Taxonomic sorting

The multiple sorting task and the taxonomic sorting task are variants that allow the assessment of a more refined evaluation of the dissimilarities between stimuli at the subject level than the (single) free sorting task. 

The relation D gives rise to either control hierarchies, in which restraint is exerted by higher members on lower members, or to taxonomic hierarchies which simply rank the members in some sort of order. 

Mayr s mission at this particular time was to raise the status and value of systematics within the life sciences, not to develop — as Schmitt wanted — professional infrastructure within systematics. As he explained to Schmitt in March 1948, Mayr saw a noble purpose in this outward-looking effort The trouble with us taxonomists is that we are so busy with all sorts of jobs we don t get around to doing research, and when we do we usually don t have enough leisure to produce a good, all-around biological paper but have to be satished more or less with taxonomic revision (Mayr to Schmitt, March 9 1948, bAa r/Evolution Papers, folder Schmitt ). 

The mix — the heterobathmy, unproblematic in itself — requires sorting and arranging the parts in proper order up and down the steps, according to their origins. Afterwards, the parts, as evidence of relationship, may then be properly understood as the marks of synapomorphy, in contrast to symplesiomorphy and convergence each synapomorphy at the proper taxonomic level, each upon the proper step of, and thereby associated with, a more or less inclusive taxon. One lesson often overlooked is that taxon and synapomorphy are different names for the same thing the same step of the same stair — the same relationship. 

Courcoux, R, Qannari, E. M., Taylor, Y., Buck, D. and Greenhoff, K. (2012). Taxonomic free sorting. Food Quality and Preference, 23, 30-35. 

So here is my working hypothesis if there is landmark-like covariance structure in your warped image data-set, these new relative intrinsic warps (relative now with respect to the IWs instead of the old PWs), may have a fair chance of finding it. In other words, ordinary biometric principal components with respect to the new featureless covariance structure - relative intrinsic warps might be the nearest thing yet that morphometries can offer as a formalism based in image deformation that nevertheless refers to the sorts of features systematists have typically found useful in thinking about their taxonomic task. 

The kinds of specimens resulting from these three types of collecting are somewhat different, and exploring that difference is important to an analysis of what sorts of collections we might need in the future. This short chapter is not a comprehensive review of different collecting methods or futures in all groups, but a personal exploration of some ideas I feel we as a taxonomic commimity need to consider in the future. 

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