The human monopoly on the use of fire: Its origins and conditions

The domestication of fire was a major breakthrough in the sociocultural development of humankind, puttingHomo at a tremendous advantage over other species. In this paper an attempt is. made to reconstruct the first stages of the domestication process, with special emphasis upon its socio-psychological aspects as a ‘civilizing process’. The problem is discussed, first, of what enabled hominid groups to acquire and maintain the learned capacity of handling fire, and, second, of how the control of fire became a species-monopoly shared by all human societies.     

The land ethic at the turn of the millennium

Aldo Leopold's land ethic has proved more complex and subtle than he envisioned. Nevertheless, Leopold launched what, facing a new millennium, has proved urgent on the global agenda: an environmental ethics concerned in theory and practice about appropriate respect for values carried by the natural world and human responsibilities for the sustaining of these values. A blending of anthropocentric and biocentric values continues to be vital. These duties toward nature involve analysis of ecosystem integrity and evolutionary dynamism at both scientific and philosophical levels; any responsible environmental policy must be based on plausible accounts of ecosystems and a sustainable biosphere. Humans and this planet have entwined destinies. We now envision an Earth ethic beyond the land ethic.     

沙漠精灵——西域沙虎

西域沙虎是壁虎科中较为少见的种类,也是蜥蜴目中较低等的类群,分布于沙漠绿洲的边缘地带。主要是以蝼蛄、蚊、鳞翅目幼虫、膜翅目和鞘翅目昆虫为食;国内仅分布在甘肃、内蒙古和新疆,国外分布于蒙古等国。其不但憨态可掬、惹人喜爱,也是著名的有益动物,应很好地加以保护利用。     

耦合生态资本和社会资本的生态资源价值化体系分析

运用实地调研和理论分析的方法对中国生态资源价值化体系的变迁进行分析,并进一步提出耦合生态资本和社会资本的生态资源价值化理论框架。按照价值化的逻辑总结出价值化两条路径：流量价值化和存量价值化,并通过梳理科技文献指出现有研究的不足：流量价值化缺乏"生态视角"和存量价值化缺乏"整体视角"。对比分析了不同时期中国生态资源价值化变迁的特点,发现计划经济时期国家通过生态资源的公有和单要素管理,实现流量、存量的管控和生态资源收益的合理分配;在市场化改革前期,生态资源使用权与所有权的收益逐步分离,激励了社会资本带动生产力发展,但也造成了生态危机和贫富差距拉大等问题;在市场化后期,各地不断实践探索全生态要素治理,通过政府市场社会多方位联动追求共同富裕和生态文明目标的实现。指出生态资源价值体系与社会历史进程的关系,揭示了其背后社会资本与生态资本的耦合关系。最后,提出在市场化改革后期需要坚持"公共性"政党的领导,并在耦合社会资本与生态资本这一思想指导下构建的县镇村三级联动的生态资源价值化框架。研究结论为乡村振兴背景下中国生态资源价值化体系提供理论指导,为中国共产党领导下生态文明思想的人民性提供政治经济学的解释。     

The NO world for plants: achieving balance in an open system

Nitric oxide (NO) is a free radical that had been known for many years simply as a toxic air pollutant. The discovery of enzymatic NO production in many living organisms has established a new paradigm: NO being an essential molecule endogenously produced in the cells. In plant science it has been suggested that NO acts as a plant hormone equivalent to ethylene; that is, as a gaseous signal transmitter. Even after experiencing such a scientific breakthrough, however, researchers may still feel difficulty in exploring plant NO signalling systems with conventional approaches. A major difference between plants and animals is that the growth and development of plants is closely linked to the surrounding environment where NO levels vary according to biotic and abiotic activities. This fundamental difference may make the NO-signalling network system of plants larger and more complicated than that of vertebrates. This review intends to show prospects for the future of NO signalling research in plants by introducing a holistic concept to aid in the exploration of complicated systems such as the plant-environment system. Furthermore, the novel ONS hypothesis is proposed to encompass the complexity and simplicity of NO in chemistry, biochemistry and physiology.