The Convergent Evolution Of Agriculture In Humans And Insects

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The Convergent Evolution of Agriculture in Humans and Insects

Author : Ted R Schultz
Publisher : MIT Press
ISBN 13 : 0262543206
Total Pages : 339 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (625 download)

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Book Synopsis The Convergent Evolution of Agriculture in Humans and Insects by : Ted R Schultz

Download or read book The Convergent Evolution of Agriculture in Humans and Insects written by Ted R Schultz and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2022-02-22 with total page 339 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Contributors explore common elements in the evolutionary histories of both human and insect agriculture resulting from convergent evolution. During the past 12,000 years, agriculture originated in humans as many as twenty-three times, and during the past 65 million years, agriculture also originated in nonhuman animals at least twenty times and in insects at least fifteen times. It is much more likely that these independent origins represent similar solutions to the challenge of growing food than that they are due purely to chance. This volume seeks to identify common elements in the evolutionary histories of both human and insect agriculture that are the results of convergent evolution. The goal is to create a new, synthetic field that characterizes, quantifies, and empirically documents the evolutionary and ecological mechanisms that drive both human and nonhuman agriculture. The contributors report on the results of quantitative analyses comparing human and nonhuman agriculture; discuss evolutionary conflicts of interest between and among farmers and cultivars and how they interfere with efficiencies of agricultural symbiosis; describe in detail agriculture in termites, ambrosia beetles, and ants; and consider patterns of evolutionary convergence in different aspects of agriculture, comparing fungal parasites of ant agriculture with fungal parasites of human agriculture, analyzing the effects of agriculture on human anatomy, and tracing the similarities and differences between the evolution of agriculture in humans and in a single, relatively well-studied insect group, fungus-farming ants.

The Convergent Evolution of Agriculture in Humans and Insects

Author : Ted R Schultz
Publisher : MIT Press
ISBN 13 : 0262367564
Total Pages : 339 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (623 download)

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Book Synopsis The Convergent Evolution of Agriculture in Humans and Insects by : Ted R Schultz

Download or read book The Convergent Evolution of Agriculture in Humans and Insects written by Ted R Schultz and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2022-02-15 with total page 339 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Contributors explore common elements in the evolutionary histories of both human and insect agriculture resulting from convergent evolution. During the past 12,000 years, agriculture originated in humans as many as twenty-three times, and during the past 65 million years, agriculture also originated in nonhuman animals at least twenty times and in insects at least fifteen times. It is much more likely that these independent origins represent similar solutions to the challenge of growing food than that they are due purely to chance. This volume seeks to identify common elements in the evolutionary histories of both human and insect agriculture that are the results of convergent evolution. The goal is to create a new, synthetic field that characterizes, quantifies, and empirically documents the evolutionary and ecological mechanisms that drive both human and nonhuman agriculture. The contributors report on the results of quantitative analyses comparing human and nonhuman agriculture; discuss evolutionary conflicts of interest between and among farmers and cultivars and how they interfere with efficiencies of agricultural symbiosis; describe in detail agriculture in termites, ambrosia beetles, and ants; and consider patterns of evolutionary convergence in different aspects of agriculture, comparing fungal parasites of ant agriculture with fungal parasites of human agriculture, analyzing the effects of agriculture on human anatomy, and tracing the similarities and differences between the evolution of agriculture in humans and in a single, relatively well-studied insect group, fungus-farming ants.

Domains and Major Transitions of Social Evolution

Author : Jacobus J. Boomsma
Publisher : Oxford University Press
ISBN 13 : 0191063215
Total Pages : 315 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (91 download)

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Book Synopsis Domains and Major Transitions of Social Evolution by : Jacobus J. Boomsma

Download or read book Domains and Major Transitions of Social Evolution written by Jacobus J. Boomsma and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2022-11-03 with total page 315 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Evolutionary change is usually incremental and continuous, but some increases in organizational complexity have been radical and divisive. Evolutionary biologists, who refer to such events as “major transitions”, have not always appreciated that these advances were novel forms of pairwise commitment that subjugated previously independent agents. Inclusive fitness theory convincingly explains cooperation and conflict in societies of animals and free-living cells, but to deserve its eminent status it should also capture how major transitions originated: from prokaryote cells to eukaryote cells, via differentiated multicellularity, to colonies with specialized queen and worker castes. As yet, no attempt has been made to apply inclusive fitness principles to the origins of these events. Domains and Major Transitions of Social Evolution develops the idea that major evolutionary transitions involved new levels of informational closure that moved beyond looser partnerships. Early neo-Darwinians understood this principle, but later social gradient thinking obscured the discontinuity of life's fundamental organizational transitions. The author argues that the major transitions required maximal kinship in simple ancestors - not conflict reduction in already elaborate societies. Reviewing more than a century of literature, he makes testable predictions, proposing that open societies and closed organisms require very different inclusive fitness explanations. It appears that only human ancestors lived in societies that were already complex before our major cultural transition occurred. We should therefore not impose the trajectory of our own social history on the rest of nature. This thought-provoking text is suitable for graduate-level students taking courses in evolutionary biology, behavioural ecology, organismal developmental biology, and evolutionary genetics, as well as professional researchers in these fields. It will also appeal to a broader, interdisciplinary audience, including the social sciences and humanities.

Behaviour in our Bones

Author : Cara S. Hirst
Publisher : Elsevier
ISBN 13 : 0128213841
Total Pages : 330 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (282 download)

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Book Synopsis Behaviour in our Bones by : Cara S. Hirst

Download or read book Behaviour in our Bones written by Cara S. Hirst and published by Elsevier. This book was released on 2023-02-07 with total page 330 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Exploring behaviour through bones has always been a fascinating topic to those that study human remains. Human bodies record and store vast amounts of information about the way we move, where we live, and our experiences of health and socioeconomic circumstances. We see it every day, and experience it, but when it comes to past populations, understanding behaviour is largely mediated by our ability to read it in bones. Behaviour in Our Bones: How Human Behaviour Influences Skeletal Morphology examines how human physical and cultural actions and interactions can be read through careful analyses of skeletal human remains. This book synthesises the latest research on reconstructing behaviour in the past. Each chapter is dedicated to a specific region of the human body, guiding the reader from head to toe and highlighting how evidence found on the skull, shoulder, thorax, spine, pelvis, and the upper and lower limbs has been used to infer patterns of activity and other behaviour. Chapter authors expertly summarise and critically discuss a range of methodological, theoretical, and interpretive approaches used to read skeletal remains and interpret a wide variety of behaviours, including tool use, locomotion, reproduction, health, pathology, and beyond. Serves as a comprehensive resource for readers who are new to human skeletal behaviour investigations Offers an overview on how behaviour may impact the entire skeleton (from head to toe) Discusses activities that can leave evidence on the human skeleton and how behaviour can become incorporated in bone Introduces methods that biological anthropologists use to quantify and interpret skeletal evidence for behaviour and its range of morphological variation Critically examines the current state of skeletal behaviour research and provides recommendations for future work in this field

Advances in the Evolutionary Ecology of Termites

Author : Alberto Arab
Publisher : Frontiers Media SA
ISBN 13 : 2832530885
Total Pages : 206 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (325 download)

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Book Synopsis Advances in the Evolutionary Ecology of Termites by : Alberto Arab

Download or read book Advances in the Evolutionary Ecology of Termites written by Alberto Arab and published by Frontiers Media SA. This book was released on 2023-08-16 with total page 206 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Termites are eusocial insects that live in colonies composed of hundreds to millions of individuals. Their colonies are mainly organized into reproductive and non-reproductive castes, which have specific tasks such as nest construction, foraging, reproduction, brood care, and colony defense. The evolution of the symbiotic association between termites and microorganisms allows them to decompose ingested lignocellulose from plant substrates (such as wood), including herbivore dung and soil humus, making them important insect decomposers that play a crucial role in ecosystem functioning by contributing to litter decomposition, soil formation, and nutrient cycling. On the other hand, termites have recently been classified as eusocial cockroaches, which have gained increasing attention in evolutionary studies to understand the transition to eusociality from subsocial wood roaches. This current growing interest in termite research calls for a collection dedicated to these fascinating insects.

Convergent Evolution

Author : George R. McGhee, Jr.
Publisher : MIT Press
ISBN 13 : 0262539098
Total Pages : 335 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (625 download)

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Book Synopsis Convergent Evolution by : George R. McGhee, Jr.

Download or read book Convergent Evolution written by George R. McGhee, Jr. and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2011-11-04 with total page 335 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An analysis of convergent evolution from molecules to ecosystems, demonstrating the limited number of evolutionary pathways available to life. Charles Darwin famously concluded On the Origin of Species with a vision of “endless forms most beautiful” continually evolving. More than 150 years later many evolutionary biologists see not endless forms but the same, or very similar, forms evolving repeatedly in many independent species lineages. A porpoise's fishlike fins, for example, are not inherited from fish ancestors but are independently derived convergent traits. In this book, George McGhee describes the ubiquity of the phenomenon of convergent evolution and connects it directly to the concept of evolutionary constraint—the idea that the number of evolutionary pathways available to life are not endless, but quite limited. Convergent evolution occurs on all levels, from tiny organic molecules to entire ecosystems of species. McGhee demonstrates its ubiquity in animals, both herbivore and carnivore; in plants; in ecosystems; in molecules, including DNA, proteins, and enzymes; and even in minds, describing problem-solving behavior and group behavior as the products of convergence. For each species example, he provides an abbreviated list of the major nodes in its phylogenetic classification, allowing the reader to see the evolutionary relationship of a group of species that have independently evolved a similar trait by convergent evolution. McGhee analyzes the role of functional and developmental constraints in producing convergent evolution, and considers the scientific and philosophical implications of convergent evolution for the predictability of the evolutionary process.

Diversity of beetles and associated microorganisms

Author : Hassan Salem
Publisher : Frontiers Media SA
ISBN 13 : 2832532136
Total Pages : 296 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (325 download)

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Book Synopsis Diversity of beetles and associated microorganisms by : Hassan Salem

Download or read book Diversity of beetles and associated microorganisms written by Hassan Salem and published by Frontiers Media SA. This book was released on 2023-08-21 with total page 296 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Bioarchaeology in East Asia

Author : Yaowu Hu
Publisher : Frontiers Media SA
ISBN 13 : 2832542972
Total Pages : 136 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (325 download)

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Book Synopsis Bioarchaeology in East Asia by : Yaowu Hu

Download or read book Bioarchaeology in East Asia written by Yaowu Hu and published by Frontiers Media SA. This book was released on 2024-01-18 with total page 136 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Convergent Evolution in Stone-Tool Technology

Author : Michael J. O'Brien
Publisher : MIT Press
ISBN 13 : 0262552086
Total Pages : 305 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (625 download)

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Book Synopsis Convergent Evolution in Stone-Tool Technology by : Michael J. O'Brien

Download or read book Convergent Evolution in Stone-Tool Technology written by Michael J. O'Brien and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2024-05-21 with total page 305 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Scholars from a variety of disciplines consider cases of convergence in lithic technology, when functional or developmental constraints result in similar forms in independent lineages. Hominins began using stone tools at least 2.6 million years ago, perhaps even 3.4 million years ago. Given the nearly ubiquitous use of stone tools by humans and their ancestors, the study of lithic technology offers an important line of inquiry into questions of evolution and behavior. This book examines convergence in stone tool-making, cases in which functional or developmental constraints result in similar forms in independent lineages. Identifying examples of convergence, and distinguishing convergence from divergence, refutes hypotheses that suggest physical or cultural connection between far-flung prehistoric toolmakers. Employing phylogenetic analysis and stone-tool replication, the contributors show that similarity of tools can be caused by such common constraints as the fracture properties of stone or adaptive challenges rather than such unlikely phenomena as migration of toolmakers over an Arctic ice shelf. Contributors R. Alexander Bentley, Briggs Buchanan, Marcelo Cardillo, Mathieu Charbonneau, Judith Charlin, Chris Clarkson, Loren G. Davis, Metin I. Eren, Peter Hiscock, Thomas A. Jennings, Steven L. Kuhn, Daniel E. Lieberman, George R. McGhee, Alex Mackay, Michael J. O'Brien, Charlotte D. Pevny, Ceri Shipton, Ashley M. Smallwood, Heather Smith, Jayne Wilkins, Samuel C. Willis, Nicolas Zayns

Encyclopedia of Biodiversity, Revised Edition

Author : Stanley Rice
Publisher : Infobase Holdings, Inc
ISBN 13 : 1438195923
Total Pages : 652 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (381 download)

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Book Synopsis Encyclopedia of Biodiversity, Revised Edition by : Stanley Rice

Download or read book Encyclopedia of Biodiversity, Revised Edition written by Stanley Rice and published by Infobase Holdings, Inc. This book was released on 2020-06-01 with total page 652 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Praise for the previous edition: "...make[s] high-level scientific concepts accessible to secondary students."—Library Journal "...clearly written and well organized..."—School Library Journal "Fulfilling educational benchmarks identified by the National Academy of Sciences, this encyclopedia is an excellent choice for both public and academic libraries. Recommended."—Choice "...a thorough and informative work...provide[s] accessible information...There is simply no other work that compares to this...High-school and public libraries will welcome such a well-researched title..."—Booklist "The text is suitable for high school students but advanced enough for adult readers, too...presents important biodiversity topics...a handy overview for term papers and class presentations."—Library Journal Biodiversity and ecology are founded in evolutionary science. In order to understand why species of organisms occupy different parts of the world, it is important to comprehend how they evolved. Encyclopedia of Biodiversity, Revised Edition examines this evolutionary framework with the help of more than 150 entries and five essays averaging at least 2,000 words each. High school teachers can use these entries—grouped by topic—to meet many of the science education goals established by the National Academy of Sciences. Written by a leading expert in the field, this comprehensive, full-color encyclopedia makes information about groups of organisms (from bacteria to mammals) and about ecological concepts and processes (such as biogeography and ecological succession) clearly and readily available to students and the general public. Tables at the end of each entry have a consistent structure, allowing readers to see how environmental conditions and biodiversity have changed through evolutionary time. Entries include: Acid rain and fog Biodiversity in the Jurassic period Darwin's finches Galápagos Islands Peter and Rosemary Grant Life in bogs Natural selection Population genetics Seedless plants Tropical rainforests and deforestation Alfred Russel Wallace.

Life's Solution

Author : Simon Conway Morris
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
ISBN 13 : 1139440802
Total Pages : 488 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (394 download)

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Book Synopsis Life's Solution by : Simon Conway Morris

Download or read book Life's Solution written by Simon Conway Morris and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2003-09-04 with total page 488 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The assassin's bullet misses, the Archduke's carriage moves forward, and a catastrophic war is avoided. So too with the history of life. Re-run the tape of life, as Stephen J. Gould claimed, and the outcome must be entirely different: an alien world, without humans and maybe not even intelligence. The history of life is littered with accidents: any twist or turn may lead to a completely different world. Now this view is being challenged. Simon Conway Morris explores the evidence demonstrating life's almost eerie ability to navigate to a single solution, repeatedly. Eyes, brains, tools, even culture: all are very much on the cards. So if these are all evolutionary inevitabilities, where are our counterparts across the galaxy? The tape of life can only run on a suitable planet, and it seems that such Earth-like planets may be much rarer than hoped. Inevitable humans, yes, but in a lonely Universe.

Ultrasocial

Author : John M. Gowdy
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
ISBN 13 : 110883826X
Total Pages : 287 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (88 download)

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Book Synopsis Ultrasocial by : John M. Gowdy

Download or read book Ultrasocial written by John M. Gowdy and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2021-08-26 with total page 287 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Society is an ultrasocial superorganism whose requirements take precedence over individuals. What does this mean for humanity's future?

Darwinian Agriculture

Author : R. Ford Denison
Publisher : Princeton University Press
ISBN 13 : 0691173761
Total Pages : 269 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (911 download)

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Book Synopsis Darwinian Agriculture by : R. Ford Denison

Download or read book Darwinian Agriculture written by R. Ford Denison and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2016-08-16 with total page 269 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: As human populations grow and resources are depleted, agriculture will need to use land, water, and other resources more efficiently and without sacrificing long-term sustainability. Darwinian Agriculture presents an entirely new approach to these challenges, one that draws on the principles of evolution and natural selection. R. Ford Denison shows how both biotechnology and traditional plant breeding can use Darwinian insights to identify promising routes for crop genetic improvement and avoid costly dead ends. Denison explains why plant traits that have been genetically optimized by individual selection--such as photosynthesis and drought tolerance--are bad candidates for genetic improvement. Traits like plant height and leaf angle, which determine the collective performance of plant communities, offer more room for improvement. Agriculturalists can also benefit from more sophisticated comparisons among natural communities and from the study of wild species in the landscapes where they evolved. Darwinian Agriculture reveals why it is sometimes better to slow or even reverse evolutionary trends when they are inconsistent with our present goals, and how we can glean new ideas from natural selection's marvelous innovations in wild species.

Insects and Sustainability of Ecosystem Services

Author : Timothy D. Schowalter
Publisher : CRC Press
ISBN 13 : 146655391X
Total Pages : 388 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (665 download)

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Book Synopsis Insects and Sustainability of Ecosystem Services by : Timothy D. Schowalter

Download or read book Insects and Sustainability of Ecosystem Services written by Timothy D. Schowalter and published by CRC Press. This book was released on 2013-05-23 with total page 388 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: With few exceptions, insects are perceived in industrialized countries as undesirable pests. In reality, relatively few insects interfere with us or our resources. Most have benign or positive effects on ecosystem services, and many represent useful resources in non-industrialized countries. Challenging traditional perceptions of the value of insec

Concepts of Biology

Author : Samantha Fowler
Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9789888407453
Total Pages : 618 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (74 download)

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Book Synopsis Concepts of Biology by : Samantha Fowler

Download or read book Concepts of Biology written by Samantha Fowler and published by . This book was released on 2018-01-07 with total page 618 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Concepts of Biology is designed for the single-semester introduction to biology course for non-science majors, which for many students is their only college-level science course. As such, this course represents an important opportunity for students to develop the necessary knowledge, tools, and skills to make informed decisions as they continue with their lives. Rather than being mired down with facts and vocabulary, the typical non-science major student needs information presented in a way that is easy to read and understand. Even more importantly, the content should be meaningful. Students do much better when they understand why biology is relevant to their everyday lives. For these reasons, Concepts of Biology is grounded on an evolutionary basis and includes exciting features that highlight careers in the biological sciences and everyday applications of the concepts at hand.We also strive to show the interconnectedness of topics within this extremely broad discipline. In order to meet the needs of today's instructors and students, we maintain the overall organization and coverage found in most syllabi for this course. A strength of Concepts of Biology is that instructors can customize the book, adapting it to the approach that works best in their classroom. Concepts of Biology also includes an innovative art program that incorporates critical thinking and clicker questions to help students understand--and apply--key concepts.

Human Dispersal and Species Movement

Author : Nicole Boivin
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
ISBN 13 : 1107164141
Total Pages : 573 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (71 download)

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Book Synopsis Human Dispersal and Species Movement by : Nicole Boivin

Download or read book Human Dispersal and Species Movement written by Nicole Boivin and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2017-05-27 with total page 573 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A unique, interdisciplinary and up-to-date treatment exploring human migration and its role in creating novel ecosystems over the long term.

Africa's Gene Revolution

Author : Matthew A. Schnurr
Publisher : McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP
ISBN 13 : 0228000459
Total Pages : 277 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (28 download)

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Book Synopsis Africa's Gene Revolution by : Matthew A. Schnurr

Download or read book Africa's Gene Revolution written by Matthew A. Schnurr and published by McGill-Queen's Press - MQUP. This book was released on 2019-11-07 with total page 277 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: As development donors invest hundreds of millions of dollars into improved crops designed to alleviate poverty and hunger, Africa has emerged as the final frontier in the global debate over agricultural biotechnology. The first data-driven assessment of the ecological, social, and political factors that shape our understanding of genetic modification, Africa's Gene Revolution surveys twenty years of efforts to use genomics-based breeding to enhance yields and livelihoods for African farmers. Matthew Schnurr considers the full range of biotechnologies currently in commercial use and those in development - including hybrids, marker-assisted breeding, tissue culture, and genetic engineering. Drawing on interviews with biotechnology experts alongside research conducted with more than two hundred farmers across eastern, western, and southern Africa, Schnurr reveals a profound incongruity between the optimistic rhetoric that accompanies genetic modification technology and the realities of the smallholder farmers who are its intended beneficiaries. Through the lens of political ecology, this book demonstrates that the current emphasis on improved seeds discounts the geographic, social, ecological, and economic contexts in which the producers of these crops operate. Bringing the voices of farmers to the foreground of this polarizing debate, Africa's Gene Revolution contends that meaningful change will come from a reconfiguration not only of the plant's genome, but of the entire agricultural system.