Researchers Rapidly Respond to Submarine Activity at Loihi Volcano, Hawaii

The largest swarm of earthquakes ever observed at a Hawaiian volcano occurred at Loihi Seamount during July and early August 1996. The earthquake activity formed a large summit pit crater similar to those observed at Kilauea, and hydrothermal activity led to the formation of intense hydrothermal plumes in the ocean surrounding the summit. To investigate this event, the Rapid Response Cruise (RRC) was dispatched to Loihi in early August and two previously planned LONO cruises (named for a Hawaiian warrior god) sailed in September and October on the R/V Kaimikai-O-Kanaloa. Calm weather and a newly refurbished ship provided excellent opportunities for documenting the volcanic, hydrothermal plume, vent, and biological activities associated with the earthquake swarm

The sensor regions of VDAC are translocated from within the membrane to the surface during the gating processes.

The motion of the sensor regions in a mitochondrial voltage-gated channel called VDAC were probed by attaching biotin at specific locations and determining its ability to bind to added streptavidin. Site-directed mutagenesis was used to introduce single cysteine residues into Neurospora crassa VDAC (naturally lacks cysteine). These were chemically biotinylated and reconstituted into planar phospholipid membranes. In the 19 sites examined, only two types of results were observed upon streptavidin addition: in type 1, channel conductance was reduced, but voltage gating could proceed; in type 2, channels were locked in a closed state. The result at type 1 sites is interpreted as streptavidin binding to sites in static regions close to the channel opening. The binding sterically interferes with ion flow. The result at type 2 sites indicates that these are located on a mobile domain and coincide with the previously identified sensor regions. The findings are consistent with closure resulting from the movement of a domain from within the transmembrane regions to the membrane surface. No single site was accessible to streptavidin from both membrane surfaces, indicating that the motion is limited. From the streptavidin-induced reduction in conductance at type 1 sites, structural information was obtained about the location of these sites

Learning to be leaders in higher education: What helps or hinders women's advancement as leaders in universities

This paper describes results from an online survey of 26 women from 8 universities, describing times when work and non-work situations have helped or hindered their advancement in university leadership roles. From the 110 reported incidents, 5 categories of factors that make a difference to advancement as leaders have been identified. This research is part of the L-SHIP (Leadership- Supporting Higher Intent & Practice) project and has two main aims. First, to identify factors in universities that help and hinder women’s advancement as leaders, as reported by women; second, to produce practical programmes for aspiring leaders and tertiary institutions on how to identify what helps and hinders advancement in university leadership roles, and how to develop effective programmes to harness strengths and address barriers. This research is a first step to the L-SHIP Toolkit for good practice in leadership development in higher education

Developing a skills-based practical chemistry programme: an integrated, spiral curriculum approach

Teaching practical laboratory skills is a key component of preparing undergraduate students for future careers in chemistry and elsewhere. In this paper, we present our new strategy to teach practical skills to undergraduate chemistry students. We report a Skills Inventory, a list of the suggested practical skills a graduate chemist should possess; this list was compiled by chemists across the UK. In our new practical course we begin by decoupling the practical skill from the theoretical background, compelling students to first master the basic processes needed to carry out a specific technique. In what we have termed a ‘spiral curriculum’ approach, skills are revisited on multiple occasions, with increasing complexity and greater emphasis on underlying theory. The new course makes links across traditional subdisciplines of chemistry to avoid compartmentalisation of ideas