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COMPLEX TIME: Adaptation, Aging, & Arrow of Time

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Irreversible Processes in Ecological Evolution/NathanielRupprecht

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Notes by user Nathaniel Rupprecht (Univ. Notre Dame) for Irreversible Processes in Ecological Evolution

Post-meeting Reflection

1+ paragraphs on any combination of the following:

  • Presentation highlights
  • Open questions that came up
  • How your perspective changed
  • Impact on your own work
  • e.g. the discussion on [A] that we are having reminds me of [B] conference/[C] initiative/[D] funding call-for-proposal/[E] research group

Annette Ostling:

Suppose that more similar species compete more directly - a very reasonable assumption given the reality of the fuzziness of defining species. Then an LV equation can have species parameterized by "traits." Different "niches" arise naturally in this model. A study of traits in a Panamanian forest suggests that species cluster in trait niches. Question: the niche peaks tend to "repel" each other - is it worthwhile to think of individual peaks as species "quasiparticles" that interact with nearby quasiparticles through some generalized interaction, thereby giving rise to large scale, slow time dynamics?

Otto Cordero:

By creating nutrient beads and immersing them in seawater, colonization by bacteria can be studied in a controlled way. Genomic signatures can be mapped to particular strategies - degraders, cross-feeders, and cheaters. Question: Does the geometry of the beads have an effect on the time behavior of populations? In other words, if instead of spheres, the bacteria were left to colonize tori or sheets, would there be any noticeable differences?

Priyanga Amaraserkare

Interested in when species are able to adapt to new environments. One take away is that species die much more quickly when introduced to high temperatures as compared to low temperatures, and that rate controlled processes have a different functional dependence than regulatory (as a function of temperature). Another very interesting point: it is very common for species from the tropics to invade more temperate climates, but it is much more unlikely for a temperate species from higher altitudes to invade a tropical environment.

Reference material notes

Some examples:

  • Here is [A] database on [B] that I pull data from to do [C] analysis that might be of interest to this group (insert link).
  • Here is a free tool for calculating [ABC] (insert link)
  • This painting/sculpture/forms of artwork is emblematic to our discussion on [X]!
  • Schwartz et al. 2017 offers a review on [ABC] migration as relate to climatic factors (add the reference as well).

Reference Materials