Erica Maul

TIL in 1992 the National Science Foundation made a grant to support the creation of THE MAGIC SCHOOL BUS (the original one, with Lily Tomlin as Ms Frizzle)

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mag...

For STEM Professionals - Letters to a Pre-Scientist Pen Pal Program Overview We encourage STEM Professionals of all kinds to get involved with Letters to a Pre-Scientist! STEM professionals send and receive letters throughout a school year from ...

Registration is OPEN for STEM professionals (grad students included) at Letters to a Pre-scientist! I have participated in this program for 2 years now and it is such a lovely experience.

Made it to Baltimore for #ABS2025 !! Come to my talk in the Dietary Decisions section Thursday at 3:00 (spoiler: it’s not about dietary decisions!!), and message or find me if you want to chat about research or my experience in @smithbeelab.bsky.social (recruiting grad students!).

PhD wins can feel few and far between, so I’m thankful for this week! Not only did I finish my quals and become a candidate, but I also was awarded a Wellesley College Graduate Fellowship! Had to celebrate in @smithbeelab.bsky.social tradition.

@aztecacecropia.bsky.social ??

Annual GRFP thread, more relevant than ever (# of awards down 50%).

This thread is for students who didn't win the GRFP today. Who are wondering if they belong in science, or scrolling through posts that start "So excited to announce..." with a little spurt of bitterness they aren’t proud of. 1/9

Disruption of collective behaviour correlates with reduced interaction efficiency | Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences Group-living organisms commonly engage in collective behaviour to respond to an ever-changing environment. As animals face environmental change, establishing the mechanisms of information used to collectively behave is critical. Western honeybees (Apis ...

🎉🎉I am SO excited to share our lab's first data paper published in ProcB @royalsociety.org! This research is part of @jlotusnguyen.bsky.social 's PhD dissertation and explores how social #behavior is organized in honey bees. 🐝 Let me share the story...!
royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10....

Definitely taking inspo from this gif-enriched thread! Congrats to all!!

The first data paper of my dissertation thesis was recently published in ProcB! Follow my rockstar PI's thread below to learn more! Thanks for your support! 😁
And reach out if you're interested in a postdoc - I'm graduating soon 👀

I’m so sorry :( to you and those students :(

Is anyone looking for a roommate for Animal Behavior in Baltimore this summer? #ABS2025

Congrats Emily!!

I’m so sorry, Madeline ❤️ my coping mechanisms rn are taking back my attention (spending less time on social media), engaging with my community and volunteering, reading trans and queer literature (and building my physical media collection), and growing my own food. That’s what fit the word count 😅

How to Support Trans Colleagues Create a Gender-Inclusive Environment Research institutional, governmental, local, and other bureaucratic procedures and policies that recognize and support gender transition. Support training and advocacy for colleagues’ personal/professional safety (ex. in fieldwork, lab work, conferences, institution visits, affinity groups). Establish and/or identify gender-neutral bathrooms throughout your building. Implement trans-inclusive recruitment and hiring procedures. Acknowledge intersectionality and the unique needs and barriers that someone with multiple marginalized identities may face. Consider the importance of representation in your field. Advocate for Name Changes Research institutional, governmental, local, and other bureaucratic procedures and policy to recognize and support an individual’s name change. Identify journals in your field that allow authors to change their names post- publication. Improve Information Accessibility Publicly share information on inclusive practices throughout your departments and institution. (Ensure the content centers and is created by trans people.) Consider Daily Language & Use Decrease use of gendered terms to avoid exclusionary language. Ask for personal pronouns. List on all public-facing directories, and consider including them in email signatures and on professional websites. Practice discretion. Don’t out your colleagues without their consent.

Collaborating with @rin-krichilsky.bsky.social and Kanako Shimizu, we put together what's basically a top-ten list of ways to help foster trans inclusivity and awareness within our scientific and academic communities and would love if you could help share the guide!

Take back your attention.

If you are an undergraduate science major who is interested in pursuing a career in STEM, there is an exciting opportunity to develop your skills while studying the interface between microbes and bees. BeeMORE is a USDA-funded Research and Extension Experience for Undergraduates

How to be a trans ally in academia today (opinion) What it means to be an ally has changed, Chelsea Thompto writes.

"How to be a trans ally in academia today"
www.insidehighered.com/opinion/care...

REUs/Summer Research 2024 List (Ecology and Evolution)

I started gathering a list for REUs/Summer research opportunities for undergraduate students in Ecology/Conservation/Evolutionary Biology. Feel share to share with any undergraduate students who may be interested in participating in *PAID* research.

docs.google.com/spreadsheets...

Flier for PhD position. Text with a lab logo at the bottom with a cricket silhouette of a cricket with antenna that look like normal curves. Also has a picture of a cricket (Acheta domesticus) on a white background. Text: Crickets! Behavior! Genetics! Statistics! The Dochtermann Lab in the Department of Biological Sciences at North Dakota State University is seeking to fill a PhD assistantship examining how selection has shaped phenotypic plasticity and patterns of genetic variance. The position will start Fall Semester 2025 and the incoming student will be joining a dynamic department (www.ndsu.edu/biology) and an interdisciplinary graduate program that provides a broad foundation for success (www.ndsu.edu/ecs). For more information about the lab visit www.neddochtermann.com If interested, please contact me at ned.dochtermann@gmail.com with a brief synopsis of your research interests. @neddochtermann.bsky.social

I have a PhD position open to start fall semester 2025!

The position will include investigations of the structure of both phenotypic (behavioral) plasticity and genetic variation in behavior as well as lots of opportunity to develop your own project.
#Evolution #evobio #evolsky #Ecology 🧪

Scientists at the University of Miami are carrying out a research study on how scientists use online platforms like Twitter/X and Bluesky. If you are 18 years of age or older and are a scientist who uses these platforms for professional purposes, please click the link below to complete a short survey. If you are interested in learning more about this research study, please e-mail us at Julia.wester @ miami.edu. In the body of your email please provide your full name, and if you would prefer to be contacted by phone, your phone number and the best time to reach you. Contacting us for more information does not commit you to participating, and should you decide to participate you may terminate your participation at any time.

If you are a scientist (including graduate students) or professional science communicator who is at least 18 years old and are using Bluesky for any kind of professional purposes, please consider taking our survey.

Link:

umiami.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_...

Please help share. 🧪🌎 #SciComm

Form, function, and evolutionary origins of architectural symmetry in honey bee nests Smith et al. show that honey bees stockpile their nests symmetrically on either side of the double-sided comb, revealing architectural symmetry in the extended phenotype. This symmetry provides the co...

Congrats to the whole team: Michael Smith, Claire Bailey, Ben Koger, @ericamaul.bsky.social, Prathibha, Bajaree Chuttong, Roberto Molinari, Ethan Rowe, Maritza Spott

Our architectural symmetry paper made the cover of Current Biology! Congrats to @smithbeelab.bsky.social and the team. Check out the form, function, and evolutionary origins of honeybee nest symmetry here: www.cell.com/current-biol...

I had so much fun today judging the Alabama Science and Engineering Fair for my second year!! And so did lab mate Prathibha 😊 This state is full of young smart cookies and I feel reinvigorated for my own research.