Wolf chapter revised and expanded

I have revised and expanded my chapter "Rovdyrstriden: Det kulturelle bakteppet", an invited contribution to a book on large predators in Southern Norway. Now approaching a full draft (currently close to 5.000 words).

Program for the Norwegian animal ethics conference 2017 - with wolf theme

The program for the 6th Norwegian animal ethics conference (2017), to be held in Oslo on Tuesday November 21st, has been announced. I will be chairing.

Wolf book finished

Today I have finished a book manuscript, Ulvetider - rovdyret som splitter Norge [Time of the wolf - the carnivore that divides Norway], along with my two co-authors, Lars Lenth and Petter Bøckman. Next now is rapid editing by our publishing house editor, and proof reading, then - off to print.

Book launch in Kristiansand

This evening I have taken part, on stage, at a meeting where Vega publishing house, along with Jutitzen publishing house, launched its autumn book releases. I was interviewed for some 10 minutes on the book Ulvetider, co-written with Lars Lenth and Petter Bøckman, which will appear in about a month. Some 50-60 people from local book stores were present.

"Ulvetider" book featured on catalogue front page

The autumn 2017 catalogue of Norwegian publishing house Vega forlag has been released. On its front page it features Ulvetider, co-written by me with Lars Lenth and Petter Bøckman and due for publication in November.

Research network on hunting to be established

A research application I have been involved in for establishing a research network on hunting, "Jakt i endring" [hunting in change], has been funded. It is headed by Ketil Skogen at NINA and will operate 2017-2019.

"Wolf land" cited in Hiedenpää & Pellikka

My article

Tønnessen, Morten 2010. Wolf Land. Biosemiotics 3.3: 289–297 (online version, published April 23, 2010: DOI: 10.1007/s12304-010-9077-x).

is cited in

Hiedanpää, Juha & Jani Pellikka 2017. Preadaptative Transactions and Institutional Change: Wolf-critical activism in southwestern Finland [2010e]. Environmental Policy and Governance 27: 270-281. DOI: 10.1002/eet.1754.

Excerpt (p. 277):

A marriage and a one dollar note are typical examples that Searle uses to illustrate a status function. The wolf-critical civil society has actively claimed that the wolf should not have such a position, since it lacks some essential biological properties and definitely lacks the collective and institutional properties that would constitute its status function. The wolf’s status must not be symbolized (for wolf semiotics, see Tønnessen, 2010). Instead, the wolf must be considered according to its actual physical and mental effects and not according to some agreed upon abstract properties, e.g. it being endangered, since there are tens of thousands of wolves in Russia.

Paper on mother/child relations to be presented at MAN´s 5th research seminar

On Saturday December 5th I will present my paper "Mor og barn-relasjoner hos ulv og andre rovpattedyr, og hvordan disse (ikke) tas hensyn til" [Mother and child relations among wolves and other carnivore mammals, and how these are being respected] during Minding Animals Norway´s 5th research seminar, which takes place at NMBU (Ås).

"Proto-language in wolves" talk cancelled

My talk, along with Paul Thibault, "Proto-language in wolves", at the conference "Animals in the Anthropocene: Human–animal relations in a changing semiosphere", will have to be cancelled, since he is ill and I became a father two days ago.

Interviewed by animal protection magazine Dyrenes forsvarer

I am featured in an interview in Dyrenes forsvarer, the magazine of Dyrebeskyttelsen Norge [Animal Protection Norway], no. 2/2015 (pp. 12-13). The story is titled "Hvem frykter ulven? Om frykt og netthat" [Who is afraid of the wolf? On fear and online hate]. I am interviewed in capacity of being Associate professor in philosophy at University of Stavanger and chair of Minding Animals Norway.

Abstract: "Proto-language in wolves and dogs"

I have co-written an abstract, "Proto-language in wolves and dogs", with Paul Thibault, in connection with a prospective collection of chapters (upon invitation). 

400 applied for Norwegian-Czech funding

According to the Research Council of Norway (the news story "Over 800 vil forske med Tsjekkia og Romania" [More than 800 want to do research with the Czech Republic and Romania], about 400 applications were submitted to the recent call in relation to the EEA-affiliated Norwegian-Czech research program. Among these is "Living beings as sign systems in evolution and development", which will prospectively be lead by Anton Markoš (Charles University, Prague) and have me in the role as Norwegian project leader (University of Stavanger).

I assume some 20-30 projects (i.e., 5-7,5 %) will be funded.

See also:

Czech-Norwegian research application composed and submitted (February 3)

Nova: Semiotics e-book published; new invite received

The Nova book Semiotics: Theory and applications, where I contribute with chapter 6, The Semioethics Interviews III: John Deely: Human Understanding in the Age of Global Awareness, has now apparently been published both as an e-book and in print. The e-book version was said to be in final production as of March 12th (see below).

Cf.
Nova's semiotics anthology published? (March 12)
Nova's semiotics publication: To be released when? (February 1)

Meanwhile, today I received a third invitation to contribute with a chapter to a Nova Science Publishers anthology (along with countless others, I am sure). The topic this time: Wolves: Biology, Behavior and Conservation.

Shared Worlds, Oslo MA event: Webpage; roundtable description

The Oslo Minding Animals Pre-Conference event, "Shared Worlds", now has a webpage.
Program
Speakers
About
Organizers
Abstracts
Contact

Today I've written a description of the roundtable on the shared worlds of wolves and people.

Humans and wolves have co-evolved. We have several species-characteristic behavioral patterns in common, among them being social hunters. To varying degrees, a wolf is human-like, and a human wolf-like. The Big Bad Wolf has given rise to a vivid cultural imagery – it is a symbol, a cultural icon, and an animal that is highly sensitive to our own evolving human ecology. In Scandinavia, wolf management is controversial and currently under political review. How are we to co-exist? How do our behaviors and management regimes shape the world of the wolf, and how do they shape us?

Wolf chronicle

The chronicle I have previously referred to as "Hvem er villest i landet her? - Et ulveliv" [Who's the wildest in the country here? - A wolf's life]" has been published in the weekly newsmagazine Ny Tid under the title "Når villdyret overvåkes" [loosely: When wild animals are monitored]. It is accompanied by an illustration (drawing) by Firuz Kutal. Full reference:

Morten Tønnessen 2010. Når villdyret overvåkes. Ny Tid no. 39 2010 (November 5-11), p32-34.

Note that I have listed three corrections (one is rather a precisation) in my Norwegian language blog Utopisk Realisme, concerning the use of ear-tags/chips in management, the practice of captures, and a statement by the major of Rendalen.

Nils Christie to comment talk on illegal wolf hunting

The details for my forthcoming talk Ulovlig jakt på ulv [Illegal wolf hunting], in the lecture series Kriminalpolitisk seminar (at Department of Criminology and Sociology of Law, the University of Oslo), have now been settled. Notably, it has been decided that professor emeritus Nils Christie (select bibliography in wapedia) will be the "commentator" making comments following my talk.

The talk will take place November 11th at 14.15-16.00 in room 770, Domus Nova. For thematic details, cf. the link under the title.

Pics and videos from Langedrag

I am in the process of making available pics and videos from Langedrag mountain farm and wildlife park. Unfortunately I've encountered some technical problems, not least due to poorly-functioning, low-performance Blogspot (essa porra não functiona...). Pics, therefore, will have to wait for a little.

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Videos are in the process of being uploaded to You Tube (MrMortenTonnessen's channel).

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Walking with Mr. Wolf

Socialized wolves at Langedrag meet kindergarten kids

Summary report from Polar Zoo available online

Last week I finished my summary report after my field trip (in March) to Polar Zoo in Bardufoss, Northern Norway (cf. previous posts, including pictures and links to videos). The 23pp work paper has now been uploaded to Scribd.

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Contents:

1. Factual questions (and questions to the human caretakers)

2. The wolves' interaction among themselves

3. The confinement

4. The wolves and other animals

5. Wolf senses

6. The wolves and their caretakers

7. The wolves and the visitors to the zoo

8. The wolves and me

PDF, and bibliographical reference, for "Is a wolf..."

September 16th I posted that Humanimalia vol. 2, no. 1 was published. At that point no PDFs were on site. Now, however, they are - including for my contribution "Is a wolf wild as long as it does not know it is being thoroughly managed?" (which has been given the short-title "Is a wolf wild as long as it does not know it is managed?").

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Bibliographical reference:

Morten Tønnessen 2010. "Is a wolf wild as long as it does not know it is being thoroughly managed?" Humanimalia - a journal of human/animal interface studies 2(1): 1-8.

Agents in hiding

I am in the process of contributing, as part of a proposed panel on animal agency, with an abstract to the 6th conference of the European Society for Environmental History (ESEH), to be arranged in Turku, Finland, June/July 2011. The title of my abstract is "Wolf history: Agents in hiding".