Correspondence on Can we Design by Natural Selection by Professor Sir Alan Harris

Research on shear is reviewed, with developments in a number of topics traced from the turn of the century until the present day. The current situation and the prospects for future progress are discussed. Finally, some more general conclusions are drawn from the background of this particular area. Professor P.E. Regan

My career started in the early 1950s when the whole process of education and training was quite different to the process today. There were a greater number of ways in which one could obtain professional qualifications, since it was not until 1972 that the profession decided to emphasise graduate entry only. Peter Campbell

Niamh McCloskey reflects on her personal experience of the challenging reality of returning to work after maternity leave, questioning whether workplaces truly support women in this transition and highlighting how, with the right support and recognition of the new perspectives and skills that motherhood can bring, we can retain mothers and allow them to thrive in underrepresented industries.