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Natural Enemies--Metaphor or Misconception?

Authors: Chew, M.; Laubichler, M.;

Natural Enemies--Metaphor or Misconception?

Abstract

When two northern snakeheads, a carnivorous Asian fish, were discovered with their progeny in a Maryland pond in 2002, the state produced an "unwanted" poster, and biologists publicly declared the fish to be an imminent danger to East Coast aquatic ecosystems. It was "the baddest bunny in the bush." Such metaphorical statements are ubiquitous even in science, largely because of their simplicity and intuitive appeal. In their essay, Chew and Laubichler argue that metaphors can cause serious problems. For example, the term "natural enemies" is widely used in the ecology literature, including many papers in Science and Nature. These papers describe well-defined specific ecological processes, and hence the term "natural enemies" persists merely as a rhetorical device. The problem is that metaphorical abstractions all too easily turn familiar human experiences into normative statements about nature. Using bellicose and unnecessary terms like "enemy" therefore carries both real and conceptual risks.

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Powered by OpenAIRE graph
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selected citations
These citations are derived from selected sources.
This is an alternative to the "Influence" indicator, which also reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).
BIP!Citations provided by BIP!
popularity
This indicator reflects the "current" impact/attention (the "hype") of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network.
BIP!Popularity provided by BIP!
influence
This indicator reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).
BIP!Influence provided by BIP!
impulse
This indicator reflects the initial momentum of an article directly after its publication, based on the underlying citation network.
BIP!Impulse provided by BIP!
73
Top 10%
Top 10%
Top 10%
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Italian National Biodiversity Future Center
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