Doctoral Dissertation Research: Cold War Convergence: The Making of a Chile-California Scientific Network

博士论文研究：冷战趋同：智利-加州科学网络的建立

• 批准号: 2240908
• 负责人: Paul Sutter
• 金额: $ 1.51万
• 依托单位: University of Colorado at Boulder
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2023-04-15 至 2024-06-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2240908&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Doctoral; Dissertation; Research; Cold; War; Doctoral; Dissertation; Research; Cold; War

Mediterranean-type ecosystems (MTEs) represent two percent of terrestrial landmass but possess a plant diversity that is second only to that of the wet tropics. MTE regions—centered between thirty degrees and forty degrees north or south of the equator, and characterized by cool, wet winters and warm, sunny summers—demonstrate remarkable physical similarities, but efforts to study them collectively are relatively new. In 1971, biologists hailing from the world’s five MTE regions convened their first meeting. They collaboratively tested the evolutionary theory of convergence, the notion that like environments shape like life forms. In the process, they established a global scientific network based on common concern for these analogous landscapes. Now, this decentralized group of researchers represents a key body of expertise around urbanization, water scarcity, wildfires, and more. This project seeks to unpack and explain the connective success of a group of far-flung scientific individuals. Despite having no legal charter or institutional affiliation, the MTE network has endured—seemingly on the basis of strong personal and intellectual relationships. Findings from this project will offer insights into how science functions across national boundaries, and will be of interest to policy makers, scientists, and environmentalists of many stripes.Research focuses upon scientific contact between Chile and California, the two MTE regions often deemed most alike. The project draws upon archival research and new oral history content from interviews with key historical actors to address three related questions: What scientific and theoretical context influenced the working relationships of these scientists? Within the Cold War context, how did broad U.S. foreign policies designed to contain communism influence person-to-person relationships? And did these relationships translate into management decisions—did they influence conservation techniques, protected area boundaries, fire management policies, or in other ways shape the landscapes of California and Chile?This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

地中海型生态系统（MTE）占陆地地质的2％，但潜在的植物多样性仅次于湿热带地区。 MTE区域（以等效器以北或南部或南40度之间，以凉爽，潮湿的冬季和温暖，阳光明媚的夏天为特征，以较鲜明的身体相似性，但共同研究它们的努力是相对较新的。 1971年，来自世界五个MTE地区的生物学家召集了他们的第一次会议。他们协作测试了融合的进化理论，这种概念像生活形式一样塑造了环境。在此过程中，他们基于对这些类似景观的共同关注建立了一个全球科学网络。现在，这一分散的研究人员群体代表了围绕城市化，缺乏稀缺，野火等的关键专业知识。该项目旨在解开包装并解释一群遥远的科学个体的连接成功。尽管没有法律宪章或机构关联公司，但MTE网络仍在牢固的个人和智力关系基础上持久。该项目的发现将提供有关多个条纹的政策制定者，科学家和环保主义者的跨国界限科学运作方式的见解。研究重点关注智利和加利福尼亚之间的科学接触，这两个MTE地区通常认为最相似。该项目借鉴了与主要历史参与者的访谈中的档案研究和新的口述历史内容，以解决三个相关问题：哪些科学和理论背景影响了这些科学家的工作关系？在冷战背景下，旨在遏制共产​​主义的广泛外交政策如何影响人际关系？这些关系是否转化为管理决策 - 它们会影响保护技术，保护领域的边界，消防管理政策，或以其他方式塑造加利福尼亚和智利的景观？该奖项反映了NSF的法定任务，并被认为是通过基金会的智力优点和更广泛影响的评估来审查的审查标准，被认为是珍贵的支持。