In this talk, Mirta will share her journey from her education a mathematically-focused high school to her currently unconventional career in London, emphasizing the evolution from a local education in Croatia to international experiences in the US and UK. We will explore the concept of interdisciplinary careers in the modern world, viewing them through the framework of increasing demand, flexibility, and dynamism in the current workplace. We will underscore the significance of interdisciplinary research for launching careers outside of academia, and bolstering those within. I will challenge the conventional norm of working either in academia or industry, and encourage discussion about the opportunities for combining the two in a myriad of career opportunities. I’ll use examples from my own and others’ research to highlight opportunities for early career researchers to extend their work into practical applications. Such an approach leverages the strengths of both sectors, fostering innovation and practical applications of research findings. I hope these insights can offer valuable perspectives for those looking to navigate the evolving demands of the global job market, illustrating the advantages of a versatile skill set that spans multiple disciplines and allows extensions into exciting career options.

Analogical reasoning remains foundational to the human ability to forge meaningful patterns within the sea of information that continually inundates the senses. Yet, meaningful patterns rely not only on the recognition of attributional similarities but also dissimilarities. Just as the perception of images rests on the juxtaposition of lightness and darkness, reasoning relationally requires systematic attention to both similarities and dissimilarities. With that awareness, my colleagues and I have expanded the study of relational reasoning beyond analogous reasoning and attributional similarities to highlight forms based on the nature of core dissimilarities: anomalous, antinomous, and antithetical reasoning. In this presentation, I will delineate the character of these relational reasoning forms; summarize procedures and measures used to assess them; overview key research findings; and describe how the forms of relational reasoning work together in the performance of complex problem solving. Finally, I will share critical next steps for research which has implications for instructional practice.