Curiosity, Recruitment, and Chaos: A Tribute to Bill Ricker’s Inquiring Mind

Synopsis Through three versions of a handbook on computations for biological statistics of fish populations, W.E. “Bill” Ricker played a pivotal role in founding the field of quantitative fishery science. His interests, however, extended far beyond the confines of quantifiable events to a deep appreciation for the natural world. In this article, I trace his development of fishery models from the 1940s to the 1970s, using examples that illustrate his approach to statistics and biological systems analysis. I describe changes in technology and statistics that have made it possible to extend his research in new directions, although his approach still lies at the core of all modern fishery models. His gentle, inquiring spirit persisted long after his retirement in 1973, as I illustrate from personal experiences with him during the 1990s.     

Anthropology in Disneyworld: Rapport,Gardner, and the ‘Discipline‘ of Social Anthropology

This article examines the response by Rapport to the critique made by Gardner of his book Transcendent Individual. Rapport eschews the idea of discipline in relation to anthropology. This is connected to his distaste for any hint of social determinism, and his eulogising of the essay format as the most suitable means of conveying human contrariety. His approach necessarily leads him to embellish his accounts of what the world is like with visions of what it should be like if only everyone adopted his literary and liberal stance. A contrary ‘manifesto’ is here presented: the job of social anthropology is to explain actual historical societies, and one cannot simply appropriate the subject so that it now becomes about a kind of never‐never land. Rapport's approach, far from leading to a glorification of individuality, leads only to a monochrome vision which paints all human beings as reductively ‘aesthetic’, ignoring, and rendering impossible the explanation of all institutionalised forms of belief and practice, not least those brutal forms which, says Rapport, inspire his work.     

Donald J. Reis, MD: Research Mentor Extraordinaire

Donald J. Reis, M.D., the late internationally reknowned neuroscientist, had a special talent for mentoring researchers early in their academic careers. His hands-on approach to laboratory investigation, his extraoridinary patience with novice researchers, his commitment to the scientific method, and his enthusiastic approach to the art of neuroscience all combined to make him the ideal mentor for many budding academics over the past four decades. The beauty of his scientific legacy is that he loved to each research. The following tribute is personal from one whose career was changed by a great mentor.     

On the difference between mono-, holo-, and paraphyletic groups: a consistent distinction of process and pattern

About 50 years ago, the German entomologist Willi Hennig presented a new approach in biological systematics that he called a phylogenetic systematics. The main difference between his approach and traditional Linnean systematics was that he distinguished two new kinds of groups that he called mono- and paraphyletic groups, and whereof he considered only monophyletic groups to be natural groups. However, almost immediately after publication of his approach in English, some biological systematists commented that his monophyletic groups rather ought to be called holophyletic groups. The comment sparked a heated debate about the definition of the concept 'monophyletic groups', but the debate never reached consensus. In this paper, I claim that the controversy does not concern the definition of the concept monophyletic groups per se , but instead conceptualization of phylogenies (i.e. dichotomously branching processes) in a general sense. I discuss the relation between mono-, holo- and paraphyletic groups, and conclude that Hennig's conceptualization of phylogenies is both inconsistent and empirically wrong, whereas Linné's instead is consistent and correct.  © 2008 The Linnean Society of London, Biological Journal of the Linnean Society , 2008, 94 , 217–220.     

Epistemology, necessity, and evolution: a critical review of Michael Ruse��s Philosophy After Darwin

Michael Ruse??s new anthology Philosophy After Darwin provides great history and background in the major impacts Darwinism has had on philosophy, especially in ethics and epistemology. This review focuses on epistemology understood through the lens of evolution by natural selection. I focus on one of Ruse??s own articles in the collection, which responds to two classic articles by Konrad Lorenz and David Hull on the two major forms of evolutionary epistemology. I side with Ruse against Lorenz??s account of the necessity we think our principles of reasoning have, though I disagree with Ruse??s particular example. I also argue that Ruse??s alternative explanation is lacking. Against Hull, I side with Ruse in his doubts that a sociobiological approach to science will prove fruitful, though I point out that it has certain advantages other approaches do not have. Although I side with Ruse on the issue, I conclude that the two views do not really come into direct conflict and so one needs not reject either. Finally, I discuss Ruse??s positive view and raise questions for his conception of evolutionary epistemology. I conclude that his arguments are insufficient to overcome opposing views and his view has at least as many unintuitive conclusions as the alternatives.     

Target-based drug discovery,genetic diseases,and biologics

The last fifteen years have witnessed a major strategic shift in drug discovery away from an empiric approach based on incremental improvements of proven therapies, to a more theoretical, target-based approach. This arose as a consequence of three technical advances: (1) generation and interpretation of genome sequences, which facilitated identification and characterization of potential drug targets; (2) efficient production of candidate ligands for these putative targets through combinatorial chemistry or generation of monoclonal antibodies; and (3) high-throughput screening for rapid evaluation of interactions of these putative ligands with the selected targets. The basic idea underlying all three of these technologies is in keeping with Marshall Nirenberg’s dictum that science progresses best when there are simple assays capable of generating large data sets rapidly. Furthermore, practical implementation of target-based drug discovery was enabled directly by technologies that either were originated or nurtured by Marshall, his post-docs and fellows. Chief among these was the genetic code. Also important was adoption of clonal cell lines for pharmacological investigations, as well as the use of hybridomas to generate molecular probes that allowed physical purchase on signaling elements that had previously been only hypothetical constructs. Always the pure scientist, Marshall’s contributions nevertheless enabled fruitful applications in the pharmaceutical industry, several of them by his trainees. Both the successes and the shortcomings of target-based drug discovery are worthy of consideration, as are its implications for the choices of therapeutic goals and modalities by the pharmaceutical industry.     

Perspectives on Berber Politics: On Gellner And Masqueray, or Durkheim'S Mistake

An important element of Ernest Gellner's defence of his segmentarity theory of Berber politics was his claim that this theory can trace its origins to the work of the nineteenth-century French ethnologist Émile Masqueray, whose study of the Berbers of Algeria was cited by Durkheim to illustrate his concept of 'segmental social organization'. The implication of Gellner's claim was that the segmentarity theory applied to Algerian as well as Moroccan Berbers and that Masqueray and his predecessors should be seen as precursors of the segmentarity theory rather than as the originators of a distinct and rival vision. I argue that Gellner's reading of these authors was mistaken, that their approach to the understanding of Berber political life was profoundly different from, and arguably superior to, the segmentarist perspective which supplanted it, and that the construction which Durkheim placed upon their findings was entirely groundless.     

Molluscs,morphology, and metaphor in Pablo Neruda's STEAMiest poem

The growing enthusiasm for STEAM (STEM + Arts) initiatives reflects the rich potential for inquiry and integration between arts and sciences. Biologically informed poetry is an active interdisciplinary area of creation and analysis that requires biologically attuned illustration and translation to retain its STEAM effectiveness across linguistic barriers. Pablo Neruda, Chilean poet and Nobel laureate, was a keen observer and informed scholar who wove his scientific knowledge into his poetry. He was particularly obsessed with the sea and featured marine invertebrates in many of his works. The molluscs in his poem “Mollusca Gongorina” are unusual in being specified by their Latin genera. In this zoopoetic analysis, we first ask whether the 11 specimens can be identified to species and find that eight have ready identifications based on morphology in the poem's text, and three have likely identifications based on the poem's themes. We then examine illustrations and translations of the poem, identify where they are consonant or dissonant with the biology of the original, and propose alternative translations informed by the species' identities. Our zoopoetic approach to what could today be considered a STEAMy poem surfaces the beauty of its imagery and narrative, reflects the biological sophistication of the poet, enhances the coherence of its translations making it accessible to a wider audience, and allows it to enhance the biological literacy of the reader.     

A tribute to Stanislao Cannizzaro, chemical informationist and photochemist

Stanislao Cannizzaro is known widely for the Cannizzaro reaction, the "disproportionation" of benzaldehyde upon reaction with alkali, for his approach to teaching chemistry, "Sunto di un corso di filosofia chimica", which he presented at the Karlsruhe Congress of 1860, and for his work on the photochemistry of santonin. In Cannizzaro's laboratory two research associates, Giacomo Ciamician and Paul Silber, and a senior colleague, Emanuele Paternó, became acquainted with the basic methods of sunlight-inducd photochemistry.     

Discursive Formation,Ethnographic Encounter,Photographic Evidence: The Centenary of Durkheim's Basic Forms of Religious Life and the Anthropological Study of Australian Aboriginal Religion in His Time

Historical research on the work of Émile Durkheim has often been confined to textual analysis aiming to reconstruct his research in the context of anthropological discourses at the turn of the 20th century. As radical changes in the visual culture of the late 19th century shaped the formation of anthropology as an academic discipline, the ambition of this article is to elaborate the ways Durkheim's use of ethnographic data and visual material formed the foundation of the theoretical and methodological design of his approach to religion. By tracing features in his Basic Forms that emphasize visual material and prioritize religious practice, I submit that the photographic evidence given in Spencer and Gillen's account of Aboriginal religion allowed Durkheim to theorize religion primarily through ritual. Photography, as a visual means of representation, enhanced the study of religion by focusing on ritual without necessarily demanding consideration of its mythical narratives and cosmological accounts. Based on a thorough analysis of his Basic Forms, this article argues that Durkheim used the photographs of the Aborigines of Central Australia systematically and that this use of photographs consequently guided his ethnographic depiction and his selection of theoretical concepts and methodological procedures.     

Ernst Mayr,naturalist: His contributions to systematics and evolution

Ernst Mayr's scientific career continues strongly 70 years after he published his first scientific paper in 1923. He is primarily a naturalist and ornithologist which has influenced his basic approach in science and later in philosophy and history of science. Mayr studied at the Natural History Museum in Berlin with Professor E. Stresemann, a leader in the most progressive school of avian systematics of the time. The contracts gained through Stresemann were central to Mayr's participation in a three year expedition to New Guinea and The Solomons, and the offer of a position in the Department of Ornithology, American Museum of Natural History, beginning in 1931. At the AMNH, Mayr was able to blend the best of the academic traditions of Europe with those of North America in developing a unified research program in biodiversity embracing systematics, biogeography and nomenclature. His tasks at the AMNH were to curate and study the huge collections amassed by the Whitney South Sea Expedition plus the just purchased Rothschild collection of birds. These studies provided Mayr with the empirical foundation essential for his 1942Systematics and the Origin of Species and his subsequent theoretical work in evolutionary biology as well as all his later work in the philosophy and history of science. Without a detailed understanding of Mayr's empirical systematic and biogeographic work, one cannot possibly comprehend fully his immense contributions to evolutionary biology and his later analyses in the philosophy and history of science.     

Entry, revisited

How can an individual reenter a society of which he has never truly been a member? What does the PRI miss in assuming that the individual offender is the only potentially successful site for intervention? Drawing on his personal experience as an educator in prisons, public schools, and the PRI, the author argues that education in the PRI can best be understood in relation to educational segregation in society as a whole. As such, any successful approach to reentry must begin with a consideration of entry, and a renewed commitment by established institutions of the dominant culture to address racial segregation and the segregation of former prisoners alike.     

关于《我国草兔的分类研究》的商榷

《我国草兔的分类研究》一文(见《兽类学报》第1卷第2期,以下简称《草》文)校定我国草兔的种名,分述其亚种,并应用模糊数学于草兔分类,我们深深钦佩《草》文作者的辛勤劳动和探索精神。不过,我们觉得《草》文存在问题,尚需商榷。     

Morphogenesis, Dictyostelium, and the search for shared developmental processes

In the 1930s John Tyler Bonner began studying the slime mold, Dictyostelium discoideum, as a way to investigate how organisms develop. With a life cycle that includes periods of unicellularity and multicellularity, Dictyostelium raises questions fundamental to development and evolution. In Morphogenesis: An Essay on Development (1952), Bonner built on his work with Dictyostelium to inform developmental theory and practice. By exploring how Bonner’s early work with Dictyostelium motivated his synthetic approach in Morphogenesis, this paper presents an example of how those who studied development sought ways to gain traction in the rapidly changing life sciences. While a biochemical viewpoint of development became dominant, morphogenesis provided a way to reintroduce and emphasize biological organization at the organismal level. Bonner’s early work offers a window to mid-twentieth century studies of development, an understudied area in the history of science, and shows that it was a time when growing experimental evidence enabled new ways of thinking about the relationship between ontogeny and evolution, and more broadly, about how the parts of nature might fit together.     

Extra-pair copulations,intra-specific brood parasitism,and quasi-parasitism in birds: a theoretical approach

Although 90 % of all bird species are monogamous, many species practice alternative reproductive strategies as extra-pair copulations, intra-specific brood parasitism, and quasi-parasitism. In territorial monogamous species, both partners hold and defend the territory from intruders. Often, the intruders are males and usually the local male banishes the intruders. Indeed, many studies focused on the response of the local male toward intruder males. However, the benefits and costs associated with the responses of the local male toward intruder females have been largely overlooked. Focusing mainly on alternative reproductive strategies, we developed a model to predict the aggression a monogamous male may demonstrate toward an intruder female during the pre-egg laying stage of his local female partner. This model demonstrates that the intensity of aggression that the local male shows toward an intruder female depends on the extra-pair copulations that his local female partner may perform. Further, the aggression also depends upon intra-specific brood parasitism and quasi-parasitism that might be carried out by the intruder female. Our approach suggests that when considering mating strategies, there is a need to assess how these three alternative reproductive strategies may affect the local male's aggression toward intruder females.     

Circle of healing: traditional storytelling, part two

For decades, Bible stories have been a source of both conflict and healing. In earlier days, Christian missionaries often went to considerable lengths to question the accuracy of traditional northern Native stories, especially those with supernatural dimensions, and to discredit traditional Native spiritual leaders, such as medicine men and women, angakoks, and shamans. The missionaries’ efforts often undercut Native culture and sometimes contributed to the intergenerational trauma that creates widespread hurt and pain in northern Native communities today. At the same time, a significant number of northern Native people derive considerable solace and support from their Christian beliefs and church affiliations, and many Christian religious organizations active in the North today no longer oppose traditional Native stories, practices, and values. Many northern Native people recognize that there is great value in both Native stories and the stories found in the Bible, but some still feel a tension in trying to reconcile acceptance of both. In his presentation, Walter Porter provided an interesting perspective on this issue, and his approach has considerable potential for healing.     

Circle of healing: traditional storytelling, part one

The session began with three presenters - LouAnn Benson, Walter Porter, and Lisa Dolchok - all of whom are or have been affiliated with the Circle of Healing Program at Southcentral Foundation in Anchorage, Alaska. The Southcentral Foundation is a Native Health Corporation that administers what used to be the Indian Health Service Hospital and Medical Center. In the Circle of Healing Program, the Southcentral Foundation has designed and implemented an approach to health care that allows its patients simultaneously to access Western medicine, traditional Native healing, and other alternative approaches to health care, such as acupuncture. An important figure in this effort is Dr. Robert Morgan, a psychologist who has worked with the program for several years, and who helped suggest presenters for this part of the program. Originally, Bob planned to be present in Quebec City, but family priorities meant a change in plans. Bob's absence had a silver lining, however, because in his stead he sent LouAnn Benson, one of his able colleagues, who talked about the program from the perspective of an insider.     

Rank,relationships, and responses to intruders among adult male vervet monkeys

We examined the influences of dyadic relationships among captive adult male vervet monkeys (Cercopithecus aethiops sabaeus) on behavior directed toward caged “intruder” males placed inside subjects' enclosures. Subjects were all 9 adult male residents from three stable social groups, each of which contained 3 adult males, at least 3 adult females, and their immature offspring. Every male was observed in two 3-hour sessions, each time with one of the 2 other adult males from his group. Observation sessions consisted of six consecutive 30-min stages in which group composition and the presence of the intruder were manipulated. All groups exhibited a stable, linear male dominance hierarchy prior to and throughout the study. In each group, there was one pair of males, when together, in which each member exhibited higher rates of intruder-directed approach and aggressive behaviors than when either animal was paired with the third male of his social group. Such pairs were also distinguished by high levels of within-pair agonistic interactions. The higher-ranking member of each dyad was the most aggressive male toward the intruder in his social group, although only one of these animals was the dominant male of his group. Mutual facilitation of aggression against intruding males is interpreted as cooperative behavior benefitting both males by increasing the likelihood of repelling a potential competitor for resident females. Such cooperation provides further evidence in nonhuman primates for cohesive male-male dyads between animals whose social interactions are characterized by agonism. © 1993 Wiley-Liss, Inc.