astronomy

Zena Stein

Zena Stein is a astronomy topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Zena Stein rather than just read about it. In short: Zena Athene Stein (July 7, 1922 – November 7, 2021) was a South African epidemiologist, activist and doctor. She was professor of epidemiology and psychiatry at Columbia University.

Key takeaways

Zena Stein belongs to astronomy; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Zena Stein to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Zena Stein from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Zena Athene Stein (July 7, 1922 – November 7, 2021) was a South African epidemiologist, activist and doctor. She was professor of epidemiology and psychiatry at Columbia University.

Biography Stein was born on July 7, 1922, to Lithuanian Jewish immigrants in Durban, South Africa. Her father was a mathematics professor at Natal Technical College, and her mother was a homemaker. She completed a BA and MS in History at the University of Cape Town, and a medical degree from the University of Witwatersrand in Johannesburg. Stein and her husband Mervyn Susser, whom she married in 1949, began their medical career at a clinic in Alexandra Township. They were active in leftist politics, and left South Africa in 1955 after the clinic's board threatened to fire Dr. Susser if he participated on a panel sponsored by the African National Congress. Stein and Susser moved with their three children to Britain in 1956. They both obtained positions at Manchester University. They moved to New York in 1965. Her husband died in 2014, and Stein died on November 7, 2021, in Coatesville, Pennsylvania.

Research and career Stein's research included work on child development, contraception, psychiatric disorders, miscarriage, preterm delivery and birth defects. With Susser, she published a now famous paper on the epidemiology of peptic ulcer. After moving to New York in 1965, Stein and her husband both began working for Columbia University, and Stein eventually became a full professor of epidemiology. In 1987, she was a cofounder of the H.I.V. Center for Clinical and Behavioral Studies at the New York State Psychiatric Institute and Columbia University. Towards the end of their careers, Stein and Susser focused increasingly on HIV advocacy and research, both in the United States and in their native South Africa. With other health activists, they organised a meeting in Maputo in April 1990, which aimed to alert the African National Congress to the threat. The impact of this meeting was limited. With others, they were, however, successful in securing funding for a programme of HIV/AIDS research in Southern Africa and Stein and Susser served as co-directors of the Africa Centre for Health and Population Studies Archived 2014-08-26 at the Wayback Machine in 1999.

Awards and honors 2017 - Platinum Medal, the SAMRC Lifetime Achievement award (for scientists who have raised the profile of South African science). 2013 - Doctor of Science Honorary Degree from Columbia University 2012 - Joseph Zubin Award 1993 - Doctor of Science in Medicine Honorary Degree from University of Witwatersrand.

Selected publications

Books Mervyn Susser, Zena Stein. 2009. Eras in epidemiology: the evolution of ideas. Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press. Zena Stein. 1975. Famine and human development : the Dutch hunger winter of 1944-1945. New York: Oxford University Press. Jennie Kline, Zena Stein, Mervyn Susser. 1989. Conception to birth : epidemiology of prenatal development. New York: Oxford University Press. Zena Stein, Maureen Hatch. 1986. Reproductive problems in the workplace. Philadelphia: Hanley & Belfus.

Academic papers Gollub EL, Stein Z, van de Wijgert JHHM, Jones H, Ralph L, Padian N. 2020. ECHO: context and limitations. Lancet. 395(10222):e24. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(19)33108-3. Gollub EL, Jones HE, Ralph LJ, van de Wijgert JHHM, Padian N, Stein Z. 2019. The Need for Policy Change Regarding Progestin-Only Injectable Contraceptives. J Women's Health. (9):1180-1184. doi:10.1089/jwh.2018.7284. Harrison A, Hoffman S, Mantell JE, Smit JA, Leu CS, Exner TM, Stein ZA. 2016. Gender-Focused HIV and Pregnancy Prevention for School-Going Adolescents: The Mpondombili Pilot Intervention in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. J HIV AIDS Soc Serv. (1):29-47. doi:10.1080/15381501.2014.999183. Hoffman S, Mantell J, Exner T, Stein Z. 2004. The future of the female condom. Perspect Sex Reprod Health. 36(3):120-6. doi:10.1363/3612004. Gollub EL, Stein ZA. 2016. Beyond LARC: Advancing Reproductive Health to Include Men. Am J Public Health. 106(7):1169-70. doi:10.2105/ajph.2016.303245.

References

External links Interview - A conversation with Dr. Zena Stein (conducted by Dr. Allen Wilcox)

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Zena Stein

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Zena Stein claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In astronomy, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Zena Stein before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Zena Stein ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Zena Stein

In research: Zena Stein appears in astronomy research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Zena Stein in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Zena Stein is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1922 births, 2021 deaths, Columbia University faculty, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Zena Stein outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

Ask Teacher Smith questions about this articleOpens your AI tutor with a question about “Zena Stein” →

Affiliate

Preply — study more efficiently by working with a personal tutor. 50% off.

How to study Zena Stein in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Zena Stein means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Zena Stein out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Zena Stein in simple terms?

Zena Athene Stein (July 7, 1922 – November 7, 2021) was a South African epidemiologist, activist and doctor. She was professor of epidemiology and psychiatry at Columbia University.

Why does Zena Stein matter?

Because it connects several astronomy ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Zena Stein?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Zena Stein.