Session 3: Natural Selection as a Causal Theory

Proceedings of the Pittsburgh Workshop in History and Philosophy of Biology, Center for Philosophy of Science, University of Pittsburgh, March 23-24 2001 Session 3: Natural Selection as a Causal Theor

Reproductive Effort of Female Mountain Quail Induced by Dietary Xanthophyll

Reproductive effort of quail in the arid American West is closely associated with spring precipitation and soil moisture levels. Profound fecundity during moist springs and weak reproductive effort during dry springs has been demonstrated for several species including the bobwhite (Colinus virginianus) and California quail (Callipepla califomica). I tested the effect of dietary xanthophyll on reproductive effort of mountain quail (Oreortyx pictus), a native quail of the American West with a distribution that includes parts of the Mojave and Sonoran deserts. Precipitation data combined with trapping results from a wild Mojave population indicate that mountain quail respond to spring precipitation with strong reproductive effort. Xanthophyll is a naturally occurring yellow plant pigment that functions to prevent solarization in plants experiencing high light conditions. Xanthophyll is widely present in plants during green-up. Using captive mountain quail housed outdoors year-round, I experimentally altered dietary xanthophyll levels. Females supplemented with xanthophyll laid eggs at a significantly greater rate than did control females, and also laid more eggs overall. Juvenile females entering their first breeding season rapidly enlarged their reproductive tracts when exposed to dietary xanthophyll early in the breeding season. Juvenile females fed a xanthophyll supplement for two weeks had significantly larger individual ova, oviducts, and total reproductive tracts than did control females. Male mountain quail exhibited enlarged testes and performed reproductive behaviors regardless of diet. Finally, during the breeding season, females sought out and ate significantly more green vegetation than did males. If other quail exhibit a similar response, then these phenomena have great potential for explaining the onset, magnitude, and duration of reproductive effort in undisturbed quail populations, and populations experiencing land use changes that alter the availability of dietary xanthophyll

LAND AND AGRARIAN REFORM IN THE KYRGYZ REPUBLIC

This report presents LTC's findings and recommendations on the land tenure transition. The information contained in this report has been used to prepare a second document, Land and Agrarian Reform in the Kyrgyz Republic: Consolidation Plan, that proposes a set of actions to ensure that the reforms are completed and produce a viable, market-oriented, agricultural sector. Chapter 1 offers baseline geographic information on the KR, an account of the macroeconomic environment in which reforms are taking place, a brief project history, and a description of the research methods. Chapter 2 chronicles the legal and regulatory changes that have driven land and agrarian reform in the KR since 1991 and evaluates this legislation for its legal consistency, underlying economic assumptions, and broad policy implications. Chapter 3 employs national land statistics to describe changes in the agrarian structure that have resulted from the legal and regulatory evolution during 1991-1995, including the number and size of farms, land use, and related indicators of land tenure change and agrarian reform. Chapter 4 reviews the structure, function, and efficacy of administrative bodies that set and enforce land and land reform policy, recommends administrative adjustments, and identifies land administration tasks the state can eliminate-and others it will need to bolster-as the KR completes its transition from command structures to market principles in agriculture. Finally, Chapter 5 uses data obtained in structured surveys and case studies conducted by LTC on a 10 percent sample of former state and collective farms to describe at the farm level the successes and shortcomings of reform measures to date; the chapter also makes recommendations for new or altered land reform policies and procedures.Agrarian structure--Kyrgyzstan, Land administration--Kyrgyzstan, Land reform--Kyrgyzstan, Land tenure--Government policy--Kyrgyzstan, Land tenure--Kyrgyzstan, Land titles--Registration and transfer--Kyrgyzstan, International Development, Land Economics/Use,

The Effectiveness of Teaching Romeo and Juliet to Ninth Graders First from an Aesthetic Stance and Then from an Efferent Stance

The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of teaching William Shakespeare\u27s Romeo and Juliet first from a predominately aesthetic stance and then from a predominately efferent stance. The subjects were eighteen ninth-grade students from a co-ed, heterogenous, rural high school. Two assessments for each stance were given and analyzed, as well as post-talk interviews completed by fifteen of the subjects. The results proved to me what the research emphasized, namely, with fiction, approach the piece first from an aesthetic stance, and then go back and analyze it in an efferent manner if needed. Such a method engages the students and then asks them to think deeply in various ways about the piece. Additionally, it helps instill a love of literature and as a side bonus, prepares them for the Regents exam

Raven Control from a Conservation Biology Perspective

The common raven (Corvus corax; raven) is a large, highly intelligent passerine songbird with a Holarctic distribution attributable to a high degree of plasticity in its foraging and nesting behavior. Historically, ravens have received special attention in human culture, being either respected or vilified. In the western United States, ravens are exploiting the expanding human enterprise, which provides them with unintended subsidies of food, water, and breeding locations, allowing ravens to expand their range and increase in population density and resulting in raven depredation threatening species of conservation concern. From a conservation biology perspective, increased raven populations present a difficult challenge in managing human–wildlife conflict. Some raven control measures are effective empirically but present ethical dilemmas, are economically expensive, or are socially divisive. Current studies seek to better understand raven population dynamics in relation to human land use and to identify socially acceptable ways to ameliorate raven impacts on biodiversity in the American West. The purpose of this paper is to provide readers with summaries of important constraints in the search for how to address deleterious effects of an expanding raven population. Specifically, I describe ethical, legal, social, and biological constraints in relation to calls for lethal control of ravens. Despite these constraints, a conservation strategy may emerge through modeling the relationship between raven presence and reproduction of sensitive prey species, and developing a clearer understanding of raven ecology. Papers in this special issue explore raven population dynamics, conservation consequences, and conservation solutions in detail and reveal innovative ways to address the complex human–wildlife conflict presented by ravens

Curious and Unpublished Anecdotes about the life of Empress Josephine

The following anecdotes capture specific moments in the life of Empress Josephine (23 June 1763 – 29 May 1814). These snapshots are recorded through the perspective of an unknown author with a tone of admiration and adoration for Empress Josephine. This author depicts Josephine’s never ending kindness in spite of injustices done to her. He does not, however, deem this same praise worthy of her second husband, Napoleon Bonaparte (15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821). In this text, the untouchable Josephine is the only redeeming quality of Napoleon’s reign (1804 – 1815). She is presented in the most favorable of lights, with the author strongly communicating an emphasis on her generous and charitable nature, her undying devotion to Napoleon, and the tragic loss suffered by humanity as a result of her death. Although the author assures the public to trust in these “authentic” accounts of history, one cannot be certain that these doting anecdotes were truly written from an unbiased standpoint

Testament of Empress Josephine

The following document is the last will and testament of the Empress Joséphine (June 23, 1763 - May 29, 1814). Born in Martinique as Marie Josèphe Rose Tascher de la Pagerie, Joséphine married Napoléon Bonaparte in 1796, after her first husband was guillotined during the French Revolution. Napoléon later divorced Joséphine because she (allegedly) could not bear him an heir, although she had two children from her first marriage. After the divorce Josephine lived in retirement at Malmaison, where this will was written and discovered

Wait, There’s Torture in Zootopia? Examining the Prevalence of Torture in Popular Movies

Roughly half of the U.S. public thinks that torture can be acceptable in counterterrorism. According to recent research, dramatic depictions of torture increase public support for the practice. Yet we do not know how frequently—and in what context—torture is depicted across popular media. What messages about the acceptability and effectiveness of torture do Americans receive when they watch popular films? To address this question, we coded each incident of torture in the twenty top-grossing films each year from 2008 to 2017 to analyze how torture is portrayed in terms of its frequency, efficacy, and social acceptability. Results show that the majority of popular films—including films aimed toward children—have at least one torture scene. Across films, the messages sent about torture are fairly consistent. As expected, movies tend to depict torture as effective. Further, how movies portray torture is also a function of who is perpetrating it. Specifically, protagonists are more likely to torture for instrumental reasons or in response to threats and are more likely to do so effectively. In contrast, antagonists are more likely to use torture as punishment and to torture women. The frequency and nature of torture’s depiction in popular films may help explain why many in the public support torture in counterterrorism

Mink Predation on Juvenile American Coots

American Coot (Fulica americana) nest success, defined as at least one chick hatching, frequently exceeds 90% (Fredrickson et al. 1977), indicating success in avoiding nest predation during incubation. However, predation of juvenile coots may be an important factor in coot reproduction. Many anecdotal reports of predation on coots by mink (Mustela vison) exist (for example, Bailey 1926, Bennett 1938, Low 1945, Errington 1967, Arnold and Fritzell 1989). Studies of waterfowl predation (Sowls 1955, Sargeant et al. 1973) and diets of predators (Eberhardt 1973, Arnold and Fritzell 1987) report significant predation of coots by mink. Eberhardt and Sargeant (1977) estimated 52% of the maximum coot chick production in a marsh during one breeding season was depredated by a single mink family. In that study, maximum coot chick production was estimated by counting adult coots and assuming a nine-egg clutch for each pair of adults. Lacking, however, are reports of actual coot abundance relative to the numbers of coots depredated by mink. During the course of monitoring coot reproduction at a restored prairie wetland in 1991, we located an active mink den and analyzed prey remains and scats deposited during the coot breeding season. Here we report levels of mink predation on coots in relation to coot abundance