Dear Colleagues, 

I am pleased to include another issue of RFS Briefings with some timely and encouraging updates on women in science.

We are proud to be a supporter of BioFuture New York taking place October 28-30th in Manhattan.  Use code 2024BFRFS24 to register, and you can write  “I am an RFS member” in the additional comments section for an online application to present using the links on this page. 

BioFuture is where relentless therapeutic pioneers, innovators, and investors gather to assess and shape the future of healthcare and digital health. Participate in candid, unfiltered discussions. This year’s BioFuture, will explore the exciting mashup between rapidly evolving fields including biopharma, techbio, digital medicine, big data, AI, healthcare systems, payors, and more. The coming decade will dramatically accelerate the transformation of the healthcare ecosystem. Be part of the discussions that will shape and transform the future of healthcare. Register now.

Please continue to share important news and opportunities with us so that we may share it with you and others who are committed to supporting the careers of exceptional women in science.

Stay safe and sound,

Karla Signature

Karla Shepard Rubinger
Executive Director
Rosalind Franklin Society
www.rosalindfranklinsociety.org



As men dominate Nobels again, one of their selectors still sees some slow progress toward greater diversity.
To find out more about the Nobel selection process, and how it’s changing, ScienceInsider spoke with Pernilla Wittung-Stafshede the day after the chemistry award. She shares her perspective on how she and others are trying to expand the nomination pool for the famed awards. Read more.

The Computer Scientist Who Builds Big Pictures From Small Details.
Lenka Zdeborová studies how the physics of matter can help model the behavior of machine learning algorithms. Zdeborová leads the Statistical Physics of Computation Laboratory at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne. Read more.

CVS Ousts C.E.O. as Sluggish Growth Spooks Investors. 
Shares of the healthcare conglomerate dropped after the sudden departure of Karen Lynch and a downbeat update on the state of the company’s finances. Read more.

Two IGI Women in Enterprising Science Fellows Receive $1 Million Each in Seed Funding.

Derfogail Delcassian and Yue Clare Lou, Innovative Genomics Institute (IGI) Fellows from the second cohort in the HS Chau Women in Enterprising Science (WIES) Program, were each awarded $1 million in non-dilutive seed funding that can exponentially accelerate the commercialization of their discoveries. Read more. Image:Clare Lou (left) and Derfogail Delcassian at the IGI.

What if Marie Curie’s greatest legacy was not her two Nobel prizes?
In The Elements of Marie Curie , historian of science Dava Sobel constructs a fresh portrait of the icon and two-time Nobel laureate. In her well-researched and compellingly written book, Sobel recounts how working with Curie raised the profile of many other pioneering women in radiochemistry and atomic physics. Read more.

12 Pitt Researchers Ranked Among the World’s Best Female Scientists.
Twelve researchers from the University of Pittsburgh are included in Research.com’s 2024 ranking of the “best female scientists in the world,” based on data collected from a wide range of bibliometric sources. Read more.

Computational neurobiologist Na Sun appointed as Whitehead Institute’s first AI Fellow.

Whitehead Institute has appointed Na Sun, a 2024 PhD graduate of Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), as the inaugural AI Fellow within the Whitehead Fellows Program. Read more. Image Credit: Gretchen Ertl/Whitehead Institute.

The 10th Raw Science Film Festival was Saturday, October 5, 2024, at Triad Theater New York.
The mission of the Raw Science Film Festival is to humanize science and ensure that fact-based experts stay at the forefront of popular culture by celebrating the best science storytelling in the world. Read more.

In Memoriam: University of Calgary mourns the loss of Rebecca Hotchkiss.
Many are feeling deep loss after the passing of Rebecca Hotchkiss, 94, wife of the late Harley Hotchkiss, iconic businessman, philanthropist, and Calgary Flames owner. Together, they founded U Calgary’s Hotchkiss Brain Institute (HBI), contributing more than $47 million to research and education at the University of Calgary. Read more.

Mixing joy and resolve, event celebrates women in science and addresses persistent inequalities.

A two-day event at MIT celebrated the successes of women in science but also examined reasons for persistent inequality. At a workshop on the second day, the audience heard from a panel of scientists including (left to right) Michelle Monje, Susan Silbey, Kara McKinley, Erin Schuman, Stacie Weninger, and moderator Elly Nedivi, the William R. and Linda R. Young Professor in The Picower Institute. Read more. Image credit: David Orenstein/Picower Institute.

Nearly 50% of researchers quit science within a decade, huge study reveals.
Nobel prizes are still failing to celebrate the diversity of science. The Nobel committees seem to have an unfortunate habit of overlooking women and Black people when it comes to science – this must change, says Alexandra Thompson. Read more.

Women are better than men at science job interviews.
An investigation into academic hiring outcomes for biological science roles has suggested a surprising trend: women who applied for assistant professor positions in North America were more likely to get job offers than men. Read more.

AWIS Statement on the 2024 Nobel Prizes in the Sciences.
The Association for Women in Science (AWIS) expresses deep disappointment that no women were awarded Nobel Prizes in the sciences this year. This outcome highlights a persistent gender imbalance in the recognition of scientific and academic excellence in physics, chemistry, physiology and medicine, and economic sciences. Read more.

We are pleased to welcome the first members of our new Council of Corporate Leadership!


            

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Nilda Rivera, Partnership and Events Manager