Ecology副编辑Daniel Laughlin：给青年生态学家的一封信

生态学文献分享 · 公众号 · · 2024-06-27 11:00

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注：本文是怀俄明大学植物生态学教授、 Ecology 副编辑 Daniel Laughlin 发表在 The Bulletin of the Ecological Society of America 上的一篇散文。 Laughlin 根据自己多年从事生态学的经验，给青年生态学家提出了一些宝贵的建议。文短情长，值得品读。下附中文翻译版和英文原版。原文链接：

https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/bes2.2151

中文翻译版

亲爱的同事：

你一直萦绕于我的心头。因为我总忍不住担心，这纷纷扰扰的世界正在妨碍你成为理想中的卓有建树的生态学家的步伐。推动生态学前进所需的深入工作需要反思的时间，而反思则需要一颗清晰、开放、渴望探索的心灵。当时间管理已然成为零和博弈时，我们该如何最大限度地利用珍贵的分分秒秒？尽管我仍在努力摆脱这个加速时代的干扰，但在过去二十年里，我在这片急剧变化的领域上航行，还是积攒了一些建议想与你分享。请将你的精力花在生态学的三大要素上：自然史、定量推理和交流（ natural history, quantitative reasoning, and communication ）。

自然史是生态学探究的核心。对于任何一个寻求自我反思并理解其在地球上的位置的人类而言，观察其他物种并流连于它们的栖息环境是他 / 她的重要消遣。但我们中有些人是如此热爱自然史，以至于将这种消遣变成了职业。观察自然世界不仅仅是工作的一项福利，它更应该被铭刻在每个生态学家的工作描述中。并非每个人都深深眷恋于岩石、土壤、溪流和山脉——在这些地方栖息着苔藓、跳虫、鸟类和树木，但每个人每天确实都应该花点时间见证一些野性。探索城市公园，在蜿蜒的河流上漂浮，穿越山口，坐在古树的脚下。研习其他物种的名字和行为，在自然空间中玩耍，这些让我们对免费提供给我们的东西心存感激，并在我们努力了解这个世界在不安变化的时代如何运转时学会谦卑。这是何其珍贵的礼物——研究对象还能提供一个找到力量的避难所，正如 Kimmerer 在 2013 年所言： “ 土地记得你，即使你已迷失方向。 ” 所以，那些最伟大的艺术家和科学们选择通过长途漫步来找寻自己的声音，并非偶然。那么，就请加入奥斯汀、勃拉姆斯、居里夫人和达尔文的行列，迈出探索自然世界的步伐。这种简单的练习将为你投入生态学的其他两个要素提供精神支撑。

定量推理是我们 “ 深入而不懈地审视一切（ examine all things intensely and relentlessly ） ” （ Dillard 1989 ）、同时保持智力上的诚实的最锋利的工具。我们对自然世界的想法必须在面对数据时经受住审查，由此数学与自然史的结合催生了现代生态学。健康的怀疑态度可以防止自欺的致命缺陷。恐惧数学的学生不应被生态学吓退，因为好奇心终将比数学能力更重要（ Wilson 2013 ）。就我本人而言，我勉强通过了微积分，我的第一篇研究论文是没怎么用到统计学的自然历史。但我认识到自己的不足，在博士答辩后重修了微积分和线性代数。实践自然史赋予我发现自然真理的好奇心，而从事数学和概率的逻辑工作则赋予我甄别真理与幻想的新能力。学习如何使用统计编程语言拟合线性模型、解方程、寻找函数的最优点并计算概率密度，对于量化个体、种群、群落和生态系统的动态是必不可少的。读到这里，有些人可能会感到“冒名顶替综合症”的阴影在颈后升起，如果是这样，那么你已经加入了一个充满优秀头脑的大群体，他们和你有同感。请记住，学习是一趟没有终点的旅行。你此刻的所在就是完美。

通过写作和演讲进行交流将你的发现转化为人类的知识，因为没有交流的艺术，你的发现将会枯萎在枝头。卓越的生态学家也是专业的作家，而最好的作家往往也是最重量级读者。要想写得好，那就读好书，内化优秀写作的样子、声音和感觉。不要局限于经典的生态学文本。去读小说。读任何能引发喜悦、悲伤，尤其是惊奇的东西，因为卓越的科学交流将惊奇与逻辑融合在一起。文字可以是表达细致推理的锐利工具。阐明自己的论点和解构他人的论点需要深思熟虑，这些时刻的不确定性可能令人窒息：你永远不知道对一个论点的检查是会屈服于其不可辩驳的逻辑，还是会在其谬误面前产生令人困惑的反驳。这需要精神敏锐度，所以最好在你最清醒的时候进行。同样重要的是将你的工作展示给现场观众，将你的论点精炼到最重要的点。与支持你的朋友和同伴一起练习，并逐步向更为怀疑的观众展示，以便你能够有效地传达你的论点、发现和故事。避免拘泥于自己的文字，并享受无情的编辑的“摧残”。完美的论文并不存在，好的论文只是经过不断的编辑才最终变得优秀。

在一个加速的世界中，要取得进步、先放慢脚步，似乎是违反直觉的。但如果你给自己时间来深入阅读、清晰写作和定量推理，尤其是在长途散步之后，你的生活和工作将会更加丰富多彩。

英文原版

Dear colleague,

You have been on my mind. I worry that this relentlessly distracting world is impeding your journey toward becoming the productive ecologist you aim to be. The deep work that is needed to advance ecology requires time for reflection and reflection requires a mind that is clear, open, and eager. How do we make the most of each precious hour when time management is a zero-sum game? I still struggle to swat away the interruptions that define this age of acceleration, but after 20 years of navigating this rapidly shifting terrain, I have some words of advice. Spend your energy on three elements of ecology: natural history, quantitative reasoning, and communication.

Natural history is the core of ecological enquiry. Observing other species and recreating in their natural habitat is an important pastime for any human being who seeks to live an examined life and understand their place on this planet, but some of us love natural history so much that we have turned this pastime into a vocation. Observing the natural world is not just a perk of the job, it should be engraved in every ecologist's job description. Not everyone has deep connections to the rocks, soils, streams, and mountains in which moss, springtails, birds, and trees reside, but everyone should take time each day to witness something wild. Explore city parks, float meandering rivers, traverse mountain passes, and sit at the feet of ancient trees. Learning the names and behaviors of other species and playing in natural spaces grounds us, makes us grateful for what is freely provided to us, and humbles us as we struggle to learn how the world ticks at a time of unsettling change. What a rare gift that the very subject of study can also provide sanctuary in which to find strength, for “the land knows you, even when you are lost” (Kimmerer 2013). It is no coincidence that some of the most inspiring artists and scientists chose to wander on long walks to find their voice, so join the ranks of Austen, Brahms, Curie, and Darwin and take the natural world in strides. This simple practice will give you the mental capacity to engage in the other two elements of ecology.

Quantitative reasoning is our sharpest tool to “examine all things intensely and relentlessly” (Dillard 1989) while remaining intellectually honest. The marriage of mathematics and natural history gave birth to modern ecology because our ideas about the natural world must survive scrutiny when confronted with data. Healthy skepticism can guard against the fatal flaw of fooling yourself. Students who dread mathematics should not be deterred from ecology because a sense of curiosity is ultimately more important than mathematical aptitude (Wilson 2013). I barely passed calculus and my first research papers were unrepentant natural histories with little use for statistics, but I recognized my deficiency and reenrolled in calculus and linear algebra after defending my PhD. Practicing natural history endowed me with curiosity to discover natural truths, but engaging in the logic of mathematics and probability gave me new agency to winnow truth from fantasy. Learning how to use a statistical programming language to fit linear models, solve equations, find optima of functions, and compute probability densities is essential for quantifying the dynamics of individuals, populations, communities, and ecosystems. Some of you, after reading that last sentence, may have felt the specter of imposter syndrome raise the hairs on the back of your neck. If so, then you have joined a large group filled with brilliant minds that feel just like you. Remember that learning is a journey with no destination. Perfect is wherever you are today.

Ecology副编辑Daniel Laughlin：给青年生态学家的一封信

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