2,048 research outputs found
Ecology of a widespread large omnivore, homo sapiens, and its impacts on ecosystem processes
No full textDiscussions of defaunation and taxon substitution have concentrated on megafaunal herbivores and carnivores, but mainly overlooked the particular ecological importance of megafaunal omnivores. In particular, the Homo spp. have been almost completely ignored in this context, despite the extinction of all but one hominin species present since the Plio-Pleistocene. Large omnivores have a particular set of ecological functions reflecting their foraging flexibility and the varied disturbances they create, functions that may maintain ecosystem stability and resilience. Here, we put the ecology of Homo sapiens in the context of comparative interspecific ecological roles and impacts, focusing on the large omnivore guild, as well as comparative intraspecific variation, focusing on hunter-gatherers. We provide an overview of the functional traits of H. sapiens, which can be used to spontaneously provide the functions for currently ecologically extinct or endangered ecosystem processes. We consider the negative impacts of variations in H. sapiens phenotypic strategies, its possible status as an invasive species, and the potential to take advantage of its learning capacities to decouple negative and positive impacts. We provide examples of how practices related to foraging, transhumance, and hunting could contribute to rewilding-inspired programs either drawing on hunter-gatherer baselines of H. sapiens, or as proxies for extinct or threatened large omnivores. We propose that a greater focus on intraspecific ecological variation and interspecific comparative ecology of H. sapiens can provide new avenues for conservation and ecological research
2025. Meredith Broussard
No full textProfessor Meredith Broussard is a noted data journalist and associate professor at the Carter Journalism Institute at New York University and research director at the NYU Alliance for Public Interest Technology. She is the author of several books, including More than a Glitch: Confronting Race, Gender and Ability Bias in Tech and Artificial Unintelligence: How Computers Misunderstand the World. Her academic research focuses on AI in investigative reporting. She appeared in the Sundance Film Festival selected documentary “Coded Bias,” nominated for an Emmy Award.https://egrove.olemiss.edu/jcjai_sympos_speakers/1004/thumbnail.jp
Portrait of Frank Povah [picture].
No full textTitle from label on back of print.; This photograph was taken as part of John Meredith's "Real Folk" Australian folklore recording project.; P1/190; Also available in an electronic version via the Internet at: http://nla.gov.au/nla.pic-an12654004; P1/190. "Frank lives in a self-built colonial cottage at O'Briens Crossing near Wallah, N.S.W. He plays blues guitar and auto-harp and is well known as a folklorist, author and singer. Born 1940."--Typed on card enclosed with photograph
Interview with Jean Francois Revel, author
No full textJean Francois Revel, the author of Without Marx or Jesus, has been quoted as saying, "The United States is now a microcosm for all of the problems man faces." In this interview with Meredith Watts, he discusses a new kind of revolution which could produce successful change without violent upheavalGrayscaleSoun
Meredith Talusan, 44th Annual ODU Literary Festival
No full textMeredith Talusan is the author of Fairest (Viking Press, 2020), a widely praised memoir which Kirkus Reviews called, “captivatingly eloquent.” It was excerpted in The New York Times and selected as a most anticipated book of 2020 by O: The Oprah Magazine. Talusan is founding executive editor of them., Condé Nast’s first-ever platform devoted to the queer community. An award-winning journalist, Talusan has written for publications including The Guardian, The New York Times, The Atlantic, VICE Magazine, WIRED, The Nation, and BuzzFeed News. She received the 2017 GLAAD Media Award for outstanding digital journalism
Predicting the direction and magnitude of small mammal disturbance effects on plant diversity across scales
No full textDespite years of research on small mammal disturbance effects on plant diversity, predicting the direction and magnitude of these effects remains elusive. Models such as the intermediate disturbance hypothesis, the perturbation hypothesis, or the ecosystem engineering hypothesis of small mammal disturbance, show considerable overlap but fail to account for key variable interactions and thus provide mainly post hoc explanations. Recent reviews have emphasized the importance of small mammals to basic and applied ecology. Re‐examining the mechanisms underlying their disturbance effects is thus timely. Here I present the Slope‐Hump Model, which integrates previous models and insights from the literature, and which is capable of predicting the direction and relative magnitude of disturbance effects on plant diversity. These predictions qualitatively match the results of recent meta‐analyses. The model also suggests new patterns and predictions that can stimulate both pure and applied ecology research.<br /
Why Do Birds False Alarm Flight?
No full textFalse alarm flighting in avian flocks is common, and has been explained as a maladaptive information cascade. If false alarm flighting is maladaptive per se, then its frequency can only be explained by it being net adaptive in relation to some other benefit or equilibrium. However, I argue that natural selection cannot distinguish between false and true alarm flights that have similar energetic costs, opportunity costs, and outcomes. False alarm flighting cannot be maladaptive if natural selection cannot perceive the difference between true and false alarm flighting. Rather, the question to answer is what false and true alarm flighting both have in common that is adaptive per se. The fire drill hypothesis of alarm flighting posits that false alarm flights are an adaptive investment in practicing escape. The fire drill hypothesis predicts that all individuals can benefit from practicing escape, particularly juveniles. Flighting practice could improve recognition of and response time to alarm flighting signals, could compensate for inter-individual and within-day weight differences, and could aid the development of adaptive escape tactics. Mixed-age flocks with many juveniles are expected to false alarm flight more than adult flocks. Flocks that inhabit complex terrain should gain less from escape practice and should false alarm flight less. Behavioural ecology framings can be fruitfully complemented by other research traditions of learning and behaviour that are more focused on maturation and motor learning processes
Meredith admission clipping
No full textFragment of a typescript declaring James Meredith\u27s admission to the University of Mississippi legal; Source: unknown; Unknown datehttps://egrove.olemiss.edu/jws_clip/1063/thumbnail.jp
Meredith\u27s Psalm
No full textParody of the Lord\u27s Prayer, written by someone antipathetic to James Meredith; Source: unknown; Unknown datehttps://egrove.olemiss.edu/jws_clip/1142/thumbnail.jp
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