To: Recipients of ECOLOG-L digests <ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU>
Subject: ECOLOG-L Digest - 10 Apr 2003 to 11 Apr 2003 (#2003-98)
There are 22 messages totalling 1242 lines in this issue.
Topics of the day:
1. a question on ecological economics (3)
2. Pondersoa Pines attacked in AZ (3)
3. Summer RA positions in Alaska
4. Dendrometer Band Information (tree growth measurements)
5. Looking for a LI-COR 6200
6. Seed quantification in excreta
7. Nest relocation
8. Sum: Pondersoa Pines attacked in AZ
9. A complaint to journal editors everywhere (7)
10. Seeds in Bat Poo
11. complaints. . .databases of raw data
12. field assistant needed
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Thu, 10 Apr 2003 18:38:26 EDT
From: Aneyww@AOL.COM
Subject: Re: a question on ecological economics
In a message dated 10-04-2003 13:14:11 Pacific Daylight Time,
dthomson@HARVEYECOLOGY.COM writes:
<< I am interested to find any studies in the realm of ecological econ
mics
that address the various tradeoffs in energy use, polution, human impact,
etc. between utilizing existing technology and buying into newer ones. >>
This seems to relate more to environmental economics than to ecological
economics, doesn't it?
Warren Aney
Senior Wildlife Ecologist
------------------------------
Date: Thu, 10 Apr 2003 23:57:55 -0400
From: Robert Mowbray <rnmowbray@WORLDNET.ATT.NET>
Subject: Re: Pondersoa Pines attacked in AZ
Several months ago I was told by a friend from Arizona that there was a
severe bark beetle attack in Arizona ponderosa pines and that conservation
groups were opposing harvesting the dying pines.
Bob Mowbray
Robert N. Mowbray
A Record of Success
Natural Resource Management Specialist
Tropical Forest Ecologist
Reston, VA
----- Original Message -----
From: "Jay S. Bancroft" <jsbancroft@PW.ARS.USDA.GOV>
To: <ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU>
Sent: Wednesday, April 09, 2003 3:24 PM
Subject: Pondersoa Pines attacked in AZ
> Anyone know of the culprit behind expanses of dying pines recently
observed (drought beetles, fungus)?
>
> Jay Bancroft PhD http://pwa.ars.usda.gov/shafter/srec/jb/banc.htm
>
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 11 Apr 2003 11:31:03 -0400
From: David Inouye <inouye@umd.edu>
Subject: Summer RA positions in Alaska
job related inquires to
Sydonia Brett-Harte: ffmsb@uaf.edu.edu>
SUMMER RESEARCH POSITIONS IN ALASKA FOR UNDERGRADUATES AND RECENT
COLLEGE GRADUATES
We are seeking enthusiastic undergraduates and recent college
graduates who are interested in summer field research in Alaska. The
overall objective of our research program is to understand the
ecosystem and global consequences of potential future changes in
arctic and boreal vegetation. There are two separate experimental
projects. For each of them, successful applicants will be expected
to assist with field data collection and also complete independent
research projects on a topic related to the program and their own
interests.
One experiment is focused on how plant species affect
community structure, diversity, and ecosystem cycling of carbon and
nitrogen in Alaskan tussock tundra. We have removed key species and
groups of plant species in a factorial design with nutrient addition,
as past experiments have shown that fertilization leads to dramatic
changes in community structure and ecosystem productivity.
Successful applicants will assist with measurements of above- and
belowground biomass and nutrient content, species diversity, and soil
nutrient availability and C and N content. We will be labeling with
15N in different chemical forms to assess whether species have
shifted their realized niches when neighboring species were removed.
We expect the research to be particularly exciting this year, because
this is the first year that we can assess species effects both above
and belowground. Successful applicants will be based at Toolik Field
Station, north of the Brooks Range in arctic Alaska
(http://www.uaf.edu/toolik/).
Our other project is focused on how different plant species
affect nitrogen retention in a boreal forest community following
fire. We established plots in boreal forest within the Caribou-Poker
Creek Experimental Watershed and treated the plots with a 15N tracer
following burns in summer 1999. We manipulated plant species
composition and are using the 15N tracer to see how these plant
species affect the flux of nitrogen through the different plant and
soil components of the ecosystem. Successful applicants will assist
with maintenance of the treatment plots, surveys of leaf area index
to monitor canopy development, and biomass harvests and soil core
collections. We are harvesting the vegetation manipulation
treatments this summer, so we expect the research to be particularly
exciting. Successful applicants will be based in Fairbanks, Alaska,
but may spend some time camping near the field sites.
For more information these projects, contact Dr. Syndonia
Bret-Harte (ffmsb@uaf.edu).
There are 6 positions altogether, 3 positions associated with
each project. For each project, there are two positions for
undergraduates or recent college graduates, and one for a field crew
leader who has already graduated from a 4-year college or university.
Undergraduate positions pay a stipend of $375 per week (before
taxes). These positions are open only to US citizens who are
undergraduates or who have graduated since Dec. 2002. Field crew
leader positions for recent graduates pay $475 per week. These
positions are open only to US citizens who have graduated from a
4-year college or university. The length of the positions varies
from one to three months, but all occur between late May and early
September.
Travel from your university to and from the field site will
be covered. Class background in plant ecology, botany, and/or soil
science, experience in field or laboratory, and experience with data
analysis is preferred for all positions. Field crew leaders should
have advanced undergraduate study in ecology or statistics, skills
with data analysis, prior field experience, and experience
supervising others in a work or school setting. Applicants must be
willing to work long hours in the field, occasionally under adverse
weather conditions. Competent, careful, emotionally mature, and
enthusiastic people desired! We want the work to be both fun and
challenging. We encourage applications from women and minorities.
To apply, send an email containing 1) completed UA Applicant
form (may be downloaded from
http://www.alaska.edu/hr/forms/PDF_ent/applicant_form_ent.pdf), 2) a
cover letter and 3) a c.v. or resume with the names, phone numbers,
and email addresses of three references to Marta Conner at
fnmrc@uaf.edu, with copies to Dr. Syndonia Bret-Harte at
ffmsb@uaf.edu. In the subject line of your email to Marta Conner,
please state "Bret-Harte jobs". Applications must be received by
April 15, 2003. Your cover letter should explain why you are
interested in this program and how it fits into your long-term
education and career goals. Also, describe anything that you think
would convince us that you are the most appropriate person for these
research positions, and specify which project you are most interested
in.
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 11 Apr 2003 09:02:05 -0500
From: Bobby D Keeland <bob_keeland@USGS.GOV>
Subject: Dendrometer Band Information (tree growth measurements)
Several years ago Bruce Metelerkamp (University of Natal, Rep. of
South Africa) placed some information on Dendrometer bands on the web.
Because Bruce was kind enough to credit me for some of the information
presented, I have received numerous requests from scientists interested in
using dendrometer bands in their research. In response to this amount of
interest, Joy Young and I have developed a web page presenting information
on the theory, construction, installation and measurement of dendrometer
bands.
http://www.nwrc.gov/Dendrometer/index.htm
If you need to make repeated measures of tree growth over the course
of one or several years, then dendrometer bands are an excellent tool. I
measured 700 trees weekly for 3 years and Joy now has weekly growth on 600
baldcypress trees over a period of 5 years. This number of trees can be
measured with a precision of 1/4mm (circumference) in less than 1/2 day
using dendrometer bands.
We would like to thank Dr. William H. Conner for introducing us to
dendrometer bands and showing us how to use them. Please contact me if you
have any further questions or comments on the web page.
Bobby D. Keeland, Ph.D. Patricia Joy Young
Research Forest Ecologist Tree Eco-Physiologist /
Dendrochronologist
USGS, National Wetlands Research Center School of Renewable Natural
Resources
Lafayette, LA LSU Ag Center, Louisiana
State University
bob_keeland@usgs.gov Baton Rouge, LA
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 11 Apr 2003 10:24:46 -0500
From: "Latty, Erika" <eflatty@FACSTAFF.WISC.EDU>
Subject: Looking for a LI-COR 6200
Dear Colleagues,
Our research group is interested in purchasing a LI-COR 6200 for use in
soil respiration measurements. Unfortunately this model is no longer
manufactured.
Does anyone have a unit, presumably used, that they would be interested in
selling? If so please get in touch with me using the contact information
listed below.
Thanks,
Erika Latty
Erika F. Latty, Ph.D.
Research Associate
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Department of Forest Ecology and Management
120 Russell Laboratories
1630 Linden Drive
Madison, WI 53706-1598
email: eflatty@facstaff.wisc.edu
Telephone: (608) 265-6321
FAX: (608) 262-9922
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 11 Apr 2003 09:04:40 +0200
From: Fabiana Castellarini <quipus30@HOTMAIL.COM>
Subject: Re: Seed quantification in excreta
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<P>>Hello all, </P>
<DIV></DIV>>
<DIV></DIV>>I am currently working with two endemic nectarivo
ous bats in the
<DIV></DIV>>Caribbean. However, this so called "nectarivores"
also include some
<DIV></DIV>>insects and fruits in their diet. I am using perc
nt volume for
<DIV></DIV>>quantifying the insects. But in the case of seeds
I have not found
<DIV></DIV>>another method beside presence or absence. I know
that for seeds
<DIV></DIV>>percent volume will not work, since different see
s have different
<DIV></DIV>>sizes.
<DIV></DIV>>
<DIV></DIV>>Does anybody know a method for estimating seeds i
excreta?
<DIV></DIV>>
<DIV></DIV>>A name or reference will do.
<DIV></DIV>>
<DIV></DIV>>Your help will be greatly appreciated!
<DIV></DIV>>
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</DIV></div><br clear=all><hr> </html>
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 11 Apr 2003 07:54:07 -0700
From: "House, Debbie" <Debbie.House@WATER.LADWP.COM>
Subject: Nest relocation
Fellow Ecologers,
Does anyone have information regarding the nest success or rate of nest aban
onment of birds following nest relocation? I am especially interested in in
ormation on shorebirds (esp. American Avocet), or other species that have pr
cocial young.
Debbie House
Watershed Resources Specialist
Los Angeles Department of Water and Power
300 Mandich Street
Bishop CA 93514
(760) 873-0206
(760) 873-0266 FAX
mailto:debbie.house@water.ladwp.com
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 11 Apr 2003 08:36:36 -0700
From: "Jay S. Bancroft" <jsbancroft@PW.ARS.USDA.GOV>
Subject: Sum: Pondersoa Pines attacked in AZ
I have heard from a dozen folks familiar with the LARGE die-off of pines. Ov
r the last 50 years or so, the trees had expanded their range into marginal
reas or formed dense thickets . This may be due to increased moisture and fi
e reduction. In the last 7 years there has been a drought that killed trees.
The weakened trees have also succumbed to beetle attack (Ips). I was given s
me more info if you're interested. Thanks to all who took the time to write!
Jay Bancroft PhD http://pwa.ars.usda.gov/shafter/srec/jb/banc.htm
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 11 Apr 2003 09:31:54 -0700
From: atw2 <atw2@DANA.UCC.NAU.EDU>
Subject: Re: Pondersoa Pines attacked in AZ
I was hoping that a biologist from Flagstaff would jump in here and
respond to this query. Bear with my response as I am a geology grad
student from Flagstaff, AZ, and this is not my field of expertise. Any
corrections by an Arizona biologist/forester would be sorely welcome.
Because of the intense drought that Arizona has been subjected to for
over 5 years, the pondersosa pines and even some juniper varieties have
weakened enough that they are vulnerable to attack by two types of
beetles, I believe. Usually the bark beetle is mentioned as the primarly
culprit. The infestation is accompanied by a fungus, I don^Òt know what
kind. We have been told by experts that once infested, there is no
pesticide that can be used to kill the beetle. It has been suggested that we
water around the tree canopy drip line to help bolster up sap production
within the trees. Those trees that are too far gone should apparently be
cut down and a solar treatment used to kill the beetles to prevent them
from spreading after the tree is down. Of course, this latter action is for
trees on private property only. The local fire district is now having
workshops on treatment and on how to clear properties of dead bracken.
As far as the dieback rate is concerned, the percentage of the Ponderosa
community of Prescott National Forest that is affected is purportedly
something like 80% (read it in the paper). Northern Arizona, I believe, is
not yet as badly affected although there is some speculation that it could
go above 80%. Our 2 1/2 acre lot here in Flagstaff has been affected, both
Ponderosa pine and Juniper, and the adjacent forest lands are also
affected although I don^Òt believe it^Òs 80%, maybe closer to 50% here in my
neck of the woods.
As our fire season approaches, this dead wood and dry pine needles will
have serious repercussions should fires break out again. There is a
serious concern that the forests be returned to their original, natural
densities by cutting through the forest and not just relying on controlled
burns. In spite of last year^Òs fires and the multitude of studies conducted
here and elsewhere ( I recall one ecolog report on a study in in the Pacific
Northwest on tree densities and biodiversity), conservation groups
continue to quibble over the tree diameters. The few primitive growth
forests we have here exhibit very, very low tree densities with abundant
grasses. This on-going dialogue is severely impeding efforts to handle
the problem before the next fire season, which could start by late May.
Should fires hit again this year, it may be that the quibbling will be wiped
away by the complete loss of some forests and then we^Òll have something
else to concentrate on like soil erosion, depletion of nutrients, decreased
water quality of streams, etc. The latter has already become an issue in
the White Mountains following the Chedeski-Rodeo fires.
Amy Welty
Northern Arizona University
Department of Geology
>----- Original Message -----
>From: "Jay S. Bancroft" <jsbancroft@PW.ARS.USDA.GOV>
>To: <ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU>
>Sent: Wednesday, April 09, 2003 3:24 PM
>Subject: Pondersoa Pines attacked in AZ
>
>
> Anyone know of the culprit behind expanses of dying pines recently
>observed (drought beetles, fungus)?
>
>Jay Bancroft PhD http://pwa.ars.usda.gov/shafter/srec/jb/banc.htm
>
Amy Welty
Dept. of Geology
Northern Arizona University
Flagstaff, AZ 86011
e-mail: atw2@dana.ucc.nau.edu
geochemistry lab: (520) 523-3308
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 11 Apr 2003 10:37:21 -0600
From: Dave Whitacre <dwhitacre@PEREGRINEFUND.ORG>
Subject: A complaint to journal editors everywhere
At the moment, I am reading many papers that examine life history =
correlates of body size. I have noticed something very frustrating to =
me, which probably impedes the march of science, and that is: the rarity =
with which raw data are published.
Thus, we have the specter of earlier investigators having compiled =
hundreds or thousands of data points, by laborious combing of the =
literature and extracting data from museum skins or tags (in the present =
instance).
In many cases, later workers revisit the same topics, using newer, =
better statistical methods, and/or partly different (often enlarged) =
data sets. In some cases, workers are unable to reconstruct what data =
were included in the initial studies. In the case of the truly massive =
earlier studies, the probability of someone reconstructing the same data =
set on their own is quite small, given one's limited time and other =
constraints.
Sometimes researchers include a comment "Data available upon request." =
These data are NOT always available upon request--at least, not after =
the passage of a few years.
Perhaps ideally, we would all add such data to a publicly available =
on-line data bank--does such exist?=20
At any rate, I believe that our science would progress more rapidly--and =
I, for one, would have more fun--if raw data were more often published =
along with journal articles.=20
Perhaps this could be assisted by use of a minute font size for data =
appendices. Or perhaps (radical notion) a CD with raw data for the =
entire journal issue could be included inside the back cover.
David Whitacre
The Peregrine Fund
5668 West Flying Hawk Lane
Boise, Idaho 83709
(208) 362-3716
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 11 Apr 2003 12:43:27 -0400
From: Tatiana Borisova <tab245@PSU.EDU>
Subject: Re: a question on ecological economics
Hello, David,
I will try to start the analysis of the problem. It would be nice if
others can help and continue it.
I know just economic part of the story, so, it is surely not complete.
Say, we analyze the problem from the position of the car owner.
He spend $ y to buy a new car.
His annual "benefits" from the new car are $ x (this can be savings on gas
due to higher efficiency of the new vehicle). It is agreed that money
received tomorrow are less valuable than money received today (would you
prefer $100 today or in a year?). So, we should discount (decrease) annual
benefits, received next year, the year after next year, etc. Usually,
discounting is done by dividing the amount by (1 + annual bank interest
rate). Let's denote interest rate with letter i.
So, we have
year 1 (today): benefits = 0, costs = y
year 2 (next year): benefits = x / (1+ i), costs = 0, total
benefits = x / (1+ i), total costs = y
year3: benefits = x / (1+ i)^2, costs = 0, total
benefits = (x / (1+ i)) + (x / (1+ i)^2) total costs = y
year 4: benefits = x / (1 + i) ^3, costs = 0, total benefits = (x
/ (1+ i)) + (x / (1+ i)^2) + (x / (1+ i)^3), total costs = y
etc
The year for which total benefits = total costs is the year when benefits
from new car overcome the costs to the car owner.
The problem is that costs and benefits from the car to the owner are not
the same as the costs and benefits to the society. The market price for
the vehicle (y) does not reflect the societal value of resources spent on
car production. The same is true about the benefits (x): savings on gas
does not necessary reflect benefits from decreased emission.
It is quite difficult to estimate the total societal benefits and costs
from the vehicle. For example, this would involve finding the population
exposed to the car emission, estimation of the effect of pollution on human
health (which is not an easy task!), and then expressing this in monetary
terms.
I hope this helps a little bit...
Sincerely,
Tatiana
At 12:40 PM 4/10/2003 -0700, David Thomson wrote:
>I am sure that I have read posts on this topic before so I hope I am not
>off-base.
>
>I am interested to find any studies in the realm of ecological economics
>that address the various tradeoffs in energy use, polution, human impact
>etc. between utilizing existing technology and buying into newer ones.
>Maybe an example would clarify:
>
>Let's say I own an older car. As we know that older car is not as effic
ent
>and is more polluting "to operate" than newer vehicles. However, what I
>don't know is for how long will I have to operate that newer vehicle in
>order for the difference in efficiency or pollution to "offset" the cost
of
>producing the new vehicle.
>
>That newer vehicle required energy and raw materials for production. Fo
>example, it required steel to be mined and refined, rubber and plastics
o
>be synthesized, as well as large number of other products - not to menti
n
>the energy to acquire, transport, refine, and shape those materials into
the
>new vehicle.
>
>When does the energy and pollution savings overcome the amount utilized
o
>create the new vehicle in the first place?
>
>David Thomson
>Restoration Ecologist
>H. T. Harvey & Associates
>3150 Almaden Expressway, Suite 145
>San Jose, CA 95118
>(408) 448-9450 x410
>(408) 448-9454 (fax)
>dthomson@harveyecology.com
<'))>< <'))>< <'))>< <'))>< <'))><
<'))>< <'))><
Tatiana Borisova
PhD candidate
Agricultural Economics Department,
Pennsylvania State University
tab245@psu.edu
(814) 865-2702
(814) 867-3117
<'))>< <'))>< <'))>< <'))>< <'))><
<'))>< <'))><
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 11 Apr 2003 10:37:30 -0700
From: Neil Cobb <neil.cobb@NAU.EDU>
Subject: Re: Pondersoa Pines attacked in AZ
Amy,
You provided a good response. The mortality is more widespread than N
Arizona. Last year the US Forest Service health monitoring program
identified over 16,000 separate bark beetle attacks in AZ, NM, CO and
UT. These included any discrete patches of dead trees that were noticeable
from the air. Their surveys were mostly in mid-summer when the damage was
just beginning to be noticed, and was concentrated in Ponderosa forests but
also included some pinyon-juniper woodlands. Mortality has involved more
than just trees, we are witnessing large areas of grama grass die-offs in
Northern Arizona. Please visit our website for more information
http://www.mpcer.nau.edu/megadrought/index.html
Neil
********************************
Neil S. Cobb
Merriam-Powell Center for Environmental Research
Hanley Hall, Bldg 7, Rm 207
Northern Arizona University
Flagstaff, AZ 86011
Fax: 928-523-8223
Phone:(w) 928-523-5528
(h) 928-214-6237
(cell) 928-607-4075
e-mail: neil.cobb@nau.edu
http://www.mpcer.nau.edu
**********************************
At 09:31 AM 4/11/2003 -0700, atw2 wrote:
>I was hoping that a biologist from Flagstaff would jump in here and
>respond to this query. Bear with my response as I am a geology grad
>student from Flagstaff, AZ, and this is not my field of expertise. Any
>corrections by an Arizona biologist/forester would be sorely welcome.
>
>Because of the intense drought that Arizona has been subjected to for
>over 5 years, the pondersosa pines and even some juniper varieties have
>weakened enough that they are vulnerable to attack by two types of
>beetles, I believe. Usually the bark beetle is mentioned as the primarly
>culprit. The infestation is accompanied by a fungus, I don't know what
>kind. We have been told by experts that once infested, there is no
>pesticide that can be used to kill the beetle. It has been suggested tha
we
>water around the tree canopy drip line to help bolster up sap production
>within the trees. Those trees that are too far gone should apparently be
>cut down and a solar treatment used to kill the beetles to prevent them
>from spreading after the tree is down. Of course, this latter action is
or
>trees on private property only. The local fire district is now having
>workshops on treatment and on how to clear properties of dead bracken.
>
>As far as the dieback rate is concerned, the percentage of the Ponderosa
>community of Prescott National Forest that is affected is purportedly
>something like 80% (read it in the paper). Northern Arizona, I believe,
s
>not yet as badly affected although there is some speculation that it cou
d
>go above 80%. Our 2 1/2 acre lot here in Flagstaff has been affected, bo
h
>Ponderosa pine and Juniper, and the adjacent forest lands are also
>affected although I don't believe it's 80%, maybe closer to 50% here in
y
>neck of the woods.
>
>As our fire season approaches, this dead wood and dry pine needles will
>have serious repercussions should fires break out again. There is a
>serious concern that the forests be returned to their original, natural
>densities by cutting through the forest and not just relying on controll
d
>burns. In spite of last year's fires and the multitude of studies conduc
ed
>here and elsewhere ( I recall one ecolog report on a study in in the Pac
fic
>Northwest on tree densities and biodiversity), conservation groups
>continue to quibble over the tree diameters. The few primitive growth
>forests we have here exhibit very, very low tree densities with abundant
>grasses. This on-going dialogue is severely impeding efforts to handle
>the problem before the next fire season, which could start by late May.
>Should fires hit again this year, it may be that the quibbling will be w
ped
>away by the complete loss of some forests and then we'll have something
>else to concentrate on like soil erosion, depletion of nutrients, decrea
ed
>water quality of streams, etc. The latter has already become an issue in
>the White Mountains following the Chedeski-Rodeo fires.
>
>Amy Welty
>Northern Arizona University
>Department of Geology
>
> >----- Original Message -----
> >From: "Jay S. Bancroft" <jsbancroft@PW.ARS.USDA.GOV>
> >To: <ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU>
> >Sent: Wednesday, April 09, 2003 3:24 PM
> >Subject: Pondersoa Pines attacked in AZ
> >
> >
> > Anyone know of the culprit behind expanses of dying pines recently
> >observed (drought beetles, fungus)?
> >
> >Jay Bancroft PhD http://pwa.ars.usda.gov/shafter/srec/jb/banc.htm
> >
>
>Amy Welty
>Dept. of Geology
>Northern Arizona University
>Flagstaff, AZ 86011
>
>e-mail: atw2@dana.ucc.nau.edu
>geochemistry lab: (520) 523-3308
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 11 Apr 2003 13:34:48 -0400
From: Julio Angel Soto-Centeno <jsotocen@EMICH.EDU>
Subject: Seeds in Bat Poo
Hi,
I will like to thank all people who responded to my prayers regarding
quantification of seeds in bat guano. Your answers contribiuted
tremendously.
Again, THANKS-A-LOT!
J. Angel Soto-Centeno
Eastern Michigan University
Department of Biology
316 Mark Jefferson
Ypsilanti, MI 48197
(734)487-4107
jsotocen@emich.edu
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 11 Apr 2003 12:42:53 -0500
From: Mike Sears <msears@MAMA.INDSTATE.EDU>
Subject: Re: A complaint to journal editors everywhere
In principle, I agree with the sharing of published data and, for that
matter, the source code for published models.
Two brief points:
1) Authorship issues arising from publications that result from re-analysis
f
another researcher's data are bound to be sketchy, and would need to be
explicitly agreed upon before the data were put into a shared format.
2) Researchers who share your opinion could begin by posting their data on t
e
web, allowing others to download it.
Mike Sears
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 11 Apr 2003 18:41:12 +0100
From: William Silvert <wsilvert@MILPAH.COM>
Subject: Re: a question on ecological economics
While I agree with the point that this is environmental economics rather
than ecological economics, it is becoming increasing relevant for ecologists
to know something about economics, and Tatiana is to be thanked for her
contribution.
She is quite right in pointing out that the monetary cost of the car is to
the purchaser, while the costs of pollution, etc., are borne by society as a
whole. This is related to the Tragedy of the Commons - what is good for an
individual may not be good for everyone.
However I would add to her analysis that the discount rate that one applies
to future costs and benefits is not necessarily the bank lending rate.
Resource economist usually agree that the "social discount rate" is very
low, so that effects long into the future are a serious concern. Depletion
of fossil fuels is effectively permanent, and the gas that we pour into our
SUVs today will not be available to our great-great-grandchildren - that
gives us concern (or should). But the $30,000 that the SUV costs us today
will have no relevance to them.
There are important ecological applications of the concept of discount
rates. Low discount rates are a luxury of the well-off. That is why poor
fishermen may knowingly over-exploit their resource - they know that heavy
fishing pressure may wipe out the fishery, but they need to put food on the
table tonight, and if their children will have to go to work in a factory,
well that is a necessary consequence of their high discount rate. A rich
fisherman, or a corporation, can suffer slack times so long as in the long
run he can satisfy his creditors, using the lower discount rate of his bank
loans.
Dr. William Silvert
Instituto de Investigação das Pescas e do Mar
Departamento de Ambiente Aquático
Avenida de Brasília, s/n
1449-006 Lisboa, Portugal
----- Original Message -----
From: "Tatiana Borisova" <tab245@PSU.EDU>
To: <ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU>
Sent: Friday, April 11, 2003 5:43 PM
Subject: Re: a question on ecological economics
> Hello, David,
>
> I will try to start the analysis of the problem. It would be nice if
> others can help and continue it.
> I know just economic part of the story, so, it is surely not complete.
>
> Say, we analyze the problem from the position of the car owner.
>
> He spend $ y to buy a new car.
>
> His annual "benefits" from the new car are $ x (this can be savings on
as
> due to higher efficiency of the new vehicle). It is agreed that money
> received tomorrow are less valuable than money received today (would yo
> prefer $100 today or in a year?). So, we should discount (decrease)
annual
> benefits, received next year, the year after next year, etc. Usually,
> discounting is done by dividing the amount by (1 + annual bank interest
> rate). Let's denote interest rate with letter i.
>
> So, we have
>
> year 1 (today): benefits = 0, costs = y
> year 2 (next year): benefits = x / (1+ i), costs = 0, total
> benefits = x / (1+ i), total costs = y
> year3: benefits = x / (1+ i)^2, costs = 0, total
> benefits = (x / (1+ i)) + (x / (1+ i)^2) total costs = y
> year 4: benefits = x / (1 + i) ^3, costs = 0, total benefits
(x
> / (1+ i)) + (x / (1+ i)^2) + (x / (1+ i)^3), total costs = y
> etc
>
>
> The year for which total benefits = total costs is the year when benefi
s
> from new car overcome the costs to the car owner.
>
> The problem is that costs and benefits from the car to the owner are no
> the same as the costs and benefits to the society. The market price fo
> the vehicle (y) does not reflect the societal value of resources spent
n
> car production. The same is true about the benefits (x): savings on ga
> does not necessary reflect benefits from decreased emission.
>
> It is quite difficult to estimate the total societal benefits and costs
> from the vehicle. For example, this would involve finding the populati
n
> exposed to the car emission, estimation of the effect of pollution on
human
> health (which is not an easy task!), and then expressing this in moneta
y
> terms.
>
>
> I hope this helps a little bit...
>
> Sincerely,
> Tatiana
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 11 Apr 2003 12:08:12 -0700
From: Patrick Foley <patfoley@CSUS.EDU>
Subject: Re: A complaint to journal editors everywhere
Dave,
The failure to publish raw ecological data is especially harmful to
conservation biology. To obtain good Bayesian priors for environmental
stochasticity, Allee thresholds or regional stochasticity (sensu
Hanski), we need lots of real data, especially time series of population
sizes. The data often exists but remains unpublished. This is not an
unsolvable sociological problem since geneticists have already solved
it. It has become standard for molecular biologists to put DNA sequence
data on line at Genbank. We need an Ecobank.
At present there are two major online sources for population data: 1)
the Global Population Dynamics Data Base maintained partly by NCEAS,
which is a good idea, but rather awkward to use and still pretty
unstocked, especially for plant and insect data, and 2) the widely
scattered grey literature often put online by US federal agencies. State
and other organizations are less likely to make such data available, and
you must hunt for it in closets and metal filing cabinets.
Ecologists need to get into the habit of making their data (mostly paid
for by the public) public, and scientific societies need to insist on
population and other ecological data going on line to a central clearing
house. It would improve enormously our ability to synthesize and
organize the information which we hope to turn into knowledge.
Patrick Foley
patfoley@csus.edu
Dave Whitacre wrote:
>
> At the moment, I am reading many papers that examine life history =
> correlates of body size. I have noticed something very frustrating to
> me, which probably impedes the march of science, and that is: the rarit
=
> with which raw data are published.
>
> Thus, we have the specter of earlier investigators having compiled =
> hundreds or thousands of data points, by laborious combing of the =
> literature and extracting data from museum skins or tags (in the presen
=
> instance).
>
> In many cases, later workers revisit the same topics, using newer, =
> better statistical methods, and/or partly different (often enlarged) =
> data sets. In some cases, workers are unable to reconstruct what data =
> were included in the initial studies. In the case of the truly massive
> earlier studies, the probability of someone reconstructing the same dat
=
> set on their own is quite small, given one's limited time and other =
> constraints.
>
> Sometimes researchers include a comment "Data available upon request."
> These data are NOT always available upon request--at least, not after =
> the passage of a few years.
>
> Perhaps ideally, we would all add such data to a publicly available =
> on-line data bank--does such exist?=20
>
> At any rate, I believe that our science would progress more rapidly--an
=
> I, for one, would have more fun--if raw data were more often published
> along with journal articles.=20
>
> Perhaps this could be assisted by use of a minute font size for data =
> appendices. Or perhaps (radical notion) a CD with raw data for the =
> entire journal issue could be included inside the back cover.
>
> David Whitacre
> The Peregrine Fund
> 5668 West Flying Hawk Lane
> Boise, Idaho 83709
> (208) 362-3716
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 11 Apr 2003 19:35:11 +0200
From: Tim Nuttle <Tim.Nuttle@UNI-JENA.DE>
Subject: Re: A complaint to journal editors everywhere
Ecology and other journals published by ESA provide this type of service in
their online repository "Ecological Archives". There are such things as SAS
code, raw data files, and equation derivations, that take up a lot of space
in print but are potentially useful for others. There is also the
opportunity to publish "data papers" that allow dissemination of large data
sets without synthesis or testing theories (although currently there is only
one on the website).
The website is:
http://www.esapubs.org/esapubs/archive/archive.htm
Tim Nuttle
Institute of Ecology
Friedrich Schiller University
Dornburger Strasse 159
D-07743 Jena
Germany
----- Original Message -----
From: "Dave Whitacre" <dwhitacre@peregrinefund.org>
To: <ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU>
Sent: Friday, April 11, 2003 6:37 PM
Subject: A complaint to journal editors everywhere
> At the moment, I am reading many papers that examine life history =
> correlates of body size. I have noticed something very frustrating to
> me, which probably impedes the march of science, and that is: the rarit
=
> with which raw data are published.
>
> Thus, we have the specter of earlier investigators having compiled =
> hundreds or thousands of data points, by laborious combing of the =
> literature and extracting data from museum skins or tags (in the presen
=
> instance).
>
> In many cases, later workers revisit the same topics, using newer, =
> better statistical methods, and/or partly different (often enlarged) =
> data sets. In some cases, workers are unable to reconstruct what data =
> were included in the initial studies. In the case of the truly massive
> earlier studies, the probability of someone reconstructing the same dat
=
> set on their own is quite small, given one's limited time and other =
> constraints.
>
> Sometimes researchers include a comment "Data available upon request."
> These data are NOT always available upon request--at least, not after =
> the passage of a few years.
>
> Perhaps ideally, we would all add such data to a publicly available =
> on-line data bank--does such exist?=20
>
> At any rate, I believe that our science would progress more rapidly--an
=
> I, for one, would have more fun--if raw data were more often published
> along with journal articles.=20
>
> Perhaps this could be assisted by use of a minute font size for data =
> appendices. Or perhaps (radical notion) a CD with raw data for the =
> entire journal issue could be included inside the back cover.
>
> David Whitacre
> The Peregrine Fund
> 5668 West Flying Hawk Lane
> Boise, Idaho 83709
> (208) 362-3716
>
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 11 Apr 2003 18:25:51 +0100
From: William Silvert <wsilvert@MILPAH.COM>
Subject: Re: A complaint to journal editors everywhere
While I agree with Dave, I think a more fundamental problem is a lack of
awareness of what "raw data" means. Even when working directly with
scientists who supposedly bring their data straight from the field, I often
find that they have smoothed it, removed apparent outliers, and censored
results which they feel are wrong even though I can see how to extract
useful information from them. Even worse, they often neglect basic details
like recording the units with which their data were measured! I once called
a scientist in desperation to find out what units he had used for his
benthic oxygen determinations, and even he couldn't remember.
So it isn't just a matter of journal policy, it is a matter of developing
scientific standards. Other fields have done this. I started as a physicist,
and our norm, from freshman physics on, was that the original data were
written in ink in a bound notebook - of course this was before the days of
computers, but I have great difficulty convincing my colleagues that they
should always archive their original data files, no matter how bad the
results may seem.
Dr. William Silvert
Instituto de Investigação das Pescas e do Mar
Departamento de Ambiente Aquático
Avenida de Brasília, s/n
1449-006 Lisboa, Portugal
----- Original Message -----
From: "Dave Whitacre" <dwhitacre@peregrinefund.org>
To: <ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU>
Sent: Friday, April 11, 2003 5:37 PM
Subject: A complaint to journal editors everywhere
> At the moment, I am reading many papers that examine life history =
> correlates of body size. I have noticed something very frustrating to
> me, which probably impedes the march of science, and that is: the rarit
=
> with which raw data are published.
> ...
> At any rate, I believe that our science would progress more rapidly--an
=
> I, for one, would have more fun--if raw data were more often published
> along with journal articles.
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 11 Apr 2003 15:44:08 -0500
From: Dave McNeely <dlmcneely@LUNET.EDU>
Subject: Re: A complaint to journal editors everywhere
Everything that you say is correct. However, when working in the field,
"written in ink in a bound notebook," does not work. We use pencil, not to
make the information recorded less permanent, but to make it more so. If we
drop the notebook in the creek, information written with pencil will still
be on the page when it dries. Information written with pen will not be,
unless the ink is India ink, which must be used with pens that are
unreliable in the field. And any ink will clog at low temperatures.
Dave McNeely
----- Original Message -----
From: William Silvert <wsilvert@MILPAH.COM>
To: <ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU>
Sent: Friday, April 11, 2003 12:25 PM
Subject: Re: A complaint to journal editors everywhere
> While I agree with Dave, I think a more fundamental problem is a lack o
> awareness of what "raw data" means. Even when working directly with
> scientists who supposedly bring their data straight from the field, I
often
> find that they have smoothed it, removed apparent outliers, and censore
> results which they feel are wrong even though I can see how to extract
> useful information from them. Even worse, they often neglect basic deta
ls
> like recording the units with which their data were measured! I once
called
> a scientist in desperation to find out what units he had used for his
> benthic oxygen determinations, and even he couldn't remember.
>
> So it isn't just a matter of journal policy, it is a matter of developi
g
> scientific standards. Other fields have done this. I started as a
physicist,
> and our norm, from freshman physics on, was that the original data were
> written in ink in a bound notebook - of course this was before the days
of
> computers, but I have great difficulty convincing my colleagues that th
y
> should always archive their original data files, no matter how bad the
> results may seem.
>
> Dr. William Silvert
> Instituto de Investigação das Pescas e do Mar
> Departamento de Ambiente Aquático
> Avenida de Brasília, s/n
> 1449-006 Lisboa, Portugal
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Dave Whitacre" <dwhitacre@peregrinefund.org>
> To: <ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU>
> Sent: Friday, April 11, 2003 5:37 PM
> Subject: A complaint to journal editors everywhere
>
>
> > At the moment, I am reading many papers that examine life history
> > correlates of body size. I have noticed something very frustratin
to =
> > me, which probably impedes the march of science, and that is: the
arity
=
> > with which raw data are published.
> > ...
> > At any rate, I believe that our science would progress more rapidl
--and
=
> > I, for one, would have more fun--if raw data were more often publi
hed =
> > along with journal articles.
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 11 Apr 2003 15:57:59 -0400
From: "Layton, Deborah" <dlayton@DEP.NYC.GOV>
Subject: Re: A complaint to journal editors everywhere
I would also submit that many scientists, who spend a lot of time, energy,
sweat and skin out in the field may be somewhat reluctant to share data with
those who like to sit in air-conditioned offices and build models based on
data that others have obtained. It may not be a very progressive way to
think, but I think that this could be part of the reason...
-----Original Message-----
From: Tim Nuttle [mailto:Tim.Nuttle@UNI-JENA.DE]
Sent: Friday, April 11, 2003 1:35 PM
To: ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU
Subject: Re: A complaint to journal editors everywhere
Ecology and other journals published by ESA provide this type of service in
their online repository "Ecological Archives". There are such things as SAS
code, raw data files, and equation derivations, that take up a lot of space
in print but are potentially useful for others. There is also the
opportunity to publish "data papers" that allow dissemination of large data
sets without synthesis or testing theories (although currently there is only
one on the website).
The website is:
http://www.esapubs.org/esapubs/archive/archive.htm
Tim Nuttle
Institute of Ecology
Friedrich Schiller University
Dornburger Strasse 159
D-07743 Jena
Germany
----- Original Message -----
From: "Dave Whitacre" <dwhitacre@peregrinefund.org>
To: <ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU>
Sent: Friday, April 11, 2003 6:37 PM
Subject: A complaint to journal editors everywhere
> At the moment, I am reading many papers that examine life history =
> correlates of body size. I have noticed something very frustrating to
> me, which probably impedes the march of science, and that is: the rarit
=
> with which raw data are published.
>
> Thus, we have the specter of earlier investigators having compiled =
> hundreds or thousands of data points, by laborious combing of the =
> literature and extracting data from museum skins or tags (in the presen
=
> instance).
>
> In many cases, later workers revisit the same topics, using newer, =
> better statistical methods, and/or partly different (often enlarged) =
> data sets. In some cases, workers are unable to reconstruct what data =
> were included in the initial studies. In the case of the truly massive
> earlier studies, the probability of someone reconstructing the same dat
=
> set on their own is quite small, given one's limited time and other =
> constraints.
>
> Sometimes researchers include a comment "Data available upon request."
> These data are NOT always available upon request--at least, not after =
> the passage of a few years.
>
> Perhaps ideally, we would all add such data to a publicly available =
> on-line data bank--does such exist?=20
>
> At any rate, I believe that our science would progress more rapidly--an
=
> I, for one, would have more fun--if raw data were more often published
> along with journal articles.=20
>
> Perhaps this could be assisted by use of a minute font size for data =
> appendices. Or perhaps (radical notion) a CD with raw data for the =
> entire journal issue could be included inside the back cover.
>
> David Whitacre
> The Peregrine Fund
> 5668 West Flying Hawk Lane
> Boise, Idaho 83709
> (208) 362-3716
>
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 11 Apr 2003 17:35:09 -0700
From: Cecilia Lynn Kinter <lkinter@MAIL.WSU.EDU>
Subject: complaints. . .databases of raw data
Between page charges and the always present space crunch in journals, raw
data from ecological research is usually a low priority for publication.
Especially when some projects have volumes of raw data.
However, I remember a fine presentation at the ESA meeting last year in
which Dr. Bob Peet, UNC Chapel Hill, described a databank for ecological
community data. Perhaps that would be a good model.
Lynn
///\///\///\///\///\///\///\///\///\///\///\///\///\///\///\///\
C. Lynn Kinter, PhD candidate lkinter@wsu.edu
School of Biological Sciences office: 509-335-1956
Washington State University herbarium: 509-335-3250
Pullman WA 99164-4236
"Why walk when you can fly." -- Mary-Chapin Carpenter
///\///\///\///\///\///\///\///\///\///\///\///\///\///\///\///\
------------------------------
Date: Fri, 11 Apr 2003 17:15:11 -0700
From: Andrea Litt <arlitt@AG.ARIZONA.EDU>
Subject: field assistant needed
Field Assistant needed (mid-May through early July 2003)
------------------------------------
A field assistant is needed to collect small mammal and invertebrate data
for a research project investigating the effects of fire and a nonnative
grass in semi-desert grasslands at Fort Huachuca Military Reservation in
southeastern Arizona. This is a full-time position for approximately 7
weeks for $8.50/hour. Study plots are located at approximately 4,400-4,900
feet elevation. Field housing (in Sierra Vista, AZ), transportation between
the field housing and the study plots, and occasional transportation
between Tucson and Fort Huachuca will be provided.
Duties:
- Trap small mammals and invertebrates on established study plots at Fort
Huachuca.
- Accurately collect and record data on captured small mammals (species
identification, body measurements, sex determination).
- Process captured invertebrate specimens and accurately record data.
- Work long hours in adverse field conditions (e.g., beginning early in the
morning, in extreme weather conditions, etc.), alone and/or as part of a
team, with an irregular work schedule.
- Employee will be trained and required to follow hantavirus safety
precautions.
- Assist with some computer data entry and/or proofing.
For more information, please contact Andrea Litt (arlitt@ag.arizona.edu).
To apply, please send your resume and references via email
(arlitt@ag.arizona.edu) or mail (address listed below).
Andrea R. Litt
University of Arizona
School of Renewable Natural Resources
104 Biological Sciences East
Tucson, AZ 85721
arlitt@ag.arizona.edu
------------------------------
Topics of the day:
1. News: US Rivers Being Depleted By Anthropogenic Demands
2. A complaint to journal editors everywhere (4)
3. Fw: Iron Link to CO2 Reductions Weakened
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Sat, 12 Apr 2003 01:59:53 -0700
From: Ashwani Vasishth <vasishth@USC.EDU>
Subject: News: US Rivers Being Depleted By Anthropogenic Demands
---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Fri, 11 Apr 2003 18:24:45 -0700 (PDT)
To: Environmental Ecology News <envecolnews@yahoogroups.com>
Subject: News: US Rivers Being Depleted By Anthropogenic Demands
http://ens-news.com/ens/apr2003/2003-04-10-10.asp
Water Demands Draining U.S. Rivers
By J.R. Pegg
WASHINGTON, DC, April 10, 2003 (ENS) - Many of America's rivers are
suffering from severe water shortages, with drought and human water
consumption placing some of these waterways in acute peril, warns a new
report released today by American Rivers.
The conservation organization's report, "America's Most Endangered Rivers
of 2003," details 10 rivers that face immediate and severe danger, but
paints a larger picture of a nation tumbling towards a possible water
crisis.
"America's seemingly insatiable demand for fresh water is nearing nature's
limits," American Rivers President Rebecca Wodder told reporters at
today's press conference. "And we have designed much of the human
landscape to make the problem worse, not better."
At the center of the concern is a simple fact - the United States uses
more water per person than any other country with little regard for waste
or cost. The U.S. average of 1,300 gallons per day is some 60 times the
average for many developing countries, according to the World Water
Council, with some 85 percent used to for irrigation.
[Photograph omitted]
The Ipswich River is being starved of water by excessive groundwater
pumping and human consumption. (Photo courtesy American Rivers)
U.S. irrigation habits, urban sprawl, increased groundwater pumping and
loss of wetlands are endangering the nation's rivers and draining its
fresh water supply, Wodder explained, and more often than not government
policies are making things worse.
Two federal government projects, one to drain 300 square miles of wetlands
and another to scour more than 100 miles of river bottom, put
Mississippi's Big Sunflower River at the top of this year's list. These
U.S. Army Corps of Engineer flood control projects are poised to go
forward this year, unless reviews by state officials or the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) judge otherwise.
"Unless the EPA stands up to political armtwisting," Wodder said, "the
Corps of Engineers will drain and scrape the life out of the Big Sunflower
River to help a small number of farms collect bigger subsidy checks from
American taxpayers."
[Photograph omitted]
Americans love pristine rivers for relaxation and recreation, but the
nation's water use choices are putting many rivers in danger. (Photo by
Mark Lance courtesy American Rivers)
The effects of federal agricultural policy and subsidies have had a severe
impact on the Klamath River, which is the second cited by American Rivers.
The Bush administration's decision to increase irrigation flows to farmers
in the upper region of the river contributed to the deaths of some 33,000
salmon last September. This was the worst recorded fish kill in U.S.
history.
Balancing the water needs of competing interests in the Klamath River
Basin is not easy, said Representative Mike Thompson, a California
Democrat. But the Bush administration's policy, by pitting upstream
farmers against conservationists and fishers, is an attempt "to shoehorn a
political solution to a scientific problem," Thompson said at today's
press conference.
"The problem with the Klamath River is a uniquely local problem that is
unfortunately exacerbated by this administration's policies," he said.
[Photograph omitted]
Low water levels contributed to a massive fish kill in the Klamath
River last September. (Photo by Northcoast Environmental Center courtesy
American Rivers)
Thompson introduced legislation in the House today that would allocate
$200 million to landowners and tribes throughout the Klamath Basin who
participate in water conservation projects. It is designed to bring
together stakeholders from the upper and lower basin, Thompson explained,
to "eliminate competing interests and find feasible solutions."
"The communities within the Klamath Basin cannot afford to wait any
longer," he said.
Severe water shortages earned the Ipswich River the number three slot on
the list, but it is not agricultural policy that is causing the crisis in
the Massachusetts river. It is excessive groundwater pumping and municipal
water consumption that leave portions of the river dry each summer.
The river often looks more like a dirt road, said Kerry Mackin, executive
director of the Ipswich River Watershed Association.
"We count more dead fish than living fish," Mackin said.
The combination of excessive municipal water consumption and groundwater
pumping are directly related and threaten water supplies across the
nation, warned Robert Glennon, a law professor at the University of
Arizona and author of the book "Water Follies: Groundwater Pumping and the
Fate of America's Fresh Waters."
[Photograph omitted]
Low water levels at the Platte River could have a negative impact on
migrating waterfowl, including the sandhill crane. (Photo courtesy U.S.
National Park Service)
The United States now pumps some 28 trillion gallons of groundwater every
year, Glennon explained, with little regard for how this affects the
hydrological cycle.
"We are allowing limitless access to a finite resource," he said. "There
is a disconnect between the law and science."
Pumping groundwater, Glennon explained, reduces the natural flow of water
into the nation's rivers and depletes a resource that took thousands of
years to accumulate. But as demand for water increases, local and state
entities are increasingly looking below ground for additional supply.
This has created a direct threat to the Platte River, which is on the
endangered list, and threatens to undermine an agreement to secure
adequate flows in the Platte River and to protect its adjacent wetlands.
The Platte River, which runs through Wyoming, Colorado and Nebraska, is
considered by conservationists to be the most important stopover for
migratory birds in the nation's heartland.
Excessive diversion and consumption are also responsible for putting the
Rio Grande on this year's list, Wodder explained, and water flow issues
also led the organization to put Colorado's Gunnison River on its list.
In part because of population growth, the nation's municipal water
consumption is the fastest growing sector of U.S. water use, in particular
from low density sprawl development.
This is a serious concern for the Mattaponi River, which makes the
endangered list because it is threatened by a planned reservoir that would
provide water for the sprawling cities of Virginia's Tidewater region.
[Photograph omitted]
Virginia's Mattaponi River is considered one of the most pristine
coastal river systems on the eastern seaboard. (Photo by G. Warren
Mountacastle, Jr. courtesy American Rivers)
"Healthy watersheds capture and store water for human and natural needs,
but sprawl development creates landscapes that shed water like a
raincoat," Wodder said. "Water rushing down storm drains when it rains is
water that will not come up from your well when it is sunny."
Wodder also warned that the Bush administration's decision to revise the
scope of the Clean Water Act's protection for wetlands could add to the
long list of threats to the nation's rivers. Conservationists believe the
reinterpretation of the law by the administration effectively removed
protection for as much as 20 percent of the wetlands in the lower 48
states.
"Draining, filling or paving over wetlands and small streams sets off a
chain reaction that eventually reduces the water available in river for
people and wildlife," Wodder explained. "As wetlands are lost, flash
floods increase but less rainfall soaks into the ground. As groundwater
levels fall, springs dry up and stream flows drop."
U.S. Representative James Oberstar, a Minnesota Democrat, told reporters
at the press conference that he supports a legislative effort to reverse
the Supreme Court decision that the Bush administration has used to
justify its narrow reinterpretation of what constitutes a protected
wetland under the Clean Water Act.
"The Supreme Court decision is undermining a 30 year effort to improve
America's waterways," Oberstar said. "We have to get back on track to what
the Clean Water Act intended."
The other rivers on the list are Colorado's Gunnison River, which is
burdened by unnatural water flows, along with the Snake River and
Georgia's Tallapoosa River, which are both threatened by impacts from
dams, and the Trinity River in Texas, which could be severely affected by
planned flood control and floodplain projects.
The water issues that are affecting America's rivers will only get more
serious, said Glennon, and will require strong leadership at the local,
state and federal levels of government.
"This is a tragedy of the commons," he said. "We need to start to
recognize the economic value of water."
To access a copy of the report, see www.americanrivers.org
* * *
Copyright Environment News Service (ENS) 2003. All Rights Reserved.
==========
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------------------------------
Date: Fri, 11 Apr 2003 22:34:49 -0700
From: Patrick Foley <patfoley@CSUS.EDU>
Subject: Re: A complaint to journal editors everywhere
Deborah,
As both a field biologist and a theorist, I know where I would rather
spend my time. But even though it took years to develop my mathematical
and computer skills (and lots of boring hours at the keyboard), when I
publish a model, you get the full use of the thing, and can use it in
your next paper without having to beg me for it. And if you want a copy
of some simulation code, it is also available for free. If you don't
think theory is of any use, this will not move you. But most empirical
data is of limited use also --- unless it can be compared and contrasted
with lots of related data!
Seriously, it is clear that researchers should get to use their
research. But if was developed with public money, shouldn't it fall
legally under the freedom of information act? And shouldn't it, in any
case, be open to inspection? I went into science with the naive notion
that, with few exceptions, science was an open source, open content sort
of project. Didn't most of us?
Patrick Foley
patfoley@csus.edu
Layton, Deborah wrote:
>I would also submit that many scientists, who spend a lot of time, energ
,
>sweat and skin out in the field may be somewhat reluctant to share data
ith
>those who like to sit in air-conditioned offices and build models based
n
>data that others have obtained. It may not be a very progressive way to
>think, but I think that this could be part of the reason...
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Tim Nuttle [mailto:Tim.Nuttle@UNI-JENA.DE]
>Sent: Friday, April 11, 2003 1:35 PM
>To: ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU
>Subject: Re: A complaint to journal editors everywhere
>
>
>Ecology and other journals published by ESA provide this type of service
in
>their online repository "Ecological Archives". There are such things as
AS
>code, raw data files, and equation derivations, that take up a lot of sp
ce
>in print but are potentially useful for others. There is also the
>opportunity to publish "data papers" that allow dissemination of large d
ta
>sets without synthesis or testing theories (although currently there is
nly
>one on the website).
>The website is:
>http://www.esapubs.org/esapubs/archive/archive.htm
>
>Tim Nuttle
>Institute of Ecology
>Friedrich Schiller University
>Dornburger Strasse 159
>D-07743 Jena
>Germany
>
>----- Original Message -----
>From: "Dave Whitacre" <dwhitacre@peregrinefund.org>
>To: <ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU>
>Sent: Friday, April 11, 2003 6:37 PM
>Subject: A complaint to journal editors everywhere
>
>
>
>
>>At the moment, I am reading many papers that examine life history =
>>correlates of body size. I have noticed something very frustrating
o =
>>me, which probably impedes the march of science, and that is: the ra
ity =
>>with which raw data are published.
>>
>>Thus, we have the specter of earlier investigators having compiled =
>>hundreds or thousands of data points, by laborious combing of the =
>>literature and extracting data from museum skins or tags (in the pre
ent =
>>instance).
>>
>>In many cases, later workers revisit the same topics, using newer, =
>>better statistical methods, and/or partly different (often enlarged)
=
>>data sets. In some cases, workers are unable to reconstruct what dat
=
>>were included in the initial studies. In the case of the truly massi
e =
>>earlier studies, the probability of someone reconstructing the same
ata =
>>set on their own is quite small, given one's limited time and other
>>constraints.
>>
>>Sometimes researchers include a comment "Data available upon request
" =
>>These data are NOT always available upon request--at least, not afte
=
>>the passage of a few years.
>>
>>Perhaps ideally, we would all add such data to a publicly available
>>on-line data bank--does such exist?=20
>>
>>At any rate, I believe that our science would progress more rapidly-
and =
>>I, for one, would have more fun--if raw data were more often publish
d =
>>along with journal articles.=20
>>
>>Perhaps this could be assisted by use of a minute font size for data
=
>>appendices. Or perhaps (radical notion) a CD with raw data for the =
>>entire journal issue could be included inside the back cover.
>>
>>David Whitacre
>>The Peregrine Fund
>>5668 West Flying Hawk Lane
>>Boise, Idaho 83709
>>(208) 362-3716
>>
>>
>>
>
>
>
------------------------------
Date: Sat, 12 Apr 2003 10:13:23 -0400
From: Karen Claxon <kclaxon@EARTHLINK.NET>
Subject: Fw: Iron Link to CO2 Reductions Weakened
Iron Link to CO2 Reductions Weakened
WOODS HOLE, Massachusetts, April 10, 2003 (ENS) - Scientists had thought
fertilizing the ocean with iron might be a good way to reduce
atmospheric
carbon dioxide, but now they are not so certain. A new study, published
in
"Science" magazine, does not completely give up on the idea, but
suggests
far greater understanding is still needed.
"The experiments enabled us to make an initial determination about the
amount of iron that would be required and the size of the area to be
fertilized," said study coauthor Ken Buesseler of the Woods Hole
Oceanographic Institution.
"Based on the studies to date, the amount of iron needed and area of
ocean
that would be impacted is too large to support the commercial
application of
iron to the ocean as a solution to our greenhouse gas problem," he
explained.
The idea of fertilizing the oceans with iron gathered momentum in the
1980s
and there remains some commercial interest in the concept. Plankton take
up
carbon in surface waters during photosynthesis. Other animals feed on
this
bloom, and the carbon from the plankton is mixed with the waste of these
animals and eventually settles on the ocean floor.
Additional iron increases plankton production, so in theory more carbon
would be removed.
In the experiments observed by Buesseler and collaborator Philip Boyd of
the
University of Otago in New Zealand there was limited evidence that the
particles carried large quantities of carbon to the deep ocean. The
authors
raise concerns over the space and time scales needed for commercial
applications and the inefficiency of this process.
"It may not be an inexpensive or practical option if what we have seen
to
date is true in further experiments on larger scales over longer time
spans," Buesseler said.
"The oceans are already naturally taking up human-produced carbon
dioxide,
so the changes to the system are already underway," he said. "We need to
first ask will it work and then what are the environmental
consequences?"
* * *
http://ens-news.com/ens/apr2003/2003-04-10-09.asp#anchor8
------------------------------
Date: Sat, 12 Apr 2003 14:48:22 -0400
From: Elizabeth Hane <ehane@ZOO.UVM.EDU>
Subject: Re: A complaint to journal editors everywhere
Long Term Ecological Research (LTER) Sites frequently put raw data up on
the web for use by other scientists or as a teaching tool. Rules and
guidelines about the use of this data varies by site and by the researcher
who collected the data, but generally is made available after the original
researcher has published some kind of summary paper about it.
Information about the sites and what data is available can be found at:
http://lternet.unm.edu/
Of course, this probably won't help you with your life history studies,
since the data is generally at the community and ecosystem level, but it
might be of interest to others.
Cheers,
Elizabeth Hane
At 10:37 AM 4/11/03 -0600, Dave Whitacre wrote:
>At the moment, I am reading many papers that examine life history =
>correlates of body size. I have noticed something very frustrating to =
>me, which probably impedes the march of science, and that is: the rarity
=
>with which raw data are published.
>
>Thus, we have the specter of earlier investigators having compiled =
>hundreds or thousands of data points, by laborious combing of the =
>literature and extracting data from museum skins or tags (in the present
=
>instance).
>
>In many cases, later workers revisit the same topics, using newer, =
>better statistical methods, and/or partly different (often enlarged) =
>data sets. In some cases, workers are unable to reconstruct what data =
>were included in the initial studies. In the case of the truly massive =
>earlier studies, the probability of someone reconstructing the same data
=
>set on their own is quite small, given one's limited time and other =
>constraints.
>
>Sometimes researchers include a comment "Data available upon request." =
>These data are NOT always available upon request--at least, not after =
>the passage of a few years.
>
>Perhaps ideally, we would all add such data to a publicly available =
>on-line data bank--does such exist?=20
>
>At any rate, I believe that our science would progress more rapidly--and
=
>I, for one, would have more fun--if raw data were more often published =
>along with journal articles.=20
>
>Perhaps this could be assisted by use of a minute font size for data =
>appendices. Or perhaps (radical notion) a CD with raw data for the =
>entire journal issue could be included inside the back cover.
>
>David Whitacre
>The Peregrine Fund
>5668 West Flying Hawk Lane
>Boise, Idaho 83709
>(208) 362-3716
------------------------------
Date: Sat, 12 Apr 2003 17:43:06 -0600
From: James Haefner <jhaefner@BIOLOGY.USU.EDU>
Subject: Re: A complaint to journal editors everywhere
The issues and concerns of publishing data is unbelievably complex, involvin
database theory, searching algorithms, and ethics. There are a number of gr
ups
working on the problems. Here are some resources for further study:
ECOLOGICAL DATABASE ISSUES
>
> LTER databases: they've done quite a lot
1. Baker et al. 2000. Evolution of
> a multisite network information ssytem: the LTER informaiton managemen
> paradigm. Bioscience 50(11):963-978. (ejournal)
2. W.T. Michener and J.W. Brunt (eds). 2000. Ecological data, management and
processing .Blackwell Science.
3. Shortgrass LTER database intro:
http://sgs.cnr.colostate.edu/Data/DataLibrary.htm
4. LTER Data Table of Content description
http://lternet.edu/DTOC/
5. Try a google search on "LTER database" to see the webpages for some of th
LTER sites.
>
> NCEAS and others are developing an Ecological Metadata Language (EML)
hrough
> the Knowledge Network for Biocomplexity (KNB): From their website: The
> Knowledge Network for Biocomplexity (KNB) is a national network intend
d to
> facilitate ecological and environmental research on biocomplexity. It
nables
> the efficient discovery, access, interpretation, integration, and anal
sis of
> complex ecological data from a highly distributed set of field station
,
> laboratories, research sites, and individual researchers.
>
> http://knb.ecoinformatics.org/
specifically, they offer some software:
http://knb.ecoinformatics.org/software/
esp. checkout Morpho and EML
>
> A broader description of what KNB is about is at:
> http://knb.ecoinformatics.org/informatics
SEARCHING WEB-BASED INFORMATION:
the Semantic Web: The next big thing after the World Wide Web
1. T. Berners-Lee, J. Hendler and O. Lassila. 2001. The semantic web. Scient
fic
American 284(5):34-43.
2. J. Hendler. 2003. Science and the Semantic Web. Science 299:520-521
3. Science on the semantic web (SWS) workshop Oct 2002:
http://cimic.rutgers.edu/semantic
(good powerpoint tutorials on these new ideas)
ETHICS of PUBLISHING DATA
The UPSIDE project:
1. E. Marshall. 2003. The UPSIDE of good behavior: make your data freely
available. Science. 299:990.
2. Sharing publication-related data and materials: responsibilities of
authorship in the life sciences.
http:books.nap.edu/books/0309088593/html/R1.html#pagetop
--
James W. Haefner Email: jhaefner@biology.usu.edu
Dept Biology/Ecology Center Voice: 435-797-3553
Utah State University FAX: 435-797-1575
Logan, UT 84322-5305
------------------------------
Date: Sat, 12 Apr 2003 12:18:56 +0100
From: Nick Newton-Fisher <newtonfisher@BUDONGO.ORG>
Subject: Re: A complaint to journal editors everywhere
The realities of publish-or-perish, together with highly competitive
grant application process are diametrically opposed to the needs in
e.g. conservation biology, for sharing of large datasets. If we want a
more collaborative research effort (which seems to be the way most
researchers deal with each other face-to-face) then something needs
to be done about the levels of competition. If people hoard data, it
may be because they feel they will lose out if someone else makes
use of it. Any kind of eco-bank would need to hedged with
agreements regarding authorship, and even grant applications, for
any future analysis of the data. Also, detailed methdology would need
to be recorded along with the 'raw' data, as this information would be
critical for future analysis - particularly if datasets were to be
combined or compared.
Nick Newton-Fisher
On 11 Apr 2003 at 15:57, Layton, Deborah wrote:
> I would also submit that many scientists, who spend a lot of time,
> energy, sweat and skin out in the field may be somewhat reluctant to
> share data with those who like to sit in air-conditioned offices and
> build models based on data that others have obtained. It may not be a
> very progressive way to think, but I think that this could be part of
> the reason...
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Tim Nuttle [mailto:Tim.Nuttle@UNI-JENA.DE]
> Sent: Friday, April 11, 2003 1:35 PM
> To: ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU
> Subject: Re: A complaint to journal editors everywhere
>
>
> Ecology and other journals published by ESA provide this type of
> service in their online repository "Ecological Archives". There are
> such things as SAS code, raw data files, and equation derivations,
> that take up a lot of space in print but are potentially useful for
> others. There is also the opportunity to publish "data papers" that
> allow dissemination of large data sets without synthesis or testing
> theories (although currently there is only one on the website). The
> website is: http://www.esapubs.org/esapubs/archive/archive.htm
>
> Tim Nuttle
> Institute of Ecology
> Friedrich Schiller University
> Dornburger Strasse 159
> D-07743 Jena
> Germany
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Dave Whitacre" <dwhitacre@peregrinefund.org>
> To: <ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU>
> Sent: Friday, April 11, 2003 6:37 PM
> Subject: A complaint to journal editors everywhere
>
>
> > At the moment, I am reading many papers that examine life history
> > correlates of body size. I have noticed something very frustratin
> > to = me, which probably impedes the march of science, and that is:
> > the rarity = with which raw data are published.
> >
> > Thus, we have the specter of earlier investigators having compiled
=
> > hundreds or thousands of data points, by laborious combing of the
> > literature and extracting data from museum skins or tags (in the
> > present = instance).
> >
> > In many cases, later workers revisit the same topics, using newer,
=
> > better statistical methods, and/or partly different (often enlarge
)
> > = data sets. In some cases, workers are unable to reconstruct what
> > data = were included in the initial studies. In the case of the
> > truly massive = earlier studies, the probability of someone
> > reconstructing the same data = set on their own is quite small,
> > given one's limited time and other = constraints.
> >
> > Sometimes researchers include a comment "Data available upon
> > request." = These data are NOT always available upon request--at
> > least, not after = the passage of a few years.
> >
> > Perhaps ideally, we would all add such data to a publicly availabl
> > = on-line data bank--does such exist?=20
> >
> > At any rate, I believe that our science would progress more
> > rapidly--and = I, for one, would have more fun--if raw data were
> > more often published = along with journal articles.=20
> >
> > Perhaps this could be assisted by use of a minute font size for da
a
> > = appendices. Or perhaps (radical notion) a CD with raw data for t
e
> > = entire journal issue could be included inside the back cover.
> >
> > David Whitacre
> > The Peregrine Fund
> > 5668 West Flying Hawk Lane
> > Boise, Idaho 83709
> > (208) 362-3716
> >
>
----------------------------------------------------
Dr. N.E. Newton-Fisher
tel: +44 7939 025 721
web: www.budongo.org/nen1000/
email: newtonfisher@budongo.org
-----------------------------------------------------
------------------------------
End of ECOLOG-L Digest - 11 Apr 2003 to 12 Apr 2003 (#2003-99)
**************************************************************
ÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿÿ
Thanks to discussion with TVR, I have decided to put a link to back files of the discussion group. This months back files.
The link to complete archives is available elsewhere.
This text was originally an e-mail. It was converted using a program
RUPANTAR- a simple e-mail-to-html converter.
(c)Kolatkar Milind. kmilind@ces.iisc.ernet.in