Biocode

[John McNeill]

Dear colleagues:

There is no fundamental change in the status of the BioCode from that
which appears on the ROM web site:

http://www.rom.on.ca/biodiversity/biocode/biointro1997.html
http://www.rom.on.ca/biodiversity/biocode/biocode1997.html

It was commended by IUBS in November 1998 for study
and relevant action by the bodies responsible for the
existing Codes.

The Nomenclature Section of the International
Botanical Congress meeting in St. Louis at the end of
July 1999, was generally opposed to the idea of a
BioCode, but did endorse one of the proposals arising
from work on the BioCode, one that provides that
scientific names of plant groups cannot have an ending
that could make them confusable with names of viruses.

No substantive proposals on the BioCode were made in
St. Louis because the BioCode is largely predicated on
a situation analogous to a new start in nomenclature
such as that adopted by bacteriologists in 1978 --
e.g. by endorsing lists of names such that no unlisted
name can displace a name on the list.

Sets of proposals to provide for such lists in
botanical nomenclature were on the table and were
heavily defeated in St. Louis.  Many feel that this
was an appallingly short-sighted view which may haunt
botany in the future -- botanical nomenclature remains
a prisoner to the past and to repetitious
time-consuming study of the literature of the past 250
years!

But decisions on botanical nomenclature (whose rules,
after all, are followed voluntarily) are taken as part
of a broadly based (democratic) process -- and these
rejections at St. Louis were unequivocal.  So for the
next 6 years, at least, the BioCode is, de facto, on a
bit of a back-burner so far as botanical nomenclature
is concerned.

I am not aware of any discussions as yet by the
Commission on Zoological Nomenclature -- they have
been concentrating on the publication of the new
edition of the ICZN --, nor have I heard of the
results of any discussions at the relatively recent
international congress on systematic bacteriology in
Australia.

John McNeill

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      John McNeill, Director Emeritus, Royal Ontario Museum,
      100 Queen's Park, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 2C6, Canada.
      Telephone and fax number:  416-586-5744
      e-mail: johnm at rom.on.ca

      N.B. From 5 November 1999, general mailing address will be:
      Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh, EH3 5LR, Scotland, U.K.
      Telephone: +44-162-088-0625;  fax: +44-162-088-0342
      e-mail will continue as: johnm at rom.on.ca
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B

_________________________ ____ Reply Separator _________________________________
Subject: Biocode
Author:  arindsberg at GSA.STATE.AL.US at Internet Date:    04/10/99 6:34 PM


The Biocode discussion list has just folded for lack of discussion. Forgive a
newcomer for what may be a stale question: What is the current status of the
Biocode?

Andrew K. Rindsberg

Geological Survey of Alabama
P.O. Box 869999
Tuscaloosa, AL 35486-6999
USA