Editor's column: Stratotypes

The recent designation of a stratotype for the Silurian-Devonian boundary (= the base of the Devonian) marks the end of an enterprise which has been widely referred to as a standard for the elaboration of major stratotypes. Although the philosophy of stratotypes is well developed, practical life is less ready for them. The procedure for authorization of stratotypes as well as their protection and integration with the planned urban and rural landscape call for authoritative deliberations and initiative.     

Editor's column: Nemagraptus, Pelekysgnathus, Foramenella

Systematic nomenclature follows the same rules for compounding and derivation as the scientific terminology discussed in a preceding Editor's Column. Lethaia honours appealing and correctly constructed names (and terms), but the codes of biological nomenclature do not in practice permit 'justified emendations' of names which do not meet the linguistic requirements in the same codes - in practice priority in 'spelling' supersedes correctness in 'language'. Construction of systematic names is easy, and the introduction of further incorrect and mnemonically cumbersome forms is easily curbed by requiring a statement on the derivation of each new name, scrutinized by a linguist if necessary.     

Editor's column: Ecostratigraphy

[Anders Martinsson:] Editor's column: Ecostratigraphy.
The natural development of biostratigraphy is toward ecostratigraphy , i.e. the correlation of fossil ecosystems and their arrangement in a geochronological framework. This stage is not easily attainable and provides far-reaching systematical and ecological knowledge of the organisms and communities involved. Hence, considerable ecostratigraphical success is hitherto only to be reported from the Quaternary, but the development should be guided towards similar knowledge of earlier intervals of the Phanerozoic.     

Editor's column: Synoptic publishing

The future of the paper-based scientific journal seems to lie in synoptic publishing. Synoptic publishing is a system the chief components of which are the synoptic article and the back-up structure. The synoptic article is not new in essence - for many decades there has been development towards greater selectivity of material within articles and towards synoptic expression. The back-up structure, however, has not been developed to any appreciable extent. There are examples of back-up structures in the form of special microfiche serials distributed among libraries and of full texts in miniprint appended to the synoptic article. Adequate full-text depositories ('open files'), however, are poorly developed and can be instituted only upon agreement far above the level of ordinary research institutions. The back-up material, largely camera-ready copy, needs strict editing as early as the author's level. Acceptance for deposition should follow the norms of acceptance for publication, with the assistance of referees.     

Planktic foraminiferal molecular evolution and their polyphyletic origins from benthic taxa

Phylogenetic analyses based on partial sequences of the small subunit (SSU) ribosomal (r) RNA gene have shown that the planktic and benthic foraminifera form a distinct monophyletic group within the eukaryotes. In order to determine the evolutionary relationships between benthic and planktic foraminifers, representatives of spinose and non-spinose planktic genera have been placed within a molecular SSU rDNA phylogeny containing sequences of the benthic suborders available to date. Our phylogenetic analysis shows that the planktic foraminifers are polyphyletic in origin, not evolving solely from a single ‘globigerinid-like’ lineage in the Mid-Jurassic, but derived from at least two ancestral benthic lines. The benthic ancestor of Neogloboquadrina dutertrei may have entered the plankton later than the Mid-Jurassic, and further investigation of related extant species should provide an indication of the timing of this event. The evolutionary origin of the non-spinose species Globorotalia menardii remains unclear. The divergences of the planktic spinose species generally support recent phylogenies based on the fossil record, which infer a radiation from a globigerinid common ancestor in the Mid- to Late Oligocene. The branching pattern indicates that there are possibly four distinct groups within the main spinose clade, with large evolutionary distances being observed between them. Globigerinoides conglobatus clusters strongly with Globigerinoides ruber and are divergent from Globigerinella siphonifera, Orbulina universa and Globigerinoides sacculifer.Conserved regions of the SSU rRNA gene show sufficient variation to discriminate foraminifers at the species level. Large genetic differences have been observed between the pink and white forms of Gs. ruber and between Ge. siphonifera Type I and II. The two types of Ge. siphonifera cannot be discriminated by traditional palaeontological methods, which has considerable implications for tracing fossil lineages and for the estimation of molecular evolutionary rates based upon the fossil record. The conserved regions show a high degree of sequence identity within a species, providing signature sequences for species identification. The variable regions of the gene may prove informative for population level studies in some species although complete sequence identity was observed in G. sacculifer and O. universa between specimens collected from the Caribbean and Western Pacific.     

Editor's column: Cryptozoic and Phanerozoic

[Anders Martinsson:] Editor's column: Cryptozoic and Phanerozoic.
The use of Cryptozoic as the antithesis of the widely accepted term Phanerozoic is recommended. Precambrian has been used to suppress the former term, but is less suited semantically and is derived from a different term system.     

Editor's column: Palaeontology of fossils

Palaeontology cannot progress without neontology, and the palaeontologist must often engage himself in investigations of recent plants and animals. There is, however, a clear tendency among palaeontologists to avoid the problems of hard preparation and incomplete documentation of life and death in the rocks. Resources intended for palaeontology are increasingly used for investigations of Recent organisms without more apparent relations than botany and zoology in general to urgent palaeontological problems. More fossil-oriented palaeontology is advocated.     

Editor's column: Symposia and congresses

Symposia and congresses (and similarly named conferences) provide a specific medium for scientific communication that should complement, not duplicate, published or circularized reporting. The total expenditure for presentation of results at a session of the International Geological Congress is at least in the region of 8 million dollars, and there are hundreds of smaller geological meetings every year. Progress in finding rational forms for meetings is slow, and elementary deficiencies in meeting organization are incessantly repeated. The fact that meetings have established themselves as a very viable institution in science provides no excuse for not watching and reviewing their structure and economy as vigilantly as, for example, publications.     

Editor's column: Titles of palaeontological papers

In articles provided with an abstract ('extended title with connected sentences'), there is no reason to overcrowd the title with information of key-word character. The title should be formulated to assist the selective reader. Additional information for the needs of secondary publications should be supplemented in the abstract and in a special line of key-words for indexing. We should aim at clean titles, using bibliographic and documentalishc foresight.     

Editor's column: Tnternational Geological Correlation Programme

The International Geological Correlation Programme (IGCP) offers great opportunities to geologists but suffers from a marked lack of identity in both public and professional perspective. This can be remedied by organizing the programme into a number of reasonably large projects with an identity of their own. Such a structure has to be attained according to a differentiated pattern, adjusted to accommodate groups and persons with initiative and dedication. The Board of the IGCP now has its great chance to act creatively by structurizing the programme. Now that the IGCP has become more widely known, geologists should make increased use of their formal powers to influence the programme, through the IUGS and individually.     

Editor's column: Directories as scientific catalysts

International funding of scientific activities is mostly of catalyst size only. Systematic efforts to track down the catalysing situations in these activities are made by the funding organizations. Great attention is devoted to meetings, while the catalysts of current activities between meetings are neglected. Regular primary publications are the closest counterparts in the current work of meetings but are out of size and inconvenient in structure for catalytic support. Circulars, newsletters and annotated directories (many hybrids occur) are very important catalysts of more manageable size. Taken together they represent considerable amounts of largely concealed labour and costs. Standards are badly needed for making the organization of information elements in directories efficient. Each entry in a directory should add a research profile to the scientists' identity and address. Directories may remain a jungle product, but scientists' considerable efforts in producing them merit a reconsideration of the organization of their contents and the provision of advice for their production and distribution.     

Editor's column: Palaeontological and stratigraphical newsletters

Newsletters and annotated directories are important sources of information in science. Most newsletters concentrating on individual research in progress are not formally published but circularized. Reporting on results or findings in circularized newsletters ('non-publications') often means misplacing the material and almost always non-availability through secondary services. The circularized newsletters are mostly very efficient means of information among the established specialists on the mailing-lists. but the information seldom reaches newcomers and non-specialists. In order to make their existence known in somewhat wider circles, Lethaia offers space for onepage presentations of newsletters relevant to palaeontology and stratigraphy.     

Editor's column: Stratification in international geology

The two large organizations in international geology, the permanent International Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS) and the long-term International Geological Correlation Programme (IGCP), are strongly stratified units and victims of platform sedimentation. Their National Committees and corresponding bodies are often useless as channels of the active scientists' initiative and influence. Their constituent and affiliated scientific bodies are deprived of all influence on the management of the organizations, in favour of managements bureaucratically and autocratically recruited according to a pattern of equitable geographical distribution. The IGCP is wasting effort in hunting for programme gaps, whilst both organizations are campaigning against regional concentrations of interest and consequent influence. Both organizations are in bad need of activating their national members and opening up their management to influence from their scientific bodies. For this purpose important changes in their constitutions are needed. Only then can their formal strength become real and their many challenging tasks be efficiently tackled.     

Editor's column: The International Union of Geological Sciences

The International Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS), founded in 1961. has developed into one of the strongest unions of the ICSU family. A composite but efficient international working structure has been organized, based on extensive voluntary efforts which are moderately yet effectively subsidized by the Union. Current developments trend towards closer cooperation with the International Geological Congress. The IUGS now covers 74 countries, although the strength in the international working structure may be contrasted with a certain lack of promotion at the national level, particularly with regard to information. This must be remedied. Geologists concerned are also encouraged to obtain their information directly through the IUGS Geological Newsletter.     

Planktic cyanophytes in marine environment

Abstract

Few major groups of cyanophytes contribute significantly to the productivity of oceanic oligotrophic ecosystem: unicellular Synechococcus spp., and filamentous nitrogen-fixing Trichodesmium and Richelia species occur as abundant populations in open seas and oceans. In addition, oceanic eutrophic waters support the development of massive summer-blooms of Nodularia, Aphanizomenon and Anabaena in the Baltic Sea. The importance of the planktic cyanophytes as primary producers and their contribution to the input of new fixed nitrogen in the euphotic zone is underlined.     

Active entry of stream benthic macroinvertebrates into the water column

Field experiments investigated the possible active entry of stream benthos into the water column. Over a 1-year period, sediment baskets were suspended for 24 hours in a stream pool so that only swimming or floating organisms, essentially unaided by current, could colonize them. A variety of benthos, including taxa characteristic of riffles, colonized the baskets, with colonization highest in late summer and negligible in winter.A modified drift net towed through the pool was used to quantitatively sample benthic animals actually in the water column. Nighttime tows captured a diverse, abundant fauna and indicated densities substantially higher than invertebrate drift densities reported in the literature. Daytime tows yielded little. Estimated percentages of the benthos in the water column at a given time were generally < 1.0%.These findings suggest that not all invertebrate drift is the result of passive mechanical removal from the substrate by current.     

Planktic coccal and trichal green algae of Lake Volvi,Greece

In the course of three years' investigations (1983–1986) of Lake Volvi, N Greece, 62 species and varieties of chlorococcal algae and 6 species of ulotrichal algae (Chlorophyceae) were found. Although chlorophytes form the largest group of the phytoplankton assemblages of the lake, their biomass is relatively small or even negligeable in some periods of the year in comparison with domination cyanophytes, diatoms and cryptophytes. Morphological variation of diagnostic features is described and documented by original drawings in 53 taxa.