Possible Contamination of Earth by Lunar or Martian Life

Alexander, Martin

doi:10.1038/222432a0

Cited by 5 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…The first algal virus was discovered only recently, viruses parasitizing on fungi are still very incompletely known. In soil samples the total count of microbial types is invariably higher than the viable count which points at many undescribed taxa also in these groups (M. Alexander 1969).…”

Section: Taxa Galore But How Many?mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Other important and unorthodox fields contributing heavily towards the manysidedness of modern systematics are ecology and ethology. At the Ann Arbor symposium R. D. Alexander (1969) presented a review of the theoretical aspects of 'comparative animal behavior and systematics'. He stated that behavior has replaced morphology as the main tool of alpha-taxonomy in groups containing, collectively, between 25 and 50 thousand species (Anura, Ensifera, Caelifera, Auchenorrhyncha, Lampyridae), "and in the case of acoustical and visual signals, it has proved to be of enormous (I would say, unparalleled) value not only in distinguishing species but also in locating and collecting specimens and in tracing geographic and ecological distributions and seasonal life histories".…”

Section: Further Progress By Unorthodoxymentioning

confidence: 99%

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Biosystematic Pathways Anno 1969

Stafleu¹

1969

TAXON

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JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org.. International Association for Plant Taxonomy (IAPT) is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Taxon. Summary A review of some of the most recent developments in systematic biology. The present abundance of symposia in the field reflects the systematists' attempt to master an explosive development of knowledge in which many techniques and methods are used which formerly found little, if any, application in comparative biology. The information challenge is discussed with reference to modern processing methods and to abstracting. A shift in systematics from direct and visual characters to indirect, non-visual data is apparent in many fields. The relation between numbers of known and possibly unknown taxa is illustrated by means of examples from the recent literature showing the rate of growth of our knowledge in various groups. The contributions by ultrastructural research, chemosystematics and molecular systematics are projected towards the future; other modern approaches in systematics (from ethology, ecology, micropaleontology, caryology, genecology) are mentioned briefly. The term biosystematics is used for evolutionary systematics of all living beings in the widest sense. Systematics today and yesterdaySystematic symposia are being held all over the world with increasing frequency. In the course of the last twelve months we have seen the publication of papers presented at at least five such meetings with a primary emphasis on biosystematics (Cowan 1969, Hawkes 1968, Heywood 1969, Sibley 1969, Voous 1969) and at four more general meetings of equal significance for systematic biology (Drake 1968, Lewontin 1968, Harborne and Swain 1969, Lowe-McConnell 1969). This feverish activity illustrates the rapid expansion of systematics. Once again the central role of systematics in biology becomes apparent; almost all advanced disciplines in biologymolecular, biochemical, ecological, ethological, numerical -play an important part in this rapid development. The far-reaching changes which have occurred in systematic biology in the course of the past decennium become especially clear when we look back for a moment at a symposium comparable to those of Ann Arbor (Sibley 1969) and Amsterdam (Voous 1969), entitled Systematics today, and held at Uppsala in May 1957 to commemorate the 250th anniversary of Linnaeus's birthday (Hedberg 1958). Almost the entire botanical and zoological establishment of the day was present at that symposium, reinforced by one or two young Turks. Among the 28 papers we encounter only one with some relation to chemistry, a paper by R. Heim on hallucinogenic fungi. Not a single paper deals with numerical, biometrical or statistic methods in p...

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Section: Taxa Galore But How Many?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Further Progress By Unorthodoxymentioning

confidence: 99%