Self-organization is sometimes presented as an alternative to natural selection as the primary mechanism underlying the evolution of function in biological systems. Here we argue that although self-organization is one of selection's fundamental tools, selection itself is the creative force in evolution. The basic relationship between self-organization and natural selection is that the same self-organizing processes we observe in physical systems also do much of the work in biological systems. Consequently, selection does not always construct complex mechanisms from scratch. However, selection does capture, manipulate, and control self-organizing mechanisms, which is challenging because these processes are sensitive to environmental conditions. Nevertheless, the often-inflexible principles of self-organization do strongly constrain the scope of evolutionary change. Thus, incorporating the physics of pattern-formation processes into existing evolutionary theory is a problem significant enough to perhaps warrant a new synthesis, even if it will not overturn the traditional view of natural selection.

Nonindigenous forest insects and pathogens affect a range of ecosystems, industries, and property owners in the United States. Evaluating temporal patterns in the accumulation of these nonindigenous forest pests can inform regulatory and policy decisions. We compiled a comprehensive species list to assess the accumulation rates of nonindigenous forest insects and pathogens established in the United States. More than 450 nonindigenous insects and at least 16 pathogens have colonized forest and urban trees since European settlement. Approximately 2.5 established nonindigenous forest insects per year were detected in the United States between 1860 and 2006. At least 14% of these insects and all 16 pathogens have caused notable damage to trees. Although sap feeders and foliage feeders dominated the comprehensive list, phloem- and wood-boring insects and foliage feeders were often more damaging than expected. Detections of insects that feed on phloem or wood have increased markedly in recent years.

Water controls the dynamics of terrestrial ecosystems directly, as a resource for the biota, and indirectly, as a driver for abiotic processes on the Earth's surface, in the atmosphere, and belowground. The biota, in turn, modulate several hydrological processes and the rate of the water cycle. Here we review recent advances related to fundamental processes and feedbacks emerging from the interactions among hydrologic processes and ecosystems, with a particular focus on soil moisture dynamics and river flow. Most terrestrial vegetation interacts with hydrological processes through the soil-water balance, which is affected by soil properties, random climate drivers, and feedbacks with the biota. River flow enhances the ecohydrological connectivity of the landscape, spreading sediments, nutrients, propagules, and waterborne disease through waterways.

Billions of dollars are being spent in the United States to restore rivers to a desired, yet often unknown, reference condition. In lieu of a known reference, practitioners typically assume the paradigm of a connected watercourse. Geological and ecological processes, however, create patchy and discontinuous fluvial systems. One of these processes, dam building by North American beavers (Castor canadensis), generated discontinuities throughout precolonial river systems of northern North America. Under modern conditions, beaver dams create dynamic sequences of ponds and wet meadows among free-flowing segments. One beaver impoundment alone can exceed 1000 meters along the river, flood the valley laterally, and fundamentally alter biogeochemical cycles and ecological structures. In this article, we use hierarchical patch dynamics to investigate beaver-mediated discontinuity across spatial and temporal scales. We then use this conceptual model to generate testable hypotheses addressing channel geomorphology, natural flow regime, water quality, and biota, given the importance of these factors in river restoration.

Several lists of grand challenges in biology have been published recently, highlighting the strong need to answer fundamental questions about how life evolves and is governed, and how to apply this knowledge to solve the pressing problems of our times. To succeed in addressing the challenges of 21st century biology, scientists need to generate, have access to, interpret, and archive more information than ever before. But for many important questions in biology, progress is stymied by a lack of essential tools. Discovering and developing necessary tools requires new technologies, applications of existing technologies, software, model organisms, and social structures. Such new social structures will promote tool building, tool sharing, research collaboration, and interdisciplinary training. Here we identify examples of the some of the most important needs for addressing critical questions in biology and making important advances in the near future.

The US Long Term Ecological Research (LTER) program began in 1980 with the mission of addressing long-term ecological phenomena through research at individual sites, as well as comparative and synthetic activities among sites. We applied network science measures to assess how the LTER program has achieved its mission using intersite publications as the measure of collaboration. As it grew, the LTER program evolved from (a) a collection of independent sites (1981–1984) to (b) multiple ephemerally connected groupings with a gradual increase in collaboration (1985 to about 1998) to (c) a largely collaborative, densely connected network (from approximately 1999 on). Some sites demonstrated “preferential attachment”by contributing more to the evolution of network cohesion than others. Collaborative efforts of LTER scientists included cross-site measurements and comparions, information technology transfer, documentation of methodologies, and synthesis of ecological concepts. Network science provides insights that not only document the evolution of research networks but also may be prescriptive of mechanisms to enhance this evolution.

Conservation scientists increasingly recognize the need to incorporate the social sciences into policy decisions. In practice, however, considerable challenges to integrating the social and natural sciences remain. In this article, we review the US Fish and Wildlife Service's (FWS) 2009 decision to remove the northern Rocky Mountain population of gray wolves from the federal list of endangered species. We examine the FWS's arguments concerning the threat posed by humans' attitudes toward wolves in light of the existing social science literature. Our analysis found support for only one of four arguments underlying the FWS's assessment of public attitudes as a potential threat to wolves. Although we found an extensive literature on attitudes toward wolves, the FWS cited just one empirical research article. We conclude that when listing decisions rest on assumptions about society, these assumptions should be evaluated using the best available natural and social science research.