We have now had an extended, spirited, and related discussion of Bee Dances, The State of Science, and Inside the Animal Mind. Now that the "dust has settled," so to speak, let me provide a tally. According to my count, 19 people responded on the BEE-L network and 12 sent messages directly to me on the topic of bee language and how one might go about studying such a hypothesis. Twelve of the respondents provided strong support for the statements I had made, four requested reprints, 11 expressed either neutrality or a request for more objectivity, three had slightly negative comments, but only one person exhibited what I interpreted to be open hostility in the extended exchange. Obviously, the topic proved worthy of discussion in this venue. Perhaps events such as these reveal the true advantage of open exchange between specialists and non-specialists --- it all becomes an educational experience. In a subsequent posting I will provide members of these lists with exerpts from some of the comments. Adrian Adrian M. Wenner (805) 963-8508 (home phone) 967 Garcia Road (805) 893-8062 (UCSB FAX) Santa Barbara, CA 93106 ******************************************************************************* * * "...it is lamentable how each man draws his own different conclusions * from the very same fact" * * Charles Darwin, in a letter to Alfred Russel Wallace on 1 May 1857 * *******************************************************************************