Social Insects as Solitary Vehicles

Social Insects as Solitary Vehicles PDF Author: Emilia Sola Gracia
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
Parasite-host interactions affect more than the two main characters. Organisms living in tight-knit communities depend on each other in order to survive. Individuals harboring a parasite can affect the delicate balance within these communities. While on the other hand the community could also have a strong effect on a parasites life cycle. I explore the effects infected individuals have on the within-nest dynamics of ant colonies. Additionally, I investigate the effects of infectious and non-infectious cadaver exposure have on worker behavior, as well as determine the effects workers have on the fungus protruding from the infectious cadavers. Using both a coevolved fungus, Ophiocordyceps unilateralis sensus lato, and a generalist fungus, Beauveria bassiana, I found infected workers do not strongly affect the within nest dynamics of Camponotus castaneus, the natural host of O. unilateralis s. l. Furthermore C. castaneus and C. pennsylvanicus manage infectious and non-infectious cadavers differently. Workers from C. castaneus colonies are adept in quickly removing cadavers with internal and external fungal development. While C. pennsylvanicus workers must come in contact with fungal tissue in order to recognize the disease threat. However, I found C. pennsylvanicus workers to be highly effective in reducing the infectivity of hazardous fungal conidia (i.e. asexual spores). Such findings could be caused by the wood nesting ecology this species has, as well as the higher aggression towards infectious cadavers. My research lays the foundation for future studies which focus on using semi-natural settings to study parasite-host and community dynamics.

Social Insects as Solitary Vehicles

Social Insects as Solitary Vehicles PDF Author: Emilia Sola Gracia
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
Parasite-host interactions affect more than the two main characters. Organisms living in tight-knit communities depend on each other in order to survive. Individuals harboring a parasite can affect the delicate balance within these communities. While on the other hand the community could also have a strong effect on a parasites life cycle. I explore the effects infected individuals have on the within-nest dynamics of ant colonies. Additionally, I investigate the effects of infectious and non-infectious cadaver exposure have on worker behavior, as well as determine the effects workers have on the fungus protruding from the infectious cadavers. Using both a coevolved fungus, Ophiocordyceps unilateralis sensus lato, and a generalist fungus, Beauveria bassiana, I found infected workers do not strongly affect the within nest dynamics of Camponotus castaneus, the natural host of O. unilateralis s. l. Furthermore C. castaneus and C. pennsylvanicus manage infectious and non-infectious cadavers differently. Workers from C. castaneus colonies are adept in quickly removing cadavers with internal and external fungal development. While C. pennsylvanicus workers must come in contact with fungal tissue in order to recognize the disease threat. However, I found C. pennsylvanicus workers to be highly effective in reducing the infectivity of hazardous fungal conidia (i.e. asexual spores). Such findings could be caused by the wood nesting ecology this species has, as well as the higher aggression towards infectious cadavers. My research lays the foundation for future studies which focus on using semi-natural settings to study parasite-host and community dynamics.

Wired for Culture: Origins of the Human Social Mind

Wired for Culture: Origins of the Human Social Mind PDF Author: Mark Pagel
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
ISBN: 0393065871
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 431

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Book Description
A fascinating, far-reaching study of how our species' innate capacity for culture altered the course of our social and evolutionary history. A unique trait of the human species is that our personalities, lifestyles, and worldviews are shaped by an accident of birth—namely, the culture into which we are born. It is our cultures and not our genes that determine which foods we eat, which languages we speak, which people we love and marry, and which people we kill in war. But how did our species develop a mind that is hardwired for culture—and why? Evolutionary biologist Mark Pagel tracks this intriguing question through the last 80,000 years of human evolution, revealing how an innate propensity to contribute and conform to the culture of our birth not only enabled human survival and progress in the past but also continues to influence our behavior today. Shedding light on our species’ defining attributes—from art, morality, and altruism to self-interest, deception, and prejudice—Wired for Culture offers surprising new insights into what it means to be human.

Insect Defenses

Insect Defenses PDF Author: David L. Evans
Publisher: SUNY Press
ISBN: 9780887068966
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 502

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Book Description
This work takes a fresh, modern approach to investigate and explain the predator and prey relationships of insects and spiders, the major terrestrial fauna on earth. Devoted to broad and in-depth analysis of arthropod defenses against predators, the book's approach is both experimentally and theoretically based with major emphasis on evolution, predator strategies and tactics, and prey defensive adaptations and behaviors. The authors explain such topics as cryptic and aposematic coloration, the conflict between sexual and survival needs, web spider prey choice and evolution of prey counter defenses, predator-prey interactions and the origins of intelligence, bird predatory tactics, and caterpillar defense strategies. Also examined is the use of timing for fitness and survival, evolutionary gamesmanship in the predatory bat-moth relationship, colony defense by aper wasps, startle as a defense by moths, aggregation as a defense, chemicals as defenses, plant chemicals as defenses, and venoms as defenses. The authors illustrate each topic with numerous specific well-documented examples presented in a clear, readable style.

The Romance of Insect Life

The Romance of Insect Life PDF Author: Edmund Selous
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Insects
Languages : en
Pages : 394

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Rethinking Consumer Behaviour for the Well-being of All

Rethinking Consumer Behaviour for the Well-being of All PDF Author: Council of Europe
Publisher: Council of Europe
ISBN: 9789287164827
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 172

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Book Description
This guide invites the reader to think about consumption as one factor in the difficult task of building cohesive, sustainable societies based on the principle or universal well-being. The Council or Europe hopes that this reassessment will prompt people to question their choices as consumers: taking account of human rights, decent working conditions, the sustainable use of resources and our legacy to future generations. Surely consumption should be a responsible, socially committed act. An eclectic mix or academic articles, examples and illustrations makes this guide an unusual, informative work which can be readily used as the basis for discussions on this pressing social issue. This book, inspired by a contribution from the European Inter-Network of Ethical and Solidarity-Based Initiatives (IRIS), is intended as a "prototype": readers are free to adapt its contents to their own circumstances, to add relevant examples and to bring the ideas presented to life

Turn Signals are the Facial Expressions of Automobiles

Turn Signals are the Facial Expressions of Automobiles PDF Author: Don Norman
Publisher: Diversion Books
ISBN: 1626815364
Category : Design
Languages : en
Pages : 256

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Book Description
By the author of THE DESIGN OF EVERYDAY THINGS. For decades, Don Norman has spoken the language of gadgets, explaining how the things we see every day are made and made better. In this smart, sharp, fun exploration of design, Norman pulls back the curtain on the things we make to make our lives easier. From water faucets and airplane cockpits to the concept of "real time" and the future of memory, this wide-ranging tour through technology provides a new understanding of how the gadgets that surround us affect our lives. Donald A. Norman explores the plight of humans living in a world ruled by a technology that seems to exist for its own sake, oblivious to the needs of the people who create it. TURN SIGNALS is an intelligent, whimsical, curmudgeonly look at our love/hate relationship with machines, as well as a persuasive call for the humanization of modern design.

Proceedings of the Eighth International Union for the Study of Social Insects

Proceedings of the Eighth International Union for the Study of Social Insects PDF Author: 8. INTERNATIONAL CONGRES OF THE INTERNATIONAL UNION FOR THE STUDY OF SOCIAL INSECTS (Wageningen, The Netherlands, 1977)
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 325

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Host Manipulation by Parasites

Host Manipulation by Parasites PDF Author: David P. Hughes
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0199642249
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 248

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Book Description
Parasites that manipulate the behaviour of their hosts represent striking examples of adaptation by natural selection. This text provides an authoritative review of host manipulation by parasites that assesses developments in the field and lays out a framework for future research.

Medical and Biological Terminologies

Medical and Biological Terminologies PDF Author: John Scarborough
Publisher: University of Oklahoma Press
ISBN: 9780806130293
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 322

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Book Description
Annotation "Written in order to help medical students better understand medical & other biological terminology, Scarborough's...thought-provoking chapters on botany, invertebrates, arthropods, & the human skeletal, nervous, muscular, respiratory, digestive, reproductive, endocrine, circulatory, & sensorial systems illustrate the historical development & metaphorical importance of the jargon. The book is also an elegant introduction to the history of ideas in Western scientific thought. [MEDICAL & BIOLOGICAL TERMINOLOGIES is] a highly recommended aid for teachers."--RELIGIOUS STUDIES REVIEW. "Practitioners & students of medicine & allied disciplines as well as general readers with an interest in the history of scientific & technical words will find both instruction & enjoyment in this wisely conceived & adroitly executed work."--JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION. "[Scarborough's] command of the technical material & literature is remarkable, & he writes with the clarity & enthusiasm of a fine teacher, not a compiler of scientific ARCANA. Erudition, wit, & entertainment abound."--CLASSICAL WORLD. John Scarborough is a Professor in the School of Pharmacy, Department of Classics & Department of Medicine at the University of Wisconsin. He is the author of ROMAN MEDICINE, FACETS OF HELLENIC LIFE, & PHARMACY'S ANCIENT HERITAGE: THEOPHRASTUS, NICANDER, & DIOSCORIDES, & the editor of SYMPOSIUM ON BYZANTINE MEDICINE & FOLKLORE & FOLKMEDICINES.

Encyclopaedia of Religion and Ethics

Encyclopaedia of Religion and Ethics PDF Author: James Hastings
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Ethics
Languages : en
Pages : 1812

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Book Description