FALL 2010 | VOLUME 2 No. 2 | www.nescent.org

Newsletter of the National Evolutionary Synthesis Center, an NSF-funded collaborative research center operated by Duke University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and North Carolina State University.

Next proposal deadlines: research highlights Dec. 1: postdoctoral fellowships, sabbaticals, meetings and working groups Uncovering the genetic Jan. 1: graduate fellowships, short-term visitors For more information, see page 2 or visit secrets that allow Tibetans nescent.org/science/proposals.php to thrive in thin air IN THIS ISSUE: Research Highlights 1,4,6 new study pinpoints the genetic Call for Proposals 2 Achanges that enable Tibetans to thrive Upcoming Events 2 at altitudes where others get sick. New Awards 3 A NESCent meeting led by Cynthia Publications 8 Beall and Peter Robbins has identified In the Media 8 a gene that allows Tibetans to live and work more than two miles above sea level without getting altitude sickness. Their re- ABOUT NESCENT: sults were published in June in the journal NESCent is a scientific research center Proceedings of the National Academy of dedicated to cross-disciplinary research in Sciences. evolution. The Center’s mission is to A previous study published May 13 in promote the synthesis of information, Science reported that Tibetans are geneti- concepts and knowledge to address cally adapted to high altitude. Less than a significant, emerging, or novel questions in month later, a second study by NESCent- evolutionary science and its applications. sponsored scientists from China, England, NESCent achieves this by supporting research and education across disciplinary, Ireland, and the pinpoints a institutional, geographic, and demographic particular site within the human genome — boundaries. a genetic variant linked to low in the blood — that helps explain how Ti- Funded by the National Science betans cope with low-oxygen conditions. Foundation (award #EF-0905606), The study sheds light on how Tibetans, A new study sheds light on how Tibetans, who NESCent is a collaborative partnership who have lived at extreme elevation for have lived at extreme elevation for more than between Duke University, the University more than 10,000 years, have evolved to 10,000 years, have evolved to differ from their low-altitude ancestorst. of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and differ from their low-altitude ancestors. North Carolina State University. For more Lower air pressure at altitude means information about research and training component of human blood. “That’s why fewer oxygen molecules for every lung- opportunities at NESCent, visit athletes like to train at altitude. They ful of air. “Altitude affects your thinking, www.nescent.org. increase their oxygen-carrying capacity,” your breathing, and your ability to sleep. said Beall. But high-altitude natives don’t have these Senior Leadership: But too much hemoglobin can be a problems,” said co-author Cynthia Beall of bad thing. Excessive hemoglobin is the Allen Rodrigo, Director Case Western Reserve University. “They’re hallmark of chronic mountain sickness, an Susan Alberts, Associate Director able to live a healthy life, and they do it of Science and Synthesis overreaction to altitude characterized by completely comfortably,” she said. Todd Vision, Associate Director thick and viscous blood. Tibetans main- People who live or travel at high altitude of Informatics tain relatively low hemoglobin at high al- respond to the lack of oxygen by making Brian Wiegmann, Associate Director of Education and Outreach more hemoglobin, the oxygen-carrying see AIR, p5 | FALL 2010 2 Upcoming Events Molecular evolution symposium to be webcast live

Date: November 5, 2010 Time: 2:00-6:00 PM EST

f you’re interested in molecular evolution, Iyou may not want to miss this year’s Evolu- tion Symposium at the annual meeting of the National Association of Biology Teachers (NABT) on Friday, Nov. 5th. Thankfully, you won’t have to. Even if you can’t make it to this year’s meeting in Minneapolis, you can still watch the symposium via live webcast. This year’s symposium will feature four exciting speakers whose research in molecular evolution is revolutionizing our understanding of familiar and compelling examples of evolution. Learn about Butch Brodie’s research on the toxin arms race between newts and garter snakes, and Al- len Rodrigo’s insights on the practical and To watch the symposium, entitled research value of studies in viral evolution. “Molecular insights into classic examples Hear about Hopi Hoekstra’s research into of evolution,” tune in Friday, November for more information the underlying molecular mechanisms of 5th from 2:00-6:00 PM EST (1:00-5:00 PM Visit nescent.org/media/NABT- coat color in beach mice, and Sean Carroll’s CDT) and go to dukeuniversity.acrobat. Symposium2010.php work in drosophila wing coloration. com/nabt2010.

call for proposals

Call for proposals Looking for support for a sabbatical, graduate student, postdoc, or meeting? NESCent welcomes your proposals. We are looking to support innovative approaches to outstanding problems in evolutionary biology. In particular, proposals that have a clear interdisciplinary focus, or involve evolutionary concepts in non-traditional disciplines, are strongly encouraged, as are proposals that demonstrate international participation and a mix of senior and emerging researchers, Job Openings including graduate students. Interested in employment NESCent is now accepting applications opportunities at NESCent? Our Center for graduate, postdoctoral, and sabbatical runs with the help of a dynamic team fellowships, short-term visitors, and meetings. of programmers, financial experts, The next deadline for postdoctoral fellowships, event planners, and other specialists. sabbaticals, meetings and working groups is To find out about job openings as they Dec. 1. For graduate fellowships and short-term become available, visit nescent.org/ visitors, the next deadline is Jan. 10. about/employment.php For more information, visit nescent.org/science/proposals.php 2 | FALL 2010 3 call for entries new awards Congratulations to the newest award recipients for 2010 NESCent is pleased to announce the following new awards from Win a travel award our April and July 2010 call for proposals: for best evolution- themed blog Graduate Fellows Katharina Huber and Vincent Moulton (University of East Anglia, UK) Bret Moore (Purdue University) New applications of phylogenetic combina- Deadline: December 1, 2010 Do retinal specializations reflect ecology? torics An evolutionary perspective August 16-27, 2010 Are you a blogger who is interested in Luke Mahler (Harvard University) evolution? The National Evolutionary Improving and testing ecological models of Roi Dor (Cornell University) Synthesis Center is offering two travel phenotypic diversification Applying new phylogenetic comparative awards to attend ScienceOnline2011, a methods to analyze character evolution in swallows science communication conference to Paul Durst (Duke University) Evaluating patterns and trends in insular August 30 - September 5, 2010 be held January 13-15, 2011, in North body size evolution Carolina’s Research Triangle Park. Matina Kalcounis-Rueppell (University of Sarah Seiter (UNC Chapel Hill) The awards offer the opportunity to North Carolina at Chapel Hill Distinguishing trait value and trait plasticity Potential for peripheral populations to travel to North Carolina to meet with in the evolution of reaction norms several hundred researchers, writers, mitigate core extinctions: Bats and white Nimrod Rubinstein (Tel-Aviv University) nose syndrome editors and educators to explore how Detection of clade-specific accelerations October 1 - December 31, 2010 online tools are changing the way and decelerations in gene evolutionary science is done and communicated to rates Katia Koelle (NESCent Triangle Scholar the public. Each winner will receive from Duke University) $750 to cover travel and lodging Short-term Visitors October 1 - December 31, 2010 expenses to attend the conference. Luke Mahler (Harvard University) For more information about Howard Ross (University of Auckland, New New tools for investigating replicated ScienceOnline2011, visit www. Zealand) adaptive radiation Species delimitation using networks scienceonline2010comindexphp- August 5-26, 2010 October 18-29, 2010 wiki/2011_Program_Suggestions/ Samantha Hopkins (University of Oregon) For more information about the awardees To apply for an award, writers should and Samantha Price (University of and their research projects, please visit submit a blog post that highlights California, Davis) nescent.org/science/awards.php current or emerging evolutionary Evolution of mammalian dietary strategies research. In order to be valid, posts and the importance of omnivory must deal with research appearing in August 14-27, 2010 the peer-reviewed literature within the last five years. Posts should be 500-1000 words, and must mention Math & Physics Chemistry the NESCent contest. Two recipients Medical Specialties will be chosen by a panel of judges from both NESCent and the science Social Sciences

blogging community. Please send Electrical Engineering & Computer Science Biotechnology Brain Research your name, contact information, the Health Professionals title and date of your blog post, and a Chemical, Mechanical, Infectious Disease URL to [email protected]. & Civil Engineering Winners will be notified by December Humanities Earth Sciences Biology 15th, 2010. For more information contact Craig Evolutionary Biology McClain at [email protected], or Cyberinfrastructure for Network Science Center (2009) Science Map. Indiana University, http://sci.slis.indiana.edu.Major research areas represented in NESCent publications, overlaid on a global map of science. Robin Smith at [email protected]. NESCent publications cover 12 out of 13 scientific disciplines and 127 of 554 research special- ties. Cyberinfrastructure for Network Science Center. Indiana University, http://sci.slis.indiana. edu (March 2010). | FALL 2010 4 research highlights Competition puts the brakes on body evolution in island lizards

illions of years before humans began Mbattling it out over beachfront prop- erty, a similar phenomenon was unfolding in a diverse group of island lizards. Often mistaken for chameleons or geckos, Anolis lizards fight fiercely for resources, responding to rivals by doing push-ups and puffing out their throat pouches. But anoles also compete in ways that shape their bodies over evolutionary time, says a new study in the journal Evolution. Anolis lizards colonized the Caribbean from South America some 40 million years ago and quickly evolved a wide range of shapes and sizes. “When anoles first arrived in the islands there were no other lizards quite like them, so there was abundant opportunity to diversify,” said author Luke Mahler, a NESCent graduate fellow from The Greater Antilles are home to more than 100 Anolis species in a wide range of shapes and Harvard University. sizes. Anolis fowleri, pictured here, is a rare anole from the Dominican Republic. Free from rivals in their new island homes, Photo BY Luke Mahler Anolis lizards evolved differences in leg length, body size, and other characteristics wide range of shapes and sizes came to be. toral fellow Liam Revell. as they adapted to different habitats. Today, To do that, the team used DNA and body “Over time there were fewer distinct the islands of Cuba, Hispaniola, Jamaica measurements from species living today to niches available on each island,” said Revell. and Puerto Rico — collectively known as the reconstruct how they evolved in the past. In “Ancient evolutionary changes in body pro- Greater Antilles — are home to more than 100 addition to measuring the head, limbs, and portions were large, but more recent evolu- Anolis species, ranging from lanky lizards tail of over a thousand museum specimens tionary changes have been more subtle.” that perch in bushes, to stocky, long-legged representing nearly every Anolis species in The researchers saw the same trend on lizards that live on tree trunks, to foot-long the Greater Antilles — including several Cu- each island. “The islands are like Petri dishes ‘giants’ that roam the upper branches of trees. ban species that were previously inaccessible where species diversification unfolded in to North American scientists — they similar ways,” said Mahler. “The more spe- “The islands are like Petri dishes also used the Anolis family tree to cies there were, the more they put the brakes infer what species lived on which on body evolution.” where species diversification islands, and when. The study sheds new light on how biodi- unfolded in similar ways. The more By doing so, they discovered versity comes to be. “We’re not just looking that the widest variety of anole at species number, we’re also looking at how species there were, the more they shapes and sizes arose among the the shape of life changes over time,” said put the brakes on body evolution.” evolutionary early-birds. Then as the Mahler. number of anole species on each – Luke Mahler, Harvard University island increased, the range of new Richard Glor of the University of Rochester and Jonathan Losos of Harvard University body types began to fizzle. were also authors on this study. “Each body type is specialized for using Late-comers in lizard evolution underwent different parts of a tree or bush,” said Mahler. finer and finer tinkering as time went on. CITATION: Mahler, D., L. Revell, et al. Alongside other researchers from As species proliferated on each island, their (2010). “Ecological opportunity and the rate of morphological evolution in descendants were forced to partition the NESCent, the University of Rochester, and the diversification of Greater Antillean Harvard University, Mahler and colleagues remaining real estate in increasingly subtle anoles.” Evolution. doi: 10.1111/j.1558- wanted to understand how and when this ways, said co-author and NESCent postdoc- 5646.2010.01026.x 4 | FALL 2010 5

AIR, continued

titude, a trait that makes them less suscep- selection in Tibetans,” said co-author Peter tible to the disease than other populations. Robbins of Oxford University. “Tibetans can live as high as 13,000 feet Researchers are still trying to under- without the elevated hemoglobin concen- stand how Tibetans get enough oxygen to trations we see in other people,” said Beall. their tissues despite low levels of oxygen To pinpoint the genetic variants under- in the air and bloodstream. Until then, the lying Tibetans’ genetic clues relatively low uncovered hemoglobin lev- so far are Student software developers els, the research- unlikely to showcase their work ers collected be the end blood samples of the story. For the fourth summer in a row, NES- from nearly 200 “There are Cent offered a number of internships aimed Tibetan villagers probably at introducing students to open-source living in three many more software development. This summer, five regions high in signals to be interns from the 2010 Google Summer of the Himalayas. character- Code™ program worked remotely on an When they ized and evoinformatics project of their own choos- compared the described,” Tibetans’ DNA said co- ing, each under the guidance of an experi- with their low- author enced mentor. NESCent’s 2010 Summer of land counter- “Altitude affects your thinking, Gianpiero Code students included Filip Balejko from parts in China, Cavalleri of the University of Warsaw, Kathryn Iverson their results your breathing, and your ability the Royal from the University of Michigan, Lauren pointed to the to sleep. But high-altitude natives College of Lui from UC Santa Cruz, Anurag Priyam same culprit — a Surgeons in don’t have these problems.” from the Indian Institute of Technology gene on chromo- Ireland. Kharagpur, and Conrad Stack from Penn- some 2, called —Cynthia Beall, Case Western Reserve University For those sylvania State University. Their projects EPAS1, involved who live ranged from adding phylogenetics analysis in red blood cell closer to steps to a popular data processing workflow production and hemoglobin concentration sea level, the findings may one day help pre- system, to adding support for emerging in the blood. dict who is at greatest risk for altitude sick- interoperability standards to programming Originally working separately, the ness. “Once we find these versions, tests authors of the study first put their find- can be developed to tell if an individual is libraries, to creating a programming toolkit ings together at a 2009 meeting at NES- sensitive to low-oxygen,” said co-author that can create Google Earthcompatible Cent. “Some of us had been working on Changqing Zeng of the Beijing Institute of geophylogenies. As their profiles demon- the whole of Tibetan DNA. Others were Genomics. strate, the students put their summers to looking at small groups of genes. When we “Many patients, young and old, are af- very good use. Meet the students and learn shared our findings we suddenly realized fected by low oxygen levels in their blood more about their projects at hackathon. that both sets of studies pointed to the —perhaps from lung disease, or heart prob- nescent.org/Phyloinformatics_Summer_ same gene — EPAS1,” said Robbins, who lems. Some cope much better than others,” of_Code_2010/Summaries. co-organized the meeting with Beall. said co-author Hugh Montgomery, of Uni- Stay tuned for next year’s program! While all humans have the EPAS1 gene, versity College London. “Studies like this Students interested in applying to possible Tibetans carry a special version of the are the start in helping us to understand future Google Summer of Code programs gene. Over evolutionary time individu- why, and to develop new treatments.” should read up on the program at code als who inherited this variant were better google.com/soc/ and watch for announce- able to survive and passed it on to their CITATION: Beall, C., G. Cavalleri, et al. (2010). “Natural selection on EPAS1 ments on the program on the Google Open children, until eventually it became more (HIF2α) associated with low hemoglobin Source Blog at google-opensource.blog- common in the population as a whole. concentration in Tibetan highlanders.” “This is the first human gene locus for Proceedings of the National Academy of spot.com. The application window typically which there is hard evidence for genetic Sciences. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1002443107. opens in March. | fall 2010 6 research highlights Why you should never arm wrestle a saber-toothed tiger X-ray analysis reveals that sabertooth forelimbs were exceptionally strong compared to their feline cousins

aber-toothed cats may be best known Sfor their supersized canines, but they also had exceptionally strong forelimbs for pinning prey before delivering the fatal bite, says a new study by NESCent postdoctoral fellow Julie Meachen-Samuels. Commonly called the “saber-toothed tiger,” the extinct cat Smilodon fatalis roamed North and South America until 10,000 years ago, preying on large mammals such as bison, camels, mastodons and mam- moths. Telltale clues from bones and teeth suggest they relied on their forelimbs as well as their fangs to catch and kill their prey. The size and shape of sabertooth canines made them more vulnerable to fracture than cats living today, said Meachen-Samuels. “Cats living today have canines that are round in cross-section, so they can with- stand forces in all directions. If the prey is struggling it doesn’t matter which way it’s pulling — their teeth are unlikely to break,” she explained.

These X-ray images show cross-sectional dimensions of the upper arm bone of a jaguar (A “This is the first study to and B) compared to a saber-toothed cat (C and D). look inside sabertooth arm used their muscular arms to immobilize cies in their study, species with longer limbs bones to see exactly how prey and protect their teeth from fracture, generally had stronger bones. But the data much stress and strain she explained. for the saber-toothed cat fell well outside To estimate how strong sabertooth fore- the normal range — while their leg bones they could handle.” limbs were relative to other cats, Meachen- scaled to size, their arm bones were excep- — Julie Meachen-Samuels, NESCent Samuels and co-author Blaire Van Valken- tionally thick for their length. burgh of UCLA used x-rays to measure the “When I looked at the arm bones, In contrast, the elongated canines of cross-sectional dimensions of the upper Smilodon fatalis wahs way out in left field,” saber-toothed cats were oval in cross-sec- arm and leg bones of fossils recovered from said Meachen-Samuels. tion, which made them more vulnerable to the La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles. They Sabertooth arm bones were not only larg- breaking than their conical-toothed cousins. also measured the limb bones of 28 cat er in diameter than other cats, they also had “Many scientists infer that saber-toothed species living today — ranging in size from thicker cortical bone, the dense outer layer cats killed prey differently from other cats the 6-pound margay to the 600-pound tiger that makes bones strong and stiff. Thicker because their teeth were thinner side-to- — as well as the extinct American lion, the cortical bone is consistent with the idea that side,” said Meachen-Samuels. largest conical-toothed cat that ever lived. sabertooth forelimbs were under greater Despite their vulnerable canines, promi- The researchers used their cross-sectional stress than would be expected for cats their nent muscle attachment scars on saber- measurements to estimate bone strength size, Meachen-Samuels explained. Just like tooth limb bones suggest the cat was pow- and rigidity for each species. When they weight-bearing exercise remodels our bones erfully built. Saber-toothed cats may have plotted rigidity against length for the 30 spe- continued on next page 6 | fall 2010 7 Tiger, continued Digital data repository goes international

and improves bone density over time, the When you publish your research, do you repeated strain of grappling with prey may also publish the data behind it? A digital have resulted in thicker and stronger arm repository known as Dryad (datadryad.org) bones in saber-toothed cats. enables authors in ecology, evolution, and “As muscles pull on bones, bones re- related fields to archive their data at the time spond by getting stronger,” said Meachen- of publication. Developed in large part at Publish your data Samuels. “Because saber-toothed cats had NESCent, Dryad makes it possible to pre- thicker arm bones we think they must serve, share, and re-use research data. Now, A repository for digital have used their forelimbs more than other thanks to an award from the Joint Informa- data underlying cats did.” tion Science Committee (JISC), the Dryad published research in “The findings give us new information repository will soon have a mirror at the bioscience. about how strong their forelimbs were British Library in London. The project will and how they were built,” she added. expand the disciplinary range of participating “This is the first study to look inside saber- journals — particularly into epidemiology and tooth arm bones to see exactly how much infectious diseases — and further develop an DRYAD is a nonprofit stress and strain they could handle.” international framework for long-term data organization that works The findings wereh published this July preservation. with journals, societies in the journal PLoS ONE. and publishers to give Read more at blog.datadryad. data their due. CITATION: Meachen-Samuels, J. and B. org/2010/08/06/dryad-goes-international VanValkenburgh (2010). “Radiographs Find out what Dryad is doing to make data reveal exceptional forelimb strength in submission as easy as possible for au- the saber-toothed cat, Smilodon fatalis.” thors. Visit blog.datadryad.org/2010/01/12/ www.datadryad.org PLoS ONE 5(7): e11412. doi:10.1371/jour- making-data-submission-almost-as-easy-as- nal.pone.0011412 falling-off-a-log/ Big boost for ‘Evo-Devo-Eco’

Researchers working across the fields of evolution, development, and ecology can look forward to new opportunities and initiatives emerging from the recently-fund- ed Evo-Devo-Eco Network (EDEN). The National Science Foundation has awarded a $500,000 “Research Coordination Network” grant to better coordinate research efforts in the field of Evolutionary and Ecologi- cal Developmental Biology. Arising out of conversations held during the NESCent working group “Building tools for emerging model systems in development, evolution, and ecology,” (coordinated by Elena Kramer, Scott Hodges and Hopi Hoekstra), one of the network’s main aims is to help transfer and adapt technologies developed for tra- ditional model species to lesser-known sys- tems. For more information about EDEN, contact principal investigator Cassandra Extavour at [email protected], or visit www.edenrcn.com. | FALL 2010 8 in the media

“Male spiders are all bark, female spiders fight to kill” (Wired Recent publications by Science) In most animals the bigger, better fighter usually wins. But a new study of the jumping spider Phidippus clarus suggests that size NESCent authors and skill aren’t everything — what matters for Phidippus females is how Auld, J. (2010). “The effects of predation- Lindenfors, P., L. J. Revell, et al. (2010). badly they want to win. NESCent risk on mating system evolution in a “Sexual dimorphism in primate aerobic postdoctoral fellow Carlos Botero and freshwater snail.” Evolution doi: capacity: A phylogenetic test.” Journal of co-author Damian Elias tell the full 10.1111/j.1558-5646.2010.01079.x. Evolutionary Biology 23: 1183-1194. story in Behavioral Ecology. wired. com/wiredscience/2010/06/ Auld, J. and R. Relyea (2010). “Adaptive McClain, C. R. and S. M. Hardy (2010). female-spider-fights/ plasticity in predator-induced defenses in a “The dynamics of biogeographic ranges in “Fat daddy’s best – for penguins” common freshwater snail: altered selection the deep sea “ Proceedings of the Royal (New Zealand Herald) Courtship and mode of predation due to prey pheno- Society B doi: 10.1098/rspb.2010.1057 calls help penguin females decide type.” Evolutionary Ecology doi: 10.1007/ Meachen-Samuels, J. and B. which males are likely to be devoted s10682-010-9394-1. VanValkenburgh (2010). “Radiographs dads, says a new study by NESCent Beall, C., G. Cavalleri, et al. (2010). reveal exceptional forelimb strength in the Director Allen Rodrigo and col- “Natural selection on EPAS1 (HIF2α) sabertooth cat, Smilodon fatalis.” PLoS ONE leagues. nzherald.co.nz/ associated with low hemoglobin concentra- 5(7): e11412. environment/news/article.cfm?c_ tion in Tibetan highlanders.” Proceedings of id=39&objectid=10659300 Pfennig, D., M. Wund, et al. (2010). the National Academy of Sciences doi: “Saber-Tooth Tigers Add Powerful 10.1073/pnas.1002443107. “Phenotypic plasticity’s impacts on diversifi- Arms to Their Arsenal” (Science) cation and speciation.” Trends in Ecology Saber-toothed cats may be best Botero, C., I. Pen, et al. (2010). “The and Evolution 25(8): 459-467. known for their supersized canines, evolution of individual variation in com- but they also had exceptionally munication strategies.” Evolution doi: Revell, L. J. (2010). “Phylogenetic signal strong forelimbs for pinning prey 10.1111/j.1558-5646.2010.01065.x. and linear regression on species data.” before delivering the fatal bite, says a Methods in Ecology and Evolution doi: new study by NESCent postdoctoral Dahdul, W., J. Balhoff, et al. (2010). 10.1111/j.2041-210X.2010.00044.x. fellow Julie Meachen-Samuels. “Evolutionary characters, phenotypes and http://news.sciencemag.org/ ontologies: curating data from the system- Stearns, S., R. Nesse, et al. (2010). sciencenow/2010/07/scienceshot- atic biology literature.” PLoS ONE 5(5): “Evolution in health and medicine special saber-tooth-tigers-a.html e10708. feature.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 107(suppl 1). “Scared snails opt for single Gudelj, I., J. Weitz, et al. (2010). “An parenthood rather than wait for a integrative approach to understanding Vision, T. J. (2010). “Open data and the mate” (Dallas Morning News) microbial diversity: from intracellular social contract of scientific publishing.” Solitary snails change their dating mechanisms to community structure.” BioScience 60(5): 330-331. and mating strategy when danger is Ecology Letters 13(9): 1073-1084. near, says a new study by NESCent postdoctoral fellow Josh Auld. His results were published this July in the journal Evolution. topics. dallasnews.com/ article/0fCa Stay Informed 3iP30y3Hn Subscribe to the NESCent quarterly newsletter to receive news about the Center, “Scientists square off on evolution- research and training opportunities, and upcoming events. Comments, story ideas ary value of helping relatives” (The and photo contributions are welcome. Please send feedback and suggestions for New York Times) Why do some future issues to Robin Smith at [email protected] animals help their relatives raise kids, rather than raise kids of their own? To subscribe to the NESCent e-newsletter, visit www.nescent.org/about/contact.php. The question continues to spark Remove your name from this list by visiting lists.nescent.org/mailman/options/news. debate. Sabbatical scholar Jim Hunt You can also visit NESCent on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube. hopes to move the debate toward resolution during a meeting he is Writer/Editor: Robin Smith organizing at NESCent this October on the evolution of insect sociality. Graphic Design and Layout: nytimes.com/2010/08/31/ Vanessa DeJongh, Olivia Raufman science/31social.html?_r=1