Though human beings can be understood biologically, as one species among others, we have one particularly prominent, even defining, feature: Continue reading
Currently a very interesting and rather important debate is happening within the discipline of ecology. Scientific debates are usually not very public, not because anybody has anything to hide, but because they tend to be rather technical and difficult to follow. The debate over Continue reading
When I recently returned from a trip to California I took something with me that is very precious to that state, something that is causing all kinds of problems for California, but is absolutely essential to everyone and everything in California. I Continue reading
As I said in a previous blogpost, there is no dispute among scientists that massive change is happening to our planet right now and that is very likely human induced. What is under debate though are Continue reading
Many of us are horrified by stories of invasive species wreaking havoc on ecosystems, upsetting the natural balance, and even impacting humans directly.
The example of Chikungunya that I mentioned in my last post demonstrates Continue reading
Our world is undergoing a massive change, induced by humans. There is no debate about this among scientists. There is debate, however, about the consequences of this change.
Like many other organisms we actively alter our environment and become ecosystem engineers (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecosystem_engineer). A classical example for this process is Continue reading
Inhabiting the Anthropocene 