Women in Science Wednesdays

While women fill close to half of all jobs in the United States, they hold less than 25 percent of positions within the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. Even as college-educated women have increased their share in the overall workforce, our country’s science and technology sectors continue to lack a female presence.

To help close this gap, UNC research is sharing their stories — from the depths of the ocean to the crest of a mountain, with projects that impact our state, the nation, and the world. Carolina’s female scientists from all areas of STEM are making waves in the world of research. Join us each week as our scientists share their unique perspectives on the rigors of research, and advice for other women in their fields.

Tsion Coulter

Tsion Coulter is a sophomore majoring in computer science and minoring in cognitive science within the UNC College of Arts & Sciences. Her research focuses on machine learning and natural language processing to identify misleading web content.

Chloe Glaeser

Chloe Glaeser is an instructor of operations within the UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School. Her data-driven research helps companies understand and improve business operations.

Jennifer Fulton

Jennifer Fulton is a PhD student in the Department of Chemistry within the UNC College of Arts & Sciences. Her research focuses on developing methods for selectively synthesizing a single, 3D molecule.

Aditi Adhikari

Aditi Adhikari is a junior and Morehead Cain Scholar majoring in public policy with a minor in chemistry within the UNC College of Arts & Sciences. Her most recent research project focused on increasing discussion about the impact and consequences of machismo, the attitude and acceptance of male superiority, on women’s health in rural Nicaragua.

Nisha Gottfredson

Nisha Gottfredson is an assistant professor in the Department of Health Behavior within the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health and a faculty affiliate within the Center for Developmental Science. Her research focuses on how substance use affects human development. She also studies how statistical models perform and can be used to better capture research questions in the real world.

Juanita Limas

Juanita Limas is a PhD candidate and HHMI Gilliam Fellow in the Department of Pharmacology within the UNC School of Medicine. Her research focuses on genes with the potential to cause cancer, specifically those that disrupt the cell cycle by affecting mechanisms of DNA replication.

Hannah Kim

Hannah Kim is a junior double-majoring in psychology and economics, with a minor in social and economic justice, within the UNC College of Arts & Sciences. Her research focuses on determining the differences in the prevalence of psychological disorders among different demographics.

Priya Kumar

Priya Kumar is a professor of anesthesiology in the clinical division of Cardiothoracic Anesthesiology within the UNC School of Medicine. Her research focuses on exploring interventions to protect the heart against surgical stress — specifically whether blood pressure management and bleeding reduction can prevent heart complications during non-cardiac surgery.

Margaret Dillon

Margaret Dillon is an associate professor and director of cochlear implant clinical research in the Department of Otolaryngology/Head & Neck Surgery within the UNC School of Medicine. Her research focuses on optimizing how cochlear implants distribute and present speech information and the new patient populations who may benefit from this hearing technology.

Alyssa Grube

Alyssa Grube is a PhD student in the Department of Environmental Sciences & Engineering within the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health. Her research focuses on detecting antibiotic-resistant genes in the Galápagos Islands to better understand the effects of human-caused pollution on bacterial communities.