Shattering the academic glass tank

My article for the EAIE Forum – Our Gendered World | The metaphor of a glass ceiling, an invisible, often unacknowledged barrier that keeps a certain demographic from career advancement, is often used in the context of women in science. The phenomenon is so globally widespread that it has given…

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Expanding the roles of women in STEM

My blog post on the European Association for International Education site.| The fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), have traditionally attracted more male than female scholars on all academic levels. The disparity of interests between genders can be seen as early as secondary school. The resulting trend is,…

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The importance of sex in science

My post for Discov-Her, the L’Oreal Foundation blog. In science, what difference does sex make? Dr. Joanna Bagniewska, ecologist, well-known science communicator and teaching fellow at the University of Reading, is here to explain. I’m an ecologist – and ecologists talk about sex A LOT. We love to prod the…

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Open season for female scientists

My post on the Soapbox Science blog Because I’m a zoologist working in a rather gender-balanced and female-friendly environment, I have for a long time thought that the discrimination of women in STEM is a largely exaggerated problem. But then it hit me with the force of a charging elephant (the…

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Turning Brain Drain into Brain Circulation

My post for the Crastina Column For many years Poland has experienced human capital flight, or “brain drain”. But this process is slowly becoming balanced by ”returnees”. The networking and communication skills of young members of the Polish scientific diaspora has played a crucial role. Joanna Bagniewska, zoologist and science disseminator, explains how.

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How do our bodies know when to go to sleep?

A piece I wrote for the British Council Blog prior to FameLab International. | How do our bodies know when it’s night? In our eyes, there are photoreceptors: cells which can determine the difference between light and darkness. But how do the kidneys, liver or stomach know when it’s dark or light? During…

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What does the bird say?

A fascinating example of mimicry by the superb lyrebird, Menura novaehollandiae. I have taken this – somewhat shaky – footage in Healesville Sanctuary, Victoria, Australia, in December 2013. It’s the first time I have seen a lyrebird display outside of David Attenborough’s documentaries! Chain saw, shooting game, camera shutter, kookaburra, car alarm…

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