From: allen dick  "  In recent years, we've noticed a shift from rule-based,
linear thinking to a
> point where we now understand our world more in terms of probabilities
than
> in terms of certainties.  The shift to IPM from rule-based treatment
regimes
> is one example".

Allen liked us to a very interesting speech by Alan Greenspan, which he
adapted to the beekeeper.  May I suggest respectfully that it appies even
more to new ideas emerging on the nature of the bee colony itself. The
leading figure seems to be Thomas Seeley, with 'Honeybee Ecology - a study
in adaption in social life, 1985 and then 'The Wisdom of the Hive', 1995.
The secret of survival for the bee colony seems to be an ability to manage
its resources adaptably in response to changing external conditions,
switching between brood rearing, swarming and foraging to optimise its
chances of survival.  This does not imply reasoning as we use the word, but
it does seem to move us further from the Cartesian model of animals as mere
machines.  The honeybee seems to have ways to measure and then make
calculations - but probably not using the mathematics we know, as bee brains
are so small.  (Which raises the interesting possibility that there is
another, more efficient  mathematics to be discovered).

I would like to learn more on this way of viewing a bee colony.  Can anyone
add to the reading list?

Robin Dartington

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