Imperfect detection and the determination of environmental flows for fish: challenges,implications and solutions

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Improvement of environmental impact analysis by application of principles derived from manipulative ecology: Lessons from coastal marine case histories

Abstract I discuss briefly how the basic science of ecology contributed to the resolution of environmental problems in eight different cases in which I have been involved over the past few years. I then draw from 2 decades of experience as an academic marine ecologist and biological oceanographer to extract general lessons from each case on how environmental applications could be improved by better use of the wisdom of the field of ecology. The eight cases respresent four pairs of contrasts covering a spectrum of applications of ecological science to environmental problems: (i) two assessments of the environmental impacts from coastal ocean discharges, one evaluated by data collected under traditionally designed, self-monitoring programmes largely mandated by the agency granting the discharge permit and the other employing an academically designed programme of explicit impact testing; (ii) two assessments of the effects of offshore oil and gas development, one done before exploration drilling to assess the adequacy of available environmental information on which to base decisions about drilling permits and the other an analysis of natural resource damages after a coastal oil spill had occurred; (iii) two evaluations of environmental problems conducted by special ad hoc panels created to resolve the environmental disputes; and (iv) two examples of how rule-making commissions employed ecological insights in the establishment of regulations, in one case to preserve environmental quality and in the other to manage natural fishery resources. From the experience of these eight cases, I derive 38 lessons for the future improvement of environmental problem solving by better use of ecological sciences. These lessons fall into four categories: (i) improvements in study design and analysis; (ii) recognition of the importance of the multi-species, multi-factor (‘ecosystem’) context in which populations are nested; (iii) acknowledgement of how social concerns constrain environmental decisions; and (iv) identification of common fallacies in environmental assessment.     

Direct and indirect interactions with vegetation shape crocodylian ecology at multiple scales

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The policy chicken and the science egg. Has applied ecology failed the transgenic crops debate?

Ecology has a long history of research relevant to and impacting on real-world issues. Nonetheless problems of communication remain between policy-makers and scientists because they tend to work at different levels of generality (policy deals with broad issues, science prefers specific questions), and complexity (policy-makers want simple answers, ecologists tend to offer multi-factorial solutions) and to different timescales (policy-makers want answers tomorrow, ecologists always seem to want more time). These differences are not unique to the debate about the cultivation of transgenic crops. Research on gene flow is used to illustrate how science and policy are intimately bound together in a value-laden, iterative and messy process unlike that characterised by the ‘encounter problem—do science—make policy’ model. It also demonstrates how the gap between science and policy is often characterised by value-laden language. Scientists involved in ERA for transgenic crops may find their engagement with policy- and decision-makers clouded by misunderstanding about what one should expect from the other. Not the least of these, that science can define harm, is explored in a discussion of the UK Farm Scale Evaluations of herbicide-tolerant GM crops. The varied responses to these extensive trials highlight the problems of linking specific scientific experiments with broad policy objectives. The problems of applied ecology in the transgenic crops debate are not unique but may differ from other areas of environmental policy in the intense politicisation of the debate, the emphasis on assessment of risk and the particularly broad policy objectives.     

A checklist for choosing between R packages in ecology and evolution

1. The open source and free programming language R is a phenomenal mechanism to address a multiplicity of challenges in ecology and evolution. It is also a complex ecosystem because of the diversity of solutions available to the analyst.
2. Packages for R enhance and specialize the capacity to explore both niche data/experiments and more common needs. However, the paradox of choice or how we select between many seemingly similar options can be overwhelming and lead to different potential outcomes.
3. There is extensive choice in ecology and evolution between packages for both fundamental statistics and for more specialized domain‐level analyses.
4. Here, we provide a checklist to inform these decisions based on the principles of resilience, need, and integration with scientific workflows for evidence.
5. It is important to explore choices in any analytical coding environment—not just R—for solutions to challenges in ecology and evolution, and document this process because it advances reproducible science, promotes a deeper understand of the scientific evidence, and ensures that the outcomes are correct, representative, and robust.

     

Policy Language in Restoration Ecology

Relating restoration ecology to policy is one of the aims of the Society for Ecological Restoration and its journal Restoration Ecology. As an interdisciplinary team of researchers in both ecological science and political science, we have struggled with how policy‐relevant language is and could be deployed in restoration ecology. Using language in scientific publications that resonates with overarching policy questions may facilitate linkages between researcher investigations and decision‐makers' concerns on all levels. Climate change is the most important environmental problem of our time and to provide policymakers with new relevant knowledge on this problem is of outmost importance. To determine whether or not policy‐specific language was being included in restoration ecology science, we surveyed the field of restoration ecology from 2008 to 2010, identifying 1,029 articles, which we further examined for the inclusion of climate change as a key element of the research. We found that of the 58 articles with “climate change” or “global warming” in the abstract, only 3 identified specific policies relevant to the research results. We believe that restoration ecologists are failing to include themselves in policy formation and implementation of issues such as climate change within journals focused on restoration ecology. We suggest that more explicit reference to policies and terminology recognizable to policymakers might enhance the impact of restoration ecology on decision‐making processes.     

The Importance of the History of Science to the American Society of Zoologists

As the history of science has developed as a professional intellectualdiscipline, it has had and will continue to have an importantrole in defining science and its place in our culture. Suchdefinitions should be based on as much information as possible.Scientists can help supply some of this information throughparticipation in symposia on the history of science. In addition,scientists can learn much about the nature of their disciplineby becoming aware of the concepts of science which are derivedfrom the careful analysis of its history. Efforts should bemade to bring historians of science and scientists togetherfor their mutual benefit.     

Social Relations and the Green Critique of Capitalism in Melanesia

ABSTRACT  In this article, I explore what a critical environmental perspective would look like in Melanesia, where the distinction between nature and culture, and the expectation that science interprets the former in terms of the latter, may not apply. I consider changes in scientific knowledge production and the shift from cultural ecology to political ecology in Melanesian anthropology, including the argument that Melanesians are neither conservationists nor environmentalists. In contrast, I show how people exposed to pollution from the Ok Tedi copper and gold mine in Papua New Guinea mobilize their understandings of difference in a green critique of capitalism. I examine a strategy session of local activists, a public meeting about their campaign against the mine, and a sorcery tribunal. Finally, I suggest that Melanesian ideas about social relations provide a useful ethnographic analogy for thinking about the mobility and short temporal horizons of contemporary capitalism.     

On the Role of Ideas of Human Nature in Shaping Attitudes Towards Environmental Governance

Attitudes towards the management of the natural environment have been described mainly as building on individuals’ images of nature and the human–nature relationship. However, in previous qualitative research I found strong evidence that in order to understand public views on environmental policies we also need to understand individuals’ beliefs about their fellow humans. The present study tested the hypothesis that beliefs about human nature and preferences for certain governance approaches—such as regulations and collective action—are related to individuals’ attitudes towards concrete management measures. Survey results (n = 155), analysed by means of structural equation modelling, suggest that effects of beliefs about human nature are discernible, but not significant. I could, however, identify generic preferences for particular approaches to environmental governance. These significantly explained variation in attitudes towards environmental governance in an applied context, suggesting a strong need for further research in this politically highly relevant field.     

Do Participants in Genome Sequencing Studies of Psychiatric Disorders Wish to Be Informed of Their Results? A Survey Study

Objective

As large-scale genome sequencing technology advances, concerns surrounding the reporting of individual findings to study volunteers have grown and fueled controversy. This is especially true in mental health research, where the clinical importance of sequencing results is particularly unclear. The ethical, legal, and social issues are being widely debated, but less is known about the attitudes of actual study volunteers toward sequencing studies or what they wish to learn about their DNA sequence and its health implications. This study provides information on psychiatric research volunteers’ attitudes, beliefs, and concerns with respect to participation in DNA sequencing studies and reporting of individual results.

Method

We conducted a pilot study using a questionnaire that we developed to assess what information volunteers in an ongoing family study of bipolar disorder would like to receive if they underwent genome sequencing, what they would do with that information, and what concerns they may have.

Results

Almost all of the respondents were willing to participate in genome sequencing. Most respondents wished to be informed about all their health-related genetic risks, including risks for diseases without known prevention or treatment. However, few respondents felt well informed about the nature of genome sequencing or its implications for their health, insurability, or offspring.

Conclusions

Despite generally positive attitudes toward genome sequencing among study volunteers, most are not fully aware of the special issues raised by genome sequencing. The attitudes of study volunteers should be considered in the debate about the reporting of individual findings from genome sequencing.     

Developing flow–ecology relationships: Implications of nonlinear biological responses for water management

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Checks and balances: the welcomed tension between philosophy and science

There is a tension between science and philosophy, but this tension need not engender enmity or derision. Scientists and philosophers can work together, and we argue that working together is beneficial to both, even if it is sometimes uncomfortable. We offer examples of how philosophy can autonomously and effectively inform scientific practice. Science and philosophy share certain methodological concerns and practices; therefore, scientists who disregard philosophy are vulnerable to critical conceptual mistakes. If our arguments are correct, and if it can also be shown that science informs philosophy, then, while it is possible for both disciplines to operate autonomously, each should welcome the checks and balances that each provides for one another in the investigation and explanation of reality.     

Biases,gaps, and opportunities in mammalian extinction risk research

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Landscape variables influence taxonomic and trait composition of insect assemblages in Neotropical savanna streams

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The ecology of rivers with contrasting flow regimes: identifying indicators for setting environmental flows

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Modeling the distribution of a wide‐ranging invasive species using the sampling efforts of expert and citizen scientists

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Ebola in great apes – current knowledge,possibilities for vaccination,and implications for conservation and human health

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Perception,pattern, chance and the structure of reef fish communities

The recent history of attempts to understand the ecology of fish on coral reefs is surveyed as an example of the way in which science progresses. Scientists are trapped, both by their sensory equipment and by their preconceptions, into viewing the world in certain ways. Paradigms fall only slowly. Scientists are trained to seek pattern in their data, yet in some cases the largely stochastic variation of a system around its mean condition is the more important key to understanding its ecology. The reef fish assemblage provides such a case. It is unlikely that our present understanding of the nature of reef fish communities will survive unchanged by future research. And it is also unlikely that reef fish ecologists are the only ecologists who have difficulty discovering truth! Editorial     

Metamorphosis in river ecology: from reaches to macrosystems

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