Algorithm exploitation: humans are keen to exploit benevolent AI

We cooperate with other people despite the risk of being exploited or hurt. If future artificial intelligence (AI) systems are benevolent and cooperative toward us, what will we do in return? Here we show that our cooperative dispositions are weaker when we interact with AI. In nine experiments, humans interacted with either another human or an AI agent in four classic social dilemma economic games and a newly designed game of Reciprocity that we introduce here. Contrary to the hypothesis that people mistrust algorithms, participants trusted their AI partners to be as cooperative as humans. However, they did not return AI's benevolence as much and exploited the AI more than humans. These findings warn that future self-driving cars or co-working robots, whose success depends on humans' returning their cooperativeness, run the risk of being exploited. This vulnerability calls not just for smarter machines but also better human-centered policies

Macrophyte islands as an experimental model: new perspectives and a step-by-step protocol to access assumptions of Island Biogeography theory and habitat fragmentation

To evaluate whether artificially built macrophyte islands could be used as a short-term and cost-effective experimental model for the study of island biogeography and habitat fragmentation, 20 islands of two different sizes were built and fishes were sampled. Habitat complexity and source-island distance were standardized. A macrophyte bank 200 times larger than the islands was used as a source of individuals. The results show that, in four days, several fish species colonized both small and large islands. After four days, larger islands bore significantly more species than smaller ones. We raise the caveats and new perspectives for studies using this methodology, which can be largely applicable due to its cost-effectiveness in terms of materials, short time required, and flexibility

Low population genetic structure is consistent with high habitat connectivity in a commercially important fish species (Lutjanus jocu)

The level of habitat availability influences genetic divergence among populations and the genetic diversity within populations. In the marine environment, near-shore species are among the most sensitive to habitat changes. Knowledge of how historical environmental change affected habitat availability and genetic variation can be applied to the development of proactive management strategies of exploited species. Here, we modeled the contemporary and historical distribution of Lutjanus jocu in Brazil. We describe patterns of genomic diversity to better understand how climatic cycles might correlate with the species demographic history and current genetic structure. We show that during the Last Glacial Maximum, there were ecological barriers that are absent today, possibly dividing the range of the species into three geographically separated areas of suitable habitat. Consistent with a historical reduction in habitat area, our analysis of demographic changes shows that L. jocu experienced a severe bottleneck followed by a population size expansion. We also found an absence of genetic structure and similar levels of genetic diversity throughout the sampled range of the species. Collectively, our results suggest that habitat availability changes have not obviously influenced contemporary levels of genetic divergence between populations. However, our demographic analyses suggest that the high sensitivity of this species to environmental change should be taken into consideration for management strategies. Furthermore, the general low levels of genetic structure and inference of high gene flow suggest that L. jocu likely constitutes a single stock in Brazilian waters and, therefore, requires coordinated legislation and management across its distribution

Stock structure and vulnerability of commercially exploited fishes in Brazil

Thesis by publication.Includes bibliographic references.Chapter 1. Assessing drivers of tropical and subtropical marine fish collapses of Brazilian exclusive economic zone -- Chapter 2. Genetic structure and demographic history of commercially exploited Brazilian marine fishes -- Chapter 3. Past niche availability and effective population size of two tropical reef fish -- Chapter 4. Coastal-island population genetic connectivity of the reef fish sparisoma axillare -- Chapter 5. General conclusion -- AnnexSustainable management of fish stocks is critical to the conservation of marine biodiversity, but is often hindered by knowledge gaps, which include the spatial distribution of fish stocks, how this distribution is influenced by environmental characteristics and the consequences of connectivity to genetic variation. In this thesis I describe the conservation status, effective population size, genetic structure and connectivity of commercially important marine fishes in Brazil. The first chapter presents an analysis of catch data for 132 species over 61 years. The results indicate that the magnitude of population decline is influenced by the type of exploitation and complex interactions between climatic and biological factors. The second chapter analyzes mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) at COI and CytB and describes the genetic structure and historical demography for 17 species of commercially exploited marine fish. Here, the genetic structure implies a lack of environmental barriers to gene flow along the Brazilian coast for 15 of these species. The exceptions were the mtDNA structure identified for Pomatomus saltatrix and Cynoscion jamaicensis, which indicate genetic discontinuity due to temperature changes and isolation by distance, respectively. The goal of the third chapter was to, through the analysis of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), characterize the effective population size of two reef species - Lutjanus jocu and Sparisoma axillare - and examine the influence of past climatic variability and habitat suitability on changes on the effective population size. The population of Sparisoma axillare expanded until five thousand years ago due to increased habitat suitability, and has been mostly stable since then. The population of L. jocu has been stable in the last one million years, although an expansion was detected prior to this period. Although L. jocu currently finds less suitable habitats than in the past, this change does not seem related to population size estimates. The distribution of L. jocu, from south Brazil to Caribe, is larger than that of S. axillare, which is endemic to Brazil, so the first is likely less susceptible to regional climate change. In the fourth chapter, I identified which seascape characteristics explain patterns of genetic connectivity for S. axillare, by analyzing samples collected at six locations on the Brazilian coast and also at the islands of Fernando de Noronha, Abrolhos and Trindade, which are located at various distances from the coast. The results indicate that only individuals at Trindade Island, the most distant one, are genetically distinct. I found that seascape factors, such as bathymetry and oceanic currents are better at explaining genetic variation than geographical distance. The results of this thesis suggest that some environmental variables affect species conditions: temperature can positively affect some stocks, but species vulnerable to warmer temperatures have a higher chance of collapse; Sparisoma axillare, a species with vulnerable characteristics, seems to be sensitive to past changes in habitat suitability, whereas depth and oceanic currents influence its population connectivity, increasing the risks of its isolated population -- summary.Mode of access: Internet.1 online resource (231 pages

Assessing drivers of tropical and subtropical marine fish collapses of Brazilian Exclusive Economic Zone

11 pages, 4 figures, 2 tables, supplementary data https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.134940Overfishing is a concerning threat that can lead to the collapse of fish stocks. We assessed the combinations of factors, including biological traits, types of exploitation and responses to sea temperature and salinity changes, that drive species to collapse in the Brazilian Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) tropical and subtropical regions. We applied a catch-based method of stock classification and a catch time series of 61 years from 132 exploited fish species. Species were categorized as Collapsed, Overexploited, Fully Exploited or in Development, and we used a GAM analysis to understand their categorization over time. Furthermore, a Redundancy Analysis was developed to assess the species characteristics that best predicted each exploitation category. Twelve species were classified as Collapsed, 55 as Overexploited, 46 as Fully Exploited and 19 as in Development. Tropical and subtropical exploited species collapses in Brazil were best explained by a complex combination of a negative impact of warmer sea temperatures, fishery exploitation and specific life-history traits. A synergistic interaction between these factors could bring species to collapse. We hypothesize that the exploitation of species with vulnerable traits may alter how these species respond to temperature and, therefore, lead them to collapse given that intense exploitation may affect their ability to respond to temperature increases. Measures to mitigate climate change impacts should take into consideration incentives to decrease the exploitation of vulnerable species and, specifically, consider species with more sensitive biological traits. Such measures are also important to minimize the socioeconomic impacts on the people that depend on these speciesJTV was funded by CAPES with a PhD scholarship. PFML thanks CNPq for a productivity grant. We also thank the Graduate Program in Ecology at UFRN for the infrastructural support. This study was partially financed by the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior - Brasil (CAPES) – Finance Code 001With the funding support of the ‘Severo Ochoa Centre of Excellence’ accreditation (CEX2019-000928-S), of the Spanish Research Agency (AEI

Genetic structure of the threatened Gray Parrotfish (Sparisoma axillare) in the Southwestern Atlantic

Despite the marine environment being typified by a lack of obvious barriers to dispersal, levels of genetic divergence can arise in marine organisms from historical changes in habitat availability, current oceanographic regimes and anthropogenic factors. Here we describe the genetic structure of the Gray Parrotfish, Sparisoma axillare, and identify environmental variables associated with patterns of genetic divergence throughout most of its distribution in Brazil. The heavily exploited Gray Parrotfish is endemic to Brazil, and there is lack of data on population structure that is needed to support sustainable management. To address this shortfall we analyzed 5429 SNPs from individuals sampled in nine locations, ranging from tropical to subtropical reef systems and costal to oceanic environments with varying levels of protection. We found low levels of genetic structure along the coast, including the oceanic island of Fernando de Noronha, and that a combination of water depth, ocean currents and geographic distance were the major drivers explaining genetic divergence. We identified a distinct genetic population around Trindade Island, 1000 km from the coast, highlighting the conservation significance of this population. Colonization of this oceanic site probably occurred during the Pleistocene periods of lower sea levels, allowing this shallow water-dependent species to use the seamount chain as stepping stones to Trindade. Our data further suggest that two protected areas, Costa dos Corais and Fernando de Noronha, likely play an important role as larval sources for much of the species distribution.Acknowledgements This study was financed in part by the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior—Brasil (CAPES)—Finance Code 001 and part by MCTI/CNPq/Universal—424790/2016-5 and by National Geographic Society—Research and Exploration (CP-077ER-17). JTV was funded by a PhD scholarship—CAPES and Macquarie University PhD scholarship. BPF (309216/2018-4). PFML (301515/2019-0) and SMQL (313644/2018-7) thank CNPq for productivity grants. CELF is funded by FAPERJ and CNPq. We thank R. Ranulpho for the map figure and the UFRN Graduate Program in Ecology for the infrastructural support. Funding Open Access funding enabled and organized by Projekt DEAL. This study was supported by the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior—Brasil (CAPES)—Finance Code 001, the National Geographic Society, the Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico—Brasil (CNPq) Edital Universal and by National Geographic Society—Research and Exploration (CP-077ER-17).Peer reviewe

Supplementary Tables from Integration of genomic and ecologic methods inform management of an undescribed, yet highly exploited, sardine species

Occurrence records, genomic filters, and summary statistics

Supplementary Methods and Figures from Integration of genomic and ecologic methods inform management of an undescribed, yet highly exploited, sardine species

Model parameters of ecological niche models and molecular analyses