Wellesley College in the news

New research visualizes how fishing communities can change fishing habits to adapt to climate change

Mon, 21 Oct 2024 13:31:41 EDT

In a massive research project spanning five years and stretching the length of the Northeast seaboard, a Wellesley College professor is examining how various fishing communities can change their fishing habits in order to adapt to climate change.

Anesthesia study unlocks clues about the nature of consciousness

Thu, 05 Sep 2024 15:27:03 EDT

For decades, one of the most fundamental and vexing questions in neuroscience has been: What is the physical basis of consciousness in the brain? Most researchers favor classical models, based on classical physics, while a minority have argued that consciousness must be quantum in nature, and that its brain basis is a collective quantum vibration of "microtubule" proteins inside neurons.

Stricter parental monitoring of social media isn't always better, says study

Mon, 29 Jan 2024 16:36:03 EST

Parents are often under the impression that the best way to protect their preteens and teens online is to restrict their use: limiting the amount of time they can spend, implementing rules about which apps they're allowed to use, etc. But this kind of restrictive monitoring, though popular, may not be the most effective strategy.

Study reveals relationship of gut microbiome on children's brain development and function

Wed, 27 Dec 2023 14:35:27 EST

Emerging evidence implicates the gut microbiome in cognitive outcomes and neurodevelopmental disorders, but the influence of gut microbial metabolism on typical neurodevelopment has not been explored in detail. Researchers from Wellesley College, in collaboration with other institutions, have demonstrated that differences in the gut microbiome are associated with overall cognitive function and brain structure in healthy children.

Superhero ideal, authenticity in relationships, and depressive symptoms: A multiple mediation analysis

Mon, 11 Apr 2022 17:20:41 EDT

After two years of the coronavirus pandemic, young people are struggling more than ever with their mental health and well-being. College students who put a lot of pressure on themselves to be the best at everything they do have been hit especially hard. Psychologist Catherine Steiner-Adair called this type of pressure the "superwoman ideal"; Sally A. Theran, associate professor of psychology at Wellesley College, has modified the term to the gender-neutral "superhero ideal." Theran's recent research has shown that by developing authentic and healthy relationships, young people can fight the depressive symptoms associated with this superhero ideal.

Missing the bar: how people misinterpret data in bar graphs

Thu, 03 Feb 2022 10:29:42 EST

Thanks to their visual simplicity, bar graphs are popular tools for representing data. But do we really understand how to read them? New research from Wellesley College published in the Journal of Vision has found that bar graphs are frequently misunderstood. The study demonstrates that people who view exactly the same graph often walk away with completely different understandings of the facts it represents.

Sounding the alarm: How honey bees alert their hive to attacks by giant 'murder' hornets

Wed, 10 Nov 2021 03:46:15 EST

For the first time, the unique sounds honey bees (Apis cerana) use to alert members of their hive when giant "murder" hornets attack have been documented. These signals—including a newly described "antipredator pipe"—are the focus of new research from Wellesley College associate professor of biological sciences Heather Mattila and her colleagues, whose findings were published in Royal Society Open Science.

In the absence of genetic variation, asexual invasive species find new methods of adapting to their environment

Fri, 30 Jul 2021 17:14:00 EDT

Without the benefits of evolutionary genetic variation that accompany meiotic reproduction, how does an asexual invasive species adapt over time to a new environment to survive? In all-female weevil species that produce only female offspring from unfertilized eggs, the insects' survival techniques have led to the surprising discovery that these creatures can pass down gene regulation changes to future generations.

How fishing communities are responding to climate change

Thu, 08 Jul 2021 13:07:35 EDT

What happens when climate change affects the abundance and distribution of fish? Fishers and fishing communities in the Northeast United States have adapted to those changes in three specific ways, according to new research published in Frontiers in Marine Science.

Why Britney feels like your BFF: Understanding social media and parasocial relationships

Wed, 07 Jul 2021 16:09:07 EDT

Between the ages of 10 and 14, VJ Jones was very into the pop boy band One Direction. "The culture at that time was you follow their every move, you know when they got a new tattoo, you know when they have a new girlfriend, and you read fan fiction," she said. "And you're very into imagining what their lives are like." Jones said she became invested in various theories about the group, including that two members were in a relationship together. "I actually to this day still believe it," she said.

New study finds Sesame Street improves school readiness

Wed, 17 Aug 2016 08:46:12 EDT

New research, coauthored by Wellesley College economist Phillip B. Levine and University of Maryland economist Melissa Kearney, finds that greater access to Sesame Street in the show's early days led to improved early educational outcomes for children—and adds evidence to the argument that television can have a positive impact on society. While previous targeted studies conducted by the Educational Testing Services (ETS) in the early 1970s found that exposing children to Sesame Street increased preschoolers' test scores, the new study provides evidence that the generation of children who were of preschool age when the show aired did better in school once they got there.

Life's origins may result from low-energy electron reactions in space

Mon, 13 Jun 2016 17:20:07 EDT

Professor Chris Arumainayagam will announce findings from his research conducted at Wellesley College today, Monday, June 13, as part of the annual press briefings kicking off the American Astronomical Society (AAS) national conference in San Diego, Calif. Arumainayagam, a professor of chemistry at Wellesley, will discuss his work—the first systematic study to demonstrate that early building blocks of life may be produced when low-energy (< 20 eV) electrons interact with cosmic (interstellar, planetary, and cometary) ices.

New study finds we still perceive women to be incompatible with STEM

Mon, 28 Mar 2016 16:26:28 EDT

As the science community reels from ongoing revelations of sexual harassment and discrimination, a new study in Psychology of Women Quarterly, by Wellesley College researcher Linda Carli, offers important clues as to how women scientists are perceived and how stereotypes might lead to prejudicial treatment. The paper, entitled "Stereotypes About Gender and Science: Women ? Science," shows that despite significant progress made, women are still thought to lack the qualities needed to be successful scientists, and the findings suggest this may contribute to discrimination and prejudice against women in those fields. Carli is a senior lecturer in psychology at Wellesley and is an authority on gender discrimination and the challenges faced by professional women. The article is currently online and is forthcoming in print.

New study finds our desire for 'like-minded others' is hard-wired

Tue, 23 Feb 2016 09:00:01 EST

A path-breaking new study on how we seek similarity in relationships, co-authored by researchers at Wellesley College and the University of Kansas, upends the idea that "opposites attract," instead suggesting we're drawn to people who are like-minded. The study could lead to a fundamental change in understanding relationship formation—and it sounds a warning for the idea that couples can change each other over time.

Study reveals latest evidence that prejudice causes the perception of threat

Wed, 29 Jul 2015 09:01:33 EDT

When people feel or act negatively toward a group, they may explain their feelings or behavior by saying, "I felt threatened." However, new research reveals how easily people can be conditioned to feel prejudice—and that unrecognized prejudice can be the source of a perceived threat. The study by Angela Bahns, a social psychologist and professor at Wellesley College, is published this month in the journal Group Processes and Intergroup Relations.

New research provides clues about honey bee decline

Fri, 01 May 2015 06:20:01 EDT

A new study by Heather Mattila, a leading honey bee ecologist and Assistant Professor of Biological Sciences at Wellesley College, published this April in PLOS ONE, reveals that inadequate access to pollen during larval development has lifelong consequences for honey bees, leading not only to smaller workers and shorter lifespans, but also to impaired performance and productivity later in life. For the first time, this study demonstrates a crucial link between poor nutrition at a young age, and foraging and waggle dancing, the two most important activities that honey bees perform as providers for their colonies and as pollinators of human crops. The study was co-authored by Hailey Scofield, Wellesley Class of 2013, a former undergraduate research assistant who will begin a Ph. D program (in Neurobiology and Behavior) at Cornell University in Fall 2015.

Research shows blood cells generate neurons in crayfish

Thu, 09 Apr 2015 09:00:02 EDT

A new study by Barbara Beltz, the Allene Lummis Russell Professor of Neuroscience at Wellesley College, and Irene Söderhäll of Uppsala University, Sweden, published in the August 11 issue of the journal Developmental Cell, demonstrates that the immune system can produce cells with stem cell properties, using crayfish as a model system. These cells can, in turn, create neurons in the adult animal. The flexibility of immune cells in producing neurons in adult animals raises the possibility of the presence of similar types of plasticity in other animals.

Poor nutrition for honey bee larvae compromises pollination capabilities as adults

Wed, 08 Apr 2015 15:51:34 EDT

A new study by Heather Mattila, a leading honey bee ecologist and Assistant Professor of Biological Sciences at Wellesley College, published on April 8 in PLOS ONE, reveals that inadequate access to pollen during larval development has lifelong consequences for honey bees, leading not only to smaller workers and shorter lifespans, but also to impaired performance and productivity later in life. For the first time, this study demonstrates a crucial link between poor nutrition at a young age, and foraging and waggle dancing, the two most important activities that honey bees perform as providers for their colonies and as pollinators of human crops. The study was co-authored by Hailey Scofield, Wellesley Class of 2013, a former undergraduate research assistant who will begin a Ph. D program (in Neurobiology and Behavior) at Cornell University in Fall 2015.