These examples already reflect the awareness of and the interest in soil organisms as functional components KU-60019 in the soil system. Otto Graff published the proceedings, which compiled 60 presentations of the colloquium, together with John Satchell as co-editor (Graff and Satchell 1967). Otto Graff had countless national and international contacts, especially with colleagues from Eastern Europe and The Netherlands, France, Sweden, Great Britain, Japan, USA, South Africa, Persia and Kuwait. In the early seventies, he was on sabbatical leave in Kuwait as a FAO-mandated consultant. He was assigned to investigate the soil biological suitability of municipal waste water for vegetable

production. The recycling of (bio-) waste material and vermicomposting were other important subjects in Otto Graff’s scientific work long before cascade use of biomass and resource Selleckchem BEZ235 efficiency became modern concepts for agriculture. International scientific reputation is only one side, which distinguishes Otto Graff’s life. Otto Graff was also a refined humanist with a keen interest in history; he wrote in Greek and Latin. Besides, many colleagues and young scientists appreciated his and his loveable wife’s cordial hospitality in their cultivated home. Usually after taking a hearty

breakfast or home-made cake lively discussions started with Otto Graff. His enthusiastic pleas for field research are unforgettable. In the basement of their home, Otto Graff kept a legendary stock of a huge amount of scientific literature. A lot of those books and papers were not available in most libraries. It was always something very particular

to benefit from this treasure of knowledge. After going into retirement in 1980, he still continued with studying earthworm ecology. Many of his activities now served to disseminate his knowledge and experience to a broader public like farmers and gardeners. triclocarban His encyclopaedia on earthworms (Graff 1983b) is definitely a milestone in this context; besides, he wrote two books on use of organic fertilizer. At all times, he was a generous mentor and paternal friend with impressive sagacity, genuine modesty and a wonderful humour, who inspired generations of young scientists in soil biology and especially in earthworm ecology. “
“Current Opinion in Behavioral Sciences 2015, 2:1–7 This review comes from a themed issue on Behavioral genetics 2015 Edited by William Davies and Laramie Duncan http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cobeha.2014.06.001 2352-1546/© 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Behaviors are the ultimate expression of the nervous system and the quintessential manifestations of living organisms. From a genetics perspective, behaviors are quantitative phenotypes, that is, traits that vary among individuals and arise from multiple interacting and segregating genes that are modulated by the organism’s developmental history and its environment [1].