Evolution of size and pattern in the social amoebas

A fundamental goal of biology is to understand how novel phenotypes evolved through changes in existing genes. The Dictyostelia or social amoebas represent a simple form of multicellularity, where starving cells aggregate to build fruiting structures. This review summarizes efforts to provide a framework for investigating the genetic changes that generated novel morphologies in the Dictyostelia. The foundation is a recently constructed molecular phylogeny of the Dictyostelia, which was used to examine trends in the evolution of novel forms and in the divergence of genes that shape these forms. There is a major trend towards the formation of large unbranched fruiting bodies, which is correlated with the use of cyclic AMP (cAMP) as a secreted signal to coordinate cell aggregation. The role of cAMP in aggregation arose through co-option of a pathway that originally acted to coordinate fruiting body formation. The genotypic changes that caused this innovation and the role of dynamic cAMP signaling in defining fruiting body size and pattern throughout social amoeba evolution are discussed. BioEssays 29:635–644, 2007. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc

De terugkeer van Alledaags Racisme

In recent societal debates on racism in the Netherlands, cultural anthropologist Philomena Essed has become one of the key faces of Dutch research on racism. Over three decades ago, Essed published a monograph entitled Alledaags Racisme (Everyday Racism), which gave rise to substantial debate within and beyond academia on the existence of racism – especially of a more implicit, everyday variation – in the Netherlands. For the first time since 1984, Alledaags Racisme is granted a new edition and has arguably only gained in relevance in a time when issues regarding race-ethnicity are increasingly politicized (e.g. the ‘Black Pete’ debate; ethno-racial profiling by police forces). Discussing – but also going beyond – this debate, this article reports a conversation between Julian Schaap and Essed on contemporary everyday racism, the sociology of race-ethnicity, and the epistemology and methodology of research that is distinctly political

Assessing the adaptation of arable farmers to climate change using DEA and bio-economic modelling

The objective of this article is to assess the impact of climate change on arable farming systems in Flevoland (the Netherlands) and to explore the adoption of different adaptation strategies. Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) is applied that uses empirical data from individual farms to identify “best” current farm practices and derive relationships regarding current farm managemen

Adapting agriculture in 2050 in Flevoland; perspectives from stakeholders

Although recently more research has gone into farm level studies, little attention has been given to the variety of responses of farmers, considering their characteristics, objectives and the socio-economic, technological and political contexts (Reidsma et al, 2010). In the Agri-Adapt project we focus on farm level adaptation within an agricultural region considering the socio-economic context of 2050

Prediction of biopore- and matrix-dominated flow from X-ray CT-derived macropore network characteristics

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Climate change adaptation in agriculture; the use of multi-scale modelling and stakeholder participation in the Netherlands

Abstract about a research project to develop a methodology to assess adaptation of agriculture to climatic and socio-economic changes at multiple scales, with a first application in the Province of Flevoland, the Netherlands