Online Mentoring for Talented Girls in STEM: The Role of Relationship Quality and Changes in Learning Environments in Explaining Mentoring Success

Although participation rates of women in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) are continually improving, low rates are still an issue in many countries. While previous studies found positive effects of online mentoring for increasing girls’ interests in STEM, research concerning explanatory mechanisms is lacking. We found evidence that in a 1‐year online mentoring program for girls (age: M = 13.82 years, N = 998) in STEM, suitably implemented mentoring (operationalized via relationship quality in a program that systematically incorporates structural and organizational aspects of successful mentoring) was associated with positive changes in the learning environments of the mentees (as indicated by their increasing educational capital). These positive changes were associated with increases in the program‐related mentoring outcomes STEM activities and elective intentions in STEM. Finally, we found that suitably implemented online mentoring was indirectly related to an increase in these two mentoring outcomes via an increase in educational capital. These results indicate the importance of paying close attention to learning environments when planning interventions

Nine years of online mentoring for secondary school girls in STEM: an empirical comparison of three mentoring formats

Online mentoring can be useful for supporting girls in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Yet, little is known about the differential effects of various online mentoring formats. We examine the general and relative effectiveness of three online mentoring formats, one‐on‐one mentoring, many‐to‐many group mentoring, and a hybrid form of the two. All three formats were implemented in different years in the Germany‐wide online‐only mentoring program, CyberMentor, whose platform enables communication and networking between up to 800 girls (in grades 5–13) and 800 women (STEM professionals) each year. We combined longitudinal mentee data for all first‐year participants (N = 4017 girls, Mage = 14.15 years) from 9 consecutive mentoring years to evaluate and compare the three mentoring formats. Overall, all formats effected comparable increases in mentees’ STEM activities and certainty about career plans. However, mentees’ communication behavior and networking behavior on the mentoring platform differed between the three formats. Mentees in the hybrid mentoring format showed the most extensive STEM‐related communication and networking on the platform. We also analyzed the explanatory contributions of STEM‐related communication and networking on interindividual differences in the developmental trajectories of mentees’ STEM activities, elective intentions in STEM, and certainty about career plans, for each format separately

Röhrenkarren als Indiz für einen spätglazialen, durch eine Massenbewegung aufgestauten See (Hohenberg, NÖ)

Seit 1933 sind in eine Vielzahl von Lösungslöchern unter Überhängen und an der Decke kleiner Höhlen in Karbonatgesteinen in einem Gebiet der Nördlichen Kalkalpen in Niederösterreich bekannt, welche jedoch bis heute nicht genauer untersucht wurden. Diese röhrenförmigen Strukturen haben einen Durchmesser von wenigen cm und verlaufen vertikal nach oben in mitteltriassische Kalkgesteine hinein. Sehr ähnliche Erscheinungen wurden von Simms (2002) an den Ufern von drei Seen in Westirland beschrieben und als Röhrenkarren oder tube karren bezeichnet. Nach diesen Beschreibungen wurden sie durch Lösung von kondensierten Wassertröpfchen in Luftblasen gebildet, welche sich durch saisonale Wasserspiegelschwankungen unter den Überhängen eingefangen haben. Dieses Phänomen wurde an beiden Seiten des Unrechttraisen Tals zwischen St. Aegyd am Neuwalde und Hohenberg südlich von Stadt St. Pölten aufgenommen und charakterisiert. Heute befindet sich an dieser Stelle kein See und es sind auch keine Aufzeichnungen eines Paläosees in diesem Gebiet bekannt. Basierend auf hochauflösenden topographischen Daten, die mittels airborne laserscaning (ALS) gewonnen wurden, und Geländebegehungen wurde in einem schmalen Tal etwas flussabwärts der gefundenen Röhrenkarren eine bisher unbekannte Massenbewegung kartiert. Die tonig siltigen Sedimente flussaufwärts wurden als Paläoseesedimente charakterisiert. Diese Interpretation wird durch das Auftreten von Libellen- oder Strudelwurmeiern in den Feinsedimenten unterstrichen. Die gleichen Sedimente wurden teilweise auch in den Röhrenkarren vorgefunden. Diese Beobachtungen wurden so interpretiert, dass sich ein durch Massenbewegung induzierter Stausee durch das Blockieren des Flusstales gebildet hat und saisonale Wasserspiegelschwankungen zur Bildung der Röhrenkarren geführt haben. Geochronologische Datierungen von Sinterbildungen an den Röhrenkarren, sowie des organischem Materials der vorgefundenen Organismen sind in Bearbeitung. Durch die relativ geringe Verwitterung der Röhrenkarren und die Form der Massenbewegung wird ein spät quartäres Alter angenommen.At least since 1933 numerous small dissolutional holes in the ceilings of overhangs and small caves have been known from a restricted area in the Northern Calcareous Alps in Lower Austria but they have not been investigated yet. These tube-shaped structures are a few centimetres in diameter, more or less vertical, taper upwards, are closed at the top and penetrate some tens of centimetres into the Middle Triassic limestone. Very similar features were described by Simms (2002) from the shores of three lakes in western Ireland and termed Röhrenkarren or tube karren. According to his model they formed by condensation corrosion within air pockets trapped by seasonal floods. The features investigated in the present study occur on both sides of the Unrechttraisen valley in the north eastern part of the Northern Calcareous Alps south of the city Sankt Pölten. Presently there is no lake and so 9 far no paleo lake is known from this area. Based on airborne laser scanning data (ALS) and field observations in a narrow section of the valley downstream of the tube karren sites, a previously unknown potential fossil landslide was discovered. The silty clay sediments upstream of the landslide are interpreted as palaeo-lake sediments. This interpretation is supported by the existence of abundant dragonfly or Turbellaria eggs within these deposits. The same fine-grained sediments are partly also found inside the tube karren. These observations are interpreted that a landslide-dammed palaeo-lake formed due to the mass movement that blocked the river and the tube karren were formed by seasonal fluctuations of the lake level. Geochronological dating of calcite crusts covering the karren and of the organic material of the dragonfly eggs are in preparation. Based on the observation that the karren features look quite fresh and unweathered and from the diffuse shape of the landslide a late Quaternary age is estimated

Validation of the 2nd Generation Proteasome Inhibitor Oprozomib for Local Therapy of Pulmonary Fibrosis.

Proteasome inhibition has been shown to prevent development of fibrosis in several organs including the lung. However, effects of proteasome inhibitors on lung fibrosis are controversial and cytotoxic side effects of the overall inhibition of proteasomal protein degradation cannot be excluded. Therefore, we hypothesized that local lung-specific application of a novel, selective proteasome inhibitor, oprozomib (OZ), provides antifibrotic effects without systemic toxicity in a mouse model of lung fibrosis. Oprozomib was first tested on the human alveolar epithelial cancer cell line A549 and in primary mouse alveolar epithelial type II cells regarding its cytotoxic effects on alveolar epithelial cells and compared to the FDA approved proteasome inhibitor bortezomib (BZ). OZ was less toxic than BZ and provided high selectivity for the chymotrypsin-like active site of the proteasome. In primary mouse lung fibroblasts, OZ showed significant anti-fibrotic effects, i.e. reduction of collagen I and α smooth muscle actin expression, in the absence of cytotoxicity. When applied locally into the lungs of healthy mice via instillation, OZ was well tolerated and effectively reduced proteasome activity in the lungs. In bleomycin challenged mice, however, locally applied OZ resulted in accelerated weight loss and increased mortality of treated mice. Further, OZ failed to reduce fibrosis in these mice. While upon systemic application OZ was well tolerated in healthy mice, it rather augmented instead of attenuated fibrotic remodelling of the lung in bleomycin challenged mice. To conclude, low toxicity and antifibrotic effects of OZ in pulmonary fibroblasts could not be confirmed for pulmonary fibrosis of bleomycin-treated mice. In light of these data, the use of proteasome inhibitors as therapeutic agents for the treatment of fibrotic lung diseases should thus be considered with caution

Dislocations Accelerate Oxygen Ion Diffusion in La[subscript 0.8]Sr[subscript 0.2]MnO[subscript 3] Epitaxial Thin Films

Revealing whether dislocations accelerate oxygen ion transport is important for providing abilities in tuning the ionic conductivity of ceramic materials. In this study, we report how dislocations affect oxygen ion diffusion in Sr-doped LaMnO3(LSM), a model perovskite oxide that serves in energy conversion technologies. LSM epitaxial thin films with thicknesses ranging from 10 nm to more than 100 nm were prepared by pulsed laser deposition on single-crystal LaAlO3and SrTiO3substrates. The lattice mismatch between the film and substrates induces compressive or tensile in-plane strain in the LSM layers. This lattice strain is partially reduced by dislocations, especially in the LSM films on LaAlO3. Oxygen isotope exchange measured by secondary ion mass spectrometry revealed the existence of at least two very different diffusion coefficients in the LSM films on LaAlO3. The diffusion profiles can be quantitatively explained by the existence of fast oxygen ion diffusion along threading dislocations that is faster by up to 3 orders of magnitude compared to that in LSM bulk. Keywords: (La,Sr)MnO[subscript 3]; dislocation; epitaxial thin film; oxygen diffusion; oxygen surface exchange; strain; ToF-SIMSUnited States. Department of Energy (Grant DE-SC0002633

Fast oxygen exchange and diffusion kinetics of grain boundaries in Sr-doped LaMnO3 thin films

In this study, the contribution of grain boundaries to the oxygen reduction and diffusion kinetics of La[subscript 0.8]Sr[subscript 0.2]MnO[subscript 3] (LSM) thin films is investigated. Polycrystalline LSM thin films with columnar grains of different grain sizes as well as epitaxial thin films were prepared by pulsed laser deposition. 18O tracer exchange experiments were performed at temperatures from 570 °C to 810 °C and subsequently analyzed by secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS). The isotope concentration depth profiles of polycrystalline films clearly indicate contributions from diffusion and surface exchange in grains as well as in grain boundaries. Measured depth profiles were analyzed by finite element modeling and revealed the diffusion coefficients D and oxygen exchange coefficients k of both the grain bulk and grain boundaries. Values obtained for grain boundaries (D[subscript gb] and k[subscript gb]) are almost three orders of magnitude higher than those of the grains (D[subscript g] and k[subscript g]). Hence, grain boundaries may not only facilitate fast oxygen diffusion but also fast oxygen exchange kinetics. Variation of the A-site stoichiometry ((La[subscript 0.8]Sr[subscript 0.2])0.95MnO[subscript 3]) did not lead to large changes of the kinetic parameters. Properties found for epitaxial layers without grain boundaries (Db and kb) are close to those of the grains in polycrystalline layers.Austrian Science Fund (FWF project F4509-N16)Austrian Science Fund (FWF project P21960-N17)Austrian Science Fund (FWF project W1243-N16)United States. Dept. of Energy. Office of Basic Energy Sciences (Grant No. DE-SC000263

A Bioinspired in vitro Lung Model to Study Particokinetics of Nano-/Microparticles Under Cyclic Stretch and Air-Liquid Interface Conditions

Evolution has endowed the lung with exceptional design providing a large surface area for gas exchange area (ca. 100 m$^{2}$) in a relatively small tissue volume (ca. 6 L). This is possible due to a complex tissue architecture that has resulted in one of the most challenging organs to be recreated in the lab. The need for realistic and robust in vitro lung models becomes even more evident as causal therapies, especially for chronic respiratory diseases, are lacking. Here, we describe the Cyclic In VItro Cell-stretch (CIVIC) “breathing” lung bioreactor for pulmonary epithelial cells at the air-liquid interface (ALI) experiencing cyclic stretch while monitoring stretch-related parameters (amplitude, frequency, and membrane elastic modulus) under real-time conditions. The previously described biomimetic copolymeric BETA membrane (5 μm thick, bioactive, porous, and elastic) was attempted to be improved for even more biomimetic permeability, elasticity (elastic modulus and stretchability), and bioactivity by changing its chemical composition. This biphasic membrane supports both the initial formation of a tight monolayer of pulmonary epithelial cells (A549 and 16HBE14o$^{-}$) under submerged conditions and the subsequent cell-stretch experiments at the ALI without preconditioning of the membrane. The newly manufactured versions of the BETA membrane did not improve the characteristics of the previously determined optimum BETA membrane (9.35% PCL and 6.34% gelatin [w/v solvent]). Hence, the optimum BETA membrane was used to investigate quantitatively the role of physiologic cyclic mechanical stretch (10% linear stretch; 0.33 Hz: light exercise conditions) on size-dependent cellular uptake and transepithelial transport of nanoparticles (100 nm) and microparticles (1,000 nm) for alveolar epithelial cells (A549) under ALI conditions. Our results show that physiologic stretch enhances cellular uptake of 100 nm nanoparticles across the epithelial cell barrier, but the barrier becomes permeable for both nano- and micron-sized particles (100 and 1,000 nm). This suggests that currently used static in vitro assays may underestimate cellular uptake and transbarrier transport of nanoparticles in the lung

Inhibition profile of oprozomib in primary mouse lung fibroblasts.

<p>(A) Proteasome activity and (B) Luciferase activity of ODD-Luc FVB-LF 24 hours after treatment with OZ (Data represent mean ± SEM. <i>n</i> = 3 per group. *<i>P</i> ≤ 0.05, **<i>P</i> < 0.01, ***<i>P</i> < 0.001. 1way ANOVA Dunnett‘s Multiple Comparison Test). (C) Native gel of ODD-Luc FVB-LF 24 hours after OZ treatment.</p