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ESI Special Topics, December 2002
Citing URL: http://www.esi-topics.com/erf/comments/december02-LindseyRustad.html

From •>>December 2002

Lindsey Rustad answer a few questions about this month's fast breaking paper in field of Environment/Ecology:

Field: Environment/Ecology
Article Title: " A meta-analysis of the response of soil respiration, net nitrogen mineralization, and aboveground plant growth to experimental ecosystem warming"
 Authors: Rustad, LE;Campbell, JL;Marion, GM;Norby, RJ;Mitchell, MJ;Hartley, AE;Cornelissen, JHC;Gurevitch, J
Journal: OECOLOGIA
Volume: 126
Page: 543-562
Year: FEB 2001
* US Forest Serv, NE Res Stn, Durham, NH 03824 USA.
* US Forest Serv, NE Res Stn, Durham, NH 03824 USA.
* Desert Res Inst, Reno, NV 89512 USA.
* Oak Ridge Natl Lab, Oak Ridge, TN 37831 USA.
* SUNY Coll Environm Sci & Forestry, Syracuse, NY 13210 USA.
* Marine Biol Lab, Ctr Ecosyst, Woods Hole, MA 02543 USA.
* Univ Sheffield, Dept Anim & Plant Sci, Sheffield Ctr Arctic Ecol, Sheffield S10 2TN, S Yorkshire, England.
* SUNY Stony Brook, Dept Ecol & Evolut, Stony Brook, NY 11794 USA.


ST:  Why do you think your paper is highly cited?

It provides a comprehensive analysis that demonstrates a statistically significant increase in rates of soil respiration, N mineralization and aboveground plant productivity in response to experimental warming.

ST:  Does it describe a new discovery or a new methodology that's useful to others?

Meta-analysis is still a relatively new tool in the ecological sciences. This approach allows us to make statistically significant generalizations about the response of three key ecosystem processes to experimental warming.

ST:  What were some of the circumstances that led you to do this research?

There was a clear need to synthesize data from the ecosystem warming community. Many research groups were doing similar experiments around the world, but had little direct communication. This paper provided a mechanism not only to synthesize important global change data but also to promote communication among international research groups and organizations.

ST:  Could you summarize the significance of your paper in layman's terms?

This paper demonstrates that soil respiration, N mineralization, and plant productivity all show a general initial increase in response to increases in temperature. Future research needs to focus on whether these responses are sustainable in the longer-term.End

Lindsey Rustad
Forest Ecologist
USDA Forest Service
Northeastern Research Station
Cumberland, ME, USA

Also, see Lindsey Rustad in Fast Breaking Papers this month for the same paper.

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ESI Special Topics, December 2002
Citing URL: http://www.esi-topics.com/erf/comments/december02-LindseyRustad.html
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