Death and science: the existential underpinnings of belief in intelligent design and discomfort with evolution

The present research examined the psychological motives underlying widespread support for intelligent design theory (IDT), a purportedly scientific theory that lacks any scientific evidence; and antagonism toward evolutionary theory (ET), a theory supported by a large body of scientific evidence. We tested whether these attitudes are influenced by IDT's provision of an explanation of life's origins that better addresses existential concerns than ET. In four studies, existential threat (induced via reminders of participants' own mortality) increased acceptance of IDT and/or rejection of ET, regardless of participants' religion, religiosity, educational background, or preexisting attitude toward evolution. Effects were reversed by teaching participants that naturalism can be a source of existential meaning (Study 4), and among natural-science students for whom ET may already provide existential meaning (Study 5). These reversals suggest that the effect of heightened mortality awareness on attitudes toward ET and IDT is due to a desire to find greater meaning and purpose in science when existential threats are activated.     

Pattern, process and the evolution of meaning: species and units of selection

Many of the fundamental concepts of biology lack consensual, precise definitions. Partly, this is due to a contrast between our discrete language and the continuous character of nature. Some debates over these concepts are confounded by the use of the same terms with different specific meanings, indicating a possible need for an expanded scientific lexicon. Words have their own histories, and frequently scientific terms with a vernacular origin retain associated vestigial meanings. Even terms newly coined within science have histories and changing meanings, which can lead to confusion among debaters. Debates over concepts are further confounded when the same terms are used in different fields of biology, with distinct (even conflicting) objectives, and by biologists with different approaches and perspectives. I illustrate these issues by considering the debate over the concept of species and the unit of selection.     

Relating ecological technical terms to students’ reasoning between 1st and 4th grades

This study investigates how lower elementary students used the technical terms in the context of ecology. We interviewed 44 students using several scenarios related to the ecosystem. We determined the general frequency of technical terms used from a preselected list commonly employed by scientists in their discourse about ecosystems. Then, we identified the contextualisation of the technical terms. The results showed three categories: naming – where the terms referred to an event or object without any appropriate scientific explanation, partial explanation – where the terms revealed a scientific idea mixed with other alternative conceptions, and complete scientific explanation – where the terms were used to completely convey the proper scientific idea. We discuss the practical implication of those results for teaching ecology.     

EXPERIMENTAL EVOLUTION OF PARASITOID INFECTIVITY ON SYMBIONT‐PROTECTED HOSTS LEADS TO THE EMERGENCE OF GENOTYPE SPECIFICITY

Host‐parasitoid interactions may lead to strong reciprocal selection for traits involved in host defense and parasitoid counterdefense. In aphids, individuals harboring the facultative bacterial endosymbiont, Hamiltonella defensa, exhibit enhanced resistance to parasitoid wasps. We used an experimental evolution approach to investigate the ability of the parasitoid wasp, Lysiphlebus fabarum, to adapt to the presence of H. defensa in its aphid host Aphis fabae. Sexual populations of the parasitoid were exposed for 11 generations to a single clone of A. fabae, either free of H. defensa or harboring artificial infections with three different isolates of H. defensa. Parasitoids adapted rapidly to the presence of H. defensa in their hosts, but this adaptation was in part specific to the symbiont isolate they were evolving against and did not result in an improved infectivity on all symbiont‐protected hosts. Comparisons of life‐history traits among the evolved lines of parasitoids did not reveal any evidence for costs of adaptation to H. defensa in terms of correlated responses that could constrain such adaptation. These results show that parasitoids readily evolve counter‐adaptations to heritable defensive symbionts of their hosts, but that different symbiont strains impose different evolutionary challenges. The symbionts thus mediate the host‐parasite interaction by inducing line‐by‐line genetic specificity.     

The Importance of Understanding the Nature of Science for Accepting Evolution

Many students reject evolutionary theory, whether or not they adequately understand basic evolutionary concepts. We explore the hypothesis that accepting evolution is related to understanding the nature of science. In particular, students may be more likely to accept evolution if they understand that a scientific theory is provisional but reliable, that scientists employ diverse methods for testing scientific claims, and that relating data to theory can require inference and interpretation. In a study with university undergraduates, we find that accepting evolution is significantly correlated with understanding the nature of science, even when controlling for the effects of general interest in science and past science education. These results highlight the importance of understanding the nature of science for accepting evolution. We conclude with a discussion of key characteristics of science that challenge a simple portrayal of the scientific method and that we believe should be emphasized in classrooms.     

Should Students Be Able to Opt Out of Evolution? Some Philosophical Considerations

One new development in the ongoing creationism/evolution controversy has been the proposal to institute opt-out policies that would allow creationist parents to exempt their children from any instruction involving evolution. By way of an explanation of some of the philosophical issues at play in the debate over evolution and the nature of science, this article shows the educational folly of such policies. If evolution is taught properly, it should not be possible to opt out of it without opting out of biology. Moreover, if Intelligent Design creationist criticisms of evolution and scientific naturalism were taken as the basis for opting out, then the effect would be even more radical and would require opting out of science entirely.     

The natural place to begin: The ethnoprimatology of the Waorani

Ethnoprimatology is an important and growing discipline, studying the diverse relationships between humans and primates. However there is a danger that too great a focus on primates as important to humans may obscure the importance of other animal groups to local people. The Waorani of Amazonian Ecuador were described by Sponsel [Sponsel (1997) New World Primates: Ecology, evolution and behavior. New York: Aldine de Gruyter. p 143–165] as the “natural place” for ethnoprimatology, because of their close relationship to primates, including primates forming a substantial part of their diet. Therefore they are an ideal group in which to examine contemporary perceptions of primates in comparison to other types of animal. We examine how Waorani living in Yasuní National Park name and categorize primates and other common mammals. Although there is some evidence that the Waorani consider primates a unique group, the non‐primate kinkajou and olingo are also included as part of the group “monkeys,” and no evidence was found that primates were more important than other mammals to Waorani culture. Instead, a small number of key species, in particular the woolly monkey (Lagothrix poeppigii) and white‐lipped peccary (Tayassu pecari), were found to be both important in the diet and highly culturally salient. These results have implications for both ethnoprimatologists and those working with local communities towards broader conservation goals. Firstly, researchers should ensure that they and local communities are referring to the same animals when they use broad terms such as “monkey,” and secondly the results caution ethnoprimatologists against imposing western taxonomic groups on indigenous peoples, rather than allowing them to define themselves which species are important. Am. J. Primatol. 75:1117–1128, 2013. © 2013 The Authors. American Journal of Primatology Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Pollen-Ovule Ratio and Gamete Investment in Pedicularis （Orobanchaceae）

The Pedicularis species provides ideal materials to study floral evolution because of their substantial flower variation based on a narrow genetic basis, even though they are almost exclusively pollinated by bumblebee. These traits allow us to detect the evolutionary trends of floral parameters without considering genetic background and the difference of pollination vectors. The pollen-ovule ratio is widely used to estimate the pattern of resource investment in two sexual functions in flowering plants. Forty species representing all of the corolla types in Pedicularls were used to study pollen-ovule ratio, gamete investment, and their correlations. Results show that pollen-ovule ratio does not differ among both different corolla types and taxonomic groups. It is therefore suggested that pollen-ovule ratio should be a parallel evolution. The correlations between pollen-ovule ratio and pollen size （-）, and ovule size （＋） can be successfully explained in terms of sex allocation theory. The biological significance of such relationships was also discussed. Additionally, we analyzed the pattern of resource investment into female gamete, which has been somewhat neglected, and found that plants have different patterns of gamete investment between the two sexual functions.     

eScience and the need for data standards in the life sciences: in pursuit of objectivity rather than truth

Referring to European history of natural sciences as an example, I discuss the relation between development of standards and the emergence of new epistemic virtues. I distinguish standards relating to scientific argumentation from standards relating to data production. The former are based on truth-seeking epistemic virtues and use criteria of logical coherence and empirical grounding. They are important for the justification of an explanatory hypothesis. Data and metadata standards, on the other hand, concern the data record itself and all steps and actions taken during data production and are based on virtues of objectivity. In the second part I focus on data and metadata standards and argue that, in order to meet the requirements of eScience, the specification of the currently popular minimum information checklists should be complemented to cover four aspects: (i) content standards, which increase reproducibility and operational transparency of data production, (ii) concept standards, which increase the semantic transparency of the terms used in data records, (iii) nomenclatural standards, which provide stable and unambiguous links between the terms used and their underlying definitions or their real referents, and (iv) format standards, which increase compatibility and computer-parsability of data records. I discuss the role of scientific terminology for standardizing data and the need for using semantically standardized and formalized data-reporting languages in the form of controlled vocabularies and ontologies for establishing content standards for data in the life sciences. Finally I comment on the necessity of community participation in the development and application of standards and in making data openly available.     

Pike Esox lucius as an emerging model organism for studies in ecology and evolutionary biology: a review

The pike Esox lucius is a large, long‐lived, iteroparous, top‐ predator fish species with a circumpolar distribution that occupies a broad range of aquatic environments. This study reports on a literature search and demonstrates that the publication rate of E. lucius research increases both in absolute terms and relative to total scientific output, and that the focus of investigation has changed over time from being dominated by studies on physiology and disease to being gradually replaced by studies on ecology and evolution. Esox lucius can be exploited as a model in future research for identifying causes and consequences of phenotypic and genetic variation at the levels of individuals, populations and species as well as for investigating community processes.     

Enhanced immunization techniques to obtain highly specific monoclonal antibodies

Despite fast advances in genomics and proteomics, monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) are still a valuable tool for areas such as the evolution of basic research in stem cells and cancer, for immunophenotyping cell populations, diagnosing and prognosis of diseases, and for immunotherapy. To summarize different subtractive immunization approaches successfully used for the production of highly specific antibodies, we identified scientific articles in NCBI PubMed using the following search terms: subtractive immunization, monoclonal antibody, tolerization, neonatal, high-zone tolerance, masking immunization. Patent records were also consulted. From the list of results, we included all available reports, from 1985 to present, that used any enhanced immunization technique to produce either polyclonal or monoclonal antibodies. Our examination yielded direct evidence that these enhanced immunization techniques are efficient in obtaining specific antibodies to rare epitopes, with different applications, such as to identify food contaminants or tumor cells.     

Evolution of wing pigmentation in Drosophila: Diversity,physiological regulation,and cis-regulatory evolution

Fruit flies (Drosophila and its close relatives, or “drosophilids”) are a group that includes an important model organism, Drosophila melanogaster, and also very diverse species distributed worldwide. Many of these species have black or brown pigmentation patterns on their wings, and have been used as material for evo-devo research. Pigmentation patterns are thought to have evolved rapidly compared with body plans or body shapes; hence they are advantageous model systems for studying evolutionary gains of traits and parallel evolution. Various groups of drosophilids, including genus Idiomyia (Hawaiian Drosophila), have a variety of pigmentations, ranging from simple black pigmentations around crossveins to a single antero-distal spot and a more complex mottled pattern. Pigmentation patterns are sometimes obviously used for sexual displays; however, in some cases they may have other functions. The process of wing formation in Drosophila, the general mechanism of pigmentation formation, and the transport of substances necessary for pigmentation, including melanin precursors, through wing veins are summarized here. Lastly, the evolution of the expression of genes regulating pigmentation patterns, the role of cis-regulatory regions, and the conditions required for the evolutionary emergence of pigmentation patterns are discussed. Future prospects for research on the evolution of wing pigmentation pattern formation in drosophilids are presented, particularly from the point of view of how they compare with other studies of the evolution of new traits.     

Does secotioid inertia drive the evolution of false-truffles?

Secotioid inertia is a model implemented to explain the prevalence of highly derived false-truffles with no obvious connection to the Homobasidiomycetes. The model accommodates the apparent lack of epigeous sister taxa for some highly derived hypogeous lineages by assuming that gasteromycetation in some fungi leads to the extinction of their epigeous sister population. The derived state of some hypogeous lineages suggests that they arose early in the evolution of Homobasidiomycetes and that those groups were subject to conditions that favoured hypogeous lineages such that the hypogeous fruit body form became the predominant form for some lineages. The directional selection component of secotioid inertia, termed secotioid drive, led to the extinction of their epigeous sister taxon. Morphological and molecular data from Russulaceae are used to model the evolutionary stages of secotioid inertia. The resulting phylogenetic results are compared with data from the order Leucogastrales, and the genus Destuntzia. The implications of secotioid drive are discussed with reference to gasteromycete phylogenetics, evolution, and conservation. Specifically, secotioid inertia can be used to account for reversals in fruit body morphology and instability in mycorrhizal formation.     

Self‐perceived burden to others as a moral emotion in wishes to die. A conceptual analysis

Patients at the end of their life who express a wish to die sometimes explain their wish as the desire not to be a burden to others. This feeling needs to be investigated as an emotion with an intrinsically dialogical structure. Using a phenomenological approach, two key meanings of the feeling of being a burden to others as a reason for a wish to die are identified. First, it is an existential suffering insofar as it contains the perception of a plight so desperate that it can only be relieved by the end of the patient’s existence. Second, it is an empathic concern that implies caring about those who bear the burden of caring for the person at the end of their life. It is therefore a moral emotion, encompassing a series of difficulties, including the subjective perception of a stark imbalance between giving and taking, the adequacy of the representation of the caregiver burden in the patient’s mind, and the danger of diminishing the worth of one’s life out of shame or self‐denigration. R. D. Laing’s terminology of crossed perspectives in interexperience is used to systematically distinguish the actual caregiver burden, the patient’s view of the caregiver burden, the stress for the patient in feeling that s/he is a burden to the caregiver, and the caregiver’s view of the patient’s stress. The sense of being a burden implies the belief that the caregiver feels burdened, and the fear that this burden could become unbearable.     

Young Chileans' Views of Citizenship: Findings From the First Generation Born After the Reinstitution of Democracy

Through a qualitative methodology, this study examines meanings attached to citizenship, barriers for citizenship, motivations for civic engagement, and aspirations as citizens in a sample (n = 71) of Chilean youth that grew up during the transition to democracy. The meanings youth attached to citizenship include membership, entitlement to rights and responsibilities, active participation, being informed, and voting. Participants perceived that practices of the political class, the economic system, and social disparities are barriers to exercising citizenship. They challenge the principles of a social order they consider unjust and advance proposals for social transformation that claim for social justice, reducing socio-economic disparities, discrimination, and bringing the political class closer to ordinary citizens. Findings reflect critical and cultural notions of citizenship. Contrasting their actual experiences with their aspirations for citizenship, participants feel politically inefficacious as they perceive they lack the power to influence the sociopolitical system. Implications for sociopolitical development and youth policy are discussed.     

进化细胞生物学的提出及其任务

作者提出应创建一门源于进化生物学与细胞生物学两者的交叉学科一进化细胞生物学(细胞的进化生物学)。其根本任务在于用进化的观点考察真核细胞的一切方面,从它们的起源和演化来认识它们的现在。文中列举了其具体的研究内容,并分析了其研究方法上的特点,指出在这里需要把进化生物学的综合性分析与细胞生物学的实验研究最紧密地结合起来。文中还论述了真核细胞的细胞器的“不进化”现象,指出其根本原因在于进化焦点的转移。     

Biosemantics: An Evolutionary Theory of Thought

Evolutionary theory has an unexpected application in philosophy of mind, where it is used by the so-called biosemantic program—also called the teleosemantic program—to account for the representational capacities of neural states and processes in a way that conforms to an overarching scientific naturalism. Biosemantic theories account for the representational capacities of neural states and processes by appealing in particular to their evolutionary function, as that function is determined by a process of natural selection. As a result, biosemantic theories have distinct advantages over other theories of mental representation—e.g., Fodor’s causal theory. Foremost among the advantages of biosemantic theories is their ability to account for the possibility of mental misrepresentation.     

Shoals and schools: back to the heuristic definitions and quantitative references

The terms ??shoal??, ??swarm?? and ??school?? are very frequently used in research on collective behaviours in animals. Pitcher??s definitions are accepted as the authority in the field but are based on a conceptual criterion of sociability. Without call into question the basis of these definitions, they do not provide tools to determine these behaviours quantitatively. To compare studies between populations, species, taxa or different experimental treatments, and between different authors, quantitative references are necessary. Quantitative measurements of collective behaviours can also test and validate the predictive capacity of computer models by comparing real data from nature so that different models can be compared. The first part of this paper succinctly reviews the definitions and meanings of these behaviours, with particular attention paid to quantitative aspects. This review underlines a series of conceptual confusions concerning these behavioural terms observed in the scientific literature and oral scientific communications. The second part reviews the quantitative parameters developed by biologists studying collective fish behaviours, mainly fish shoals, and by theoretical biologists and physicists studying computer modelling of collective behaviours. The parameters reviewed herein make no attempt to explain the mechanisms and causes that create a shoal, a swarm or a school, but rather try to describe these collective behaviours, and to connect local and global properties with individual and collective behaviours. Recent development over the last decade in technology, data processing capacity, cameras, and video tracking tools have provided the opportunity to obtain quantitative measures of collective dynamic behaviours in animals both rapidly and precisely.     

The use of a non-LTR element to date the formation of the Sdic gene cluster

Transposable elements comprise a considerable part of eukaryotic genomes, and there is increasing evidence for their role in the evolution of genomes. The number of active transposable elements present in the host genome at any given time is probably small relative to the number of elements that no longer transpose. The elements that have lost the ability to transpose tend to evolve neutrally. For example, non-LTR retrotransposons often become 5′ truncated due to their own transposition mechanism and hence lose their ability to transpose. The resulting transposons can be characterized as “dead-on-arrival” (DOA) elements. Because they are abundant and ubiquitous, and evolve neutrally in the location where they were inserted, these DOA non-LTR elements make a useful tool to date molecular events. There are four copies of a “dead-on-arrival” RT1C element on the recently formed Sdic gene cluster of Drosophila melanogaster, that are not present in the equivalent region of the other species of the melanogaster subgroup. The life history of the RT1C elements in the genome of D. melanogaster was used to determine the insertion chronology of the elements in the cluster and to date the duplication events that originated this cluster.