A Note on the Social Referents of Dreams

Social as well as personal referents appear in dreams and, when recognized as such, provide insight into how unresolved social issues seep into the personal domain at an unconscious level. Dream-sharing groups (because of the time available and other factors) offer a particularly favorable opportunity to observe this interplay. The truth-telling nature of dreaming consciousness not only exposes disconnects from our past arising out of our unique personal developmental history, but also calls attention to the way such disconnects are reinforced by current bias and prejudice. The concern of the dream with connectivity leads to the broader issue of the role dreams play in maintaining the unity of the human species and its survival.     

A review of the social behaviour of the giraffe Giraffa camelopardalis: a misunderstood but socially complex species

1. Until around 2000, giraffe Giraffa camelopardalis were believed to have no social structure. Despite a resurgence of interest in giraffe behaviour in around 2010, most studies are of isolated populations, making it difficult to draw general conclusions. Although it is now well established that giraffe social organisation is non-random, there is little consensus as to what influences preferred and avoided associations or the underpinning mechanisms.
2. We test two hypotheses: first, giraffe have a complex cooperative social system, exhibited by 1) stable groups of females, 2) offspring that stay in their natal group for part or all of their lives, 3) support by non-mothers in rearing young, and 4) non-reproductive females in the group; and second, giraffe form matrilineal societies, evidenced by 1) male dispersal, 2) female philopatry, 3) assistance in raising or protecting offspring, and 4) individual benefits gained from social foraging.
3. We reviewed 404 papers on giraffe behaviour and social organisation; captive studies were included where they supplemented information from free-living populations.
4. We show that giraffe exhibit many of the features typical of mammals with complex cooperative social systems and matrilineal societies. However, the social complexity hypothesis posits that such species also require complex communication systems to regulate interactions and relations among group members; giraffe communication systems are poorly understood.
5. Quantifying the fitness and survival benefits of the giraffe’s social organisation is necessary to ensure its long-term survival. Giraffe numbers have declined by 40% since 1985, they have been declared extinct in seven (possibly nine) countries and are listed as Vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. We identify research areas that will advance our understanding of giraffe behaviour and conservation requirements.

     

The Good Old Days Were Better: Agrarian Collapse and Tectonics

The theory of plate tectonics contends that the continental plates occupied by humanity are in motion. The hypothesis of agrarian collapse (HAC) holds that gradual, as well as seismic, earth movement can induce ground slope change and modify land-to-sea level relationships, thereby altering the distribution of surface and subsurface runoff, which can lead to abandonment of agricultural land. Mechanical principles underlying ongoing abandonment are detailed for large-scale irrigation systems of the Andean Cordillera Negra. These principles are compatible with a historical scenario integrating urban development at pre-Hispaic Chan Chan, capital of the Chimor polity, with expansion, reform, and collapse of the city's agricultural hinterland. The applicability of the mechanics of agrarian collapse to two other centers of past civilization is briefly considered.     

Plant and Soil Nematodes: Societal Impact and Focus for the Future.

Plant and soil nematodes significandy impact our lives. Therefore, we must understand and manage these complex organisms so that we may continue to develop and sustain our food production systems, our natural resources, our environment, and our quality of life. This publication looks specifically at soil and plant nematology. First, the societal impact of nematodes and benefits of nematology research are briefly presented. Next, the opportunities facing nematology in the next decade are outlined, as well as the resources needed to address these priorities. The safety and sustainability of U.S. food and fiber production depends on public and administrative understanding of the importance of nematodes, the drastic effects of nematodes on many agricultural and horticultural crops, and the current research priorities of nematology.     

Knowledge and use of fungi by a mycophilic society of the Venezuelan Amazon

This paper reports on the knowledge and useful applications of various fungi by the Hotï, a recently contacted Native American society inhabiting the Sierra Maigualida region of the Venezuelan Amazon. At least 31 folk taxa of fungi are esteemed as sources of nutrition, powerful media for hunting magic, protective charms against black magic, human medicinal agents, or body adornments. Even though the results presented here probably do not exhaust the total number of species known and used by them, they nevertheless suggest that the Hotï constitute one of the rare mycophilic societies in the Venezuelan Amazon. Further research is needed in order to obtain a more complete picture of the complexity of humanfungi relationships in this society.