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On Bias

By Rafe Sagarin / On January 10th, 2013
Some of the best science stories seem to emerge in a three step process.  Step 1: Someone points out an error in your thinking, or you can’t let go of a nagging feeling that somehow you are wrong about what you think your data are telling you. Step 2: In a deep, and sometimes painful, exploration of what went wrong with your own analysis, you discover a systematic error in the way whole groups of researchers are thinking about the issue.  Step 3: The new story you are able to tell by looking at the data fresh turns out to be more interesting than the standard account.
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The Art of Ecology and the Ecology of Art

By Rafe Sagarin / On November 2nd, 2012
Art interacts with observation and ecology on numerous planes. There is simply the aspect of personal inspiration, as when the creatures I observe in tidepool surveys or just hiking with friends who know the Sonoran desert become the basis for my Linozoic prints. Along these lines, I’m continually amazed at the diversity and quality of artwork produced by ecologists, samples of which I find myself auctioning off each year at a student benefit auction at the Western Society of Naturalists meeting.
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The Premium Rush of Field Ecology

By Rafe Sagarin / On September 4th, 2012
I don’t often endorse late-summer-multiplex-popcorn-with-butter-like-topping fare, but Premium Rush is, for what it is, phenomenal.  It’s true, if you watch the trailer, you’ve basically got the whole thing in microcosm, but trust me, it is much better on the big screen.  It’s basically a 91 minute movie, of which about 85 minutes are mad chase scenes of our bike messenger hero Wilee (pronounced “wiley,” like the coyote, and
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#ForewordFriday Observation and Ecology

By Jason Leppig / On August 17th, 2012
This week's #forewordFriday comes from two authors that want to expand the methodological toolbox used by ecological scientists, researchers, and students. Come take a look at "how and why direct sensory awareness of the natural world is a bridge to deeper ecological understanding." Enjoy!  
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Why the Earth is Green: Trophic Cascades on Land and Water

By Cristina Eisenberg / On August 16th, 2011
We have been discussing the powerful and essential ecological link between apex predators, their prey, and the foods prey eat. Based on the revolutionary ideas of Hairston, Smith, and Slobodkin, who in 1960 ingeniously proposed that the world is green because predators limit their plant-eating prey, trophic cascades science has since then explored the consequences of predator removal from ecosystems worldwide.
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The Path to Restoration

By Kennedy Warne / On May 17th, 2011
I was privileged to meet one of the leading experts in mangrove restoration in his home state of Florida. Robin Lewis has spent his working life fine-tuning methods for restoration former mangrove wetlands to full ecological functionality. As he explained and showed me, mangrove restoration is a lot more than just planting seedlings in the mud. . . Read more »
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Panthers and Airboats

By Kennedy Warne / On May 5th, 2011
As well as being a fabulous place to get to know mangroves, the Ten Thousand Islands National Wildlife Refuge is home to one of nature’s rarest big cats: the Florida panther. I talked about panther management with the leader of the recovery program while airboating around the Picayune Strand. That night, a panther showed itself, to the elation of one person and the frustration of another . . . Read more »
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Kill the Frogs?

By Robert J. Cabin / On April 27th, 2011
Feeling overwhelmed by civilization? Dreaming of getting away from it all? Before embarking on your great escape, you should know that these days we intensively manage all our "wilderness" areas, the wildlife you encounter out there will undoubtedly include exotic species that are wreaking ecological havoc, and that some natural resource managers now believe there is nothing we can or should do about these increasingly human-dominated "novel ecosystems." Welcome to the Brave New Eco-World.

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