The Second Glass Ceiling Impedes Women Entrepreneurs

The glass ceiling phenomenon that impedes the advancement of talented women professionals into senior executive roles inside large corporations is widely recognized in society, studied in the management literature, taught in business schools, and tangibly felt by many women executives. Outside the corporate setting, we show that a second glass ceiling exists for women entrepreneurs and women small business owners. This second glass ceiling is a gender bias that obstructs women-owned small firms from accessing the financial capital required to start new firms and fuel the growth of existing firms. This paper (1) defines the second glass ceiling phenomenon, (2) provides evidence of its existence, causes and effects, and (3) proposes what both women entrepreneurs and financial capital managers should do to mitigate its deleterious effects

The First-Year Seminar: An Innovative Way for Business Law Professors to Integrate Liberal Arts Pedagogy into Undergraduate Business Education

We begin with a brief historical perspective of first-year experiences and how, through a 30-year journey, that pedagogical innovation recently and literally flipped upside down my approach to produce student learning. Then we will examine the genesis, development, and teaching of my current FYS Water: Economics, Politics and Policy, and why it has been such a successful course at my university. Next, my coauthor will examine the genesis, development, and teaching of his FYS Morality and the Great Recession of 2008-2009, another successful example of the FYS at our university. With that as a pedagogical foundation, we offer recommendations on how to develop a syllabus and how to teach the hypothetical business law counterpart of my seminar: The Business of Water: Law, Rights, and Policy. The article concludes with discussion of “Seven Best Practices in Drafting a First-Year Seminar Syllabus and Teaching the Seminar,” a presentation conducted for faculty in our business school Innovation in Teaching Seminar Series by my coauthor

Activation of the hsp70 promoter by environmental inorganic and organic chemicals: relationships with cytotoxicity and lipophilicity.

International audienceStress proteins (heat shock proteins, HSPs) have been proposed as general markers of cellular aggression and their use for environmental monitoring is often suggested. The aim of this work was to study the potency of various environmentally relevant organic and inorganic chemicals to induce the expression of the HSP70 marker. For this purpose, we used an established HeLa cell line containing the chloramphenicol acetyl transferase (CAT) gene under the control of the hsp70 promoter. The screening of three metallic and 15 organic chemicals revealed differences in their capacities to induce the hsp70 promoter. The three metals tested (cadmium, zinc and mercury) were able to induce a stress response. Some organochlorine compounds (chlorophenol derivatives, tetrachlorohydroquinone, 3, 4-dichloroaniline, ethyl parathion and 1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene) induced a response, whereas other common halogenated pesticides or aromatic hydrocarbons (e.g. benzo(a)pyrene, 2, 4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid, endosulfan, diuron, 4-nonylphenol) did not. The potency to induce hsp70 was significantly correlated to the octanol-water partition coefficient (log K(ow)) of the inducing chemicals, except for 1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene and ethyl parathion. Cytotoxicity assays run in parallel to the induction measurements revealed that the three metals were effective at non cytotoxic doses whereas all organic compounds, except tetrachlorohydroquinone and 1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene, induced the promoter at cytotoxic doses. These results suggest that hsp70 is induced by different mechanisms of toxicity. We propose that this model can be used in mechanistic studies for the detection of toxic effects of certain pollutants

Exemples de résultats de la recherche obtenus sur les populations sauvages de salmonides de Bretagne et de Basse-Normandie et applicables à leur gestion

Ces dernières années, un ensemble de méthodes et techniques d'étude a été mis au point ou amélioré à partir de recherches réalisées sur les populations sauvages de salmonides. Dans un premier temps, ces nouvelles techniques peuvent être considérées comme des outils disponibles pour les gestionnaires; ce sont : la mise en place et l'homogénéisation de critères scalimétriques pour la détermination de l'âge des salmonidés migrateurs; la détermination du sexe par sérodiagnostic et à partir de critères morphométriques; l'estimation de la production en smolts de saumon à partir de l'habitat et des caractéristiques des peuplements automnaux. Dans un deuxième temps, l'application de certaines de ces méthodes dans le domaine écologique a permis d'obtenir des éléments essentiels pour la connaissance et/ou la gestion des populations sauvages de salmonides.Turing the fast few years some new techniques for the study of wild populations of salmonids have been developed. The following procedures are intended to provide.1) an improved method for determining age by scale-reading, particularly with migratory salmonids (Atlantic salmon and sea trout). A standard zone for removing scales, the presence of three different zones on each scale (river, run-out, sea) and some criteria for scale interpretation have all been defined. These criteria are mainly concerned with the structure of the scale during the sea-life stage and reproduction. On the other hand, a spawning mark has been determined for both sedentary and migratory salmonids.2) an means of sex determination. Two techniques have been proposed :- the first one is based on the detection by immunoagglutination of the serum vitellogenin of females in active gametogenesis. This method concerns females only; it does not allow a distinction to he made between non spermating males and immature salmonids. It is a very reliable technique which can be used in field conditions, but only by experienced researchers;- the second technique is based on the sexual dimorphism of the relative length of the upper jaw bone. It is very reliable (8 % to 12 % error) and can also be applied in field conditions, but only for large fish (fork length > 40-45 cm).3) a way of estimating Atlantic salmon smolt production. This technique is based on :- the estimation of a 0+ and 1+ salmon population in the whole river from data of density obtained in sectors representative of the different types of habitat ;- the presence of growth bimodality in a 0+ salmon population in autumn, given the following hypothesis : one yearold smolts belong to the upper mode ;- the estimation of mortality for the whole winter season.This technique has been used in the River Oir and compared with a smolt-trapping experiment conducted for two years. A comparison of the results shows that :- the one year-old smolts belong to the upper mode of bimodality;- when based on data on habitat characteristics, this technique can be used in field conditions to evaluate the smolts with sufficient accuracy.All three techniques are immediately available as useful methods for fisheries management. At a second stage, they can also serve in ecological research to advance knowledge on which to base further study and improved management of wild salmonid populations

The Role of Regulated mRNA Stability in Establishing Bicoid Morphogen Gradient in Drosophila Embryonic Development

The Bicoid morphogen is amongst the earliest triggers of differential spatial pattern of gene expression and subsequent cell fate determination in the embryonic development of Drosophila. This maternally deposited morphogen is thought to diffuse in the embryo, establishing a concentration gradient which is sensed by downstream genes. In most model based analyses of this process, the translation of the bicoid mRNA is thought to take place at a fixed rate from the anterior pole of the embryo and a supply of the resulting protein at a constant rate is assumed. Is this process of morphogen generation a passive one as assumed in the modelling literature so far, or would available data support an alternate hypothesis that the stability of the mRNA is regulated by active processes? We introduce a model in which the stability of the maternal mRNA is regulated by being held constant for a length of time, followed by rapid degradation. With this more realistic model of the source, we have analysed three computational models of spatial morphogen propagation along the anterior-posterior axis: (a) passive diffusion modelled as a deterministic differential equation, (b) diffusion enhanced by a cytoplasmic flow term; and (c) diffusion modelled by stochastic simulation of the corresponding chemical reactions. Parameter estimation on these models by matching to publicly available data on spatio-temporal Bicoid profiles suggests strong support for regulated stability over either a constant supply rate or one where the maternal mRNA is permitted to degrade in a passive manner

A stable fish reporter cell line to study estrogen receptor transactivation by environmental (xeno)estrogens.

International audienceCross-species differences between human and fish estrogen receptor (ER) binding by environmental chemicals have been reported. To study ER transactivation in a fish cellular context, we stably co-transfected the PLHC-1 fish hepatoma cell line with a rainbow trout estrogen receptor (rtER) and the luciferase reporter gene driven by an estrogen response element (ERE). This new cell model, called PELN-rtER (for PLHC-1-ERE-Luciferase-Neomycin), responded to 17beta-estradiol (E2) in a both concentration- and temperature-dependent manner, as well as to environmental ER ligands from different chemical classes: natural and synthetic estrogens, zearalenone metabolites, genistein, alkyphenoles and benzophenone derivatives. The comparison with other in vitro models, i.e. human reporter cell lines (HELN-rtER, MELN) and vitellogenin induction in primary cultures of rainbow trout hepatocytes, showed an overall higher sensitivity of the human cells for a majority of ligands, except for benzophenone derivatives which were active at similar or lower concentrations in fish cells, suggesting species-specificity for these substances. Correlation analyses suggest that the fish cell line is closer to the trout hepatocyte than to the human cell context, and could serve as a relevant mechanistic tool to study ER activation in fish hepatic cellular context

Lowering of ground state induced by core-shell structure in strontium titanate

International audienc

Self-Esteem in Second Life: An inWorld Group Intervention for Women with Disabilities

We are developing and investigating the feasibility of a self-esteem enhancement intervention in Second Life for women with physical disabilities. We adapted the curriculum of a previously tested workshop intervention to include features unique to this environment. Results of the beta test were very positive. Everyone involved showed considerable enthusiasm for exploring the new world of SL. The group leaders were challenged to resolve technical problems on every occasion, but these diminished and were perceived as manageable as the intervention progressed. Beta testers gave positive ratings to the information presented, organization, and usefulness of the intervention and found it very enjoyable although fatigue and stress limited the participation of some. They appreciated the use of Internet technology as an accommodation to their disability, in place of requiring transportation and additional energy expenditure to attend face-to-face meetings. Research issues related to engagement, measurement, and participant safety, as well as future research directions, are discussed. We conclude that SL has great potential for delivering health promotion interventions to women with physical disabilities