Ebook "STABILITY OF TERRESTRIAL ECOSYSTEMS TO PLANT PESTS: AN AXIOMATIC APPROACH"
Gleb I.Vasechko,
Cand.Sc.(Biology)
© Gleb Vasechko, 2005 All rights reserved.
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Created 20.03.2005
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Gleb Vasechko.
PART I. A LIST OF THE AXIOMS. Continuation.
AXIOM 10. ECOSYSTEM STABILITY TO PLANT PESTS AS A SPECIAL SCIENTIFIC PROVINCE, ITS OBJECTIVES AND MANAGEMENT IMPLICATIONS: A NEW PROVINCE AND NEW WAYS IN POLITICS
This Axiom offers reflection on the suggestions of the Axioms 1-9, which explain nature of ESPPs. The explanation is a system embracing knowledge of divers provinces of biology. The result of this enterprise has a number of features, as follows:
- Own subject - the phenomenon of ESPPs, which is pertinent to ecosystems.
- Own method, which consists in analysis of the wide variety of data from the view of ESPPs.
- Own theoretical objectives, which consist in achievement of knowledge that allows understanding of the entire domain.
- Own practical objectives, which consist in developing of measures to establish and maintain ecosystems capable to keep PPs on the level below a threshold of damage for dominants or need in minimal temporary suppressive measures at permissible expenditures of money and resources.
- The offered set of Axioms is an open system, which can be developed in the direction of correction and expanding on further areas, as it takes place in advanced provinces of science.
The above features of the issue under consideration allow us to suggest that it has attributes of a scientific province (branch, domain), and being a new one, it deserves a specific name.
Let it be NATELOGY. This word is an abbreviation of the words "natural tenacity" and an addition of the word "logy" - the Greek word, which is used for construction of names of the scientific provinces. The word "natelogy" is euphonic one being close to the word "Nativity."
The phenomenon of ESPPs is wonderful. In fact, any natural ecosystem (biocenocis) contains hundreds of potentially destructive species - consumers of plants, including invertebrates, vertebrates and phytopathogens. Although they are referred as to PPs, they are necessary components of an ecosystem. In it, they serve as a means of turnover of substances. It is known the unique situation, where these consumers do not operate. In such a situation, an ecosystem is destined to extinct.
In any ecosystem, presence of PPs is necessary for existence of their natural enemies, which serve as potent CESPPs.
Activity of some PPs promotes fixation of nitrogen from air that enriches ecosystems.
Hence, the organisms, which are able to become PPs, maintain general stability of ecosystems, rather than disturb it. Only in the conditions, when ESPPs is disturbed, they become a destructive force.
Contrary, man-made ecosystems (articenoses) contain much less species of PPs. Nevertheless, articenoses are exposed often to affection on the part of PPs. However, at proper ecosystem management, even agricultural articenoses keep the significant level of ESPPs, and properly established and managed forest articenoses become close to biocenoses as to their ESPPs.
Cognition of ESPPs needs an operation by great diversity of facts concerned all the complexity within an ecosystem of diverse types. The literature and experience of scholars offer the facts in abundance. The diversity of them is sufficient for the generalization. It is appropriate to quote H. Poincare as follows: "Science is build up facts, as a house is built up stones; but an accumulation of facts is no more a science than a heap of stones is a house" (cited from K.F. Baker and R.J. Cook, 1974, p. 50). This is certainly an appeal to the generalization.
The problem consists in the principle of the generalization of the immense treasure, which is open for anybody. At last, what is the generalization? This is a conversion of separate facts in a system. In other words, this is a birth of Order from Chaos or the struggle with Leviathan. This mythical monstrous animal personifies the Chaos in our consciousness until available knowledge is not systemized by a general idea. When this knowledge becomes adequate the harmony, which dominates in Nature, a victory in the struggle with Chaos has been won.
Again, J.Huxley (1953, Ch. VII) has noted: "In all fields of inquiry there is the danger of not seeing the wood for the trees. Nowhere is the danger greater than in the field of evolution". The same is true in the domain of ESPPs.
As a principle of the generalization, it is a system of Axioms used here. In addition to characteristics of an Axiom given in the initial pages of this report, the author agrees with the following opinion: "A principle is here considered to be a concisely stated fundamental proportion or generalization which aids in the integration of related facts and has prediction value; it is a concept rather than an immutable law" (K.F. Baker and R.J. Cook, 1974, p. 4).
The following view on the essence of the generalization would help to better understanding of this term: a generalization is an adequate description of qualities of Nature. This view has been offered by G.I. Gurevich (1990, p. 147). "In fact, Nature has some qualities (properties), which spread on more or less wide areas - on fields of operation of particular properties. Importantly, as a rule, the fields have their borders. On the borders, the properties become weakened, sometime disappear quite at all, in any case they are unnoticeable. For example, even the "universal" law of gravidity does not play any role in bosom of an atom.
The field of operation can be huge, moderate, minute - of any dimension. Correspondingly, it is possible to build a hierarchy of generalizations - universal, extraterrestrial, global, regional, obligatory, conditional: They may be called laws or rules. However, an appellation is a matter of taste. It is significant to keep in mind that all or nearly all the generalizations have their borders."
This statement is particularly true for the issue under consideration. Every taxon of PPs has traits different from those even in closely relative taxa. The same is true for taxa of plants. Environmental conditions bring numberless changes in exhibition of their traits, so that, there are wide prospects for those, who wish to improve knowledge of ESPPs.
One more advantage of the axiomatic approach to a province consists in the following. This is a process of the generalization of knowledge, when separate concepts (ideas, theories) become incorporated in new concepts as their particular cases. The generalization offers the holistic solution of problems, which before seemed to be unconnected and demanded of different consideration. Such an idea has been expressed by A. Markushevich (1968) for an answer on the question: why does science over centuries stay feasible for mankind?
J.H.Woodger (1952) supposes that it is possible to discuss fruitfully relations among theories on condition that they are axiomized. This suggestion is particularly important, because it has been stated by an author of the book about the axiomatic method in biology (Woodger, 1937).
At last, "Science requires exact ideas" - has said A.Einstein.
The brilliant idea has been expressed by W. Goethe, namely: the great skill both in a theory and in a practical life is a conversion of a problem in a postulate. M. Kline (1985, Ch. IX. The World of Relativity) citing this idea supposed that exactly this way A.Einstein acted.
In this context, it is notably that Niels Boer's Rules of quantizing, which have explained stability of an atom, are known as "postulates". A.B. Migdal (1983, p. 162) considering this case stated that the postulates described beautifully the stability, but they were incompatible with the conventional concepts of that time, and needed in further grounding.
Ch.Darwin's ideas on the evolution were considered over many years as little substantiated ones. Therefore, probably, they often were referred to as postulates.
These thoughts inspire the author to paid attention on peculiarities of Axioms in natelogy comparing with fundamental ideas in other provinces of science. It seems such ideas of a proposing theory, which are radically different to conventional concepts, and therefore they need in further grounding, are marked in the scientific community by the word "postulates".
Contrary, as to natelogy, it is not need to wait neither further experiments, nor mathematical grounding for substantiation of validity of its fundamental ideas. Natelogy operates by numberless data of experiments and observations in diverse scientific provinces collected over centuries. It needs only true interpretation of them to build from this treasure a unified construction. The situation in this province is similar to that in geometry described by the Euclid's Axioms. They are summing up of the experience of mankind over millennia. Therefore in natelogy, it is relevant to use the word "Axiom".
So that, natelogy has own method: an analysis of the wide diversity of data from the view of ESPPs.
Theoretical objectives of natelogy consist in grasping striving of a mind to cognize the World. While a body of the living beings strives to multiply unrestrictedly, a human mind strives to cognize unrestrictedly the World. To the point, the physicist Djerd Von Kheveshi has written: "Thinking mind does not feel himself happy until it does not joint together separate facts, which it is observed: This intellectual unhappiness prompts us more than other stimuli to think, i.e. to make science" (cited in D. Danin, 1981, p. 89).
"It seems, the most beautiful feeling in the life is to discover for mankind the invisible connections among things" - wrote A. Einstein in a letter to Max Born.
The domain of ESPPs offers happiness for a thinking mind. One may find here the extraordinary diversity of interrelations among the living beings and the environment. The interrelations are governed by the regularities, which are so definite and numerous, as those (the laws) in physics. If the regularities would not perfect, ecosystems would not exist. Persons, who like to think, will find in this domain own happiness.
The practical objectives include those of the concept "pest management" (a synonym "integrated pest control"), which in short words is ":restricting pest numbers to non-injurious levels" (Haffaker, 1970). In addition, they should be a component of the wider concept - "ecosystem management" in term of "the ecological approach to ecosystem management."
Maximal intensification of productivity of ecosystems in a given place at maintaining of this property over unlimited time, and inviolability of ecosystems in other places - this is a mainstream principle of the ecological approach to the ecosystem management. This principle is close in realization in developed countries. It should be maintained in them with greater activity and should be spread over the entire World. The problem of crucial importance - saving of Nature - might be settled on condition that teamwork in the global scale.
All the articenoses should be maintained on the level ESPPs A. 3.1. "Proper control." The same is necessary for most part of biocenoses. Maintenance of this level ESPPs is possible on condition that the good ecosystem management. In turn, this is a part of the urgent problem - saving of Nature. To reach this aim, the World community should take a new political doctrine, namely: Nature of every country is a property of the entire mankind. Attitude of authorities of every country to Nature should be under control of the organization, which is empowered by the World community to watch the situation in Nature conservation and apply sanctions on the countries - infringes. It needs not only the Human Rights Watch, but also the Nature Rights Watch.
It should remember the advice of M. Bunge (1973, Ch. VII. Character of Axiomatics): a science, which is based on a system of Axioms, is an exact sciense; nevertheless, it cannot be a perfect system of Axioms whatever; the aim is to build more and more good systems of Axioms.
Completing this set of Axioms, it should note again the congeniality of the Ch.Darwin's theory, the ideas of natelogy, and the revelations of Holy Scripture. They are common in the main confession, which is a starting point of cognition of Nature. The confession is the capacity of the living beings to unrestricted multiplication in term of the God's words: "Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth: Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: live-stock, creatures that move along the ground, and wild animals, each according to its kind" (Genesis, 20, 24).
So that:
Thank You for the food we eat.
