ChanelR

Now I want a miniature panda.

I think it's important to understand the terminology in the question before you throw out a reply like that.Ground-truthing refers to making physical observations and seeing whether they coincide with what models predict. E.g. predicting distributions of grey herons on a large spatial scale requires ground-truthing, i.e. people checking for grey herons in the area the model predicts grey herons inhabit.The Janus effect is a simple analogy that looks at the relationship of any level of organisation by analysing the level below it, and allows us to make predictions to a level above. E.g. Looking at the effects of rainfall on a plant's fitness (indiviual level) and understanding the physiology of the effect (one level below), and allows us to predict what will happen to the population of this plant (one level above).

Hi there, So in recent years, biology and especially ecology, has taken a more quantitative approach to answering questions. The Janus Effect is a phenomenon that scientists sometimes employ to draw broad-scale conclusions that are out of the focus of a small-scale study. For example, finding a biochemical/genetic effect of a substance on an organism does not necessarily cause a population/ecosystem-level response. Nonetheless, it is important to work step-wise up the ladder of organisation and determine these broad-scale effects. How far do you think it is plausible/acceptable to extrapolate results from a regional quantitative landscape ecology to draw conclusions for other landscapes with roughly the same abiotic/biotic/spatio-temporal attributes? To what level is this accurate? Should we spend more time ground-truthing at the expense of further research?

Hi there, What do you think some of the knock-on effects of climate change are on biodiversity of volant mammals? Feel free to post, I look forward to synthesising your ideas!

It's not necessarily racist, but I guess it could be. It's really about targeting an area. In the same way, if one knew the genetic weaknesses of a population living anywhere in the world, then selecting an effective bioweapon becomes easier. (To twist the tale, since 75% of caucasian Europeans have the Q192 alloform, then being exposed to acute chlorpyrifos toxicity would be more harmful than exposure to, say, diazoxon.) I'm currently writing up on the varying efficacies of paraoxonase polymorphisms in organophosphate detoxification. I'm looking at it from an ecology perspective, focusing on bird species. I came across the sarin gas incident, and several gulf war syndrome cases. Just made me wonder about all that information available in the public domain.

Usually ethanol alcohol, at least 70%.

Hi there, So these days, it seems pretty easy to say things like, 'over 7 billion people and counting? I think it's time we put baby tax into play.' But socioeconomics will beg to differ. In the past, it was easier for people to manage their natural resources, but with the population booming, resources are not only dwindling, but running out. How does one begin to justify nature conservation when there are millions of Africans who need water, land for growing crops, houses etc? How does one approach a village of hunger- and poverty-stricken people and ask them to limit their cattle grazing? I was naive to once think that people in rural areas had as many kids as they did because it was a symbol of honour, fertility and wealth. Granted, that is true in some cases, but having spoken to some villagers, I've also seen the bigger picture. To put it bluntly, it's a game of chance. The chance that while some of your kids are able-bodied to take care of the farm and livestock, there will be one or two who can make a future for themselves. Earn money, real money. Get them and the family out of poverty. As a conservationist pushing for more protected areas and more stringent policies against bio and enviro crime, I'm having trouble excluding humans from this. The rhino-poaching saga is one of many cases that I'll touch on. The henchmen doing the dirty work are by no means pardoned, but they are not entirely to blame. When you have seen your family suffer and you need the money so your child can go to hospital, it is not surprising that so many rhinos are disappearing. The ones we really need to clamp down on are the syndicate bosses overseeing the operation. But that's another story. One strategy game reserves have employed is a pact with local villages. If they do not hunt in the game reserve, and coexist peacefully with the animals, then every month, they are given x number of animals for meat. How can we maintain better relations with villages whilst still being able to conserve habitats?

Hi there, After everything evolution has taught me... The ongoing existence of pandas still perplex me. A bear that is not meant to be a herbivore. It does not have the ruminant-style gut to digest cellulose so it has to eats LOTS to sustain itself. Additionally, it eats only one species of grass. Surely being that specialised was a bad idea. And pure black and white against a sea of green. Also not the best defense. Why have they survived so long? Other than brute strength, which other adaptations have made this creature outwit natural selection? Is this just an evolutionary lag until their time runs out? Are all the conservation efforts in vain? So many questions, so little panda.

Hi there, I want to discuss a bit of a dark topic - biowarfare. As you are likely to be aware, genes can sometimes have polymorphisms. i.e. A different form of the gene due to the substitution of a different amino acid at a certain position on the gene. In some cases, certain ethnic groups are more likely to have a higher frequency of one polymorph than another, such that the population skews toward one polymorph. For example, the enzyme paraoxonase is responsible for hydrolysing the metabolite oxons of toxic organophosphate compounds such as chlorpyrifos oxon and diazoxon. One of the major polymorphs of this gene is the Q192R alloform, where either a glutamine (Q) or arginine ® is substituted at position 192 on the 355 amino acid sequence. Different polymorphs are better at hydrolysing different substrates. Different populations have different polymorphs. If one were to target a population in a biowarfare event, knowing which polymorph your population is likely to have makes it easier to pick your weapon of choice. For example, the Q192 polymorph is the more effective alloform (by 10x) for hydrolysing sarin gas. Caucasian Europeans are 75% likely to have the Q192 polymorph. Asians on the other hand, only 33%. In Tokyo, 1995, a sarin gas terrorist attack took place on a subway. Overwhelmed with toxicity, the Asians had died. Are we overlooking some devious geniuses?

Hi. I'm Chanel, from South Africa. Queen procrastinator. Terrestrial ecology student. Renowned maker of desserts. Renowned eater of desserts.