Entering my first year of grad school has been intimidating. Returning to school, entering a new department, and moving away from my comfortable circle of friends and co-workers has forced me into a state of unease. Most of all, I feel as I am playing a constant game of catch-up to understand what the field of ecology is. Then couple nearly a hundred years of historical papers with the perpetual flow of new scientific articles and comprehending it all is impossible. So when Courchamp and Bradshaw published their “100 articles every ecologist should read” it seemed another insurmountable feat that I would never accomplish.
Despite the infeasibility, lists like theirs seem important. And more important than the content of their list, is the discussion it sparked in the ecological community and in my community now at UGA. Clearly, building a strong foundation of ecological theory and being able to recognize seminal and diverse work that has moved the field forward is valuable knowledge to both new and seasoned ecologists.
And that’s what has sparked this reading group. We all come from different academic backgrounds: biology, anthropology, and mathematics, and now ecology has brought us together. We aren’t cemented to the list composed by Courchamp and Bradshaw, but are excited by the challenge to build our own lists and share the ideas, authors, and themes that might inspire and guide our own future work. Most of all, we are encouraged that these lists are dynamic. Ideas change, new eyes on historical works may uncover underappreciated authors, and paired contemporary papers keep us on the edge of ongoing scientific breakthroughs.
This semester we won’t read 100 papers, but we will:
- Engage with a wide range of literature, both historical and current, to develop a broad understanding of ecology
- Consider classic papers not only in the context of the time in which they were written, but also in terms of how the field and their ideas have changed
- Develop a common language with our peers for discussing ecological theories