THE DESIGN AND ANALYSIS OF EXPERIMENTS. By Oscar Kempthorne. New York, John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 1952. 631 pp. $8.50. This book by a teacher of statistics (as well as a consultant for \"experimenters\") is a comprehensive study of the philosophical background for the statistical design of experiment. It is necessary to have some facility with algebraic notation and manipulation to be able to use the volume intelligently. The problems are presented from the theoretical point of view, without such practical examples as would be helpful for those not acquainted with mathematics. The mathematical justification for the techniques is given. As a somewhat advanced treatment of the design and analysis of experiments, this volume will be interesting and helpful for many who approach statistics theoretically as well as practically. With emphasis on the \"why,\" and with description given broadly, the author relates the subject matter to the general theory of statistics and to the general problem of experimental inference. MARGARET J. ROBERTSON

The Design and Analysis of Experiments

Beginning with Emlen (1966) and MacArthur and Pianka (1966) and extending through the last ten years, several authors have sought to predict the foraging behavior of animals by means of mathematical models. These models are very similar,in that they all assume that the fitness of a foraging animal is a function of the efficiency of foraging measured in terms of some "currency" (Schoener, 1971) -usually energy- and that natural selection has resulted in animals that forage so as to maximize this fitness. As a result of these similarities, the models have become known as "optimal foraging models"; and the theory that embodies them, "optimal foraging theory." The situations to which optimal foraging theory has been applied, with the exception of a few recent studies, can be divided into the following four categories: (1) choice by an animal of which food types to eat (i.e., optimal diet); (2) choice of which patch type to feed in (i.e., optimal patch choice); (3) optimal allocation of time to different patches; and (4) optimal patterns and speed of movements. In this review we discuss each of these categories separately, dealing with both the theoretical developments and the data that permit tests of the predictions. The review is selective in the sense that we emphasize studies that either develop testable predictions or that attempt to test predictions in a precise quantitative manner. We also discuss what we see to be some of the future developments in the area of optimal foraging theory and how this theory can be related to other areas of biology. Our general conclusion is that the simple models so far formulated are supported are supported reasonably well by available data and that we are optimistic about the value both now and in the future of optimal foraging theory. We argue, however, that these simple models will requre much modification, espicially to deal with situations that either cannot easily be put into one or another of the above four categories or entail currencies more complicated that just energy.

Citation classic - optimal foraging - a selective review of theory and tests

Rapid improvements in sequencing and array-based platforms are resulting in a flood of diverse genome-wide data, including data from exome and whole-genome sequencing, epigenetic surveys, expression profiling of coding and noncoding RNAs, single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) and copy number profiling, and functional assays. Analysis of these large, diverse data sets holds the promise of a more comprehensive understanding of the genome and its relation to human disease. Experienced and knowledgeable human review is an essential component of this process, complementing computational approaches. This calls for efficient and intuitive visualization tools able to scale to very large data sets and to flexibly integrate multiple data types, including clinical data. However, the sheer volume and scope of data pose a significant challenge to the development of such tools.

Integrative Genomics Viewer

This paper is the first global study of the extent to which fire determines global vegetation patterns by preventing ecosystems from achieving the potential height, biomass and dominant functional types expected under the ambient climate (climate potential). To determine climate potential, we simulated vegetation without fire using a dynamic global-vegetation model. Model results were tested against fire exclusion studies from different parts of the world. Simulated dominant growth forms and tree cover were compared with satellite-derived land- and tree-cover maps. Simulations were generally consistent with results of fire exclusion studies in southern Africa and elsewhere. Comparison of global 'fire off' simulations with landcover and treecover maps show that vast areas of humid C(4) grasslands and savannas, especially in South America and Africa, have the climate potential to form forests. These are the most frequently burnt ecosystems in the world. Without fire, closed forests would double from 27% to 56% of vegetated grid cells, mostly at the expense of C(4) plants but also of C(3) shrubs and grasses in cooler climates. C(4) grasses began spreading 6-8 Ma, long before human influence on fire regimes. Our results suggest that fire was a major factor in their spread into forested regions, splitting biotas into fire tolerant and intolerant taxa.

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The global distribution of ecosystems in a world without fire

In his introduction to this detailed survey of knowledge of insect societies, the author points out that research on insect sociology has proceeded in three phases, the natural history phase, the physiological phase and the population-biology phase. Advances in the first two phases have permitted embarkation in the third phase on a more rigorous theory of social evolution based on population genetics and writing this book, the author wished to relate the three phases of research on insects and to express insect sociology as population biology. A glossary of terms, a considerable bibliography and a general index are included. Other CABI sites 

The Insect Societies

The Cerrados of Brazil: Ecology and Natural History of a Neotropical Savanna

Ants are probably the most dominant insect group on Earth, representing ten to fifteen percent of animal biomass in terrestrial ecosystems. Flowering plants, meanwhile, owe their evolutionary success to an array of interspecific interactions - such as pollination, seed dispersal, and herbivory - that have helped to shape their great diversity. "The Ecology and Evolution of Ant-Plant Interactions" brings together findings from the scientific literature on the coevolution of ants and plants to provide a better understanding of the unparalleled success of these two remarkable groups, of interspecific interactions in general, and, ultimately, of terrestrial biological communities. "The Ecology and Evolution of Ant-Plant Interactions" synthesizes the dynamics of ant-plant interactions, including the sources of variation in their outcomes. Victor Rico-Gray and Paulo S. Oliveira capture both the emerging appreciation of the importance of these interactions within ecosystems and the developing approaches that place studies of these interactions into a broader ecological and evolutionary context. A collaboration by two internationally renowned scientists, "The Ecology and Evolution of Ant-Plant Interactions" will become a standard reference for understanding the complex interactions between these two taxa.

The ecology and evolution of ant-plant interactions

Nature Communications 5: Article number: 5519 (2014); Published: 16 October 2014; Updated: 23 March 2015 An image in Supplementary Fig. 11a in this Article, representing the negative control, was inadvertently duplicated from the ‘myc-FAK’-transfected group. The correct version of the figure appearsbelow.

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Correction: Corrigendum: αB-crystallin interacts with and prevents stress-activated proteolysis of focal adhesion kinase by calpain in cardiomyocytes

Interaction intimacy affects structure and coevolutionary dynamics in mutualistic networks.

1. Shrubs of Caryocar brasiliense are intensively visited by many ant species in the cerrado vegetation of south-east Brazil. Ants collect nectar from the extrafloral nectaries (EFNs) located on the buds at the apex of the plant.



2. The proportion of C. brasiliense shrubs occupied by ants greatly surpassed that of neighbouring plants without EFNs and this resulted in many more termites being attacked and removed on this plant than on plants lacking EFNs. Ant attacks on Caryocar were more frequent near the EFNs.



3. Ant-exclusion experiments with Caryocar shrubs revealed that ants significantly reduce the infestation levels by the butterfly Eunica bechina, the sucking bud Edessa rufomarginata, the bud-destroying fly Prodiplosis floricola and by a stem-galling wasp. Ants had no effect on the infestation by a leaf-galling wasp.



4. Control (ants present) and treatment (ants excluded) plants produced equal numbers of buds but flower and initial fruit production was significantly greater for ant-visited plants. Higher abortion rates of initial fruits by control plants resulted in similar final fruit and seed sets for plants in either experimental category.



5. The extremely low fertility of cerrado soils is suggested as a possible factor constraining the ability of Caryocar shrubs to provide the resources necessary for growth and development of their heavy fleshy fruits. Higher production of initial fruits by ant-visited shrubs would be neutralized by competition among developing fruits and subsequent abortion.



6. Possible ant-derived benefits to C. brasiliense include: protection of vegetative tissues during plant growth, larger floral display and increased attractiveness to bat pollinators, increased male contribution to fitness through pollen donation and selective abortion of genetically inferior progeny as the maternal investment is adjusted to match available resources.

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The ecological function of extrafloral nectaries : herbivore deterrence by visiting ants and reproductive output in Caryocar brasiliense (Caryocaraceae)

Paulo S. Oliveira

Papers

The Cerrados of Brazil: Ecology and Natural History of a Neotropical Savanna

The ecology and evolution of ant-plant interactions

Correction: Corrigendum: αB-crystallin interacts with and prevents stress-activated proteolysis of focal adhesion kinase by calpain in cardiomyocytes

Interaction intimacy affects structure and coevolutionary dynamics in mutualistic networks.

The ecological function of extrafloral nectaries : herbivore deterrence by visiting ants and reproductive output in Caryocar brasiliense (Caryocaraceae)