Paleontological Society Research Articles

Repairing the scaffolding: women authors in Paleobiology

AbstractWomen are underrepresented in paleontology. Despite more women students, representation at senior levels remains low. To advance professionally, scientists must disseminate their research through peer-reviewed publications. We examine gendered authorship patterns in Paleobiology to ask whether the publishing infrastructure supports the Paleontological Society's gender-equity goals. We reviewed all papers published in Paleobiology from its inception in 1975 through 2021. For each paper, we recorded each author, the author's position in the author list, and the total number of authors on each paper. We coded gender based on a combination of personal communication and pronouns used in publicly available information. We compared author demographics with anonymized membership data from the Paleontological Society. Over the journal's run, the number of authors per paper increased due to cultural shifts toward collaborative work and acknowledging student contributions with coauthorship. These trends contribute to proportionally more women authors, beginning in the early 2000s. Despite these increases, women remain chronically underrepresented. In 2018, 2019, and 2021, the proportion of women authors in Paleobiology paralleled membership in the Paleontological Society. However, in 2020, Paleobiology published fewer women authors than expected based on society membership. This echoes declines in women's scholarly productivity in the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic observed across many disciplines. We offer four recommendations: (1) practice double-anonymous peer review; (2) recruit editors from diverse backgrounds who invite reviewers with diverse backgrounds; (3) democratize manuscript review by selecting reviewers from a disaggregated reviewer database; and (4) gather and analyze demographic data for both submissions and publications.

IN MEMORIAM OF ACADEMICIAN PETRO GOZHYK – THE OUTSTANDING RESEARCHER OF THE QUATERNARY AND ORGANIZER OF SCIENCE

Academician Petro Feodosiyovych Gozhyk is a prominent Ukrainian geologist, palaeontologist, palaeogeographer and researcher of the Quaternary. All his scientific activity was related to the Institute of Geological Sciences of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, in which he worked his way up from graduate student to the director position. The scientific interests of the researcher cover a wide range of Earth sciences – from the study of molluscs to marine geology and Antarctic research. The publication presents the main milestones of Petro Gozhyk's life and scientific and organizational work. The article analyzes the scientist's contribution to the development of Antarctic research in Ukraine. In particular, it was noted that in 1993, on the initiative of P. Gozhyk, the Center for Antarctic Studies of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (now the National Antarctic Scientific Center of the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine) was established in Ukraine, which he headed. Thanks to the efforts of Petro Gozhyk and his like-minded people, in 1994, Ukraine was admitted to the International Scientific Committee for Antarctic Research, and in 1995 Great Britain and Ukraine signed a Memorandum on the transfer of the British Faraday Antarctic Station to Ukraine. In 1996, the flag of Ukraine was raised at the station. It was named “Academician Vernadsky” and our country became one of the 30 Antarctic states of the world. Special attention is paid to P. Gozhyk's organizational skills. For a long time, he was the President of the Paleontological Society of Ukraine and devoted much time to organizing the society's congresses. It is worth noting the scientific and organizational activities of P. Gozhyk in the Department of Earth Sciences of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, under whose leadership targeted programs of applied research were carried out. The scientist also headed the National Stratigraphic Committee of Ukraine (in particular, its Cenozoic Commission and the Quaternary Subcommission) and rightfully held the position of a scientific leader in the study of Quaternary deposits. Petro Gozhyk played a significant role in organising and conducting Ukrainian-Polish field loess seminars. Joint research on the territory of Ukraine and Poland contributed to clarifying the stratigraphy and correlation of Quaternary deposits of neighbouring states. In general, P. Gozhyk put a lot of effort into establishing international cooperation among Ukrainian scientists, representing Ukraine in the International Union for Quaternary Research (INQUA), and his works are widely known in Europe and the USA. Key words: international cooperation; marine geology; palaeontology; palaeogeography; Pleistocene; stratigraphy; Antarctica.

Response by Brittney Elizabeth Stoneburg for the presentation of the 2022 Pojeta award of the Paleontological Society

Response by Brittney Elizabeth Stoneburg for the presentation of the 2022 Pojeta award of the Paleontological Society

Response by Conrad C. Labandeira for the presentation of the 2022 Paleontological Society Medal

Response by Conrad C. Labandeira for the presentation of the 2022 Paleontological Society Medal

Presentation of the 2022 Schuchert Award of the Paleontological Society to Matt Friedman

Presentation of the 2022 Schuchert Award of the Paleontological Society to Matt Friedman

Response by Gabriel-Philip Santos for the presentation of the 2022 Pojeta Award of the Paleontological Society

Response by Gabriel-Philip Santos for the presentation of the 2022 Pojeta Award of the Paleontological Society

Presentation of the 2022 Paleontological Society Medal to Conrad C. Labandeira

Presentation of the 2022 Paleontological Society Medal to Conrad C. Labandeira

Response by Joseph Koniecki for the presentation of the 2022 Strimple Award of the Paleontological Society

Response by Joseph Koniecki for the presentation of the 2022 Strimple Award of the Paleontological Society

The 68th Session of the Paleontological Society

The 68th Session of the Paleontological Society

Presentation of the 2021 Schuchert Award of the Paleontological Society to Melanie Jane Hopkins

Presentation of the 2021 Schuchert Award of the Paleontological Society to Melanie Jane Hopkins

Presentation of the 2021 Paleontological Society Medal to Scott L. Wing

Presentation of the 2021 Paleontological Society Medal to Scott L. Wing

Response by Melanie Hopkins for the presentation of the 2021 Schuchert Award of the Paleontological Society

Response by Melanie Hopkins for the presentation of the 2021 Schuchert Award of the Paleontological Society

Response by Daniel Phelps for the presentation of the 2021 Strimple Award of the Paleontological Society

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Presentation of the 2021 Harrell L. Strimple Award of the Paleontological Society to Daniel Phelps

Presentation of the 2021 Harrell L. Strimple Award of the Paleontological Society to Daniel Phelps

Response by Scott L. Wing for the presentation of the 2021 Paleontological Society Medal

Response by Scott L. Wing for the presentation of the 2021 Paleontological Society Medal

Response by Linda McCall for the presentation of the 2020 Strimple Award of the Paleontological Society

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Presentation of the 2020 Paleontological Society Medal to Susan M. Kidwell

Presentation of the 2020 Paleontological Society Medal to Susan M. Kidwell

Response by Lee Hsiang Liow for the presentation of the 2020 Schuchert Award of the Paleontological Society

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Presentation of the 2020 Schuchert Award of the Paleontological Society to Lee Hsiang Liow

Presentation of the 2020 Schuchert Award of the Paleontological Society to Lee Hsiang Liow

Response by Susan M. Kidwell for the presentation of the 2020 Paleontological Society Medal

Response by Susan M. Kidwell for the presentation of the 2020 Paleontological Society Medal