[Taxacom] FW: Released Friday 27 April - Discovering Biodiversity: A decadal plan for taxonomy and biosystematics in Australia and New Zealand 2018-2027

[Stephen Thorpe]

On the subject of NatureWatch NZ, I am, of course, one of the main contributors of observations to it, and I have nothing bad to say about the site. However, given that it was modelled on (and is now hosted by) iNaturalist (based in California), I'm still at somewhat of a loss to understand how NW contributes to N.Z. taxonomists and systematists being a world leader in this area? I'm pretty sure NW was created mainly by ecologists, not taxonomists or systematists.

Is it all just "waffle", or do funders actually believe this nonsense?

Stephen

--------------------------------------------
On Thu, 3/5/18, Geoffrey Read <gread at actrix.gen.nz> wrote:

 Subject: Re: [Taxacom] FW: Released Friday 27 April - Discovering Biodiversity: A decadal plan for taxonomy and biosystematics in Australia and New Zealand 2018-2027
 To: "Stephen Thorpe" <stephen_thorpe at yahoo.co.nz>
 Cc: "taxacom" <taxacom at mailman.nhm.ku.edu>
 Received: Thursday, 3 May, 2018, 1:52 PM
 
 
 Stephen,
 
 The statement is in their
 report, and, as we both expected, it isn't
 backed by a citation. So, yes, it's waffle
 & the claim is unsubstantiated
 directly.  By 'translating' for public
 benefit they probably mean outreach
 &
 interaction like this quote, as well as ALA online itself
 (not that I
 think ALA is as good as it could
 be, but it's there and has potential):
 
 "The Atlas of Living
 Australia supports over 550 citizen science projects
 through its Citizen Science Project Finder,
 including censuses of iconic
 species such as
 platypus and black cockatoos, local or regional surveys
 and bioblitzes, and local, regional and
 national general observational
 projects. In
 New Zealand, NatureWatch aggregates observations of
 organisms
 from over 5 000 recorders, with
 more than 2 000 specialists, ranging from
 professionals to knowledgeable amateurs,
 helping to identify contributed
 images."
 
 There is a statement about number of plant
 species described in Australia,
 which is up
 there with the top numbers elsewhere. They extrapolate that
 to
 all biota, & probably shouldn't,
 but in my marine field Australia has
 probably an order of magnitude more discovered
 species than NZ.
 
 Geoff
 
 On Thu, May 3, 2018 11:15 am,
 Stephen Thorpe wrote:
 > Geoff, just to
 clarify what I posted in reply to you: I agree with you
 > that "this group are doing their best
 to promote the taxonomy in which
 > they
 have invested their careers to those who might have money to
 fund
 > it", it is called
 "marketing" (or something like that!)
 >
 > However, this
 isn't an answer to the question I originally posed,
 i.e.
 > what does this mean?
 "Australian and New Zealand taxonomists and
 > biosystematists are world leaders,
 particularly in translating
 >
 biodiversity research for public benefit"
 >
 > i.e., what does
 "translating biodiversity research for public
 benefit"
 > actually mean, and in
 what sense are Australian and New Zealand
 > taxonomists and biosystematists world
 leaders at doing this? I'm just
 >
 checking for any plausibly trueish interpretation before
 declaring it to
 > be meaningless rhetoric
 designed to squeeze money out of potential
 > funders!
 >
 > Stephen
 >
 >
 --------------------------------------------
 > On Thu, 3/5/18, Stephen Thorpe <stephen_thorpe at yahoo.co.nz>
 wrote:
 >
 >  Subject:
 Re: [Taxacom] FW: Released Friday 27 April - Discovering
 > Biodiversity: A decadal plan for taxonomy
 and biosystematics in Australia
 > and New
 Zealand 2018-2027
 >  To: gread at actrix.gen.nz
 >  Cc: taxacom at mailman.nhm.ku.edu
 >  Received: Thursday, 3 May, 2018, 10:51
 AM
 >
 >  Hold on a
 minute Geoff!
 >
 > 
 "It means this group are doing their
 >  best to promote the taxonomy in which
 they have invested
 >  their careers to
 those who might have money to fund it"
 >
 >  Are you being
 sarcastic here, or what?
 >  Difficult to
 tell!
 >
 >  Surely,
 you aren't seriously suggesting
 > 
 that "translating biodiversity research for PUBLIC
 BENEFIT"
 >  [My emphasis] equates
 to promoting it to potential
 > 
 funders!!!
 >
 > 
 Stephen
 >
 > 
 --------------------------------------------
 >  On Thu, 3/5/18, Geoff Read <gread at actrix.gen.nz>
 >  wrote:
 >
 >   Subject: Re: [Taxacom] FW: Released
 >  Friday 27 April - Discovering
 Biodiversity: A decadal plan
 >  for
 taxonomy and biosystematics in Australia and New Zealand
 >  2018-2027
 >   To:
 "Stephen Thorpe" <stephen_thorpe at yahoo.co.nz>
 >   Cc: taxacom at mailman.nhm.ku.edu
 >   Received: Thursday, 3 May, 2018,
 10:30
 >  AM
 >
 >
 >   It means this
 >   group are doing their best to
 promote
 >  the taxonomy in
 >   which
 >   they have
 invested their careers to
 >   those who
 might have money to fund
 >  it.
 >
 >   Might also relate
 factually to "He
 >  says
 >   Australia discovers and names
 >   around 2,500
 >  
 new species per year—more than
 >  almost any other country
 >   in
 >   the
 world."
 >
 >  
 They trotted out David Attenborough
 > 
 yet again
 >   as the front man with
 public
 >   recognition.
 >   What a trooper he is to do this sort
 >  of thing repeatedly.
 >
 >   Must name a
 species after him.
 >
 >   Geoff
 >
 >   On
 >   Wed, May 2,
 2018 8:40 pm, Stephen
 >  Thorpe
 wrote:
 >   > See below. In this
 rhetoric-laden
 >  begging
 >   bowl, it is claimed "Australian
 >   >
 >   and New
 Zealand taxonomists and
 > 
 biosystematists are world
 >  
 leaders,
 >   > particularly in
 translating
 >   biodiversity research
 for public
 >  benefit"
 >   >
 >   > Can
 anyone translate
 >   that? What does it
 mean???
 >   >
 >  
 > Stephen
 >   >
 >   >
 >   > ---
 On Wed, 2/5/18,
 >   Dean Peterson <Dean.Peterson at tepapa.govt.nz>
 >   wrote:
 >   >
 >   >> From:
 >  
 Dean Peterson <Dean.Peterson at tepapa.govt.nz>
 >   >> Subject: FW: Released
 Friday
 >  27 April
 >   - Discovering Biodiversity: A
 >   >>
 >  
 decadal plan for taxonomy and
 > 
 biosystematics in Australia
 >   and
 New
 >   >> Zealand 2018-2027
 >   >> To: "Dean Peterson"
 <Dean.Peterson at tepapa.govt.nz>
 >   >> Received: Wednesday, 2 May,
 >  2018, 1:17
 >   PM
 >   >>
 >