The European Academies’ Science Advisory Council (EASAC), the Hungarian Academy of Sciences (HAS) and the Academia Europaea Budapest Knowledge Hub will present the EASAC’s latest report “Regenerative Agriculture in Europe” at a jointly organised public symposium on 6 April, in the main building of the HAS.

The concept of regenerative agriculture aims to create sustainable, resilient, healthy, equitable and climate-friendly food systems. It can be defined as a system of farming principles and practices that, while maintaining agricultural productivity, seeks to increase biodiversity, enrich soils, restore watersheds and improve ecosystem services, including increasing the carbon sequestration potential.
The European Academies’ Science Advisory Council (EASAC) prepared its report on this wide range of issues, which will published on 5 April 2022, and then presented at a public event in Budapest, on Wednesday 6 April at the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, and in Stockholm, on Thursday 7 April at the Royal Swedish Academy of Agricultural Sciences.

The report has been prepared by a dedicated expert working group within the EASAC Environment Steering Panel. The 26-member working group, whose members were nominated by EASAC member academies, worked on the issue for a year. Hungarian experts are regularly nominated to EASAC expert working groups by HAS as an EASAC member academy. In this way a Hungarian researcher, Orsolya Valkó (Centre for Ecological Research), was nominated to the working group on regenerative agriculture. Orsolya Valkó participated as co-chair of the working group, the other co-chair being Lars Walloe, Chair of the EASAC Environmental Steering Panel.

The public session, chaired by Széchenyi Prize winner HAS member Gábor Stépán, will be opened on behalf of the HAS by Ervin Balázs, Chairman of the Department of Agricultural Sciences, followed by a series of speeches by academics and researchers – Lars Walloe, Orsolya Valkó, Thomas Elmquist, Anders Wijkman, Diána Ürge-Vorsatz – who will not only present the report in a narrow sense, but also shed light on the policy implications and the wider links with climate policies. The academic event will be available live on the HAS’s YouTube channel.

Source: MTA

Statistical inference is an essential component of both animal behavior and artificial intelligence algorithms. It focuses on two main tasks: combining information learned from the past and perceiving the present to try to predict the future (our teammate passes the ball to us, how to move to catch it, knowing our teammate and seeing the arc of the ball) while trying to make use of various past experiences for this prediction.

A new study by IE researchers shows that the population of the basic units of evolution, the self-reproducing replicators, are capable of performing exactly these calculations. The basis of this analogy is to view the competition of replicators as a competition for hypotheses about the future.

Bayesian learning theory and evolutionary theory both formalize adaptive competitive dynamics in a multidimensional, changing, and noisy environment. In this study, we discuss structural and dynamic analogies and their limitations, both at the computational and algorithmic-mechanical levels. We point out the mathematical equivalences between their basic dynamic equations, generalizing the isomorphism between Bayesian inference and replicator dynamics. We discuss how these mechanisms provide analogous responses to the challenge of adapting to a stochastically changing environment across multiple time scales. We shed light on the algorithmic equivalence between sampling approximation, particle filters, and the Wright-Fisher model of population genetics. These equivalences suggest that the frequency distribution of types in replicator populations optimally encodes the regularities of the stochastic environment to predict future environments, without reference to known mechanisms of multilevel selection and evolution. A unified approach to the theories of learning and evolution comes to the fore.

This theoretical link may lead to a better understanding of the diverse adaptations of biological evolution by showing a new adaptation goal emerging at the level of the population and not the individual. On the other hand, using this exact mathematical analogy, artificial evolutionary systems can become a more fundamental building block of intelligence.

Dániel Czégel, Giaffar Hamza, Josh Tenenbaum and Eörs Szathmáry
Bioessays. 2022 Feb 25: e2100255

What can we do to avoid an unexpected close acquaintance with another rapidly spreading newcomer after the coronavirus? Biologists Gábor Kemenesi and Gábor Földvári also answered these questions in their science lecture, the recording of which is published on the MTA YouTube channel (the link is available in the article on mta.hu).

To talk about an age of epidemics is no longer an exaggeration. The current coronavirus epidemic was predicted by science, but the list of viruses signed up to be the cause of the next epidemic is not over yet. In the lecture, Gábor Kemenesi talks about the basic knowledge related to the research of emerging infectious diseases. We can also get an idea of what may be the possible causes of future epidemics and where we can expect their emergence.

The shrinking of natural habitats and climate change create ecological situations that help many pathogens settle in new places and in new hosts, thus stimulating the emergence of epidemics in humans and domestic animals. Since we cannot stop or reverse the phenomenon, it is vital that we do everything we can to prevent it, prepare for its major effects, and develop a defence strategy. The currently prevalent post-event decision-making, medical or technological solutions (restrictive measures, vaccine, treatment) are not sufficient, as complex networks of evolutionary, ecological and epidemiological phenomena are in the background. Gábor Földvári’s presentation shows the connections between these and presents practical preventive solutions that would make it possible to curb epidemics such as the current one – before they break out.

About:

Gábor Földvári , a biologist, received his PhD for his results in the epidemiological and ecological studies of ticks and the pathogens they spread. He specializes in parasitology, epidemiology and pathogen ecology. Recently, his research interest has focused on how human activity and climate change affect the emergence of pathogens in new locations and new hosts.

Gábor Kemenesi is a biologist, virologist and lecturer as a university assistant professor. One of the Hungarian experts on emerging infectious diseases, he obtained his doctorate in bat virology. He also researches other aspects of emerging infectious diseases, such as viruses transmitted by mosquitoes or rodents. He conducts pioneering research on the subject on many continents.

The Budapest Climate Summit was held for the second time on October 7-8, 2021, where Gábor Földvári, the head of the Emerging Pathogen Ecology Research Group of the CER Institute of Evolution, participated as a speaker at the Biodiversity and Climate Protection panel. In the panel discussion, experts in the field discussed resolving the intertwined crises of climate change and biodiversity loss.

The Budapest Climate Summit is a unique and exclusive forum where the leaders of key companies in Hungary and the surrounding region, senior government and EU officials, top managers of financial and consulting companies, developers of innovative technological solutions and renowned researchers discuss local and international aspects of sustainable development in the light of the 2050 climate targets. The conference was attended by 180 people in person, representing more than 80 companies and institutions from 25 countries around the world, followed by hundreds of viewers online.

Source: Budapest Climate Summit

Eörs Szathmáry, member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, chairman of the Sustainable Development Committee of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, gave the opening speech at the 2021 Hungarian Science Festival, entitled ˇThe beautiful, the bad and the sustainable – What should and could the world be like?”. The lecture is available on the MTA YouTube channel.

Throughout the history of mankind, many civilizations have collapsed, often through their own fault. And the collapse of today’s globalized civilization could be global. It is not so much the mere survival of humanity but the collapse of technological civilization that would have catastrophic consequences for our quality of life – we must do everything we can to avoid this.

In his presentation, Eörs Szathmáry lists the threats to our civilization, the impending climate catastrophe, the increasingly unsustainable economic and social processes, the unprecedented destruction of nature, pandemics that are unfolding and the biggest obstacle to a solution.
the growth dilemma.

After exploring the reasons, the lecture seeks answers to the decision-making situations in which public thinking could be steered towards a form of global cooperation that would help divert our civilization from the path to collapse to a sustainable world.

Source: MTA Youtube channel

About:

Eörs Szathmáry is an evolutionary biologist, a member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, and the chairman of the Sustainable Development Committee of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. In his research, he studied and modeled many evolutionary processes from the origin of life to the development of human language skills. His book, The Great Steps of Evolution, co-authored with John Maynard Smith, is considered a cornerstone of modern evolutionary biology.

A new member has joined the Evolutionary Ecology research group. Tamara Szentiványi started her research activities on 1 January as a research fellow. Tamara’s research investigates the impact of urbanisation and other anthropogenic activities on invasive mosquitoes and the pathogens they transmit. Tamara previously worked on the ecology and evolution of host-parasite systems, focusing on bats and their parasites and the potentially zoonotic pathogens they carry. Previous studies include BSc at the University of Eszterházy Károly, MSc at the University of Debrecen, PhD at the University of Lausaunne, and previous postdoctoral research at the University of Northern Arizona.

With the support of the academic program strengthening the international competitiveness of Hungarian research groups, fifteen more internationally renowned guest professors will be able to participate in the work of research groups operating in Hungarian research centers, research institutes and higher education institutions. The Distinguished Guest Scientist Fellowship Program of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences made it possible to invite researchers for 3-6 months to Hungary. Within the framework of the application, a maximum of HUF 2.5 million monthly support could be obtained.

Applications were received from all three major disciplines – humanities and social sciences, life sciences, and mathematics and natural sciences.

The submitted applications were decided by a seven-member jury of experts in the respective fields of science after a thorough professional evaluation and comparison of the received applications. Out of the HUF 131 million grant, the jury decided to award grants ranging from HUF 6.3 million to HUF 14.28 million.

The Distinguished Guest Scientist Fellowship Program coming to the Centre for Ecological Research:
Professor Gábor Lövei from the University of Aarhus, Denmark, is involved in research on the assessment and protection of ecosystem services and biodiversity at the Centre for Ecological Research. This research topic has become an international priority, the two most important obstacles being the use of structural features instead of function and the overemphasis on positive services. The first substitution is problematic, and the second can backfire on nature conservation as an overemphasis on the values of nature. The guest researcher will work with the hosting team in three areas: 1. Developing a conceptually coherent system for the direct quantification of ecosystem services and damage; 2. Theoretical development of ecosystem damage assessment; 3. Development of an integrated, multifunctional assessment method that allows for the joint assessment of the benefits and harms of ecosystems.

Professor Herbert C. Wagner is a researcher at the Institute for Animal Ecology and Landscape Planning in Graz. The topic he studied together at the Centre for Ecological Research is human expansion and the associated environmental transformation activity that is leading to the mass extinction of species and the impoverishment of biodiversity. A multitude of species disappear from the face of the Earth before we can explore them. This so-called biodiversity crisis is affecting all parts of the world. The protection of the natural environment and the diversity of species must begin with an understanding of biodiversity; you need to know what to keep. Therefore, the knowledge of biodiversity, the description and listing of species is one of the most pressing problems in science today. Some species are so morphologically similar that even experienced experts cannot distinguish them, their description requires a whole new approach. However, the so-called recognition and distinction of cryptic species is key because, although formally similar, they may differ fundamentally in terms of their ecological needs and their role in ecosystems. The research examines the unique and largely unexplored diversity of Mediterranean grass ant species (genus Tetramorium) using a modern concept called integrated taxonomy that combines new methods and data from different disciplines. The Evolutionary Ecology Research Group would also like to contribute to a better understanding of ant diversity through research in this collaboration.

Professor Emeritus of the University of Toronto, Daniel Rusk Brooks, joining the work of the Centre for Ecological Research’s Emerging Pathogens Ecology Research Group, will conduct two complementary studies in collaboration with Hungarian and other foreign colleagues. The first shows that pathogens are unlikely to engage in a strong coevolutionary arms race or Red Queen dynamics with their host. Both concepts can be suggested to support that host changes are rare and thus the risk for emerging infectious diseases is small. However, modeling, conceptual, and empirical studies suggest that the risk for emerging diseases is quite large, giving pathogens a huge potential for survival, and indicating that the crisis of emerging infectious diseases is only just beginning. The joint research helps to illustrate the power of the Stockholm paradigm with traditional models. The second research uses a preliminary modeling result called stepping-stone dynamics. This suggests that the primary vector of a pathogen is often not the host in which the pathogen was developed, but rather one of the hosts in which the pathogen is capable of transmitting to other susceptible hosts. Particular emphasis is placed on examining whether, based on this, humans are the primary super-spreaders of COVID worldwide and responsible for the infection of a wide range of wildlife, which are now sources of re-infection, and maintain SARS-CoV-2 as a worldwide public health issue. The three months provided by the program allows for an excellent opportunity to jointly implement the above research plan with the Hungarian research group.

The Large Evolutionary Transitions Research Group at the Centre for Ecological Research will host Professor Mauro Santos, a researcher at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. The collaboration aims to model genetic evolution with dynamic species interaction patterns to study how the community is changing and evolving. To what extent can community-level artificial selection be successfully applied to the desired quantitative stamps? The answers to this question will help advance one of the major aspirations of modern biology, which focuses on discovering microbial communities

Source: MTA