An inordinate fondness for beetles*

The abundance and diversity of insects was the subject of the joint commemorative meeting between the Linnean Society and the Royal Entomological Society of London. This paper gives a brief outline of the foundation and early history of the Entomological Society and its forerunners, and its relations with the Linnean Society at the time. It also shows how the contributions of the founding fellows of the Society, whose interests originated in collecting and insect natural history, laid the foundations of many of the present day fields of entomological research.     

Changing attitudes in nature conservation: the Nature Conservancy and Nature Conservancy Council

An official organization responsible for ecological research and nature conservation was formed in 1949. This paper traces its development and vicissitudes, first as an independent Nature Conservancy, then as a part of the Natural Environment Research Council, and finally as the Nature Conservancy Council. Much has been achieved: ecology is now a household word; there is a strong voluntary tide for nature conservation in the country; and there have been notable achievements in practical conservation. But the dangers to nature in Britain have proved to be much greater than anticipated.     

中药山豆根的研究进展

本文对中药山豆根进行了本草考证,并概括总结了半个世纪以来国内外对山豆根(广豆根)和北豆根在生药学研究、化学成分、药理作用与临床应用等方面的研究成果,为山豆根的进一步研究提供参考。全文附参考文献105篇。     

Isozyme studies in provenance research of forest trees

Summary The nature and origin of the isozymes and the techniques for their detection in forest trees are briefly reviewed. The theories used to interpret the isozyme variation are summarized. Recent isozyme variation studies in provenance research are discussed in relation to known variation pattern detected by classical nursery and field tests. The populations of a tree species can be sometimes, but not always, distinguished by their isozyme patterns. For a number of species, relationships between environment of origin of the provenances and some isozyme frequencies have been statistically established. In one case (Picea sitchensis) where direct comparison between the variation pattern detected by isozymes and the genetic variation of silviculturally important traits was possible, no meaningful relationships between both patterns could be detected. Nei's genetic distances and indices of gene diversity do not appear to be useful in provenance research. The concept of genetic distance based on gene frequencies is probably not very useful in provenance research either.     

The Japanese Tsukuba Primate Center for Medical Science (TPC): an outline

The facilities and activities of the Japanese Primate Center at Tsukuba, Japan are described. The Center became partially functional in 1978 and was completed in 1979. The three main aims of the Primate Center are: to quarantine newly imported primate animals, to breed, and to study them.     

步氏巨猿犬齿与前臼齿咬合关系的观察

步氏巨猿的上犬齿与下第一前臼齿的咬合关系有两种主要类型:一是相似于“猿类”的,另一相似于“人类”的。前者为雄性个体所具有,后者为雌性个体所具有。另有少数个体的则是中间类型。上犬齿与下第一前臼齿的咬合特征的分类学上的意义是可疑的。至少就绝大部分雄性步氏巨猿个体来说,很难认为其犬齿是参与臼齿的功能。步氏巨猿下第一前臼齿之所以呈双尖类型,与其犬齿并无直接的关系。     

Reproductive and neonatal outcomes in captive bred baboons (Papio hamadryas)

Abstract: Baboons are widely used in biomedical research. Although it is widely held that Papio hamadryas breed well in captivity, each established colony has a different reproductive success often hypothesised to be due to husbandry practices. The National Baboon Colony in Australia is a unique colony that houses Papio hamadryas to mimic that structure seen in the wild. In this article; we have analysed their reproductive parameters and neonatal outcomes. The success of the colony husbandry practices was demonstrated by lack of maternal mortality, low foetal morbidity, and known maternal and paternal linage.     

Ernst Mayr as community architect: Launching the society for the study of evolution and the journalEvolution

Ernst Mayr's contributions to 20th century biology extend far beyond his defense of certain elements in evolutionary theory. At the center of mid-century efforts in American evolutionary studies to build large research communities, Mayr spearheaded campaigns to create a Society for the Study of Evolution and a dedicated journal,Evolution, in 1946. Begun to offset the prominence ofDrosophila biology and evolutionary genetics, these campaigns changed course repeatedly, as impediments appeared, tactics shifted, and compromises built a growing coalition of support. Preserved, however, were designs to balance the community and journal with careful equation of status and explicit partitioning of responsibilities within the working coalition. Choice terms such as cooperation and unity carried a strong political message. Mayr's editorship ofEvolution provides a superb example of these balancing efforts. The mid-century infrastructural activities described herein also represented aggressive attempts to leverage control across several layers of community. Leaders of these campaigns sought: (1) to promote evolutionary studies as a modernized research discipline and place it at the center of American biology, (2) to promote evolutionary studies within existing disciplines — e.g. systematics, genetics, and paleontology, (3) to foster certain research styles within evolutionary studies, and (4) to emphasize certain solutions to prominent research questions. Throughout, Mayr interjected his priorities, tactics and energy.     

Ernst Mayr: Biologist-historian

Ernst Mayr's historical writings began in 1935 with his essay Bernard Altum and the territory theory and have continued up through his monumentalGrowth of Biological Thought (1982) and hisOne Long Argument: Charles Darwin and the Genesis of Modern Evolutionary Thought (1991). Sweeping in their scope, forceful in their interpretation, enlisted on behalf of the clarification of modern concepts and of a broad view of biology, these writings provide both insights and challenges for the historian of biology. Mayr's general intellectual formation was guided by the GermanBildung ideal, with its emphasis on synthetic and comprehensive knowledge. His understanding of how to write history was inspired further by the example of the historian of ideas Arthur Lovejoy. Some strengths and limitations of this approach are explored here through attention to Mayr's treatment of the French biologist J.-B. Lamarck. It is contended that Mayr's contributions to the history of biology are not restricted to his own very substantial historical writings but also include his encouragement of other scholars, his development of an invaluable archive of scientific correspondence, and his insistence that historians who write about evolution and related subjects acquire an adequate understanding of the principles of Darwinian biology.This paper was originally delivered at the biennial meeting of the International Society for the History, Philosophy, and Social Studies of Biology, held in Brandeis in July 1993, in the special session organized by John Greene on Ernst Mayr's contributions to systematics, evolutionary theory, and the history and philosophy of biology. The paper is presented here with only slight modifications of the original, oral presentation. As indicated in the text, a full assessment of Mayr's historical work, including situating that work in the context of Mayr's other work and contemporary developments in the history of science, would require a much more extensive study than I have been able to undertake here.     

激光在国外兽医领域应用及基础研究进展

本文主要就激光在国外兽医领域的激光内窥镜外科、肿瘤外科、眼外科、小动物外科以及激光动力学治疗等方面的应用及基础理论方面的研究进展进行综述。