1. Use the first half of Avatar, and in the first half of A Door into Ocean, to compare and contrast the Na’vi and the Sharers. Compare and contrast their two cultures with respect to (a) gender roles; (b) relationship with the natural world; (c) relationship with the newcomers from outside their respective planets. Provide specific examples.

(a) In Avatar, the gender roles seem relatively loose, except in the political sphere. All the Na’vi seem to hunt and contribute to subsistence, though it is not made clear if men and women have different functions in terms of the running of the home. However, the leadership of the Na’vi has very clear gender roles. The head male acts as the political leader, while the head female acts as the spiritual leader. Both of them appear to have a role in making decisions. It is also telling that the deity of the Na’vi is female.

            In A Door Into Ocean, gender roles are kind of a moot point among the Sharers. Everyone contributes to the survival of the species, through hunting shockwraiths, wrangling starworms, and weaving seasilk. All have a say in the way the society is run. However, the juxtaposition of their life with that of the Valans is interesting. Looking specifically at the case of Nisi, the differences between the two cultures come into sharp focus. While with Sharers, Nisi is strong and confident. She has a place in the Gathering and can contribute to decisions and she is also able to contribute to local economy by spinning and weaving seasilk. When with Realgar, Berenice becomes subservient and small. The role of mother is thrust upon her and she describes a feeling like being sucked in or drowned in the easy, cushy life Realgar offers her.

Ultimately, both societies are very egalitarian in the way they are run, including the division of work among the genders.

(b) In both Avatar and in Ocean, the native peoples have a deep connection with the natural world. The Na’vi have evolved method of connecting physically to other creatures in their world for a mutually beneficial relationship. They have a profound respect for all of the creatures in their world, apologizing and praying to the victims of their hunt.  They fact that their deity is a tree spirit is quite telling.

Similarly, the Sharers are incredibly aware of their place in the web of life and the importance of all the strands of in that web. They recognize their role as the protectors of planet and act to keep everything in balance. This can be seen when the lifeshapers save the seaswallowers from the Valan poison. Even though the swallowers cause so much trouble, the Sharers recognize their importance in the web of life. This mind set is also reflected in the intense population control practiced by the Sharers. By keeping their levels at the optimal level, they keep everything in balance.

(c) In Avatar, the natives have mixed reactions to the newcomers from Earth. Originally, when Dr. Augustine’s school was up and running, relations appeared to be amicable. Once the soldiers killed Neytiri’s sister, the Na’vi understandably became more hostile. The only thing that kept Jake Sully from being killed was Eywa’s blessing. The Na’vi only extend a tepid welcome to Jake and a few of the scientists who make an attempt to understand and respect their way of life. They are much less welcoming to the soldiers and developers who kill and destroy everything.

In Ocean, the Sharers have a different approach to newcomers. They too start out having an amicable relationship with the traders. Soon however, the traders start poisoning the ocean and taking advantage of stone-sick sisters. Instead of resorting to aggression, like the Na’vi, they choose instead to use passive resistance. They do this through Unspeaking and Witnessing and occasionally using Whitetrance. A good example of this is the dispute with the traders. In order to get the traders to stop polluting the ocean and to stop supplying the stone sick with gems, Sharers from all over the planet stop speaking to the trader. They also stand witness by showing up everyday to sit in silence by the shop door. After a while, they eventually get what they want.

Both the Na’vi and the Sharers try to understand their visitors by inducting a foreigner (Jake an Spinel respectively) into their culture and teaching him their ways. In both cases, it works, with the foreigner becoming part of the native community.

2. Use the data provided for percent DNA similarity to calculate the divergence times of these creatures on Pandora.

Sketch a tree of phylogeny, including units of time. Assume that 1% divergence takes 2 million years.

 Table 1. Percentage of Similar DNA Sequence between Pairs of Species

2% divergence X 2 million years = 4 million years

3. The next Avatar film will depict Pandora’s ocean. Suppose the concentration of hydrogen ions in Pandora’s ocean is 4.5 x 10^-9 M (moles per liter).

A. How many hydrogen ions (atoms) per liter are there?

B. What is the ocean pH?

C. Can coral-like organisms with carbonate shells grow there?  Explain.

D. Suppose the unobtainium mining activities add  1.5 x 10^-7 M hydrogen ion concentration to the water. What new pH is reached? Can coral-like organisms grow there now?  Explain.

4. On Pandora, Jake finds a plant that closes up when touched, and a closely related species that doesn’t respond to touch. Suppose that in the forest, the touch-responsive plant has 80% as much biomass as the insensitive plants; but the touch-responsive plant increases its biomass exponentially by 5% per year, whereas the insensitive plant grows exponentially by only 2% per year. How many years will it take for the touch-responsive plant to outgrow the insensitive plant?

5. Suppose Jake and Dr. Augustine study the evolution of luminescent patterns in Pandoran creatures. 

A.  Propose a hypothesis to explain how natural selection on Pandora favors luminescent patterns over non-luminescence. 

B. State an experiment to test the hypothesis, and predict how the results might turn out.