Abstract submission now open for the SystAss Biennial 2015 (August, Oxford, UK)

[rcpm20@bath.ac.uk]

Want to give a talk or a poster at the Systematics Association  
Biennial meeting (Oxford, UK 26-28 August 2015)?

Abstract submission now open: http://systass.org/biennial2015/#abstract

Members of this mailing list may be particularly interested in Symposium 4:
Rooted in deep time: Palaeontological contributions to systematics

Theme:

Palaeontology provides unique data with a bearing on the evolutionary  
history of biological lineages. This symposium will survey the Tree of  
Life, examining the impact that fossils make on hypothesized  
relationships, sequences of character change, and timings of major  
divergences in a series of major clades ranging from single-celled  
plankton to mammals. Specifically, this symposium sets out to examine:  
(i) the ways in which extreme variability of the fossil record across  
biological groups influences approaches to systematic questions in  
different clades; (ii) the way in which incomplete or biased  
preservation of biological structures might bias phylogenetic  
inference; (iii) the relevance of palaeontological data for exposing  
instances of homoplasy in extant groups that might otherwise lead to  
erroneous systematic hypotheses; (iv) the role of fossils in atomizing  
sequences of character change leading to modern clades. Apart from  
exploring these major themes, our symposium sets out to summarize  
relationships and evolutionary history for conspicuous branches of the  
Tree of Life in light of fossils, paralleling similar efforts  
completed largely or exclusively with recent data.

Confirmed Speakers:

Robert Asher, University of Cambridge [mammals], UK
Tracy Aze, University of Oxford [foraminiferans], UK
Martin Brazeau, Imperial College Silwood Park [gnathostomes],UK
Russell Garwood, University of Manchester [terrestrial arthropods], UK
Paul Kenrick, The Natural History Museum [plants], London , UK
David Legg, University of Oxford [arthropods], UK
Johannes Müller, Museum für Naturkunde Berlin [lepidosaurs], UK
Imran Rahman, University of Bristol [echinoderms], UK
Robert Sansom, University of Manchester [chordates], UK
Jakob Vinther, University of Bristol [molluscs/annelids], UK



For further contact / queries, email: sabiennial2015@systass.org