IBOY, an assembly under one banner of worldwide projects in basic science, informatics, and education (see "Year of Biodiversity"), faces communication challenges. The problem is that the all-embracing nature of biodiversity makes appreciation of it more difficult to grasp than that of biodiversity's products, such as particular plants or animals.
"We all recognize there's a major crisis in biodiversity," Princeton University associate professor of biology and IBOY steering committee member Andrew P. Dobson comments. Rather than belabor the current, rapid loss of species around the world, he offers comparisons between art and life forms. In both cases, he notes, rarity is an attribute that can confer value. Only about 60 works of the 17th century Dutch painter Jan Vermeer are known to exist, Dobson says. Each one is highly valued. Similarly, he continues, many of contemporary British artist Damien Hirst's works were purchased by collector Charles Saatchi, who then bid ...
