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Letter to the Editor: Don’t sit out this election; vote

<p>WILKES-BARRE &#8212; The sowbugs were actually crustaceans more akin to shrimp than insects, the mealworms were actually larva of beetles, but the earthworms were, indeed, the large, plump, wiggly denizens of dirt with that distinctive moist skin.</p><p>&#8220;Eww!&#8221; Ektra Arora exclaimed emphatically after briefly picking up a worm before dropping it back into the container and staring at her slimed fingers. &#8220;It&#8217;s <em>on</em> me!&#8221;</p><p>Stereotypical? Perhaps a tad. But the purpose of this particular exercise was to shatter the ossified idea that science means men in labs shouting &#8220;Eureka!&#8221; with women relegated to offices typing up the test result report.</p><p>Wilkes University is again hosting its annual Women Empowered By Science camp this week, a girls-only invitation to dabble in a wide array of science activities from Lego robotics to DNA extraction to medical diagnoses and, of course, worm and bug behavior.</p><p>The event drew scores of seventh- and eighth-grade girls from 21 area schools this year, and in the animal behavior lab Wednesday they took turns seeing how the three different little critters reacted to heat and cold, light and dark, wet and dry, and different colors beneath their modified Petri dishes.</p><p>Three of the plastic shallow dishes were glued together with pathways cut in the glued sides, allowing the test subjects to travel from one to the other. In each experiment, said subjects were given the option to stay in the neutral middle dish or head to either side offering contrasting choices (one moist, one dry, for example).</p><p>&#8220;Buddy, I told you you&#8217;ve got to stay in the dish!&#8221; Glenda Olivares scolded as one worm took option three: Crawling out of the experiment and onto the table. &#8220;Don&#8217;t make me slap you!&#8221;</p><p>When Arora tapped two sowbugs into the dishes with the choices of no color, red or blue, they started running around in a circle one behind the other.</p><p>&#8220;Hey, they must be buddies,&#8221; she said.</p><p>Wilkes senior Kate Schafer, one of many students helping out with the camp activities, suggested gender might be a more likely explanation: &#8220;One could be male and one could be female.&#8221;</p><p>Alas, the two parted ways for a spell, prompting Arora to announce &#8220;My bugs broke up.&#8221;</p><p>The 13-year-old from Dallas said that, while she really enjoyed the the &#8220;physics of dance&#8221; lesson earlier, it wasn&#8217;t her favorite. In fact, she had no favorite. &#8220;I like all of them,&#8221; she said.</p><p>Schafer, a biology major, said the camp was a big blast for her as well. &#8220;It&#8217;s so cool, to see their eyes widen as they figure something out.&#8221;</p><p>The girls at her table, meanwhile, started naming their earthworms &#8220;Mine is Steve,&#8221; one said. &#8220;Mine is Joe,&#8221; another christened. Turned out they all opted for male monikers.</p><p>Why all guy names?</p><p>&#8220;Because they&#8217;ve <em>got</em> to be all guys,&#8221; Olivares explained.</p><p>Um, empowerment complete &#8212; and it might be time for all men to sidle out the door before the next test subjects are selected.</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Middle school students test to see if sowbugs favor certain colors, while Wilkes University senior Kate Schafer notes the bugs may favor greens and yellows because of their grain diet. The lab was one of several attended this week by seventh and eighth grade girls during Wilkes&#8217; annual &#8220;Women Empowered By Science&#8221; camp. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/web1_TTL072816webs1-3.jpg</photo0><caption0>Middle school students test to see if sowbugs favor certain colors, while Wilkes University senior Kate Schafer notes the bugs may favor greens and yellows because of their grain diet. The lab was one of several attended this week by seventh and eighth grade girls during Wilkes&#8217; annual &#8220;Women Empowered By Science&#8221; camp. </caption0><photoCredit0>Sean McKeag | Times Leader </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/web1_TTL072816webs3-3.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Ekta Arora, 13, of Dallas, reacts the the slime on an earthworm she briefly tried to lift, while Wilkes University senior Kate Schafer comes to the rescue with tweezers. Seventh and eighth grade girls did tests to see how earthworms, mealworms and sowbugs react to different stimuli during Wilkes&#8217; annual Women Empowered By Science camp. On the left, Glenda Olivares, 14, laughs at Arora&#8217;s reaction. Sean McKeag | Times Leader </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/web1_TTL072816webs3-3.jpg</photo1><caption1>Ekta Arora, 13, of Dallas, reacts the the slime on an earthworm she briefly tried to lift, while Wilkes University senior Kate Schafer comes to the rescue with tweezers. Seventh and eighth grade girls did tests to see how earthworms, mealworms and sowbugs react to different stimuli during Wilkes&#8217; annual Women Empowered By Science camp. On the left, Glenda Olivares, 14, laughs at Arora&#8217;s reaction. Sean McKeag | Times Leader </caption1><photoCredit1>Sean McKeag | Times Leader </photoCredit1></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/web1_TTL072816webs2-3.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Wilkes junior Kelvin Mejia shows students how meal worms react to light during one of several labs for girls in grades seven and eight attending the university&#8217;s annual &#8220;Women Empowered By Science&#8221; camp. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo2>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/web1_TTL072816webs2-3.jpg</photo2><caption2>Wilkes junior Kelvin Mejia shows students how meal worms react to light during one of several labs for girls in grades seven and eight attending the university&#8217;s annual &#8220;Women Empowered By Science&#8221; camp. </caption2><photoCredit2>Sean McKeag | Times Leader </photoCredit2></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><subheadMeta>Wilkes program aims to foster girls&#8217; interest in science</subheadMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Mark Guydish</p><p>mguydish@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Mark Guydish at 570-991-6112 or on Twitter @TLMarkGuydish</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Bugs help young women learn