Wading Through Research

by Jennifer Fitchett* At very high altitudes and relatively high latitude (~30°S), the eastern Lesotho highlands comprise am ecologically restricted, yet biologically diverse, environment for plant growth. The terrestrial vegetation is described as the Drakensberg Alpine Centre, hosting a considerable number of endemic montane to alpine species. This region of South Africa is dotted by numerous small tarns (lakes) and wetlands, each host to thriving communities of largely cosmopolitan diatom species. Of these, a very common taxa, Staurosirella pinnata (Ehrenberg), has an interesting story to tell.                                                   Fig. 1 . Photographs of Mafadi summit, with the white diatomite outcrops  visible in the foreground. Fig. 2 . A photograph of a typical microscope slide of diatoms from Mafadi Summit, indicating a predominance of  Staurosirella pinnata  and  Fragilaria construens . At one of the highest summits of eastern Les

My twin, I mean mother, and I enjoying the beach. The highest compliment anyone can give me is to comment on how similar I am to my mother. My mom is the most amazing woman I know and I love when people joke about us being twins or sisters. But, it is not just her appearance I admire; I aspire to have her work ethic, perseverance, and independence. I owe a lot of who I am today to my mother. Recently, I have been thinking about why I became a scientist and how I have been able to make it this far. An  article  just came out that found by the time girls reach the age of six they already have negative beliefs about female intelligence. I was surprised by this finding because I can only remember one instance where I felt singled out or intellectually inferior because I am a woman. I never really thought I was special or overcoming a gender disadvantage as I settled into science. After reading about how young girls are dissuaded from activities that require brilliance as opposed