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Index of Subjects --Apple-Mail-45--572115752 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII; delsp=yes; format=flowed Ian's point is well made. Until there is creditable science, getting into a panic about cell phones (at least in this regard) may be jumping the gun. The bee-cell phone "connection" (which is what I chiefly know about) is almost certainly spurrious. The "study" refereed to by these reports had a sample size of two and (as I understand it) involved some sort of microwave transmitter that has nothing in common with those used in cell phone transmissions. Areas where Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) has taken place are unrelated to areas of cell phone transmission usage (i.e. there re many areas where cell phone usage is as high or higher than those where CCD has taken place, where there is no evidence of CCD). There are, moreover, a whole series of creditable factors (parasitic mites, movement of bee colonies, the sap-beetle Aethina tumida, diseases of bees, etc.) that are being investigated in relation to CCD and appear in various ways to be contributing to the phenomenon. Cheers! Chris On 13-Jun-07, at 10:31 AM, iamclar@dal.ca wrote: > All: > > Jean Timpa's message on decline of House Sparrows is intriguing and > the > situation is certainly worth keeping an eye on. > > However, three points amay be noted. > > 1. These studies have not been published in what would be accepted as > "peer-reviewed" scientific journals, but in outlets highly > committed to > environmental causes. These studies have to be looked at in the > same way as > one should loook a "gray-literature from industrial or commercial > sources. > > 2. House Sparrows have been declining in Europe (and North > America) long before > the appearance of cell phones, and this has been attributed in some > studies to > a number of (more benign) causes including better sealed and > insulated urban > buildings. > > 3. Tossing in the bee situation for support of the "cause," as has > been pointed > out on naturens, may prove misleading. > > Cheers, Ian McLaren _._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._ Christopher Majka <c.majka@ns.sympatico.ca> Electronic Resources on Coleoptera, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada http://chebucto.ca/Environment/NHR/coleoptera.html "Whenever I hear of the capture of rare beetles, I feel like an old warhorse at the sound of a trumpet" - Charles Darwin _._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._ --Apple-Mail-45--572115752 Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Type: text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1 <HTML><BODY style=3D"word-wrap: break-word; -khtml-nbsp-mode: space; = -khtml-line-break: after-white-space; "><SPAN = class=3D"Apple-style-span">Ian's point is well made. Until there is = creditable science, getting into a panic about cell phones (at least in = this regard) may be jumping the gun.=A0</SPAN><DIV><BR = class=3D"khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV><SPAN = class=3D"Apple-style-span">The bee-cell phone "connection" (which is = what I chiefly know about) is almost certainly spurrious. The = "study"=A0refereed to by these reports had a sample size of two and (as = I understand it) involved some sort of microwave transmitter that has = nothing in common with those used in cell phone = transmissions.=A0</SPAN></DIV><DIV><BR = class=3D"khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV><SPAN = class=3D"Apple-style-span">Areas where Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) = has taken place are unrelated to areas of cell phone transmission usage = (i.e. there re many areas where cell phone=A0usage is as high or higher = than those where CCD has taken place, where there is no evidence of = CCD). There are, moreover, a whole series of creditable factors = (parasitic mites, movement of bee colonies, the sap-beetle=A0<I>Aethina = tumida</I>, diseases of bees, etc.) that are being investigated in = relation to CCD and appear in various ways to be contributing to the = phenomenon.</SPAN></DIV><DIV><SPAN class=3D"Apple-style-span"><DIV><BR = class=3D"khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV>Cheers!</DIV><DIV><BR = class=3D"khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><DIV>Chris</DIV><DIV><BR><DIV><DIV= >On 13-Jun-07, at 10:31 AM, <A = href=3D"mailto:iamclar@dal.ca">iamclar@dal.ca</A> wrote:</DIV><BR = class=3D"Apple-interchange-newline"><BLOCKQUOTE type=3D"cite"><DIV = style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px; ">All:</DIV><DIV style=3D"margin-top: 0px; = margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; min-height: = 14px; "><BR></DIV><DIV style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; = margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">Jean Timpa's message on decline = of House Sparrows is intriguing and the</DIV><DIV style=3D"margin-top: = 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; = ">situation is certainly worth keeping an eye on.</DIV><DIV = style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px; min-height: 14px; "><BR></DIV><DIV style=3D"margin-top: = 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">However, = three points amay be noted.</DIV><DIV style=3D"margin-top: 0px; = margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; min-height: = 14px; "><BR></DIV><DIV style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; = margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">1.<SPAN = class=3D"Apple-converted-space">=A0 </SPAN>These studies have not been = published in what would be accepted as</DIV><DIV style=3D"margin-top: = 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; = ">"peer-reviewed" scientific journals, but in outlets highly committed = to</DIV><DIV style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: = 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">environmental causes.<SPAN = class=3D"Apple-converted-space">=A0 </SPAN>These studies have to be = looked at in the same way as</DIV><DIV style=3D"margin-top: 0px; = margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">one should = loook a "gray-literature from industrial or commercial = sources.</DIV><DIV style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; = margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; min-height: 14px; "><BR></DIV><DIV = style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px; ">2.<SPAN class=3D"Apple-converted-space">=A0 = </SPAN>House Sparrows have been declining in Europe (and North America) = long before</DIV><DIV style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; = margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">the appearance of cell phones, = and this has been attributed in some studies to</DIV><DIV = style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px; ">a number of (more benign) causes including better = sealed and insulated urban</DIV><DIV style=3D"margin-top: 0px; = margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; = ">buildings.</DIV><DIV style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; = margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; min-height: 14px; "><BR></DIV><DIV = style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px; ">3.<SPAN class=3D"Apple-converted-space">=A0 = </SPAN>Tossing in the bee situation for support of the "cause," as has = been pointed</DIV><DIV style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; = margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; ">out on naturens, may prove = misleading.</DIV><DIV style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; = margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; min-height: 14px; "><BR></DIV><DIV = style=3D"margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; = margin-left: 0px; ">Cheers, Ian McLaren</DIV> = </BLOCKQUOTE></DIV><BR></DIV></SPAN><BR = class=3D"khtml-block-placeholder"></DIV><BR><BR><DIV> <P style=3D"margin: = 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face=3D"Times" size=3D"3" style=3D"font: = 12.0px = Times">_._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._= ._</FONT></P> <P style=3D"margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT = face=3D"Times" size=3D"3" style=3D"font: 12.0px Times">Christopher Majka = <SPAN class=3D"Apple-converted-space">=A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 =A0 = =A0 =A0 </SPAN><<A = href=3D"mailto:c.majka@ns.sympatico.ca">c.majka@ns.sympatico.ca</A>></F= ONT></P> <P style=3D"margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face=3D"Times"= size=3D"3" style=3D"font: 12.0px Times">Electronic Resources on = Coleoptera, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada</FONT></P> <P style=3D"margin: = 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face=3D"Times" size=3D"3" style=3D"font: = 12.0px Times"><A = href=3D"http://chebucto.ca/Environment/NHR/coleoptera.html">http://chebuct= o.ca/Environment/NHR/coleoptera.html</A></FONT></P> <P style=3D"margin: = 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Times; min-height: = 14.0px"><BR></P> <P style=3D"margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT = face=3D"Times" size=3D"3" style=3D"font: 12.0px Times">"Whenever I hear = of the capture of rare beetles, I feel like</FONT></P> <P style=3D"margin:= 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face=3D"Times" size=3D"3" style=3D"font: = 12.0px Times">an old warhorse at the sound of a trumpet"<SPAN = class=3D"Apple-converted-space">=A0 </SPAN>- Charles Darwin</FONT></P> = <P style=3D"margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px"><FONT face=3D"Times" = size=3D"3" style=3D"font: 12.0px = Times">_._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._._= ._</FONT></P> </DIV><BR></BODY></HTML>= --Apple-Mail-45--572115752--
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