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bioRxiv2024

Exploring The Association of Student Perceptions of Their Teachers' Science Instruction and Emotional Engagement and The Variance between Grade Level

AbstractPrevious research has consistently shown students have higher learning interests attitudes, and motivation toward science in elementary compared to middle and high school. However, the key predictors behind the observed differences in engagement levels across grade levels remain unclear. This study aims to identify the association between students perceptions of science instruction and their emotional engagement, as well as examine the differences across various educational stages. A multilevel random effect model was employed to investigate this association. In addition, the analysis examined whether the associations vary between grade levels. A sample of 6465 students from 25 schools participated in the study. This study shows that students in higher grades have significantly lower emotional engagement compared to third-grade students. Similarly, students in higher grades have significantly lower values on perceptions of science instruction of interesting science and understandable science decrease compared to third grade. Findings reveal significant associations between students perceptions of science instruction, both in perceiving interesting science instruction and understandable science instruction, and their emotional engagement in science learning. The interaction term (Perception of Interesting Science Instruction x Grade) of Grades four, six through eight, and grade 12 are statistically significantly related to emotional engagement, indicating that more positive slopes correspond to high-grade level than third-grade students. The increase in students perception of interesting science has the steepest slope of improvement in students emotional engagement in 6th grade. We find no statistically significant difference between grades in students perception of understandable science and emotional engagement. Interesting and understandable science classes have positive correlations with students emotional engagement in science learning. For future studies, it is worth exploring science instruction during transition grades to better address and mitigate the observed difference in emotional engagement.

scientific communication and education↗

bioRxiv2021

Flying in the Face of Adversity: A Drosophila-based Virtual CURE Provides Semester-long Authentic Research Opportunity to the Flipped Classroom.

A call for the integration of research experiences into all biology curricula has been a major goal for educational reform efforts nationally. Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experiences (CUREs) have been the predominant method of accomplishing this, but their associated costs and complex design can limit their wide adoption. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic forced programs to identify unique ways to still provide authentic research experiences while students were virtual. We report here a full guide for the successful implementation of a semester-long virtual CURE that uses Drosophila behavioral assays to explore the connection between pain and addiction with the use of a "lab-in-a-box" sent home to students. Individual components were piloted across three semesters and launched as a 100-level introductory course with 19 students. We found that this course increased science identity and successfully improved key research competencies as per the Undergraduate Research Student Self-Assessment (URSSA) survey. This course is ideal for flipped classrooms ranging from introductory biology to upper-level neuroscience courses and can be integrated directly into the lecture period without the need for building a new course. Given the low cost, recent comfort with virtual learning environments, and the current proliferation of flipped biology classrooms following the 2020 pandemic, this curriculum could serve as an ideal project-based active-learning tool for equitably increasing access to authentic research experiences.

scientific communication and education↗

bioRxiv2026

Biology Undergraduates Use of AI-Enabled Feedback to Revise Scientific Writing: Recipience and Barriers

Background: Instructors and education researchers are increasingly developing feedback with the assistance of generative AI, which we refer to as AI-enabled feedback, yet we do not know whether established understandings of feedback uptake and effectiveness apply similarly in AI-mediated contexts. This makes the recipience of AI-enabled feedback a central concern to understanding how to best support students in developing their scientific writing skills. This study examined how two teams of undergraduate biology students used AI-enabled feedback to revise their scientific writing, and the extent to which their revisions addressed that feedback. The teams revised their research proposal drafts after receiving AI-enabled feedback developed by their instructor with the aid of a custom AI tool. Results: Our findings show that AI-enabled feedback prompted actionable revision across both teams. Each team addressed approximately half of the feedback comments, indicating comparable levels of uptake despite their differing approaches to revision. We observed that both teams were inconsistent in providing the additional information and reasoning requested in the feedback, and they struggled to address comments requiring self-evaluation. Taken together, we see that students often addressed the more easily actionable parts of AI-enabled feedback while omitting more demanding revisions. Conclusions: These findings provide behavioral evidence of how students used AI-enabled feedback to revise their scientific writing. The observed patterns suggest that the content of AI-enabled feedback supported meaningful revision, while limitations in students agency, strategies, and volition likely shaped their implementation of comments. Although the degree of uptake observed in this study is encouraging, it is unlikely that a single application of generative AI within the feedback process will resolve all the challenges associated with feedback uptake.

scientific communication and education↗

bioRxiv2021

High school science fair: Experiences of undergraduate bioscience majors

Science fairs offer potential opportunities for students to learn first-hand about the practices of science. Over the past six years we have been carrying out voluntary and anonymous surveys with regional and national groups of high school and post high school students to learn about their high school science fair experiences regarding help received, obstacles encountered, and opinions about the value and impact of science fair. Understanding what students think about science fairs will help educators make science fairs more effective learning opportunities. In this paper, we focus on the findings with two national groups of post high school students - undergraduate research fellows (SURF students) who did research at UT Southwestern Medical Center during 2014-2019 and undergraduates biology students attending the 2019 Howard Hughes Medical Institute Science Education Alliance (SEA) summer symposium. About 25% of the students who completed surveys indicated that they had participated in high school science fair, but more than half attended high schools where science fairs were unavailable. Effectively, 6 out of every 10 students participated in science fair if available. Students who could have participated in high school science fair but chose not to do so identified not enough time and coming up with their project idea as major reasons why not. About half the SURF students favored requiring non-competitive science fair regardless whether they themselves had participated in science fair. On the other hand, less than 1 in 5 thought that competitive science fair should be required. Introduction to the scientific process and general learning were mentioned most frequently as the reasons to require non-competitive science fair; these reasons were mentioned rarely in connection with competitive science fair. Unlike the national cohort of high school students we surveyed previously, who mostly did science fair in 9th and 10th grades, SURF students participated in science fair throughout high school and were twice as likely as high school students to have carried out science fair more than once. In conclusion, our findings suggest that participation of the undergraduate bioscience majors in high school science fairs occurs far more frequently than recognized previously. The findings emphasize further the importance of incentivizing rather than requiring science fair participation, especially in 9th and 10th grades, and the potential value of developing non-competitive science fairs.

scientific communication and education↗

bioRxiv2026

Let's Be Black Excellence: How Black Students Navigate Exclusionary and Affirming Racialized Peer Interactions in Active Learning College Science Classrooms

Racial equity remains a critical challenge in postsecondary science education, as Black students experience higher attrition rates and diminished well-being compared to their White peers. While active learning has been shown to reduce failure rates and narrow achievement gaps, the interpersonal affordances and constraints of peer discussions within these settings remain underexplored for Black students. Grounded in Critical Race Theory and utilizing the analytical lenses of racial microaggressions, microaffirmations, and Community Cultural Wealth, this study addresses this issue by investigating the racialized interpersonal experiences of Black students in active learning college science classrooms. Through semi-structured interviews, this study explores the nature of both exclusionary and affirming peer interactions and how students navigate these dynamics. Findings reveal that Black students frequently encounter racialized microaggressions--manifestations of macro-level anti-Blackness-- in the classroom which contribute to isolation and racial battle fatigue. Conversely, students describe instances of microaffirmations, predominantly through small counterspaces created by and for other students of color, which validate their intellectual contributions and foster a sense of belonging. Despite facing these tensions, participants advocate for active learning as a beneficial practice, provided that instructors implement explicit, equitable structures and facilitate culturally responsive classroom climates. These findings offer actionable implications for researchers and practitioners to design more inclusive active learning environments by explicitly addressing interpersonal dynamics, promoting cultural competence, and co-constructing humanizing science classroom climates.

scientific communication and education↗

bioRxiv2017

A global perspective on bioinformatics training needs

In the last decade, life-science research has become increasingly data-intensive and computational. Nevertheless, basic bioinformatics and data stewardship are still only rarely taught in life-science degree programmes, creating a widening skills gap that spans educational levels and career roles. To better understand this situation, we ran surveys to determine how the skills dearth is affecting the need for bioinformatics training worldwide. Perhaps unsurprisingly, we found that respondents wanted more short courses to help boost their expertise and confidence in data analysis and interpretation. However, it was evident that most respondents appreciated their need for training only after designing their experiments and collecting their data. This is clearly rather late in the research workflow, and suboptimal from a training perspective, as skills acquired to address a specific need at a particular time are seldom retained, engendering a cycle of low confidence in trainees. To ensure that such skill gaps do not continue to create barriers to the progress of research, we argue that universities should strive to bring their life-science curricula into the digital-data era. Meanwhile, the demand for point-of-need training in bioinformatics and data stewardship will grow. While this situation persists, international groups like GOBLET are increasing their efforts to enlarge the community of trainers and quench the global thirst for bioinformatics training.

scientific communication and education↗

bioRxiv2023

Intradisciplinary Growth of Sustainability-Minded Engineers through Conservation Technology

BackgroundThe need for sustainability-minded engineers prepared to address complex societal challenges has grown exponentially in recent years. Frameworks like the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have begun to drive structural changes in engineering education, including new ABET accreditation focused on sustainability. The new field of conservation technology allows engineers to develop sustainability competencies and identities as conservationists and environmentalists. PurposeThis manuscript describes an assessment of student identity development in conservation and environmentalism in the GaTech4Wildlife Vertically Integrated Project (VIP) course at Georgia Tech. The course uses the principles of Human-Centered Design along with the UN Sustainable Development Goals and project-based learning to solve conservation-oriented, real-world problems and develop sustainability-minded engineers. Design/MethodUndergraduate students participated in the course and utilizing both in-person interviews and post-course assessment, students were assessed for course themes and identities. The sample consisted of students from the College of Engineering and the College of Computing. ResultsSince 2019, over 50 students have participated in this Tech4Wildlife course. Based on surveys and interviews of nearly 20 of the most recent students, students transitioned from identifying as engineers and coders with no sustainability knowledge to nearly doubling their identity measures as conservationists and environmentalists after only one semester. ConclusionsTo teach the next generation of sustainability-minded engineers, interdisciplinary, project-based courses grounded in Sustainable Development Goals may offer a meaningful pathway for students to develop both technical skills and conservationist identities.

scientific communication and education↗

bioRxiv2024

Community-Based Entomological Surveillance and Control of Vector-Borne Diseases: A Scoping Review

Community-based surveillance and control methods (CBMs) present opportunities to decentralize surveillance and control efforts while simultaneously enhancing community education, leadership, and participation in the fight against vector-borne diseases (VBDs). A scoping review was conducted to describe how CBMs are being utilized currently to combat malaria, dengue fever, Chagas disease, tick-borne diseases (TBDs) and other mosquito-borne diseases (MBD) exclusive of dengue and malaria, and to overall highlight key approaches, lessons learned, potential challenges, and recommendations. A total of 304 potential publications were identified among which 82 met the inclusion criteria. This scoping review highlighted the following benefits to CBMs: cost savings, increased sustainability, increased community knowledge, human behavior changes, increased surveillance coverage, ease in deployment, and the creation of larger, more diverse entomological datasets. Potential challenges highlighted include: participant retention and motivation, participant recruitment and incentives, continued governmental support, data quality, and collaboration with local municipal authorities. CBMs are commonly and successfully used in vector surveillance and control systems, but the chosen vector management method varies by vector-borne disease and region of the world. Additional research is needed to support the implementation of CBMs including cost-effectiveness studies and those studies with negative outcomes. Taken together, this scoping review highlights key aspects, potential challenges, and benefits of CBMs, and outlines potential future directions for incorporating CBMs into VBD control and elimination programming, and potential for community based integrated vector management (IVM) approaches.

scientific communication and education↗

bioRxiv2019

The Mastery Rubric for Bioinformatics: supporting design and evaluation of career-spanning education and training

As the life sciences have become more data intensive, the pressure to incorporate the requisite training into life-science education and training programs has increased. To facilitate curriculum development, various sets of (bio)informatics competencies have been articulated; however, these have proved difficult to implement in practice. Addressing this issue, we have created a curriculum-design and -evaluation tool to support the development of specific Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs) that reflect the scientific method and promote both bioinformatics practice and the achievement of competencies. Twelve KSAs were extracted via formal analysis, and stages along a developmental trajectory, from uninitiated student to independent practitioner, were identified. Demonstration of each KSA by a performer at each stage was initially described (Performance Level Descriptors, PLDs), evaluated, and revised at an international workshop. This work was subsequently extended and further refined to yield the Mastery Rubric for Bioinformatics (MR-Bi). The MR-Bi was validated by demonstrating alignment between the KSAs and competencies, and its consistency with principles of adult learning. The MR-Bi tool provides a formal framework to support curriculum building, training, and self-directed learning. It prioritizes the development of independence and scientific reasoning, and is structured to allow individuals (regardless of career stage, disciplinary background, or skill level) to locate themselves within the framework. The KSAs and their PLDs promote scientific problem formulation and problem solving, lending the MR-Bi durability and flexibility. With its explicit developmental trajectory, the tool can be used by developing or practicing scientists to direct their (and their teams) acquisition of new, or to deepen existing, bioinformatics KSAs. The MR-Bi can thereby contribute to the cultivation of a next generation of bioinformaticians who are able to design reproducible and rigorous research, and to critically analyze results from their own, and others, work.

scientific communication and education↗

bioRxiv2018

Women in neotropical science: Gender parity in the 21st century and prospects for a post-war Colombia

An increasing amount of research has focused on studying the drivers shaping demographics in science. As a result, we now have a better idea of the current state of gender disparity in science, which remains widespread worldwide. However, fewer studies and limited data have restricted our understanding of this phenomenon in the Neotropics, a highly important region in terms of cultural and biological diversity. Despite a civil war that lasted more than five decades and produced eight million victims (half of them women), Colombia is the fifth country with the highest scientific production in Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as the second most biodiverse country in the world. In order to evaluate the status of gender parity in science in Colombia throughout the 21st century, data of science demographics was gathered covering the 2000-2017 time period. Percentage of women in science was decomposed by research area, researcher rank level and education level. Gender disparity was also estimated for changes in average age, access to scholarships for postgraduate studies, and number of doctoral graduates. Finally, using logistic function modelling, temporal projections into the future were performed, in order to estimate how long could it take to reach gender parity. Of six research fields, medical and health science is the only one to have reached gender parity (55.99%), although it is also the only one showing a steady decrease in women representation across time. On the other hand, engineering, humanities and natural sciences had the lowest percentages of female representation (19.89%, 30.02%, and 30.21%, respectively). Female researchers were on average younger than male researchers, and they also showed a decreasing presence as they move upward to more senior levels, exemplifying the leaky-pipeline phenomenon common in science. More men were observed both as scholarship awardees for doctoral studies, and as doctoral graduates, indicating that obtaining a doctoral degree could be a major limiting factor for women in science. Possible drivers of these results are analysed, suggesting that a combination of lack of research funding, insufficient legal framework, pre-existing biases, and poor protection of womens rights inhibits female participation in science. Based on logistic function modelling it is estimated that, without any action to change current trends, it could take between 10 (humanities) and 175 (engineering) years to reach gender parity across all research areas.

scientific communication and education↗

bioRxiv2022

A low-cost smartphone fluorescence microscope for research, life science education, and STEM outreach

Much of our understanding of cell and tissue development, structure, and function stems from fluorescence microscopy. The acquisition of colorful and glowing images engages and excites users ranging from seasoned microscopists to STEM students. Fluorescence microscopes range in cost from several thousand to several hundred thousand US dollars. Therefore, the use of fluorescence microscopy is typically limited to well-funded institutions and biotechnology companies, research core facilities, and medical laboratories, but is financially impractical at many universities and colleges, primary and secondary schools (K-12), and in science outreach settings. In this study, we developed and characterized components that when used in combination with a smartphone or tablet, perform fluorescence microscopy at a cost of less than $50 US dollars per unit. We re-purposed recreational LED flashlights and theater stage lighting filters to enable viewing of green and red fluorophores including EGFP, DsRed, mRFP, and mCherry on a simple-to-build frame made of wood and plexiglass. These devices, which we refer to as glowscopes, were capable of 10 m resolution, imaging fluorescence in live specimens, and were compatible with all smartphone and tablet models we tested. In comparison to scientific-grade fluorescence microscopes, glowscopes may have limitations to sensitivity needed to detect dim fluorescence and the inability to resolve subcellular structures. We demonstrate capability of viewing fluorescence within zebrafish embryos, including heart rate, rhythmicity, and regional anatomy of the central nervous system. Due to the low cost of individual glowscope units, we anticipate this device can help to equip K-12, undergraduate, and science outreach classrooms with fleets of fluorescence microscopes that can engage students with hands-on learning activities.

scientific communication and education↗

bioRxiv2023

UCLA's Competitive Edge Program Provides an Advantage to STEM Doctoral Students from Historically Excluded and Underrepresented Groups

Universities benefit from recruiting and retaining diverse students, as it leads to more creative and rigorous problem solving. Efforts to improve the diversity, equity, and inclusion of graduate education have historically been focused on recruitment but are now shifting to retaining enrolled students. A low percentage of doctoral students, particularly those from historically underrepresented groups (URGs), complete their PhD within 10 years. To increase support of incoming doctoral students from URGs, UCLA established the Competitive Edge (CE) bridge program. CE provides six weeks of professional development and research training at the start of the PhD program. We surveyed 55+ first-year doctoral students (14 CE students, eight non-CE students from URGs, and 34 well-represented (WR) students) in STEM fields to understand CEs effectiveness. We found that the CE program aided students in four areas that influence graduate student attrition: mentor/mentee relationship, socialization, finances, and preparedness. At the end of their first academic year, CE students reported that the program helped them in multiple areas relating to student success, such as mental wellbeing and sense of belonging. CE students reported a larger mean growth in seven of eight skills needed in graduate school compared to NonCE URG and WR students. Short answer responses revealed that NonCE students wished for more support in areas covered by the CE program, such as managing advising relationships and protecting mental health. Additionally, CE students received significant funding during the program. The CE programs successful model at UCLA can be adapted to improve support for underrepresented doctoral students at other institutions.

scientific communication and education↗

bioRxiv2026

Development and field test of an intervention to reduce conflict in faculty-doctoral student mentoring relationships

Mentoring is a critical component of graduate education. However, conflicts can occur between faculty mentors and their graduate students, which can undermine the quality of these relationships. We leveraged attribution theory and relationship science to develop a novel professional development intervention that combines attribution retraining to enhance faculty beliefs that they can improve their mentoring relationships, and conflict management training to build faculty skills in having productive problem-solving conversations with their graduate students. We piloted and refined the intervention, then conducted a field test of the intervention with life science faculty (n = 71) from U.S. universities. Participants were randomly assigned to an asynchronous self-guided condition or to a self-guided + synchronous facilitated peer discussion condition. We measured faculty beliefs, perceived skills, and self-reported behaviors when encountering conflicts before and after participating in the intervention. Faculty in both conditions reported significant reductions in the frequency of conflicts with their students, the time and energy they spent addressing conflicts, and the extent to which conflicts disrupted their research productivity. Faculty also expressed increased confidence that they could manage conflicts. Our results suggest that the intervention has the potential to improve faculty capacity to effectively navigate conflicts with their graduate students. Highlight summaryA mentoring intervention for faculty combining attribution-retraining and conflict management skill-building strengthened faculty self-efficacy and motivational beliefs and reduced mentoring conflicts.

scientific communication and education↗

bioRxiv2024

Beyond Pre-Post Surveys: Exploring Validity Evidence For The Use Of Experience Sampling Methods To Measure Student Anxiety In Introductory Biology

Classroom experiences elicit many emotions in students. Of these emotions, anxiety, or the feeling of uncertainty about a prospective event, has outsized impacts on students academic achievement and persistence. To understand the effects of student anxiety on student outcomes, education researchers often utilize single or dual-time point (e.g., pre-post) surveys. However, we posit that these methods have significant limitations, including the potential to miss variation in student emotions across time. One methodological solution to this problem is using experience sampling methods (ESM), or short, frequent surveys that capture student experiences as they occur. This study sought to provide evidence of validity for the use of ESM to measure student anxiety in Introductory Biology courses. We compared student anxiety data gathered via ESM and traditional survey methods (i.e., pre-post surveys) in terms of 1) differences in participant recruitment, 2) students experience of anxiety, and 3) the predictive ability on end-of-course outcomes. Our results revealed that: 1) Compared to non-ESM participants, the ESM group has significantly fewer men and had significantly higher perceptions of instructor support, 2) Average anxiety levels measured via ESM were lower and more variable than those measured via pre-post surveys, and 3) Post-survey measures of anxiety and average ESM measures of anxiety significantly predicted students final grade. We discuss the implications of these results for future applications of ESM and pre-post survey methods; specifically, we propose that ESM methods may be more advantageous than pre-post surveys in cases where researchers aim to understand intra-individual processes, like emotions.

scientific communication and education↗

bioRxiv2026

Perceived Risk and Barriers to Open and Responsible Research Across Fifteen UK Universities

Open research practices are increasingly promoted to improve research transparency, reproducibility, accessibility, and societal impact. Despite growing support from research funders, institutions, and policy initiatives, adoption remains uneven across disciplines and research communities. This study examined perceived risks and barriers associated with 14 FORRT Guideline areas using qualitative responses from the UK Reproducibility Network Open and Transparent Research Practices Survey (N = 2,567), conducted across 15 UK higher education institutions. Free-text responses describing risks and barriers were analysed using inductive thematic analysis. A total of 3,951 relevant comments generated 3,433 coded references to barriers and risks. Three interconnected clusters emerged. Individual concerns included lack of motivation, fear of losing intellectual credit, and concerns about exposing mistakes and criticism. Systemic and institutional barriers included lack of time and resources, inadequate infrastructure, insufficient training and support, lack of incentives and recognition, unclear guidance, disciplinary and methodological challenges, and tensions between open practices and intellectual property requirements. Ethical and quality-related concerns included risks to participant confidentiality and privacy, challenges associated with sensitive data, concerns about inappropriate application of open research practices across different research traditions, perceived impacts on research quality and innovation, and potential effects on public trust in research. Lack of time and resources was the most frequently reported barrier. Across responses, barriers were commonly described as interdependent, with shortcomings in funding, infrastructure, institutional support, incentives, and training reinforcing one another. Respondents largely supported the principles underpinning open research but highlighted substantial practical, professional, and ethical challenges to implementation. These findings suggest that increasing open research adoption requires more than policy mandates or awareness-raising activities. Sustainable uptake will depend on aligned incentives, adequate infrastructure and support, recognition of methodological diversity, and approaches that enable openness to be implemented responsibly across different research contexts.

scientific communication and education↗

bioRxiv2021

Course-based Undergraduate Research Module for Enzyme Discovery Using Protein Structure Prediction

A major challenge for science educators is teaching foundational concepts while introducing their students to current research. Here we describe an active learning module developed to teach protein structure fundamentals while supporting ongoing research in enzyme discovery. It can be readily implemented in both entry-level and upper-division college biochemistry or biophysics courses. Pre-activity lectures introduced fundamentals of protein secondary structure and provided context for the research projects, while a homework assignment familiarized students with 3D visualization of biomolecules using UCSF Chimera, a free protein structure viewer. The activity is an online survey in which students compare structure elements in papain, a well-characterized cysteine protease from Carica papaya, to novel homologous proteases identified from the genomes of an extremophilic microbe (Halanaerobium praevalens) and two carnivorous plants (Drosera capensis and Cephalotus follicularis). Students were then able to identify, with varying levels of accuracy, a number of structural features in cysteine proteases that could expedite the identification of novel or biochemically interesting cysteine proteases for experimental validation in a university laboratory. Student responses to a post-activity survey were largely positive and constructive, describing points in the activity that could be improved and indicating that the activity helped them learn about protein structure.

scientific communication and education↗

bioRxiv2022

Factors associated with adherence to annual rabies vaccination in dogs and cats in the municipality of Curuca, Eastern Amazon

Dogs and cats maintain the urban cycle of rabies, and vaccination is the main form of prevention and control of the disease. Brazil has seen human rabies cases transmitted by dogs and cats infected with the bat variant in regions where annual campaigns no longer take place. Although the municipality of Curuca has no cases of urban rabies and viral circulation in wild animals is unknown, there are informal reports of contact of animals and people with vampire bats. This study aimed to identify factors associated with immune response against the rabies virus in dogs and cats in this municipality. A total of 352 dogs and 46 cats were randomly selected for blood collection and their owners answered a questionnaire. The animals were mostly males, aged between 1-3 years, and with unrestricted access to the street. A total of 48.8% of dogs and 32% of cats were not vaccinated in the last anti-rabies campaign, and 4.7% of dogs had been attacked by bats. Among the analyzed samples, only 21.1% had a titration [≥] 0.5 IU/mL. Risk factors for not participating in vaccination campaigns included species, presence of veterinary care, and participation in annual vaccination campaigns (OR = 0.46, 2.55, and 15.67 respectively). The animal population was estimated at 18,620 dogs and 4,556 cats. The human:dog ratio was 2.1:1 and the human:cat ratio was 8.7:1. This study revealed that the estimated population of dogs based on the human population was an underestimate for communities in the Amazon region. This was the first time that the number of dogs attacked by bats was determined. Health education with an emphasis on responsible ownership and periodic and biannual rabies vaccinations are recommended for the municipality. AUTHOR SUMMARYRabies is a viral disease characterized by brain and spinal cord inflammation. It affects all mammals, being almost 100% lethal. Hematophagous bats are one of the main wild reservoirs responsible for outbreaks of human rabies in the state of Para and other regions of Brazil. Vaccination is the most effective form of control and prevention, even where rabies is believed to be under control. The levels of antibodies that fight the rabies virus must be constantly monitored through serological analysis to assess the effectiveness of vaccination programs. In the municipality of Curuca, Para, bats commonly attack people and their pets, and anti-rabies campaigns are not promoted every year. In the present study, we determined the number of attacks by bats on domestic dogs and estimated vaccination coverage and the canine and feline population in the municipality, which was underestimated. This information can be useful for future vaccination campaigns. The study identified factors associated with responsible ownership that interfere with the protective titration of animals against rabies and suggests promoting more than one annual anti-rabies campaign in this location.

scientific communication and education↗

bioRxiv2020

Building a pathway for diversity in plant sciences in Argentina: highlighting the work of women scientists through virtual activities

Encouraging the participation of a diverse workforce in academia increases plurality as it broadens the range of skills, ways of thinking and experiences. Institutions and professional societies have been putting efforts on building plans that help make workplaces, conferences, education and extension programs more relatable to a highly diverse population. Argentina has an overall gender-balanced workforce in the sciences (~53% women/total), with an even higher representation in disciplines related to plant sciences. However, media outlets and national conferences related to genetics, botany, plant physiology, ecology and molecular biology, fail to reflect those numbers as the proportion of women invited for interviews, plenary lectures, and symposia falls below ~30%. As a way to increase the visibility of the wealth of plant science topics and experimental approaches in which Argentinian women work, and to facilitate connections among them across the country and abroad, we created the Argentinian Women in Plant Science network (https://argplantwomen.weebly.com/). This group has grown to over 200 members, representing a wide range of career stages and research topics. Since April, and taking advantage of the confinement situation, our weekly webinar series highlighting women plant scientists has reached an average audience of 60-70 participants, with a record of 100. Recently, we have begun a series of open professional development webinars to reach a wider public. Our first webinar, focused on Scientific poster design, had ~250 participants, most of them undergrad and graduate students from all over the country covering a diverse range of disciplines, including the social sciences. Even though we have immersed ourselves in the plant science community with our weekly seminars, we have expanded our goals with activities aimed to reach out to a much wider audience with webinars and teacher training workshops, hopefully making plant science more attainable to all.

scientific communication and education↗