Natural Scientists Research Articles

Медикализация процесса образования: к постановке проблемы

Introduction. The spread of medical theories and practices to various spheres of society is becoming a significant factor in the development of society. In the scientific literature this phenomenon is called medicalization. The essence, causes and consequences of medicalization are comprehended in philosophical and bioethical discourses. Medicalized practices are also being introduced into the process of education. Theoretical analysis. Consideration of the problem made it possible to reveal that pedagogical means of solving the problems of education are supplemented or replaced by means of medical influence on the human body. The features of students’ behavior are marked as symptoms of neuropsychiatric diseases that require treatment. Correction of students’ behavior with the help of medical means is associated with the disciplinary nature of education, considered in the biopolitical concept of M. Foucault. The transformation of the cultural understanding of the norm under the influence of natural science theory stands out as a trend of the development of modern science, contributing to the growth of medicalization. Also, the development of the biological concept of psychiatry and the achievements of neuroscience contribute to the medicalization of the process of education. Conclusion. The medicalization of the process of education is followed by new social risks that have philosophical, methodological, social, humanitarian and ethical grounds. It is concluded that it is necessary to conduct a social and humanitarian examination of medicalized educational practices and analyze the compliance of medicalized practices with the goals and objectives of education.

The role of natural scientists in navigating the social implications of cellular agriculture: insights from an interdisciplinary workshop

The emerging field of cellular agriculture uses cell culture to create animal products, potentially mitigating climate and health risks associated with conventional animal agriculture. However, cellular agriculture products are poised to enter the food ecosystem without an understanding of the long-term consequences and social implications. While these discussions have begun among social scientists, dialogues are lacking among natural scientists and engineers, perpetuating a disconnect between those progressing new technology and those most directly impacted by it. To begin to bridge this gap, an interdisciplinary workshop was organized by the Food and Agriculture Institute at the University of the Fraser Valley in collaboration with the Arrell Food Institute, New Harvest, and Cellular Agriculture Canada. At his workshop, representatives from cellular agriculture companies, STEM research labs, dairy farms, animal rights organizations, and Indigenous communities convened to discuss the social implications of cellular agriculture. Specific topics of interest were food security, labor, and employment, power relations and governance, and animal ethics. In this commentary, the authors highlight critical learnings from the workshop as natural scientists, namely the relationship between food and identity, the variety of human-animal relationships, and implications for nutrition and health. We believe that for a just transition of our food systems, the development of cellular agriculture needs to include communities as collaborators from the outset. While this work is difficult in the current environment of market capitalism, it has the potential to improve the culture of research and development to benefit the broader society. To this end, we provide resources, examples, and invitations to natural scientists and researchers interested in engaging with this work. As we rapidly approach a food system that includes products created with cellular agriculture, we encourage readers to consider which individuals and populations need to be involved in this growth, and how they can work together to promote a sustainable future for all.

Does fine-scale habitat diversity promote meaningful phenotypic diversity within a watershed network?

EcologyAccepted Articles e4107 THE SCIENTIFIC NATURALIST Does fine-scale habitat diversity promote meaningful phenotypic diversity within a watershed network? Robert A. Lusardi, Corresponding Author Robert A. Lusardi [email protected] orcid.org/0000-0002-1566-0613 Wildlife, Fish, and Conservation Biology, University of California, One Shields Ave, Davis, CA, USA Center for Watershed Sciences, University of California, One Shields Ave, Davis, CA, USA Correspondence Robert A. Lusardi. Email: [email protected]Search for more papers by this authorRandy Dahlgren, Randy Dahlgren Wildlife, Fish, and Conservation Biology, University of California, One Shields Ave, Davis, CA, USASearch for more papers by this authorErwin Van Nieuwenhuyse, Erwin Van Nieuwenhuyse U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, Bay Delta Office, Sacramento, CA, USASearch for more papers by this authorGeorge Whitman, George Whitman Center for Watershed Sciences, University of California, One Shields Ave, Davis, CA, USASearch for more papers by this authorCarson Jeffres, Carson Jeffres Center for Watershed Sciences, University of California, One Shields Ave, Davis, CA, USASearch for more papers by this authorRachel Johnson, Rachel Johnson Center for Watershed Sciences, University of California, One Shields Ave, Davis, CA, USA Fisheries Ecology Division, Southwest Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, Santa Cruz, CA, USASearch for more papers by this author Robert A. Lusardi, Corresponding Author Robert A. Lusardi [email protected] orcid.org/0000-0002-1566-0613 Wildlife, Fish, and Conservation Biology, University of California, One Shields Ave, Davis, CA, USA Center for Watershed Sciences, University of California, One Shields Ave, Davis, CA, USA Correspondence Robert A. Lusardi. Email: [email protected]Search for more papers by this authorRandy Dahlgren, Randy Dahlgren Wildlife, Fish, and Conservation Biology, University of California, One Shields Ave, Davis, CA, USASearch for more papers by this authorErwin Van Nieuwenhuyse, Erwin Van Nieuwenhuyse U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, Bay Delta Office, Sacramento, CA, USASearch for more papers by this authorGeorge Whitman, George Whitman Center for Watershed Sciences, University of California, One Shields Ave, Davis, CA, USASearch for more papers by this authorCarson Jeffres, Carson Jeffres Center for Watershed Sciences, University of California, One Shields Ave, Davis, CA, USASearch for more papers by this authorRachel Johnson, Rachel Johnson Center for Watershed Sciences, University of California, One Shields Ave, Davis, CA, USA Fisheries Ecology Division, Southwest Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, Santa Cruz, CA, USASearch for more papers by this author First published: 22 May 2023 https://doi.org/10.1002/ecy.4107 Handling Editor: John J Pastor This article has been accepted for publication and undergone full peer review but has not been through the copyediting, typesetting, pagination and proofreading process, which may lead to differences between this version and the Version of Record. Please cite this article as doi: 10.1002/ecy.4107. AboutPDF ToolsExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Accepted ArticlesAccepted, unedited articles published online and citable. The final edited and typeset version of record will appear in the future.e4107 RelatedInformation

Bringing the arts into socio‐ecological research: An analysis of the barriers and opportunities to collaboration across the divide

Abstract Socio‐ecological research collaborations between artists, natural and social scientists, and with the humanities more broadly, have increased significantly in recent years. This has been aided by increased investment by funding bodies such as UK Research and Innovation and others internationally in projects designed to encourage cross‐disciplinary partnerships. Within socio‐ecological research and beyond it, despite some success stories, there is still a lack of awareness in ‘the sciences’ regarding how ‘the arts’ undertake their own forms of enquiry into the world. Further, different terminology and language used by different disciplines can cause confusion and misunderstanding, potentially leading to a reluctance to work collaboratively. In this paper, we discuss diversity within the arts as a discipline and seek to clarify various terminologies being used in both the arts and sciences to characterise joint working in research projects. Drawing on a series of semi‐structured interviews and a workshop with artists and natural and social scientists with experience of collaboration in socio‐ecological research, we compare understandings and expectations and reflect on the implications for funding bodies, institutions, artists and scientists which are widely applicable across different research contexts. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.

Building the Population Bomb by Emily Klancher Merchant

This book seems to be about population, but it is really about justice. Merchant’s argument is that population growth is not a barrier to economic and environmental progress. Rather, population growth has been used as a scapegoat for a variety of global ills, thus distracting attention from the distributional injustices rising from the rich world fouling the air and water and using the majority of the earth’s resources despite having a minority of the world’s people. Moreover, she argues that the demography profession not only supported this scapegoating but rose to global prominence on its back. Whether pursuing the “moderate” approach—encouraging voluntary reductions in family size to slow growth—or the more extreme approach—vigorously promoting fertility control to reduce global population—scientists who tout fertility reduction as the crucial method to fight climate change or end poverty do substantial harm by blaming the poor and pushing phantom remedies for real ills.Many earnest and well-meaning scholars and policymakers who measure, and seek ways to manage, fertility will be pained by these arguments. Merchant backs up her view with a detailed history of scientific demography and population policies that plainly shows the profession’s role in emphasizing the dangers of population growth, and in encouraging governments to promote fertility reduction as a pathway to economic development. In the extreme—for example, the “population bomb”—natural scientists and popular writers have warned that failure to control population growth would bring catastrophe.Yet demographers are not entirely mistaken. No country has ever launched itself on the path to eliminating poverty and reaching middle-income status without having fertility fall considerably. Studies of the “demographic dividend” have shown clear benefits from an age structure with more young workers and fewer dependent children, a product of falling fertility. Changes in demographic factors—fertility, age structure, ethnic balances, urban/rural distribution—have proven relevant to patterns of women’s rights, ethnic conflict, and democracy.Merchant’s history is most valuable in making clear the horrific costs of treating population growth as a totemic factor that can change the world. In fact, population issues only have meaning, and can produce coherent policy, when embedded in the details of a local social, political, and economic context. Niger, where women typically have seven children (and fathers profess to desire ten) might benefit from shifting to a smaller average family size, but only in the right context. That is, if women have smaller families to improve their opportunities for meaningful and rewarding work, and to educate their children properly, lower fertility can be part of a comprehensive program to aid development. However, if women lack options for education and employment, their children face only low-paid work, and families depend on kin networks for support, any move toward smaller families will result in further poverty and unhappiness.From eugenics to coercive fertility reduction and erroneous and exaggerated warnings about the harm from population growth, demographers have much to answer for. Merchant beautifully shows how, despite good intentions (where does that road lead?), demographers spent decades promoting policies that visited great harm on people, did little to alleviate poverty or environmental damage, and diverted attention from the abuse of material wealth in rich countries. This valuable, sometimes shocking history should be required reading for all demographers and those interested in population policies.Yet, at the same time, we should note that even if the faults of capitalism are mainly responsible for environmental threats and global inequality, the successes of capitalism allowed the increase in global population to 8 billion not to be a critical problem. Similarly, demographers’ faults in earlier generations should not blot out their great accomplishments in developing measures, models, and data that have contributed enormously to our understanding of population dynamics—a vital part of the integrated policies that will address poverty, health, and the environment in the future.

The influence of the natural and technical geosystem on the dynamic processes in the functioning environment of the Dniester PSPP

The aim is to describe the field methods for studying the impact of the Dniester PSPP natural and technical geosystem (NTGS) on dynamic processes in the environment of its operation. A comprehensive research methodology was used to analyse the field methods for studying the impact of the Dniester PSPP natural and technical geosystem on dynamic processes in the environment of its operation. The initial stage included an analysis of the results of previous scientific studies on the impact of hydraulic engineering facilities on the environment. This made it possible to take into account previous findings and identify existing knowledge in this area. Next, we carried out on-site (field) data collection, which included in-situ measurements and observations directly in the area of the research object. For this purpose, specialised data collection devices were used. Particular attention was paid to the statistical analysis of the data obtained, which allowed us to identify the relationships between various factors that affect the dynamic processes of the environment. In the 21st century, geography is becoming an even more important and responsible science due to the growth of global challenges, such as climate change, environmental management, population migration, and others. An integrated approach allows geographers to look at problems from different perspectives and develop comprehensive solutions. Modern technologies, such as geographic information systems (GIS), satellite imagery, remote sensing, etc., provide geographers with new opportunities for collecting, analysing and interpreting data, which helps to solve complex problems more efficiently. An example of the application of an integrated approach in studying the impact of the natural and technical geosystem of the Dniester cascade of HPPs and PSPs on dynamic processes. Scientific novelty. The research in the article allows us to expand the understanding of the specific problem of managing anthropogenic load in a natural and technical system. The analysis of the object being designed as a system containing two most important parts – technical and natural - makes the systems approach not a decoration, but a prerequisite for the work of a natural scientist: geographer, ecologist – an ally, an associate of the designer. Designing, creating an environment that is optimal for human life means designing such systems, structures, and technologies so that they are as closely related to the existing relationships in nature as possible.

Herbivores but not vegans: Deer as nest predators

AbstractDeer abundance and occupancy areas are currently increasing worldwide, with unknown consequences for birds. Deer impacts on birds have mainly been assumed to be indirect through mechanisms that negatively influence vegetation complexity and reduce habitat quality. Information on the direct negative impacts on bird breeding success is scattered and rudimentary. Here we documented, through videos filmed with camera traps, non‐native deer preying on bird nests. We supported this finding by investigating nest predator behaviour in other areas of the world both in the scientific literature and audio‐visual platforms. We suggest that our scientific naturalist records and the collected information might reflect poorly understood deer behaviour, in both native and non‐native populations. In areas with a high number of individuals, nest predation by deer could have severe consequences for native birds, causing serious alterations in their breeding biology. Future studies are needed to address questions about the consequences of an increase in deer density on avian populations.

Санкт-Петербургское отделение Научного совета РАН по методологии искусственного интеллекта и когнитивных исследований в 2022 году

The paper considers the history of creation, composition and activities of the St. Petersburg branch of the Scientific Council on the Methodology of Artificial Intelligence and Cognitive Research under the Presidium of the Russian Academy of Sciences. A pronounced orientation to practice of the department members is shown, which is associated with the predominance of engineering and natural science scientists in its membership. The Council stimulates work related to the interdisciplinary synthesis and convergence of the humanities and natural sciences in solving the problem of artificial intelligence.

Education as an Open Question

In this paper, this theme of the open question is offered as a hermeneutical approach to problem-based learning. Most of the scientific literature on problem-based learning is in the realm of the behavioral-sciences. To the extent that the latter becomes the exclusive focus of research on problem-based learning, there is a risk of instrumentalization. The hermeneutical approach of this paper is meant to complement this field of research. The subjects of humanities research are not directly available to a humanities scholar, at least not in the way experimental subjects are to a natural scientist. This is Wilhelm Dilthey’s epoch-making understanding of the humanities in a nutshell. Philosophical anthropologist Helmuth Plessner, drawing on Dilthey, extends this insight to the historicity of human existence as such, summarizing the latter as an ‘open question’ that is always impressing itself upon us as human beings, but which at the same time cannot be answered definitively. It is through this process of asking and answering that we leave behind a history in the first place. I use these arguments to show that the theme of the open question yields a series of interconnected educational insights: notably the importance of subjectification, the social and historical context within which education necessarily takes place, and the construction of new knowledge and experience. These educational insights are rendered explicit and put into practice in problem-based learning. I hope in this way to develop a research perspective on problem-based learning as not only a set of behaviors, but as the scene of meaningful action.

Wellness 911

Giving young patients coping strategies can help emergency physicians tooFigureFigureFigureFigureThose of us who trained before the advent of smartphones remember when psychiatric patients did not command so much real estate in the emergency department. Back then, pediatric psychiatric patients were unusual. We remember naïvely thinking, “What could a kid be suicidal about?” Time have changed. Pediatric psychiatric patients seem ubiquitous today, and seeing these young people suffering isn't great for our own well-being, leaving us frustrated and even annoyed and depressed. But we can feel better when we feel like we can help. We recently covered some strategies to help these young patients other than (or in addition to) getting them admitted to psych, such as showing empathy, looking to the future, and exploring healthy habits for exercise, diet, and screen time. (EMN. 2023;45[4B]; https://bit.ly/3UIDyMX.) Here are a few more factors that might be affecting this population. Sleep and Phones Anyone who knows an adolescent knows that getting enough sleep is a struggle for them. They spend seven or more hours at school each day, have after-school activities and social time, and stay up late trying to get homework done. Poor sleep quality or inadequate sleep is a known risk factor for suicidality in adolescents. (Curr Psychiatry Rep. 2015;17[3]:554; https://bit.ly/3AB0t3i.) Many, if not most, teens sleep with their phones in their rooms, often in their beds. Phones in the bedroom are known to disrupt sleep, especially in young people who engage with them throughout the night. (Nat Sci Sleep. 2020;12:357; https://bit.ly/3oQxqWQ.) Reminding families to have teens turn in their phones to parents at bedtime is one way to help these patients get the rest they need to keep their brains healthy. Time Outside Just as research demonstrates that increased screen time has a negative effect on children's mental health, it also shows that decreased time outdoors, also called “green time,” negatively affects mental well-being. (PLoS One. 2020;15[9]:e0237725; https://bit.ly/3Av1rhL.) How much green time is enough? Research suggests 120 minutes a week is enough to produce health benefits. (Sci Rep. 2019;9[1]:7730; https://bit.ly/41Zredy.) Coping Strategies Many of these patients have school-related triggers for their suicidal thoughts, including bullying, loneliness, and academic performance concerns. Some of these young people also struggle with perfectionism. Sharing stories of our own past failures and later successes may provide a measure of relief for some of these patients. Reminding them that what other people say about them is 100 percent about those people and nothing to do with them might also be helpful. Discussing healthy coping strategies for stress, anxiety, and depression is also a good idea. There are so many healthy ways to manage emotions without self-harm—art, going for a walk, calling a friend, watching a funny movie, hugging a family member, the list goes on. (PsychCentral. Jan. 13, 2018; https://bit.ly/40DL3pK.) These patients can usually identify one or more coping strategies that appeal to them. Medication and Supplements Knowing which medications our patients have been prescribed and whether they have been taking them is, of course, essential to understanding the etiology of their mental health issues. We recently had a suicidal patient who had never taken antidepressants, only a medication for chronic post-concussion headaches, which he had stopped taking about three weeks prior to his ED visit. That medication was venlafaxine (Effexor)—he had been taking an antidepressant without knowing it, one that is known to have withdrawal side effects, including suicidal thoughts. Many depressed pediatric patients also have ADHD, and if they haven't been taking their ADHD medication, their impulsivity and emotional dysregulation could be worsened. Some depressed patients may have undiagnosed ADHD, which if treated, could improve their symptoms. Supplements such as omega 3, vitamins D and B complex, and magnesium have also shown some benefit in treating anxiety and depression. Ketamine Research in pediatric patients about the safety and efficacy of ketamine for treating depression is ongoing. (Am J Psychiatry. 2022;17[4]2; https://bit.ly/40IcfU7.) Ketamine infusion therapy is showing promise for treating adults and pediatric patients with suicidal thoughts. Share this article on Twitter and Facebook. Access the links in EMN by reading this on our website: www.EM-News.com. Comments? Write to us at [email protected].

Between the Placement Problem and the Reconciliation Problem. Philosophical Naturalism Today

Scientific naturalism—the conception according to which the natural sciences, and possibly physics alone, set the limits of ontology and epistemology—is characterized by a strong monistic tendency. For this reason, all versions of scientific naturalism face the so-called “placement problem”, which concerns the features of the ordinary view of the world that, at least prima facie, do not fit into the scientific view of the world (think of consciousness, moral properties, free will, and intentionality). To address this problem, scientific naturalists use three strategies: reductionism, eliminativism, and mysterianism—none of which, it is argued, produces satisfying results. Liberal naturalism opts instead for a pluralistic attitude in both ontology and epistemology but accepts a constraint according to which one should accept no entity or explanation that is incompatible with the scientific worldview. Liberal naturalism faces the “reconciliation problem”, which concerns the relationship between the scientific and the ordinary views of the world once one denies ontological and epistemological priority to either of them. Three strategies for addressing this problem are presented: according to the first, the ordinary worldview and the scientific world are categorically distinct; according to the second, the former emerges from the latter; according to the third, between them there is a relation of global supervenience. Other objections to liberal naturalism are finally presented and addressed.

The Blue Management: Adding Economic Value to Restoration Actions in Collapsed Ecosystems

This study presents a strategy for environmental management that aims to enhance efforts to restore threatened ecosystems. We review the exploratory system and classify the stakeholders and driving forces behind nature exploitation. Based on successful environmental management cases, we propose practical modifications for adding economic value to restoring collapsed ecosystems, resulting in the development of blue management. Blue management isolates specific stakeholders such as nature exploiters, governmental bodies, and nature scientists. We propose the division of nature users into large footprinting companies (funders), natural resources exploiters industry (managers), and subsistence exploiters (workforce) and emphasize the importance of increasing the interaction between nature exploiters and natural scientists to accelerate the restoration of threatened natural resources. Blue Management offers stakeholders practical alternatives for improving collapsed/threatened natural assets (ecosystems) based on economic, social, and ecological theories. It provides a summarized pathway for decision-makers to restore unproductive resources, avoiding the migration of the exploratory system to new pristine resources. In summary, blue management is a practical approach that combines economic, social, and ecological theories to restore threatened ecosystems. It offers decision-makers a pathway to restore unproductive resources while avoiding the exploitation of new pristine resources. Additionally, blue management has the potential to improve the research and development of technologies and systems related to nature restoration. We believe that this approach can help achieve the goals of the UN decade of ecosystem restoration and contribute to the sustainable use of natural resources.

Earthling: the labourer and the soil

Geography is a discipline rooted in the idea of ‘earth writing’, yet until recently human geographers had left the study of the very matter of the earth – the soil beneath our feet – to natural scientists. If human geographers – amongst other humanities scholars – have begun to address human-soil relationships there is a need to attend to meanings invested in and generated by being with the soil. This paper attempts to address this by analysing the relationship with the soil by those who made their living by tilling and tending it, rural agricultural workers, those who laboured on (and in) the soil. Specifically, it focuses on the ‘long 19th century’, the period at the start of which when labourers remained the largest occupational sector but when agricultural ‘improvement’, industrialisation and rapid urbanisation were challenging human-soil entanglements. Drawing upon novels, poetry and biographical writing, this paper plots three key ways in which the relationship between rural workers and the soil was figured: as the link to the past; as inheritance, the promise of the future; and through the affective nature of tilling. In so thinking about these multi-layered meanings, the paper shows not only the value of excavating past human-environmental entanglements but also the need to adopt a cultural geographical methodology and sensibility. In sum, it is shown that soil was a crucible not just of life but of meaning in life.

Cover Image

EcologyVolume 104, Issue 4 e4010 COVER IMAGEFree Access Cover Image First published: 03 April 2023 https://doi.org/10.1002/ecy.4010AboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Graphical Abstract COVER PHOTO: An upside-down jellyfish (Cassiopea spp.) with symbiotic photosynthetic algae lies on top of a bioturbation mound to collect sufficient light on Curaçao. The invasive seagrass Halophila stipulacea prefers the same niche as starting points of invasion. Using field experiments, Smulders et al. (Article e3980; doi:10.1002/ecy.3980) found that the invasive seagrass outcompetes the native jellyfish by overgrowing the bioturbation mounds. The authors predict this will result in dynamic seagrass meadows, unfavorable for valuable native seagrass species. Their study can be found in The Scientific Naturalist section of this issue. Photo credit: Naomi Slikboer. Volume104, Issue4April 2023e4010 RelatedInformation

Evaluation of the implementation of school exams using the brinkerhoff model in physics subjects in senior high school

School exam is one of the benchmarks of student learning outcomes as a test that is expected to provide information on the ability of students that can be used to consider and describe the achievement of students, especially in physics subjects. This study aims to describe the suitability of fixed vs. emergent design, formative vs. summative design, experimental design, and quasi-experimental vs. natural inquiry evaluation of the implementation of school exams in physics subjects in high school. This research uses the Brinkerhoff evaluation model proposed by Robert O. Brinkerhoff. The method used in this research is quantitative, and this type of research is evaluative. The data collection technique used a questionnaire, supported by observation and documentation, and a literature study to give meaning to the research results. The results showed that overall the organization of school exams in physics subjects in high school was very good. In the fixed vs. emergent design component, a total average of 95% is obtained from the teacher's perspective and 87% from the student's perspective, which is very good. Furthermore, for the formative vs. summative design component, a total average of 94% was obtained from the teacher's perspective and 88% from the student's perspective, which was in the excellent category. Then the experimental design and quasi-experimental vs. natural inquiry obtained a total average of 96% in the teacher's perspective and 88% in the student's perspective, which is in the excellent category. Thus, the implementation of school exams in physics subjects in high school is very good, but further research needs to be carried out to analyze, maintain, and at the same time improve what is lacking in terms of organizing school exams, starting from the preparation, implementation, and closing stages.

The Religious Imaginary and the Repressive State: Science-based Beliefs of Ukrainian and Lithuanian Scientists Born in the USSR

Abstract The article explores aspects of the Soviet atheistic regime that contributed to the formation of the religious imaginary of believing Ukrainian and Lithuanian scientists born in 1930–1960s. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, most of them did not accept Orthodox, Catholic, or other institutional religions, but instead created their own privatized religious patterns, using science-related elements in their imaginary. This distinguished them from the other national groups participating in the study. In the article, I propose an interpretation for this phenomenon. I analyze 29 in-depth interviews of a larger sample and focus on the biographies of the older cohort of natural scientists from Lithuania and Ukraine to show how the Soviet political and normative context supported their science-based imaginary. This allows us to draw some parallels concerning secularization—gradual in the West but forced in the Soviet case—and the role of science in this process.

Unpacking Racism Among Puerto Rican Scientists: Intersectionality of Colorism, Colonialism, and the Culture of Science

ABSTRACT This mixed-methods study reports the results of a survey completed by a sample of Puerto Rican social and natural scientists (STEM-S) regarding their perceptions of the intersectionalities of racism, colorism, colonialism, and the culture of science. Most participants ranked themselves as light-skinned and were familiar with the racist stereotypes presented in the survey, with female participants reporting hearing racial stereotypes significantly more frequently than males. Dark-skinned Latinx scientists were more likely to experience discriminatory practices in general, in K-12 schools, and at meetings with colleagues or peers. The higher the professional level, the fewer the interactions with coworkers or peers who were darker-skinned. Power differences among lighter and darker-skinned scientists were attributed to systemic and covert racism, discrimination, and the influences of slavery and colonialism. Fostering anti-racist education in K-16 STEM courses, and more Black and Afro-descendant mentors and role models were suggested as ways to challenge racial inequities in STEM-S fields.

Linguistic analysis of phone interviews of Nobel laureates reveals differences in communication styles between economists and scientists

Language styles used by academics working in disciplines are different, possibly reflecting how different types of knowledge are conceived, communicated and taught. Most of the studies on the communication style of academics are based on analyses of pre-prepared academic writings and formal speeches. It is not known whether such differences in language styles are also practised in informal, colloquial communications. In this paper, we report a Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count (LIWC) analysis of the telephone interviews given by 82 Nobel Prize laureates in the fields of natural sciences (chemistry, physics, physiology, or medicine) and economic sciences. LIWC analysis identifies differences in usage frequency of words in various language categories. The result shows a higher use of money- and power-related words by economic laureates and a higher use of second-person pronouns among science laureates. When second-person pronouns were used, economic laureates tended to use them as a general reference, while scientists tended to use them as courtesy sentences or discourse markers. These observations indicate that different language styles are used by scholars of different research fields even in their impromptu verbal communications. It is possible that word choices by economists are influenced by the content of economic studies, which are concerned with influencing the external environment and by their preference in describing processes and actions. A more involved and high level of cautions, alertness, and precision in conversion may be indicated in the speaking style of natural scientists.

Earth system justice needed to identify and live within Earth system boundaries

Living within planetary limits requires attention to justice as biophysical boundaries are not inherently just. Through collaboration between natural and social scientists, the Earth Commission defines and operationalizes Earth system justice to ensure that boundaries reduce harm, increase well-being, and reflect substantive and procedural justice. Such stringent boundaries may also affect ‘just access’ to food, water, energy and infrastructure. We show how boundaries may need to be adjusted to reduce harm and increase access, and challenge inequality to ensure a safe and just future for people, other species and the planet. Earth system justice may enable living justly within boundaries. Biophysical boundaries are not inherently just. A collaboration between social and natural scientists, the Earth Commission, defines and operationalizes Earth system justice to ensure that biophysical boundaries reduce harm, increase well-being, and reflect substantive and procedural justice.

Ecologies, One and All

AbstractThis essay considers ecology in its singular and plural forms. It asks whether and how the knowledge forms generated by practitioners of the singular science of ecology might weave more fully into a robust plural analytic that is grounded in the acknowledgment of multiple ways of knowing, experiencing, and attributing meaning to consequential connections between the human and the more-than-human world. Although Western science, with singular ecology as one of its many descendants, leaves an undeniable imprint, the essay aims to ask whether the contemporary, lived life of ecological science as postpositivist practice might be working in ways that, while imperfect, may be more legible and shared with scholars in the environmental humanities than is usually noted. It describes the knowledge base of the singular science of ecology, which in contemporary theory and practice consists of collections of disparate, complementary, or contradictory models—ecologies—in the plural, thus holding generality and infinite particularity in constant dialogue. The authors, two natural scientists and one social scientist, aim to provoke fresh discussions about the ways ecological analytics circulate in contemporary research and scholarly practice. The authors’ goal is to further the essential work of more direct and clear conversation, translation, and mutual learning between scholars in the environmental humanities and biophysical ecology. They hold this to be essential as transdisciplinary initiatives endeavor to study, and better understand, how social and environmental change coproduce one another.