A 2012 PLoS One publication by former NCEAS Postdoctoral Fellow Duncan Menge and his collaborators has received a prestigious award from the Theoretical Ecology Section of the Ecological Society of America (ESA). The publication titled "Nitrogen and Phosphorus Limitation over Long-term Ecosystem Development in Terrestrial Ecosystems" by Duncan Menge, Lars Hedin, and Stephen Pacala, was one of the important outcomes of Menge’s work during his tenure at NCEAS from 2008 to 2010. The paper, which integrates disparate observations, presents a new model to understand nitrogen and phosphorus dynamics over different time scales and will help improve predictions about the extent of climate change.
Meta-analysis is a powerful statistical methodology for synthesizing research evidence across independent studies. Just published, the Handbook of Meta-analysis in Ecology and Evolution is the first comprehensive handbook of meta-analysis written specifically for ecologists and evolutionary biologists, and it provides an invaluable introduction for beginners as well as an up-to-date guide for experienced meta-analysts. This handbook was developed as part of a NCEAS working group, Meta-analysis in Ecology: Lessons, Challenges and Future 
Triple–bottom-line outcomes from resource management and conservation, where conservation goals and equity in social outcomes are maximized while overall costs are minimized, remain a highly sought-after ideal. This study provides an important foundation for moving the science and practice of conservation planning—and broader spatial planning in general—toward more consistently achieving efficient, equitable, and effective outcomes.
The National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis (NCEAS) is pleased to invite applications from early-career researchers for a 3-week intensive training workshop in ecological analysis and synthesis, to take place at NCEAS in Santa Barbara CA June 19-July 10, 2013.
California exhibits one of the richest floras on the planet, with more than 5,500 native plant species,
approximately 40% of which are endemic. This study, published in Evolution, shows that California’scurrent biodiversity primarily results from low extinction rates, as opposed to elevated speciation or immigration rates, as previously believed. 
How healthy are our oceans?
A study published in Global Change Biology finds an invasive grass species may be one reason fires are bigger and more frequent in certain regions of the western United States. Results demonstrate that cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) invasion has substantially altered the regional fire regime. Although this result has been suspected by managers for decades, this study is the first to document recent cheatgrass-driven fire regimes at a regional scale.
Assessing the ecological importance of clouds has substantial implications for our basic understanding of ecosystems and for predicting how they will respond to a changing climate. This study was conducted in a coastal Bishop pine forest ecosystem that experiences regular cycles of stratus cloud cover and inundation in summer. The study concludes that clouds are important to the ecological functioning of these coastal forests, providing summer shading and cooling that relieve pine and microbial drought stress as well as regular moisture inputs that elevate plant and microbial metabolism.
The 