previous scholars explored the content and disciplinary breakdowns of IR holdings; however, these studies often exclude the creative output of the arts, especially performing arts. This study uses a systematic content analysis of collection development statements or similar policies to understand whether IRs accept creative works. A review of IR collections shows the presence of performance output in a sample of 30 repositories at doctoral universities with very high research activity. Many IRs name creative work as acceptable content, and many of the sample IRs include content from performance-based disciplines. While many institutions collect performance materials in some way, text-based documents continue to be the primary method of performing arts representation in IRs. Shared examples of the successful inclusion of performance in IRs would further promote IRs as a platform for hosting all types of performance content, while also assisting others in outreach to artist-scholars in performing arts disciplines.

Women drive efforts to highlight concealable stigmatized identities in U.S. academic science and engineering.

Concealable stigmatized identities (CSIs) are hidden identities that carry negative stereotypes and can result in a loss of social status if revealed. Instructors often choose to conceal these CSIs due to anticipated negative student reactions, yet revealing CSIs can have a positive impact on undergraduates. Women are generally more likely to reveal personal aspects about themselves in social situations, but may face greater consequences for revealing a stigmatized identity to students given their already marginalized position in academic science and engineering. Therefore, in this study, we were interested in understanding to what extent there are differences between men and women science and engineering instructors in (i) the representation of CSIs, (ii) their decisions to reveal CSIs to undergraduates in their classes, and (iii) their perceived stigma of CSIs. Based on a national survey of over 2,000 instructors in science and engineering from very high research activity doctoral institutions, we found that women were more likely than men to report having depression, anxiety, or a disability. Of instructors who held CSIs, women had 1.5x higher odds than men of revealing their CSIs to some undergraduates compared to no undergraduates and perceived greater stigma associated with all CSIs. Despite perceiving greater stigma associated with concealable stigmatized identities, women are more likely to reveal their CSIs to college science and engineering students, leading the way to a more diverse and inclusive scientific community by demonstrating themselves as role models for these identities.

Queering the glass ceiling: alpha females, cyborgs, and the non-tenure track in science

ABSTRACT This inquiry into the nature of feminist solidarity in the academic sciences is guided by the intra-activity of gendered bodies in teaching-intensive faculty positions. It uses diffractive methodology to examine how response-able research practice can account for enactment of social discourse through agential cuts. Over the course of a two-year ethnography in a university with high research activity, gender performativity in the contested space of feminized teaching and masculine science was analysed. This article aims to make visible how researcher subjectivities entangle with data collection. Results show how specific agential cuts – alpha female, silencing, less-than-person, squashing passion, and staying to get tenure – illuminate a unique diffractive pattern. The pattern troubles structural notions of feminist solidarity, as ethnographic participants marginalized by institutional hierarchies survive by queering it. Furthermore, the inquiry gestures towards a humble, local, and tentative contribution to post-human theorizing on ‘queering the glass ceiling’.

Research solution for automatic hole quality analysis when drilling fiber-reinforced composites

Fiber-reinforced polymers are highly demanding composites in aerospace and automotive areas because of their excellent mechanical properties such as stiffness and strength-to-weight ratio. The drilling remains the major machining operation applied to composites to provide high-quality holes for joints between parts. Due to composites plied structure, the drilling is accompanied with unusual form metal cutting defects such as delamination and uncut fibers around the drilled hole. Considering that the tool life of some drills reaches over thousands of holes, the research of composites machinability becomes difficult due to demanded labor intensity in manual inspection of the hole quality. Therefore, this paper develops the research solution for automatic analysis of the hole quality in drilled fiber-reinforced materials. The paper proposes a complex of solutions aimed to speed up the analysis of the hole quality when composites drilling. The solution consists of the developed vacuum table, robot arm with high-speed camera, developed top and bottom lightning systems, and Image Processing algorithms for defect detection from captured images. The paper results show how the developed solution can be used for high routine research activities. The output data, including tested 72 cutting data parameters and full-size tool life test, allowed identifying the operational window for high-speed steel drills and the range of tool life, where drill ensures a certain hole quality. The paper shows the efficiency of the developed research solution can reach 5 s per hole including drilling and full cycle of measurements having measurement error of 1–3%.