Talk:Theodosius Dobzhansky

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[edit] Place where ashes scattered

If anyone knows the place name where Dobzhansky's ashes were scattered, please add this information to the article. It is significant because evolutionary biologists sometimes visit the place (I know from personal correspondence that Brian and Deborah Charlesworth have, (quoting BC) "inhaling thousands of molecules of the stuff"). - Samsara contrib talk 21:05, 19 January 2006 (UTC)

[edit] "Holodomor" reference

I don't think this issue is relevant to the article; Dobzhansky had been living in the States for five years before it started. I've deleted the sentence and associated reference. Tevildo (talk) 19:55, 19 January 2008 (UTC)

I agree. The relevance of this event to his life has not been shown. EdJohnston (talk) 20:33, 19 January 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Tribute video

I've posted a pair of videos to YouTube, which might be of interest in the External links section. The videos are parts I and II of a tribute to Dobzhanksy consisting of old home movies of him, including scenes of him collecting Drosophila at Mather, along with audio commentary from several of his students, including Wyatt Anderson, Bruce Wallace, Francisco J. Ayala, Lee Ehrman, and Jeff Powell. Links to the videos are here and here. Add them to the article if you see fit. Zé Ayala, May 7, 2008. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.227.255.222 (talk) 19:41, 7 May 2008 (UTC)

Thanks for telling us, and for checking here on the Talk page. The videos appear very relevant and useful. Can you tell us who made these videos, and who you believe owns their copyright? This is a question that people sometimes ask, and it's good to check it out when we can. EdJohnston (talk) 19:45, 7 May 2008 (UTC)
I am the creator and copyright owner of this video. The home movies are all from my family's collection, and I received permission from each of the audio commentators to publicize their recordings. Zé Ayala, May 7, 2008. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.227.255.222 (talk) 19:56, 7 May 2008 (UTC)
You are also User:Pawntakesqueencheck? Better not keep restoring the link to the article; anti-spam bots have been told to watch out for YouTube. I am asking an experienced colleague if the link is acceptable; let's wait to hear what he says. EdJohnston (talk) 15:57, 8 May 2008 (UTC)
Yes, that is me. The notice I received informing me of the automatic removal implied that the reason for it was that I wasn't a registered user, so I registered and reposted the links. I'm confused by the automatic removal: Wikipedia's policy on external links says there is no blanket ban on YouTube links. Pawntakesqueencheck (talk) 19:46, 8 May 2008 (UTC)
RE; http://www.youtube.com/user/pawntakesqueencheck,
Neutrality is an important objective at Wikipedia, Unfortunately the External links policy on Advertising and conflicts of interest states You should avoid linking to a website that you own, maintain or represent, even if the guidelines otherwise imply that it should be linked, which is in line with the conflict of interest guidelines. Neutral and independent Wikipedia editors should decide whether to add it, however here are some additional rules:
Wikipedia is not the place for tribute videos. Some links can be a service to the reader, but they cannot improve the encyclopedia or article itself. Yes, the internet is full of good material, but Wikipedia is not a directory to that content.--Hu12 (talk) 04:15, 9 May 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Brazilian Drosophila research and classic Amazon forest diversity paper not noted in article

Dobzhansky is remembered in Brazil, and perhaps his Brazilian contributions will be remembered in a later edition of this biography. His classic Amazon tree paper is:

G. A. Black, Th. Dobzhansky and C. Pavan. 1950. Some Attempts to Estimate Species Diversity and Population Density of Trees in Amazonian Forests. Botanical Gazette, Vol. 111, No. 4 pp. 413-425.

--Wloveral (talk) 00:39, 14 May 2008 (UTC)

Thanks for the suggestion. Are you able to give us a few sentences, in your words, of what the main contribution of this paper was? References are good, but article text is better. You may have noticed that Dobzhansky deserves a much better article than what we currently have! EdJohnston (talk) 01:41, 14 May 2008 (UTC)