MORE KNOWN ABOUT MAYAN CENTER -- Findings at a Maya archeological site in the northern part of Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula reveal evidence of significant "foreign" influences which suggest the Maya center flourished centuries earlier than previously thought. Data gathered from the Maya site, known as Chac, indicate early settlements in the region had a relationship with the central Mexican metropolis of Teotihuacan and suggest the contact went beyond mere long-distance influence, which contradicts existing theory.
Michael Smyth, an anthropologist at Rollins College in Winter Park, Fla. and research director at Chac, reports two major finds this field season: the remains of an early residence that looks identical to a Teotihuacan apartment compound, the first ever found in the Maya area; and a Teotihuacan style funerary mask within the temple of the Great Pyramid. "Nothing like these have ever been found in the Maya area to my knowledge," he says. "Such emblematic foreign-style objects suggest a much more intense relationship than we ever supposed, with the likelihood of a foreign presence or even foreign dominance." The project has been supported by the National Geographic Society since it began and will appear in the April issue of National Geographic Magazine.
WHERE HAVE THE MAINE WOLVES GONE? ASK THE COYOTES -- Researchers at the University of Maine at Machias are in the early stages of project studying the genetic make-up and the size of coyote skulls in Down East Maine in hopes of finding why Maine coyotes are larger than many other populations. This research could have profound implications to the wolf reintroduction debate, says Gerry Zegers, a biologist at the University of Maine at Machias. The Maine coyote population has appeared or expanded as the wolf population declined. The efforts to reestablish the timber and red wolf populations would have negative consequences for the coyotes. But according to Zegers, "If the Maine coyote is demonstrated to have a genetic legacy of hybridization with wolves, especially the Eastern Canadian Wolf, this animal belongs here in an evolutionary and ecological sense."
DON'T LET SUMMER FUN DAMAGE CORAL REEFS -- Coral reef ecosystems are among the most productive and diverse ecosystems in the world. Reefs are the home to countless species of wildlife, serve as buffers to the coastline, and produce the sand that nourishes beaches. They are an important economic resource -- creating habitat for commercially and recreationally important fish, and supporting local and regional tourist and recreation industries. "But there are serious threats to the coral reefs," says Dr. Richard Dodge, executive director of the National Coral Reef Institute at Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. "Coral reefs worldwide can be impacted by a host of natural and human induced causes, including dynamite fishing, dredging, sediment runoff and disease."
The influence of man is never more destructive than in the summer months when more divers and boaters are out near the reefs. Snorkeling, diving and boating can cause direct physical damage to reefs, usually the breaking of fragile, branched corals or causing lesions to massive corals. "Anchor damage and diver impact can be great on corals," he says. "Boaters need to be careful not to drop anchor on corals, but to look for mooring buoys. Divers should not touch corals when diving."
MIDWESTERN FOOD FOR THOUGHT. Bigger is not always better in terms of Midwestern agriculture and animal production -- but many in the field believe it may be the only way soon. That's one of the findings in a study by Dr. Kathy Kremer, assistant professor of community sociology at Wartburg College in Waverly, Iowa, and her colleague C. Clare Hinrichs of Iowa State University. The study was part of the "Generic Environmental Impact Statement on Animal Agriculture" prepared for the state of Minnesota and available on-line through the Minnesota Planning Agency. They produced a paper titled "Social Inclusion in a Midwest Local Food System Project," which appeared in The Journal of Poverty. Analysis was based on a telephone survey of 41 community supported agriculture (CSA) project member-households in a Minnesota community.
In interviews with producers, community leaders, elected officials, government agency personnel and other citizens in six Minnesota counties, the dominant theme was change in the structure of agriculture and animal production. "The refrain 'get big or get out' was heard repeatedly to describe how current and former Minnesota farmers view their options. Swine and poultry producers most often expressed this sentiment. It was less prevalent -- but not absent -- in the dairy and beef cattle sectors," says Kremer. Changes in agriculture have altered the nature of production practices. Those with large operations are independent, not needing to rely on shared equipment or labor exchanges with other producers as they have previously. "Large producers, particularly those operating confined swine operations, perceived a sense of animosity on the part of small producers who are struggling to stay in farming. The commodity pricing advantages enjoyed by large producers were clearly a sore spot for the small producers interviewed," Kremer says. The research found a widening gap between those who have expanded into large-scale facilities and those trying to maintain small and mid-sized operations.
HOW BABIES TELL MOM FROM FIDO. Infants seem to develop a special recognition of their mothers and family members, but they also tend to be drawn to cats and dogs. Can they actually tell humans from animals at such an early age? Dr. Paul Quinn, professor of psychology at Washington & Jefferson College in Washington, Pa., has found that they can and will present results of his research in a talk titled "Young Infants' Categorization of Humans versus Nonhuman Animals: Roles for Knowledge Access and Perceptual Process" at the 32nd Carnegie Symposium on Cognition, June 7-9, at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh.
Quinn does research in his campus baby lab on how infants, between three and 10 months, learn and show preferences -- studying their reactions to various stimuli. He's found that babies respond to broad concepts at the early months, and gradually sharpen those into fine concepts as they get to the older months. His research has shown that babies have their attention drawn to new stimuli -- meaning they gaze at stimuli perceived as being new over the other choices when given the choice.
His presentation examines how infants categorize humans and non-human animals in studies that measure infant looking time responses to visually presented samples of the two. He's found that infants' representations for non-human animal species are basic-level in their exclusivity -- structured by summary-level information and anchored by part information -- and formed during the course of an experiment. By contrast, infants' representation for humans have been found to be more detailed in their exclusivity -- based on more specific information, and constructed at least in part on the basis of previous experience. The data suggests that young infants may represent humans at an "expert" level, and imply more generally that "expert" representations may occur early in development with sufficient experience.
HOPE FOR USING THE BRAIN. Nationally-known presenters will discuss the latest brain research and its impact on learning during the Second Annual Midwest Brain and Learning Institute, at Hope College in Holland, Mich., on June 24-27. The goal is to increase participants' understanding about topics such as system change in education, responding to neuroscience foundations of learning, diverse brains/diverse learners, and brain research implications for the classroom.
Among the speakers will be Dr. Harry T. Chugani, who will lead participants through understanding current work in the neurosciences. Chugani heads the Positron Emission Tomography (PET) Center at Children's Hospital of Michigan, Wayne State University in Detroit, where he is also chief of the Division of Pediatric Neurology and Developmental Pediatrics. Dr. Sigurd H. Zielke will share his work with adolescents and why it is important to understand the teenage brain. He is a clinical specialist for Fairbanks Hospital in Indianapolis, Ind., where he is developing a model for addressing problems and symptoms of addicted patients. Marilee Sprenger will serve as a "translator," assisting participants in a deeper understanding of how research from the neurosciences helps educators respond to diversity in the classroom. Sprenger is an educational consultant and an adjunct professor at Aurora University in Illinois and a former middle school teacher. She authored the books Learning & Memory: The Brain in Action and Becoming a 'Wiz' at Brain-Based Teaching: How to Make Every Year Your Best Year.
COMPLAINING CONCEPTS. Don't complain to Mary Lou Klotz, associate professor of psychology and chair of the department at Susquehanna University in Selinsgrove, Pa. She's done research on interpersonal communication -- particularly complaining and social cognition -- and knows what's behind those complaints, and how to respond.
According to Klotz, when people complain they're generally interested in getting a response -- "otherwise they could simply talk to themselves," she says. "That means the response is often what determines whether the complainer feels better after 'getting it off her chest.'" She reports that responses to complaints can be divided into two broad categories -- supportive and non-supportive. Supportive responses can be further classified as emotional or instrumental, with emotional responses designed to improve the complainer's mood and often taking the form of showing sympathy -- "like 'you poor thing;' or support, like 'I think you're doing a great job,'" she says. Instrumental responses address the cause of the complaint rather than the feelings of the complainer. They typically take the form of offers of help -- "like 'I'd be happy to help you with that;'or suggestions for solving the current problem, like 'Just tell your boss you can't work late on Friday;' or for avoiding similar problems in the future, like 'If you'd go to bed at a decent hour you wouldn't feel so tired all the time," she says.
"The tricky thing about complaints is that the complainer doesn't always want help in solving the problem. In fact, the most common reason for complaining is to 'vent' or express frustration." The research by Klotz and her colleagues suggests that the highest rate of emotional responding comes from women responding to complaints from their female friends. "Men do make emotional responses to their female friends and romantic partners, but they often couple them with instrumental responses -- like 'your boss is a jerk...but you need to just tell him you can't do it.' Therefore, if a female complainer is not interested in advice or help but merely wants emotional support, she may want to consider calling her best female friend," she says. "Alternatively, a complainer can exert some control over the kind of response she receives by making it clear to the listener that she is complaining simply to vent -- saying something like 'Can I just tell you what a lousy day I've had today?'"
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