"Degradation of the oyamel fir-pine forest
ecosystem in central Mexico is a threat to the overwintering and
migratory phenomenon of the eastern North American population of the
monarch butterfly. . . What in 1971 was a nearly continuous high-quality
forest is now fragmented and severely degraded. Between 1971 and 1999,
44% of conserved forest (forest with >80% cover) was degraded, and
the largest patch of high-quality forest was reduced from 27,115 ha to
5827 ha. The annual rate of degradation from 1971 to 1984 was 1.70%, and
this increased to 2.41% during the next 15 years. . . A subset of the
analysis quantified changes in a 6596-ha area . . . declared protected
by presidential decree in 1986. Corresponding rates of degradation of
these reserves more than tripled, from approximately 1.0% between 1971
and 1984 to more than 3% between 1984 and 1999."
[from Brower, L.P. et al. 2002. Quantitative changes
in forest quality in a principal overwintering area of the monarch
butterfly in Mexico, 1971-1999. Conservation Biology 16: 346-359.]
"A mathematician is a blind man in dark room
looking for a black cat that isn’t there."
(Charles Darwin)
"After the expected grumbling over this result . .
. it was experimentally challenged and found to be thuddingly
irreproducible . . ."
[from J.C. Hall. 2000. Current opinion in Neurobiology
10: 456-486]
"It was a book to kill time for those who like it
better dead." (attributed to Rose Macaulay)
"The university brings out all abilities, including
stupidity" (Chekhov)
Procrastination is fun. Just wait and see. (Anon.)