Re: [ECOLOG-L] M.S vs. M.A.
In the state of Connecticut the M. A. is considered to be the higher degree. The students that will go on for a Ph. D. or wish to work for the Department of Environmental Protection pursue the M. A., whereas the students who are getting the masters to teach in the public schools (which is required in Connecticut) usually pursue the M. S. At my university both degrees offer a thesis and non-thesis option. It seems kind of backwards to me, but it is the way things are done here. Tiffany M. Doan, Ph. D. Associate Professor Department of Biology Central Connecticut State University 1615 Stanley St New Britain, CT 06050 USA phone: 860-832-2676 fax: 860-832-2594 www.biology.ccsu.edu/doan There is grandeur in this view of life. . . from so simple a beginning endless forms most beautiful and wonderful have been, and are being, evolved. --Charles Darwin On Sun, 17 Apr 2011 17:13:40 -0700, Priya Shukla pshu...@ucdavis.edu wrote: Hello Ecologgers! I'm wrapping up my fourth-year in environmental sciences at UC Davis and have been looking at graduate schools. I notice that different schools will offer either an M.S. or an M.A. degree. While I've heard there isn't a true difference between the two degree types, I've noticed that many government positions require an M.S. degree. I was hoping some of you could provide me with some insight on the difference between the two degrees -- if there even is one at all. Also, all else equal, would you hire an individual with an M.S. over an M.A.? Many thanks! -- Priya =
Re: [ECOLOG-L] M.S vs. M.A.
I don't know if this is still the case with universities, but when I received my MA it was considered a slightly higher degree than an MS because it meant I had met the foreign language requirements for a PhD. Warren W. Aney MA, Biometrics Oregon State Unversity, 1973 -Original Message- From: Ecological Society of America: grants, jobs, news [mailto:ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU] On Behalf Of Priya Shukla Sent: Sunday, 17 April, 2011 17:14 To: ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU Subject: [ECOLOG-L] M.S vs. M.A. Hello Ecologgers! I'm wrapping up my fourth-year in environmental sciences at UC Davis and have been looking at graduate schools. I notice that different schools will offer either an M.S. or an M.A. degree. While I've heard there isn't a true difference between the two degree types, I've noticed that many government positions require an M.S. degree. I was hoping some of you could provide me with some insight on the difference between the two degrees -- if there even is one at all. Also, all else equal, would you hire an individual with an M.S. over an M.A.? Many thanks! -- Priya
Re: [ECOLOG-L] M.S vs. M.A.
Here at Hofstra the MS option requires a research thesis, which means analysis of data the student him/herself has collected (lab or field). The MA option requires an essay, which is more of a literature review, although we encourage an original analysis. There are a couple of ways to think about the differences between the two, but the way I think about it is that if you are looking for a career in which you will be doing original research, go for the MS. As an advisor I expect a thesis to have at least one publishable paper. If you are looking for a career in which you need to understand research but not necessarily do it yourself or have publications, go for the MA. Essays are rarely publishable. We are developing 5-year BA/MA and BS/MS programs in Urban Ecology where the differences will be less dramatic. The undergrads will be involved in research from the start, and won't split into separate tracts until pretty far along. Dr. Russell Burke Department of Biology Hofstra University Hempstead, NY 11549 516-463-5521 bio...@hofstra.edu The first rule of intelligent tinkering is to keep all the pieces. -Original Message- From: Ecological Society of America: grants, jobs, news [mailto:ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU] On Behalf Of malcolm McCallum Sent: Sunday, April 17, 2011 9:46 PM To: ECOLOG-L@LISTSERV.UMD.EDU Subject: Re: [ECOLOG-L] M.S vs. M.A. In many schools there is no difference. In others, MA takes a foreign language and MS takes stats. In others, MA is a non-thesis degree (sometimes a final book report) and MS is a thesis. Combine this with the MAT (masters arts teaching), Professional Masters, and the oodles of other masters program designations, the best thing to do is just read the school's program description and not worry about it! There is no real pattern here across the country, even though many people seem to think there is. Malcolm On Sun, Apr 17, 2011 at 7:13 PM, Priya Shukla pshu...@ucdavis.edu wrote: Hello Ecologgers! I'm wrapping up my fourth-year in environmental sciences at UC Davis and have been looking at graduate schools. I notice that different schools will offer either an M.S. or an M.A. degree. While I've heard there isn't a true difference between the two degree types, I've noticed that many government positions require an M.S. degree. I was hoping some of you could provide me with some insight on the difference between the two degrees -- if there even is one at all. Also, all else equal, would you hire an individual with an M.S. over an M.A.? Many thanks! -- Priya -- Malcolm L. McCallum Managing Editor, Herpetological Conservation and Biology Peer pressure is designed to contain anyone with a sense of drive - Allan Nation 1880's: There's lots of good fish in the sea W.S. Gilbert 1990's: Many fish stocks depleted due to overfishing, habitat loss, and pollution. 2000: Marine reserves, ecosystem restoration, and pollution reduction MAY help restore populations. 2022: Soylent Green is People! Confidentiality Notice: This e-mail message, including any attachments, is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may contain confidential and privileged information. Any unauthorized review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply e-mail and destroy all copies of the original message.
Re: [ECOLOG-L] Education Public Science Media Writing Speaking Ecology Re: [ECOLOG-L] Disseminating scientific thought to the general public: are scientists making science readily accessible?
Puhleeze -- do your homework, student. Listen to the interview again. Solotaroff does NOT link Evert's death to whitebark pine and climate change. He describes it as an accident involving improper marking of a site after another team had released a drugged bear. With respect to trout, introduced trout are a problem, but that does not negate any relationship between rising water temperatures, diminution of streamflow, and trout population declines. In the interview, Solotaroff seems to adequately appreciate the complexity of the ecosystem, that several factors affect bear food supply. He does not make the propellerhead mistake of assuming that if X influences Z, then Y cannot. If Y influences Z, Y influences Z. It doesn't matter what X does, except in the case of interactive effects. Here is what the Greater Yellowstone Coalition says about climate change and trout populations: On top of the existing suite of threats, the climate is changing in Greater Yellowstone and aquatic systems are already showing a response. As temperatures have warmed, snowpack is on a downward trend and peak spring runoff in the Intermountain West is occurring on average 10 to 20 days earlier than the historical average. This translates to lower and warmer summer flows, which is bad news for cold-water fisheries. When water temperatures warm, thermal thresholds for native cutthroat trout are exceeded and warm-water fish species such as small mouth bass readily move in to occupy new habitat. It is highly likely that over the next 50 years, the world-renowned cold-water fishery of the Yellowstone River below Livingston, Mont. will shrink considerably as the small mouth [sic] population of the lower river moves upstream. A predator such as a grizzly bear may have difficulty switching to another prey species, such as smallmouth bass, that exhibits different behavior. Solotaroff seems to be spot on by noting that the bear in the other fatal attack in Yellowstone was severely underweight. There seems to be some significant food supply issues affecting their behavior, and I am inclined to agree with him that climate change plays A role. Dave On 4/17/2011 11:15 PM, Lynn M. Moore wrote: Thank you for the sources Dave, for the most part they support my assertion that Mr Solotaroff exaggerated his conclusions that the recent bear attacks in the greater yellowstone area are a direct result of climate change. Dr. Everts death, was not caused by an attack from a hungry bear, but was an unfortunate accident caused by a bear recovering from sedation. It is likely that bear-human encounters will increase as the pine bark nuts decrease (as your google sources suggest), but this particular death, which Mr. Solotaroff mentioned specifically in his interview, was not a result of the pine beetle epidemic. Mr. Solotaroff claimed that all the trout species (cutthroat, brook, and rainbow) in Yellowstone were diminished, because the streams were warming due to climate change, the google sources you provided mention no evidence of warming waters. The cutthroat numbers have decreased, but as a result of the invasive species lake trout, not because the waters are warming as Mr Solotaroff claimed in the interview on NPR. Climate change is a real problem for our western ecosystems, for all ecosystems. But putting forth a scare tactic, that climate change is causing grizzly bears to attack humans does not win over the climate deniers. The climate deniers solution would be to shoot more grizzly bears, not trade in their SUV for a Prius. Grizzly bears are always dangerous. Non-fatal bear attacks (and occasionally fatal ones) happen every year. Anyone going into bear country, whether it is in the park or not does so with the knowledge of risk. The tone of the interview was wrong. I still hold that Solotaroff made too many linkages that are not supported, and they appear as smoke. Journalists, especially those who are not scientists (such as Solotaroff) should learn from journalists who are scientists (such as you Dave, i recall your posts from last week). My problem with journalism is not influenced by any bias I have against journalists, I am biased against exaggerated statements. NPR generally consults scientists when presenting pieces such as this. i am disappointed that NPR did not follow up with scientists who are actually doing the work. LM On Apr 17, 2011, at 3:27 PM, David M. Lawrence wrote: Before attacking journalists, Lynn, maybe you should do some fact-checking on your own. It seems Solotaroff is not too far off base -- there certainly seems to be enough proverbial smoke to make the claims you attack him for: From Scientific American: Lack of food drives human-grizzly conflicts—and human-grizzly fatalities (http://bit.ly/gEteZB) From Billings Gazette: Scarce pine nuts leaves Yellowstone grizzlies hungry, more dangerous (http://bit.ly/eql2yl) From the U.S. Fish
[ECOLOG-L] Communicating science (Randy Olson)
http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/04/14/climate-communication-and-t he-nerd-loop/?emc=eta1 Randy Olson, the marine biologist turned filmmaker and author http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/01/31/can-video-move-the-public- on-climate/ who's about as far from the label nerd as can be, had his Howard Beale mad as hell moment http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/34788/Network/trailers over climate miscommunication last week on his blog, The Benshi. David W. Inouye Program Director Population and Community Ecology Cluster Division of Environmental Biology National Science Foundation 4201 Wilson Blvd, Suite 635 Arlington, VA 22230 Phone: 703.292.8570 Fax: 703.292.9064 E-mail: dino...@nsf.gov
Re: [ECOLOG-L] M.S vs. M.A.
Priya Shukla pshu...@ucdavis.edu wrote: Hello Ecologgers! I'm wrapping up my fourth-year in environmental sciences at UC Davis and have been looking at graduate schools. I notice that different schools will offer either an M.S. or an M.A. degree. While I've heard there isn't a true difference between the two degree types, I've noticed that many government positions require an M.S. degree. I was hoping some of you could provide me with some insight on the difference between the two degrees -- if there even is one at all. Also, all else equal, would you hire an individual with an M.S. over an M.A.? The difference is simply whatever the institution offering the degree says it is. No accrediting agency says anything about a difference between a master of science and a master of arts. At some institutions that offer both in the same department, the master of arts is non-thesis, but that is not a consistent difference, and some institutions offer a master of arts with thesis. At others, sort of by default, all master's degrees in the sciences are called master of science, while those in the arts are called master of arts. Originally, by tradition, a degree with the specification ... of science trained one in a vocation of some sort, it was an applied degree, while one with the specification of arts educated one in the liberal arts. I'd check those government job requirements again, and see if they don't simply specify a master's degree, perhaps with a minimum number of hours in certain disciplines. For what it's worth, I'd say get your degree from the most reputable school you can, take the courses that provide the content you expect to need for the jobs you want, and pursue a thesis track degree rather than a non-thesis, even if you don't expect to do research in the future. By completing a research track, you'll learn a lot more about your own capabilities than you ever will in courses. mcneely
[ECOLOG-L] Job Posting: GIS Analyst at The Nature Conservancy in Oregon
We have an opening for a GIS Analyst at The Nature Conservancy in Oregon. This position will be based out of the Portland, OR office. For the complete job description and directions on how to apply please follow the link below. https://careers.nature.org/psc/P89HTNC_APP/APPLICANT/HRMS/c/HRS_HRAM.HRS_CE.GBL?Page=HRS_CE_JOB_DTLAction=AJobOpeningId=13157SiteId=1PostingSeq=1 Thanks, Dan
[ECOLOG-L] Presidio Ecological Restoration Internship
All We expect three 12-month internships to become available in late May and mid June in the Presidio of San Francisco. Please forward to anyone who might be interested! Presidio Ecological Restoration Internship Background The Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA) is the world's largest urban park, spanning over 70,000 acres of the San Francisco Bay Area. Much of the park's land was once under military or private use, and a thriving community-based program is facilitating ecosystem recovery of damaged habitat in the park's remaining natural areas. In the Presidio of San Francisco, the National Park Service, the Presidio Trust and the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy support natural areas management through the collaborative Presidio Park Stewards program. This program works with the community to plant native species, remove invasive vegetation, and monitor habitat restoration projects. Intern Responsibilities/Duties: Work with Presidio Natural Resources Staff to address invasive species management issues. Provide volunteer supervision and leadership during community work days. Educate students and community volunteers, through public and school programs, in ecological restoration concepts and techniques. Perform the role of site steward for a selected natural area, coordinating all related natural resources activities. Research land use history and other information relevant to restoration site management. Participate in the monitoring of rare and endangered plant species. Help coordinate the planting of native species when necessary. Record all work performed using a variety of methods, from notes on paper to database entry. Implement an independent project to further the goals of the program Minimum Qualifications: Familiarity with plants and nature. Excellent interpersonal skills and an ability to work with people from diverse backgrounds and age groups. The ability to carry out projects with a minimum of direct day-to-day supervision. The ability to do rigorous field work, especially weeding, often in harsh weather conditions. Desired Qualifications: A background in one or more of the following: ecology, environmental studies, or a related field. An appreciation of, and enthusiasm for, native California plants and ecological communities. In interest in participating in a collective management structure and creative decision-making process. Terms Position is for 12 months Housing in the Park is provided; Interns receive a daily expense stipend of $25 Work Schedule is Tuesday through Saturday, 8:30 AM to 5 PM To apply or for more information Send your resume to: Mark Frey; mf...@presidiotrust.gov by Sunday May 8th. Thank You, Mark Frey Supervisory Ecologist Presidio Trust 415-561-4148
