Informal discussion of interesting research in ecology and evolution, meaning of life, the universe and everything
Kokomo seminars will continue from February 18, 2014, onwards.
verybody welcome; Abundant refreshments available
Department of Zoology of the Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia and Department of Ecology and Conservation Biology, Institute of Entomology, Biology Center, Academy of Sciences of Czech Republic
announce Kokomo seminars, known also as Pizza lunches to be held on every Tuesday at 12.15 in Ecolgy Seminar Room (former library).
8.Oct,12.15: Frantisek Sladecek: Dung beetles use the Milky Way for orientation
Note that this paper has received joint IgNobel 2013 Prize for Entomology and Astronomy.
15.Oct, 12.15: Jan Leps: Open access - Who does peer review?
http://scicomm.scimagdev.org; http://www.sciencemag.org/content/342/6154/60.full
22.Oct, 12.15 Katka Tvardíková: Eating infested fruits. Based on Oikos 65: 25-28.
29.Oct, Simon Segar; Climate-driven change in plant–insect interactions along elevation gradients.
5th Nov: Defence of PhD thesis of Petr Vlašánek, see other links
12. Nov, 12.15 Mika Peck (Sussex University, Brighton): Conserving the critically endangered brown-headed spider monkey (Ateles fusciceps) in NW Ecuador – from counting monkeys to community conservation
Abundant refreshments available.
3rd Dec,12.15: Pavel Šebek: Summer time change and human behaviour
I chose to discuss the phenomenon called Daylight Saving Time (summer time), the practice of adjusting clocks one hour forward near the start of spring and backward in autumn. The summer time was implemented in the first half of 20th century from economic reasons in most of the western world. Nowadays, it is no longer economically sound, and it rather causes a bit exaggerated propaganda-like emotional outbursts in some people, like this one for instance:
http://www.thewire.com/entertainment/2013/11/daylight-saving-time-americas-greatest-shame/71172/
I suggest these topics for our discussion:
1. What is your opinion on the summer time practice? Do you like it? Some people report having health problems due to the time shifts: headache, nervousness, heart-attacks, tiredness, depressions, nausea, diarrhoea. Do you have any?
2. The use of the summer time exhibits some kind of latitudinal gradient. See the picture on:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daylight_saving_time
3. Isn't it better to live with time changes than to live in a wrong time zone? (for instance, China geographically spans over 5 time zones but has only a single standard time)
4. Is it worth demonstrating for cancellation of the summer time? If yes, is it worth demonstrating for reconsidering Pluto as a planet?
Abundant refreshments available?
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