PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

Shining light on mental health in space science community

Shining light on mental health in space science community
2024-06-19
(Press-News.org) The severity of anxiety and depressive symptoms in the planetary science community is greater than in the general U.S. population, according to a study led by a University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa scientist and published this week in Nature Astronomy. 

“After reading about so much anxiety and depression in academia, and as someone who loves both planetary science and psychology, I felt like I needed to do something because there are so many people suffering,” said David Trang, an assistant researcher in the Hawai‘i Institute of Geophysics and Planetology in the UH Mānoa School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology at the time of this research and graduate student in the master’s in counseling psychology program at UH Hilo. 

Prompted by growing recognition of a mental health crisis within the academic and research communities, Trang and co-authors from Hawai‘i Pacific University, UH Mānoa Shidler College of Business, Jet Propulsion Lab, NASA and U.S. Geological Survey, surveyed over 300 members of the planetary science community. The survey requested demographic information and included commonly-used assessments to measure the severity of anxiety, depression, and stress symptoms. 

Survey results showed that anxiety and depression is a major problem within planetary science, especially among graduate students and early career researchers. The authors also found that anxiety, depressive, or stress symptoms appear greater among marginalized groups, such as women, people of color, and members of the LGBTQ+ community. And further, when examining the correlation between marginalized communities and considering leaving planetary science, LGBTQ+ respondents were more likely to be unsure about staying in the field.

“Some of my colleagues have left the field of science because the academic workplace was hard on their well-being,” said Trang. “This is so unfortunate because science would benefit from each and every person who is passionate about research, as they could contribute so much to the field.”

The authors hope this work highlights issues that some suspected existed in planetary sciences. 

“This work marks the beginning of the changes needed to improve mental health in planetary science,” said Trang. “I hope to continue to unravel what is driving these mental health issues and collectively develop solutions that will improve well-being, which will in turn enhance research quality and productivity. Addressing mental health will inevitably improve diversity, equity, and inclusion, as they are linked together.”

In the near future, Trang hopes to run psychoeducation workshops based on psychotherapy concepts to begin improving mental health in planetary science and potentially serve as a model to improve mental health in the rest of academia.  

END

[Attachments] See images for this press release:
Shining light on mental health in space science community Shining light on mental health in space science community 2

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Texas A&M researchers investigating the impacts of space travel on astronauts’ eye health

2024-06-19
As space travel becomes more common, it is important to consider the impacts of space flight and altered gravity on the human body. Led by Dr. Ana Diaz Artiles, researchers at Texas A&M University are studying some of those impacts, specifically effects on the eye. Gravitational changes experienced by astronauts during space travel can cause fluids within the body to shift. This can cause changes to the cardiovascular system, including vessels in and around the eyes.  As the commercialization of space flight becomes more common and individual space travel increases, astronauts will not be the ...

UCSB's Haewon Jeong receives an NSF Early CAREER Award

UCSBs Haewon Jeong receives an NSF Early CAREER Award
2024-06-18
(Santa Barbara, Calif.) — Haewon Jeong, an assistant professor in UC Santa Barbara’s Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) Department, experienced a pivotal moment in her academic career when she was a postdoctoral fellow at Harvard University. She was investigating how machine learning (ML) models can discriminate against students in education-related applications. Discrimination, or bias, occurs when a model used to train algorithms makes incorrect predictions that systematically disadvantage a group of people. Bias in ML models can lead to inaccurate or unfair predictions, which can have serious consequences in fields such as healthcare, finance and criminal justice. ...

This new way to recycle steel could reduce the industry’s carbon footprint

This new way to recycle steel could reduce the industry’s carbon footprint
2024-06-18
University of Toronto engineering researchers have designed a new way to recycle steel that has the potential to decarbonize a range of manufacturing industries and usher in a circular steel economy.  The method is outlined in a new paper published in Resources, Conservation & Recycling and co-authored by Jaesuk (Jay) Paeng, William Judge and Professor Gisele Azimi.   It introduces an innovative oxysulfide electrolyte for electrorefining, ...

Journal of Nutrition recognizes distinguished Texas A&M nutrition scientist

2024-06-18
      MEDIA INQUIRES   WRITTEN BY Laura Muntean   Paul Schattenberg laura.muntean@ag.tamu.edu   paschattenberg@ag.tamu.edu 601-248-1891   210-859-5752 FOR ...

Non-native plants and animals expanding ranges 100 times faster than native species, finds new research led by UMass Amherst

2024-06-18
June 18, 2024   Non-native Plants and Animals Expanding Ranges 100 Times Faster than Native Species, Finds New Research Led by UMass Amherst Native species cannot move fast enough on their own to avoid climate-driven chaos   AMHERST, Mass. – An international team of scientists has recently found that non-native species are expanding their ranges many orders of magnitude faster than native ones, in large part due to inadvertent human help. Even seemingly sedentary non-native plants are moving at three times the speed ...

NASA Associate Administrator Jim Free to deliver keynote address at ISSRDC

NASA Associate Administrator Jim Free to deliver keynote address at ISSRDC
2024-06-18
BOSTON (MA), June 18, 2024 – Jim Free, associate administrator for NASA, will deliver a keynote address on Wednesday, July 31, at the International Space Station Research and Development Conference (ISSRDC) in Boston. Free, the senior advisor to Administrator Bill Nelson and Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy, is NASA’s third highest-ranking executive and its highest-ranking civil servant. In addition to leading the agency’s 10 center directors and the mission directorate associate administrators at NASA Headquarters ...

Cost may not keep many people from filling opioid addiction treatment prescriptions

2024-06-18
When people get a prescription for the opioid addiction medication called buprenorphine, they almost always fill it — even if they have to pay more out of their own pocket, a new study shows. Whether it’s their first prescription for the medication, or they’ve been taking it for months, nearly all patients pick up the order from the pharmacy, according to the new findings from a University of Michigan team. Even among those just starting on buprenorphine, higher costs aren’t a deterrent. The researchers say this suggests that removing barriers ...

Fred Hutch announces eight recipients of 2024 Dr. Eddie Méndez Scholar Award

Fred Hutch announces eight recipients of 2024 Dr. Eddie Méndez Scholar Award
2024-06-18
SEATTLE — June 18, 2024 — Fred Hutch Cancer Center announced the recipients of the 2024 Dr. Eddie Méndez Scholar Award, which recognizes outstanding early-career scientists from underrepresented backgrounds who are studying cancer, infectious diseases and basic sciences.   The eight postdoctoral awardees come from research institutions across the U.S. and are experts in a range of subjects including cancer immunology, fungal model systems and craniofacial development. “We enthusiastically congratulate this year’s recipients who were chosen from a very competitive pool of candidates,” said Christina Termini, PhD, MM, co-director ...

NASA selects Lockheed Martin to build next-gen spacecraft for NOAA

2024-06-18
NASA, on behalf of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), has selected Lockheed Martin Corp. of Littleton, Colorado, to build the spacecraft for NOAA’s Geostationary Extended Observations (GeoXO) satellite program. This cost-plus-award-fee contract is valued at approximately $2.27 billion. It includes the development of three spacecraft as well as four options for additional spacecraft. The anticipated period of performance for this contract includes support for 10 years of on-orbit operations and five years of on-orbit storage, for a total of 15 years for each spacecraft. ...

C-Path partners with FARA to fortify RDCA-DAP and further accelerate drug development with new Friedreich’s Ataxia Data

2024-06-18
TUCSON, Ariz., June 18, 2024 — Critical Path Institute (C-Path), a leader in accelerating drug development for rare diseases, today announced the targeted integration of additional Friedreich’s ataxia (FA) datasets into C-Path’s Rare Disease Cures Accelerator-Data and Analytics Platform (RDCA-DAP®) as part of a partnership with Friedreich’s Ataxia Research Alliance (FARA).   This update includes data from two natural history studies; the FA-CHILD study, which focuses on pediatric ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Study unexpectedly finds living in rural, rather than urban environments in first five years of life could be a risk factor for developing type 1 diabetes

Editorial urges deeper focus on heart-lung interactions in pulmonary vascular disease

Five University of Tennessee faculty receive Fulbright Awards

5 advances to protect water sources, availability

OU Scholar awarded Fulbright for Soviet cinema research

Brain might become target of new type 1 diabetes treatments

‘Shore Wars:’ New research aims to resolve coastal conflict between oysters and mangroves, aiding restoration efforts

Why do symptoms linger in some people after an infection? A conversation on post-acute infection syndromes

Study reveals hidden drivers of asthma flare-ups in children

Physicists decode mysterious membrane behavior

New insights about brain receptor may pave way for next-gen mental health drugs

Melanoma ‘sat-nav’ discovery could help curb metastasis

When immune commanders misfire: new insights into rheumatoid arthritis inflammation

SFU researchers develop a new tool that brings blender-like lighting control to any photograph

Pups in tow, Yellowstone-area wolves trek long distances to stay near prey

AI breakthrough unlocks 'new' materials to replace lithium-ion batteries

Making molecules make sense: A regional explanation method reveals structure–property relationships

Partisan hostility, not just policy, drives U.S. protests

The Journal of Nuclear Medicine Ahead-of-Print Tip Sheet: August 1, 2025

Young human blood serum factors show potential to rejuvenate skin through bone marrow

Large language models reshape the future of task planning

Narrower coverage of MS drugs tied to higher relapse risk

Researchers harness AI-powered protein design to enhance T-cell based immunotherapies

Smartphone engagement during school hours among US youths

Online reviews of health care facilities

MS may begin far earlier than previously thought

New AI tool learns to read medical images with far less data

Announcing XPRIZE Healthspan as Tier 5 Sponsor of ARDD 2025

Announcing Immortal Dragons as Tier 4 Sponsor of ARDD 2025

Reporting guideline for chatbot health advice studies

[Press-News.org] Shining light on mental health in space science community