Natural Resources System

The field of natural resources has many elements that have shaped conservation into what it is today. The discourse of this field is based of the work of innovative scientists. One person that helped this field immensely is Carol Linnaeus. Linnaeus devoted his life to developing a classification system for the earth's species. The Scientific Method and the writings of Aldo Leopold also contributed to this field's success. President Theodore Roosevelt was also very influential in the development of this field. He allowed conservationists such as John Muir, Gifford Pinchot, and Rachel Carson to start a new wave of conservation. The Journal of Wildlife Management is a piece of literature produced by this field. This journal allows for peer review, which is very important to this fields existence. This journal is formatted using the CSE style manual. The CSE format is used for all professional writings in this field. Another very important piece of literature in this field is the Peterson's Field Guide. This field guide helps scientists when identifying species. Oral and written communication skills are also very important when working in this field. While having good oral communication is important, it can be more beneficial to have excellent writing skills in this field. Overall there are many aspects in the field of natural resources. They all need to be recognized and practiced to their full potential for this field to strive.

Research Project

DISCOURSE

The discourse of a career is a very broad topic and can be interpreted in many ways. When finding important topics about the discourse of a career, a person has to look at what has influenced their field the most. In the field of natural resources three important components are used on a day to day basis. Without the scientific method, binomial nomenclature, and the writing of Aldo Leopold this field would have evolved in an entirely different way. It is important to be familiar with these components and know how to practice them to be successful in this field (Broberg 2007).

SCIENTIFIC METHOD

The process of the scientific method is an important concept in the discourse of natural resources. This method is used in all science based professions. The key components to the scientific method involve observing, documenting, hypothesizing, and conducting experiments. It also allows scientists to have a universal way of determining what can be called a scientific fact and gives scientists detailed steps to follow when conducting research (Edmund 2007).

Steps of the Scientific Method

There are four steps involved in this method. The first step is to observe and describe a phenomenon. The second step is to create a hypothesis to explain the phenomenon. The third step is to develop an experiment to test the hypothesis. The fourth step is to record the outcome of the test and decide whether or not to accept or reject the hypothesis. Without these steps there would be a lot of variation of what is a scientific fact (Edmund 2007).

This is very important when a field like science has so many different branches that all relate to each other. For example, a relationship that was proven in biology needs to be constant in chemistry or ecology. A scientific fact may be used in another way in the different branches of science, but it ultimately has the same concept. Using this type of process to determine what can be called a fact is what sets science apart from other fields. This is not saying that other fields use false information, but there is a lot more procedure put into deciding what can be used or published in a scientific journal. For example, in business if there is a new procedure to help give better customer satisfaction, just implement the new procedure. With science and natural resources, someone could not just incorporate a new carbon cycle. The new process of the carbon cycle would have to be tested with the scientific method before it could be implemented (Edmund 2007).

Interpretation of a Hypothesis

As mentioned above, the second step of the scientific method is to develop a hypothesis. Interpreting a hypothesis is important when keeping scientific facts sound. When a hypothesis is developed, logic might persuade a scientist to think that it will turn out in their favor. Or when conducting an experiment they might handle their data differently. The systematic approach of the scientific method helps to stop these problems (Edmund 2007).

BINOMIAL NOMENCLATURE

Importance of Binomial Nomenclature

Binomial nomenclature is an important classification system in the discourse of natural resources. This classification system breaks language barriers, organizes species into groups, and helps stop miscommunication. Without the work of Carol Linnaeus this classification system would not be the universal system it is today (Broberg 2007).

A Universal System

Carol Linnaeus is credited for developing binomial nomenclature. It has changed and improved a lot since Linnaeus's death, but he has come up with the basic concept of this classification system. Binomial nomenclature is accepted by scientists all over the world. This is why it is important for people working in the field of science to know how to use binomial nomenclature (Broberg 2007).

Common names are often used when identifying a species. Common names vary from one location to another and are not used when conducting scientific research. Binomial nomenclature stops the variability with common names because it is written in Latin. Latin is a dead language and does not change. When using Latin names it allows different companies to work together in the field of natural resources. This can be useful when different organizations are studding the same species and share their research with each other. It also allows other organizations to know what species are being studied in different areas (Broberg 2007).

Levels of Binomial Nomenclature

When classifying a species with binomial nomenclature the grouping follows this order: Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, and Species. Species are put into groups based on characteristics. The first order, Kingdom, puts species into very general groups. As the classification system works its way down to Genus and Species very minute characteristics are used to group a species. When a species is written out in binomial nomenclature there are two sections of the word. The first section is the Genus and the second is the Species. The Genus is a group of species that share common characteristics. The Species is the second section of the word written out in binomial nomenclature. This is what sets a specific species apart from its Genus. For example, a Sugar Maple written out in binomial nomenclature would be Acer saccharum. Acer represents the Genus and saccharum represents the Species. When these two terms are written out they are always italicized. This classification system is complicated with all of the different levels of categorization, but it is necessary when trying to organize the world's species into a universal system (Broberg 2007).

ALDO LEOPOLD

A Sand County Almanac

The field of natural resources would not be the same without the innovation of Aldo Leopold. He is most known from one of his books, A Sand County Almanac. This book was published in 1949. With his poetic writing and ideas of land ecology he has acquired the nickname the father of wildlife management. In this book, some of his most influential ideas were about land ethics, game management, and finding a balance between nature and civilization. All of these ideas are still practiced today in the discourse of natural resources. That is why he is known as one of the most respected people in this field (Mack 2007).

Land Ethics

One of Leopold's approaches towards management is called “the land ethic” (Mack 2007). He came up with this idea when writing A Sand County Almanac. It imposes that humans may use the land, but use of the land must be managed. This is still used today in all aspects of natural resources. Especially in forestry practices. People still cut down trees and use the wood for lumber and paper, but the quantity of trees cut down is managed so the forests are not depleted. These practices are used where there is management of our natural resources. However, not all places of the world manage their natural resources.

Game Management

Leopold also came up with the idea of game management. He was the first professor to teach this concept and his ideas are still used today. He looked at game or wildlife as a crop. For example, if one has a crop and exploits it, there will be none left for future use. If the crop use is managed, there will be food for years to come. Leopold used this idea when implementing hunting regulations. He also helped stop market hunting and poaching. Poaching still happens today, but not at the same rate it did before Leopold (Mack 2007).

Balancing Nature and Civilization

Having a balance between nature and civilization was another concept that Leopold promoted (Mack 2007). This is one of the reasons why his ideas about management are so widely used. Some people are extremists in their management techniques. They believe that the earth's natural resources should be left alone and civilization will destroy all of our natural resources. On the other hand, some people think that the earth's natural resources are here for humans to exploit. Without Leopold's ideas of balancing nature and civilization, it would be hard for a field like natural resources to exist.

IMORTANCE OF DISCOURSE

Understanding Discourse

The discourse of any profession is important to know and understand. Without knowing the discourse of a field it would be impossible to hold an occupation in it. There are many more components involved in the discourse of natural resources. These three components have influenced this field in different ways, but they are all equally important. It is essential that these fundamentals of natural resources are practiced for the wellbeing of this field.

NATURAL RESOUCE HISTORY

Important People in This Field

The field of natural resource management is relatively young. It was developed by devoted conservationists in the late 1800s. Their work shaped this profession into what it is today. Conservationists such as John Muir dedicated their lives to stop the exploitation of this nation's natural resources. Muir was very successful in helping the preservation of national parks. He would not have had been as successful with his attempts for preservation if it was not for the power of Theodore Roosevelt (Dornbos 2008). Roosevelt was this nation's president, and devoted his time and entire administration to the conservation of natural resources (Filler 2008). Another very important man that benefited from the political power of Roosevelt was Gifford Pinchot. Pinchot was America's first scientifically qualified forester and became “chief forester” of the US Forest Service (Gyekis 2007). Without his ideas and hard work, the US Forest Service would not operate at the high level that it does today. Others such as Rachel Carson influenced this field with their writings. Her writings outlawed the use of DDT and saved many species from extinction (Stroud 2007). Another writer that impacted this field was Aldo Leopold. With his ideas of conservation and game management, he has arguably made the biggest significance in this field (Dowell 2007).

JOHN MUIR

Life History

John Muir was born in Dunbar, Scotland on April 21, 1838. He lived in Scotland for the first 11 years of his life. In 1849 his family immigrated to the United Sates. His family started farming in Wisconsin and Muir worked there until his early twenties. His dream was to study medicine, so he enrolled at University of Wisconsin and attended school for three years. He then moved to Canada to work as a mechanic. Some people say he moved there to avoid the draft of the civil war. After the company he worked at burned down, he moved back to the United States and worked at a wheel company in Indianapolis. He had a bad accident while working in Indianapolis and became blind. Over time he regained his sight and moved to California where he began working in the Sierra mountain range (Dornbos 2008).

Muir's Professional Life

While working in the Sierra mountain range, most of Muir's work was dedicated to glaciers. He began to write in 1874 about the value of nature and why to conserve it. This is what really jump started his career in the field of natural resources. Other important writers and conservationists started to hear about Muir and came to the Sierras to work with him. Some of those people were Ralph Waldo Emerson and Theodore Roosevelt. With the help of the US congress and Muir's writings, Yosemite National Park was created in 1890. Muir also influenced the preservation of other national parks such as the Sequoia National Park, the Petrified Forest National Park, the Mount Rainier National Park, and the Grand Canyon National Park. These parks are some of the nation's most magnificent recreation areas. Muir was also the founder of the Sierra Club. This is a club dedicated to the wellbeing of the earth's natural resources and the Sierra Mountain Range. John Muir died in 1914 at the age of 76. The field of natural resources would not be the same without his dedication to preserve our nation's national parks (Dornbos 2008).

THEODORE ROOSEVELT

Life History

Theodore Roosevelt was the 26th president of the United Sates of America. He was born October 27, 1858 in New York City. As a child Roosevelt suffered from extreme asthma. He was also known to be extremely intellectual and polite as a child. When growing up, Roosevelt had private tutors and he eventually graduated from Harvard College. After attending law school for a short time he began his career in politics. The first position he held in office was with the New York State Assembly at the age of 23. In 1884 his wife and his mother died on the same day. After this unfortunate event he retreated to his cattle ranch for two years. In 1900 he was elected as McKinley's vice president. McKinley was assassinated on September 14, 1901 and the presidency was given to Roosevelt (Filler 2008).

Roosevelt's Conservation Work

When Roosevelt was president he sparked the movement of conservation. He made conservation as the main focus of his administration. While he was in office, he introduced 5 National Parks, 4 Big Game Refuges, 51 National bird Reservations, and the National Forest Service. With all of these reserves in place, Roosevelt also created many jobs for people working in the field of natural resources. There has not been any president to this day to contribute more to this nation's natural resources. Roosevelt thought that this nation gained its power because of the vast amount of natural resources. He also recognized that this nation's resources were being exploited, and management needed to be implemented to stop this destruction. To stop the exploitation of natural resources, Roosevelt implemented hunting laws and land use regulations. These regulations made hunting more successful and allowed the general public to utilize the land for recreational purposes. Roosevelt did a lot for the well-being of this nation's natural resources. Among his great accomplishments in life, he also won the Nobel Peace Prize and started the construction of the Panama Canal (Filler 2008).

GIFFORD PINCHOT

Life History

Gifford Pinchot is known as the father of American forestry. He was born on October 4, 1865 in Simsbury, Connecticut. His family moved to Milford, Pennsylvania where he spent most of his childhood. Pinchot's grandfather and father were both involved in the forestry business. His father wanted Gifford to go to school to become a forester. Needless to say, his son attended school at Yale, and then traveled to France to attend the forest academy. There he studied under Sir Dietrich Brandes, who at the time was the world's most famous forester. When Pinchot returned to the United Sates he became the nation's first scientifically qualified forester (Gyekis 2007).

Pinchot's Professional Life

Pinchot worked independent forestry jobs for the first years of his professional life. Over time he worked his way up to “chief forester” of the United Sates Forest Service. He took a new approach towards forestry that stopped clear cutting, which promoted future growth of harvested forests. He did this by implementing new forestry laws that allowed forests' to maintain their stability. While Pinchot was working with the US Forest Service, some of his greatest accomplishments were securing legal rights for the Forest Service, quadrupling the National Forests, and he was the founder of the world's largest forest products laboratory. After working with the US Forest Service Pinchot began writing. In 1899 he wrote one of the first textbooks about forestry concepts called A Primer on Forestry. Students to this day studying forestry follow the writings of Pinchot. He also wrote other books about specific forests and forest types that scientists still use as a guideline in their studies. Among Pinchot's work with forestry, he also was a governor for two terms in Pennsylvania. Unfortunately, Pinchot died in 1949 of leukemia in Milford, Pennsylvania after living a long life dedicated to natural resources (Gyekis 2007).

RACHEL CARSON

Life History

Rachel Carson was born in Pennsylvania near the Allegheny River on May 7, 1907. She grew up on a farm and spent most of her time exploring the wilderness around that area. She developed a love for nature and writing at early in life. She was first published at the age of 10 in a children's magazine. Carson attended school at Pennsylvania College in 1925 to pursue a career in writing. Halfway through her studies she switched majors to biology. After Carson graduated she received a scholarship to Hopkins University to continue her studies in biology. After she was done with school she received her first part time job with the US Bureau of Fisheries in 1935 (Stroud 2007).

Carson's Professional Life

When working for the US Bureau of Fisheries, she was one of the first women to hold a professional position with this organization. During World War II Carson helped the Navy invent equipment for submarine detection. Then in 1941 Carson wrote her first book called Under the Sea-Wind. After Carlson's first book she went to work with the US Fish and Wildlife Service where she worked as an aquatic biologist. In 1951 Carson wrote her second book called The Sea Around Us. This book was a New York Times' best seller and was translated into 32 languages. In this book she brought the term “ecology” into the field of natural resources. Rachel Carson is most known for her book A Silent Spring, which was published in 1962. It was a book written about the destruction of chemical pesticides, especially DDT, and the effect it has on wildlife. With the publication of this book, DDT use was banned in the US (Stroud 2007).

ALDO LEOPOLD

Life History

Aldo Leopold is known as the father of wildlife management because of his contributions to this field. He was born January 11, 1887 in Burlington, Iowa. As a child Leopold spent most of his time hunting and fishing with his father in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. He attended school at Lawrenceville Preparatory School in New Jersey. After Leopold graduated, he attended Yale Forestry School that was established by Gifford Pinchot's family. After Leopold graduated from Yale he went to work for the US forest service under Pinchot (Dowell 2007).

Leopold's Professional Life

While working for the US Forest Service Leopold be came involved with conservation and wildlife management. His ideas of wildlife management became the US Forest Service's model for managing wildlife. Leopold's ideas on wildlife management are still used today. After working with the US Forest Service, Leopold began to work with the University of Wisconsin. At the university he was the first professor to teach wildlife management as a college course. Before Leopold's death he wrote the book A Sand County Almanac. This book was published after Leopold's death, but it is one of his greatest accomplishments. A Sand County Almanac has many of Leopold's writings about conservation compiled into one book. His most influential ideas that are included in this book consist of game management, conservation, and the land ethic. These ideas are very important in the field of natural resources and have shaped this profession into what it is today (Dowell 2007).

LITERATURE IN NATURAL RESOURCES

Literature Used in This Field

While working in an occupation, one should be aware of the literature that is a part of their field's discourse. Some of the most important literature in the field of natural resources is the CSE style manual, The Journal of Wildlife Management, and the Peterson Field Guide. These all serve different purposes in the field of natural resources, but are equally important. The CSE style manual is the basis for all literature in the field of natural resources and states the requirements that published papers need to follow (Chamberlain 2007). Without this style manual, publications would not be as efficient or effective for a reader. The Journal of Wildlife Management is also a very important piece of literature in the field of natural resources. This journal contains publications from professionals in the field of natural resources. All papers published in this journal follow the CBE style manual (Chamberlain 2008). It is very easy to see that these two forms of literature are very closely related. As mentioned above, the Peterson Field Guide plays a very important role in this field as well. This piece of literature saves a lot of time for field biologists when identifying organisms (Berry 2008). The Peterson Field Guide is accessible to the pubic and is very convenient for people who enjoy outdoor recreation.

CSE STYLE MANUAL

Importance in Natural Resources

Every professional field follows a style manual. The scientific field uses the CSE style manual. The CSE style manual is closely followed when writing papers that are published in the scientific field. This style manual can be found online or can be purchased as a hand held manual. The CSE style manual is published by the Council of Science Editors. If all of the requirements of the style manual are followed, it helps professionals locate information in papers efficiently. The CSE style manual also ensures that literature cited and abbreviations follow the same format in all papers (Chamberlain 2007).

CSE Format

It is crucial that information can be easily located in scientific papers. Without a style manual, all scientific papers would follow a different format. This would make scientific papers harder to read and interpret. The CSE style manual organizes papers with headings that follow a chorological order. This allows the reader to find specific information that was conducted at either the beginning or at the end of a study. The CSE style manual also requires a section of paper that gives an overall explanation of what the paper was written about. This section is called the abstract. This gives readers a quick overview of the contents in the paper (Chamberlain 2007).

CSE Literature Cited Format

How to cite literature is a very important topic covered in the CSE style manual. All style manuals have different methods of this procedure. Each method pertains to the professional field that the style manual represents. The CSE style manual has 22 different ways of citing literature. This is important because there are many different ways to find information that is published in papers. These different formats allow the reader to find out how the information was acquired. This is especially important when using information that was posted on the Internet. With the proper citation, the information can be easily found online. In-text citations are also explained in the CSE style manual. This is necessary because it allows the reader to determine what citation the information came from (Chamberlain 2007).

Proper Use of Abbreviations

The proper use of abbreviations is stated in the CSE style manual. Using the right abbreviation is very important in the field of science. There are many different ways to abbreviate measurements, distances, and temperatures. This can cause a lot of confusion when reading a paper. Proper abbreviations of measurements are stated in the CSE style manual. Another example of using the proper abbreviation in a scientific paper comes from a forestry point of view. In forestry, one measurement that is taken on trees is the dbh. This stands for diameter at breast height. This can be abbreviated in different ways. If the paper follows the CSE style manual there is only one proper abbreviation for this type of measurement (Chamberlain 2007).

THE JOURNAL OF WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT

Importance of The Journal of Wildlife Management

The Journal of Wildlife Management is the main source of publication for peer review in the field of natural resources. This journal is published by The Wildlife Society, and there are 8 different issues released every year. This journal can be purchased from The Wildlife Societies website. Like all publications in this field, The Journal of Wildlife Management follows all requirements in the CSE style manual. This journal allows other professionals in this field to learn about different studies and experiments that were conducted by their colleagues. These experiments and the results are very important to the field of natural resources, because it operates on the discoveries in this journal (Chamberlain 2008).

Peer Review

Peer review is the main reason that The Wildlife Society publishes these journals. They believe that peer review helps this profession strive. So far these journals have helped make this profession successful. Having the ability to read about others research helps professionals when conducting experiments of their own. The studies that are published in The Journal of Wildlife Management are all based on ecology. Therefore, all of the research is based on organisms and their interaction with the environment. With ecology as a main focus of these experiments, they are all done to help sustain ecological resources. When combining peer review and ecology, this field is gaining a better understanding of how to sustain these worlds' resources (Chamberlain 2008).

Changes to The Journal of Wildlife Management

This year Michael Chamberlain was appointed by The Wildlife Society as the new Chief Editor of The Journal of Wildlife Management. He edited his first issue in January 2008. Chamberlain has made some major changes to the journal. The first thing he changed was the overall appearance of the journal. He put a photograph of a Brown Bear on the cover to make the journal look more inviting. He also made other modifications to make this addition more inviting to the reader. Another example of this is how he moved the table of contents to the front of the journal, rather than having it located on the back cover. Chamberlain stated that the table of contents was inconvenient when it was located in the back of the journal. Chamberlain's main goals of this journal were to make it more efficient, easier to use, and make it more effective (Chamberlain 2008).

THE PETERSON FIELD GUIDE

Importance of Field Guides

Every biologist in the field of natural resources uses field guides. They are used to identify different organisms such as insects, mammals, birds, flowers, and trees. The oldest and most popular field guide is the Peterson Field Guide. This field guide is so widely used because it is very user friendly and it has great illustrations. It is published by the Houghton Mifflin Company and can be bought in bookstores or online. In Peterson Field Guides all of the illustrations are done by Roger Tory Peterson. He dedicated his life to these guides and they have immensely strengthened the field of natural resources in many ways (Berry 2008).

History of Peterson Field Guides

Roger Tory Peterson had his first field guide released in 1934. Today there are 52 volumes of the Peterson Field Guide. The first field guide was designed for bird identification. Peterson has been intrigued by nature and painting his whole life. He was first noticed for his painting ability in 1925 when the American Ornithologists' Union accepted two of his paintings to be on display at their meetings. This opportunity jump started Peterson's career as a painter (Berry 2008).

Usingthe Peterson Field Guide

Today the field guides not only help with identification of a species, but they give specific information about a species such as range, scientific name, and taxonomy. Knowing this information about a species is crucial for a field biologist when conducting studies. Peterson Field Guides are usually color coordinated as well. This is very convenient when identifying birds, insects, and flowers because they are usually some of the most colorful organisms. Some field guides use actual photos to help a reader with identification. This can be helpful but most species usually appear in different color phases depending on the time of year or location. When using paintings to help with identification like the Peterson Field Guide, it can display the organism in a color phase that is a mix between both extreme color phases that the species displays. This makes it a lot easer to identify a species at anytime of the year and in many different locations (Berry 2008).

COMMUNICATION IN NATURAL RESOURCES

Understanding Different Types of Communication

Utilizing the proper communication is a very important part of any profession. Written and oral communication is the most common type of communication used in a professional setting (West 2007). Having a good understanding of how to utilize these types of communication is a very important skill to learn. In the field of natural resources having good writing skills is more important than having good speaking skills. This is true because the written word is permanent and the spoken word can be forgotten. Written and oral communication is more efficient when a person has an understanding of what is being explained. In the field of natural resources this is true when using maps, GPS, data bases, and Binomial Nomenclature. These are used on a daily basis in this field and need to be understood for effective communicate can take place (Rabasco 2008).

WRITTEN COMMUNICATION

Importance of Good Writing Skills

Written communication is one of the most important skills to know when working in a professional field. This skill can determine the success one will have in their career. It may not be required at an entry level position, but it will be a necessity while working management positions. Having good writing skills can also help an individual receive promotions. If one conducts good lab reports, proposals, or papers it is usually recognized by upper level employees (West 2007).

Email

Email is used on a wide scale in all professions, especially in natural resources. It allows people to communicate effectively and efficiently. If one displays bad writing skills in an email it could lead to a bad reputation from other colleagues. The overall productivity of an organization can be improved if good writing skills are used in emails. It is also very important for people applying for jobs over the Internet to display good writing skills. Often the written word will stick in the minds of people longer than the spoken word. This means if one is applying for a job by email and misspells a word or uses bad grammar their chance for the position is reduced. This rule is the same when using traditional mail to send in a resume. If there are any poor English skills used in a resume a person's chance to receive a job is reduced (West 2007).

Peer Review

Written communication is used on a daily basis in the field of natural resources. In this field it is very important to record everything while conducting an experiment. This allows employees to read others work and give input to their colleagues. This process is called peer review. The most important way of conducting peer review in this field is through the Journal of Wildlife Management. This is a collection of employees' experiments throughout this field. This journal helps organizations and employees gain knowledge about recent discoveries. If this field did not display good written communication it would not be able to produce or benefit from this journal (West 2007).

ORAL COMMUNICATION

Defining Oral Communication

Oral communication is an important skill to have when working in the field of natural resources. Oral communication is having a spoken interaction between two or more individuals. This can be broken down into a lot of different elements to make the communication effective. There are some main skills that need to be mastered when conducting oral communication. The first is maintaining good eye contact. This is the easiest skill to acquire in oral communication and it helps develop a relationship with the audience. Having appropriate body language is the second skill that needs to be used while conducting efficient oral communication. An audience will perceive what one says through body language. For example, if one is crossing his or her arms the audience might perceive them as closed off. This will make it nearly impossible for one to get his or her point across to the audience. The speed and pitch of a one's voice also determines how and audience will perceive them. One should use a speed and pitch to their voice that accommodates to the audience. This will ensure that one's message will be interpreted how it was intended (Cole 2005).

How Oral Communication is Used

Oral communication with the general public is not uncommon in the field of natural resources. The general public is the main supporter of this field. If this field did not communicate well with the public there would be less people supporting this field's mission. Oral communication is also used on a daily basis in the office. If an employee displays good oral communication at work it could lead to a higher paying job. Having good oral communication is also very important for people applying for a job in the field of natural resources. If one is selected for an interview it is crucial that good oral communication is displayed while interviewing. This is important because communicating with the public happens on a daily basis. If an employee can not communicate well with the public it not only affects that employee negatively, it affects the company as well (Cole 2005).

SKILLS NEEDED FOR EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION

Skills That Help with Communication in Natural Resources

To succeed in the field of natural resources a lot of different skills are needed. This is especially true for entry level positions. These types of positions require a lot of different hands-on field work. Some of the most common skills that are required for these positions are map reading, experience with GPS, familiarity of data bases, and knowledge of Binomial Nomenclature. Having education in these areas will help a person communicate with other employees and may lead to a long term career (Rabasco 2008).

Map Reading

Map reading is an important skill to be familiar with for a person looking for an entry level job in the field of natural resources. A lot of different jobs require a person must have taken college courses on map reading. If one displays good map reading skills it will allow them to communicate efficiently with other employees. Good map reading skills will also ensure that an employee will require less supervision when working in the field. The most common type of map that is used when working in the field of natural resources is a Plat Map. These maps can be very difficult to read if one does not have any experience working with them. If one does have a lot of experience working with these maps they can save a lot of time when trying to locate areas in rural settings. These maps allow one to create a legal description of an area of land. This is done in writing and is a major part of written communication in map reading (Rabasco 2008).

Global Positioning Systems

Global Positioning Systems or GPS are used in almost every job in the field of natural resources. Having knowledge about these handheld devices allows for easy communication between employees. These devices are used on a daily bases when working in the field and the office. Information that was gathered in the field can be easily displayed on aerial photos with a computer. If a person lacks knowledge with either the handheld device or the computer programs, there would be a barrier in verbal and written communication (Rabasco 2008).

Data Entry Systems

Having knowledge of data entry programs will help an employee with oral and written communication in the field of natural resources. Computers are used in this profession in many ways. This field benefits from computers the most when using them for data entry. There are many different programs that help with this procedure. The most commonly used program is Microsoft Excel. If one has experience with this program it will allow for efficient written and oral communication. This program has the potential to display data in many ways if the right person is using the program (Rabasco 2008).

Binomial Nomenclature

Binomial Nomenclature is used in all fields of science. Having an understanding of this method allows scientist to communicate with other colleagues around the world. Binomial Nomenclature is written in latten. This is important because Latin is a dead language that never changes. This method also classifies species into specific groups based on their characteristics. This helps scientists in oral and written communication when identifying a species. Binomial Nomenclature also takes away the confusion of common names. Common names tend to vary depending on location which can be confusing when conducting studies in different parts of the world. Over all, having a good understanding of Binomial Nomenclature will help an employee the most when trying to communicate in this field (Broberg 2007).

COUNCIL OF SCIENCE EDITORS

Council of Science Editors History

The Council of Biology Editors or CBE created their first style manual in 1957. In the year 2000 the CBE changed their name to the Council of Science Editors or CSE. The name was changed because this organization expanded their horizon into different fields of science. The earlier editions of this manual focused on formatting papers for publication in topics such as microbial, vegetation, and zoology. The most recent publications cover almost all sciences and place emphasis on physical and life science (Miller 2008).

The CSE Manual for Authors, Editors, and Publishers Seventh Edition is the most recent style manual that the CSE has published. This manual is organized by subjects of different sciences. For example, chapter 23 covers genetic nomenclature and chapter 22 covers taxonomy. This format allows scientists to use a universal method when publishing scientific facts. This style manual also states the format for the Journal of Wildlife Management. If the CSE format is followed correctly it makes for easer interpretation when reading articles in this journal. Easy interpretation of these articles is important because it promotes peer review. The CSE style manual uses some of the guidelines from The Chicago Manual of Style. These guidelines are used when there is a widely excepted method of formatting or writing that has been used over a period of time. The CSE style manual also displays a section that states the appropriate abbreviations that are used in science related topics. For example, the CSE style manual states the correct abbreviations when observing genotypes between males and females (Miller 2008).

AMERICAN PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION

American Psychological Association History

The American Psychological Association or APA style manual was first published in 1952. This manual was created by editors and business managers. The writing of the APA style manual was lead by Madison Bentley. Bentley is credited for helping shape the APA style manual into what it is today. The first manual was 60 pages long and was published in a magazine called the Psychological Bulletin. This addition of the APA style manual lasted for 22 years. The next volume that was published by the APA was extended to 136 pages. Throughout the years there has been five different volumes released. The most resent version is called the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association witch has 439 pages. This journal was expanded so much because the complexity of writing a professional paper has increased (Sheedy 2008).

The American Psychological Association Style Manual

The APA style manual is used when writing papers about behavioral science. The Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association is not the only APA manual published for this field. The APA produces 27 other primary journals for the field of behavioral science. The APA style manual is used when formatting scientific journals in this field. Peer review is the main purpose of this journal. Just like in the field of natural resources peer review is very important to this field. The APA style manual is set up in a way that coincides with the order that scientific research is conducted. This concept can be easily seen when looking at the first section of the manual. It is called designing and reporting research. The later chapters of the APA manual cover publishing scientific information, which should be done when a writer has completed their paper (Sheedy 2008).

COMPARING THE CSE AND APA STYLE MANUALS

Format of the CSE and APA style manuals

The CSE and APA use entirely different formats. Each manual is set up differently to fit the needs of a specific field. Having different style manuals also helps set occupations apart from each other. This is why a style manual is very important to a fields discourse. Both of these style manuals are used in science but they follow different formats. This occurs because each branch of science has different requirements.

Comparing In-text Citations

The CSE and APA style manuals differ when formatting in-text citations. If there is only one author and the publishing date is known the CSE style manual follows the following format. First the author's last name, followed by a space, then the date the data was published. All of these requirements need to be closed in parentheses and located at the end of the sentence (Turner 2008). The APA style manual requires that an in-text citation does not need to be located at the end of a sentence. The citation should be used immediately after a fact is stated. The APA format requires that the authors name is first, followed by a comma, then the year of publication. All of these requirements need to be closed in parenthesis. If the authors name is stated in the sentence a different format is used. It is acceptable to use only the year of publication inside the parentheses, but it needs to be immediately after the authors name is stated (Sheedy 2008).

Organization of the Style Manuals

The CSE and APA style manuals represent different branches of science. The CSE style manual is used in fields that are dedicated to life science. The APA style manual is used by fields that study behavioral science. These two professional areas use different formatting when displaying information. For example, the APA style manual has a section that shows the proper way to set up a table that represents error rates in older and younger people. This is a behavioral study conducted on humans and would not be found in the CSE style manual (Sheedy 2008). The CSE style manual also has a section that shows the proper way to conduct tables. These tables use different formats and display data about survival rate or soil types (Miller 2008).

Because these two manuals represent different sciences they also follow a different chronological order. This is done to accommodate to the specific needs that each branch of science requires. The CSE style manual begins with the fundamentals to publishing. This is done to make sure an author knows all the requirements that are needed to meet the standards for publication. The second section of the CSE style manual covers the appropriate scientific knowledge that is commonly used in this field. The last section explains the technical elements of publication. Sub-topics such as referencing and journal formatting are covered in this section. The APA format begins with explaining the organization of a manuscript. The main topics that are covered in this section are evaluating content and how to properly format a paper. This section is very important to people in this field because it allows them to visualize how the end product of their paper should appear. Tables are covered in the middle section of the APA style manual. The proper format to use when conducting a table is also covered in the CSE style manual. Both of the manuals use different formatting for this because the table will be displaying different types of data. Referencing is the last section the APA style manual covers. The CSE manual also has its reference section located toward the end of the manual. They are both arranged like this because referencing is one of the last things done to a paper and it is always located on the last page (Sheedy 2008).

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