Waves of change

Apocalypse. Monsters. Alien invasions. And this year: Extinction. “We’re talking about big, intractable problems,” explains Erica Bastress-Dukehart, faculty coordinator of this fall’s Project Extinction. This year’s batch of one-credit courses again draws together students in many majors and faculty in many disciplines, from biology and mathematics to business and environmental studies.

The theme also dovetailed with the November campus visit of author Elizabeth Kolbert, whose Pulizer-winning book The Sixth Extinction argues that the mass extinctions happening now are the result of human activity. Her talk as the Carr Distinguished Interdisciplinary Lecturer was titled “We are the Asteroid”—likening human-driven climate change and species movements to the cause of the mass extinction of dinosaurs. She said, “We are changing the world very radically and very fast. If we continue on this current path, we won’t survive the century.” Asked if she is at all hopeful about humankind’s will to address the problem, Kolbert looked the students in the eye and replied: “I hope you’re listening.”

They are. Environmental studies major Rachel Dyckman ’16 was particularly struck by Kolbert’s reference to a New Pangaea. Dyckman explains, “The Earth is like one big continent, due to how readily species are moved around and introduced into areas by humans.” This new interconnectedness severely disrupts ecosystems.

In Project Extinction, Dyckman is in the minicourse called “Bees, Bats, Birds, and Butterflies.” She teamed with three other students on a project to raise awareness of bee colony collapse disorder with a table display in Case Center. Other topics in the course included the White Nose Syndrome decimating North American bat populations, declines in monarch butterflies, and efforts to sustain local biodiversity such as the Italian-born slow food movement.

“One Fish, Two Fish” looked at fish stocking and harvesting, discussed the impact of marine food consumption on human evolution, and did some mathematical modeling of fish populations. “Obsolescence” examined rapid change and “extinctions” in the technological world and their impacts on science and society. And “Aquacalypse” studied radical transformation of the oceans and our intimate connections to marine ecosystems.

In one exercise in “Aquacalypse,” students made recommendations from ecological, social, and health standpoints on whether to eat various seafoods. They assessed levels of mercury (bad) and omega-3 fatty acids (good), antibiotics in farmed fish, different fishing methods, impacts on other species, and the energy required to “produce” each species. Teams advised avoiding imported farmed shrimp, eating swordfish only occasionally, choosing wild-caught Alaskan sockeye salmon over farmed salmon, and enjoying nori seaweed without restriction.

"Aquacalypse” student Addison Bennett ’16 built on his new-found awareness in his team’s project to survey student awareness about seafood served in the College’s dining hall and factors influencing whether they choose to eat it. A government major who admits he has struggled “to connect with science,” Bennett says he is “learning a lot about the ocean ecosystem for the first time” and enjoying the interdisciplinary approach.

That’s the point, says Bastress-Dukehart, a historian who loves exploring the “convergence of science and ideas.” Biologist Erika Schielke says, “I hope students look at these topics and realize you can come at them from different directions, especially with a topic like extinction, which has such important societal impact.” Mathematician Mark Hofmann also wants students “to be willing to engage with science, and to be able to look at science in the media and make informed decisions.”

Hofmann adds that he is learning a lot himself from team-teaching “Bees, Bats, Birds, and Butterflies.” One of the original developers of the themed fall minicourses, he recalls that when they began four years ago, faculty shied away from the topic of climate change. In the first series, Apocalypse, he notes that he team-taught “Death from the Skies,” in which one student project calculated the risk of an asteroid hitting the Skidmore campus.

Flash forward, and faculty and students are indeed grappling with climate change—including extinction caused by the metaphorical asteroid of human technological development. That’s about as big and intractable as a problem can get. ~ By Kathryn Gallien