Courtship behavior, communication, and copulation in Tigrosa annexa

The evolution of multimodal communication, where signalers use multiple signal components in multiple sensory modalities, has become the subject of investigation by many researchers. Signaling puts males at risk of predation, so why do males of some species evolve extra signals that may increase this risk? In some wolf spider species, males incorporate many visual and vibrational signals into a display that they use to attract a female for mating. Female spiders are often aggressive toward courting males and so the male display also functions to decrease the odds of cannibalism. Female wandering spiders deposit silk containing pheromones that communicate their condition to the males. Here, we investigate the complex mating displays and male-female interactions involved in reproduction in a locally-abundant wolf spider, Tigrosa annexa. We describe the male courtship display and observe male mating success and frequency of cannibalism. Males were exposed to the pheromone-laden silk of females and their courtship was recorded in the absence of a female. We also conducted mating trials in which a male and a female interacted for 30 minutes to measure rates of copulation and cannibalism. We found that males readily initiated courtship when exposed to cues from a female in a variety of conditions, and that females rarely engaged in cannibalism, despite our manipulation of their diet. The results of these experiments suggest that cannibalism by female T. annexa spiders may not have been a strong evolutionary force on male courtship display

Closer Than You Think: The Implications of the Third Offset Strategy for the U.S. Army

The Defense Innovation Initiative (DII), begun in November 2014 by former Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, is intended to ensure U.S. military superiority throughout the 21st century. The DII seeks broad-based innovation across the spectrum of concepts, research and development, capabilities, leader development, wargaming, and business practices. An essential component of the DII is the Third Offset Strategy—a plan for overcoming (offsetting) adversary parity or advantage, reduced military force structure, and declining technological superiority in an era of great power competition. This study explored the implications for the Army of Third Offset innovations and breakthrough capabilities for the operating environment of 2035-2050. It focused less on debating the merits or feasibility of individual technologies and more on understanding the implications—the second and third order effects on the Army that must be anticipated ahead of the breakthrough.https://press.armywarcollege.edu/monographs/1403/thumbnail.jp

THE ANZICK SITE: CULTURAL BALANCE AND THE TREATMENT OF ANCIENT HUMAN REMAINS (TOWARD A COLLABORATIVE STANDARD)

The history of the post-discovery Anzick Clovis Site has been questioned as to its proper handling for decades regarding the dynamics of law, tribal position, public position, scientific and academic position and the interactions of the Anzick family as the owners of the real property. In this thesis, I present my findings that the Anzick remains and artifact assemblage were indeed handled appropriately through the years, considering the longitudinal changes in law and continual contribution from other legal cases to the concepts of proper handling of ancient remains. Reflecting on theoretical concepts such as individual human agency, socio-cultural construct and cultural diversity, it is possible to fill the void of cultural misunderstanding pertaining to many anthropological issues. The application of anthropological thought to cultural topics is critical to provide an informed basis from which we may study a specific issue. The anthropological community must consider the potential corollaries of their findings, focusing on respectful and collaborative interaction with a subject society and its peoples. While anthropology is the “the study of humankind”, the definition itself may be misconstrued to suggest or reflect an overtly ethnocentric and hegemonic arrogance. To achieve a collaborative objective, the anthropologist must consider aspects of the study and its cultural implications, with an emphasis on the emic perspective. In this paper, I evaluate specific archaeological case studies which elucidate the importance of respectful collaboration and understanding between the public, anthropologists and Native Americans. As an example of system failure, I discuss the case of the Kennewick Man, comparing and contrasting it with the facts pertaining to the handling of the Anzick Clovis remains which were in fact reburied in June, 2014. My personal involvement with the Anzick reburial, included in-depth personal correspondence and discussion with the family regarding viable options as well as actually hand-digging the grave for the reburial. This close connection with the Anzick reburial activities provides a first-hand accounting of real-life issues encountered during such a process. It is incumbent upon everyone involved to understand our mutual perspectives, from individual agent to the highest level of a cultural entirety. With the help of balanced collaborative interactions we may successfully implement a much needed trans-cultural healing. As the importance of these collaborative interactions cannot be overstated, I will utilize this thesis as the foundation from which I will build my doctoral dissertation. This dissertation will be presented in the form of a comprehensive study of the Anzick Site