Rebecca Black

Associate Professor of Informatics, University of California, Irvine
University of California, Irvine

Rebecca W. Black received her Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Wisconsin, Madison in 2006. Her research centers on the literacy and socialization practices of young people from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds who are writing and participating in online, popular culture-inspired environments. This work includes an explicit focus on the 21st century skills and forms of literacy and learning that youth are engaging with in online spaces. Dr. Black’s work has been published in Teachers College Record, Reading Research Quarterly, Research in the Teaching of English, the Journal of Adolescent and Adult Literacy, the International Journal of Learning and Media, and E-learning. Her book exploring how English language learning youth represent their cultural and linguistic identities through fan fiction texts was published by Peter Lang in the Spring of 2008.

From this contributor

Explore more from The Transmitter

Gerry Fischbach at a podium.

Remembering Gerry Fischbach, ‘orchestra conductor’ who brought scientists together

Fischbach, who died 25 October, elucidated the dynamic changes in neuromuscular junctions. Beyond the lab, he shaped careers, academic departments and scientific societies.

By Claudia López Lloreda
29 October 2026 | 8 min read
Mouse wearing a white, cube-like device on its head.

WILD platform levels up ability to record brain activity, behavior in nature

The customizable rig combines multimodal recording, onboard processing and neuronal manipulation to power more complex experiments.

By Simon Makin
29 October 2026 | 6 min read

The relationship between structure and function in cortical networks

Michael Reimann explains how the shape of neurons puts strong constraints on how they are wired in a network, and how this affects their structure-function relationships.

By Gaute Einevoll
28 October 2026 | 138 min listen