Keith Siew, Scientific Editor

Julia Turan, Managing Editor

https://doi.org/10.36866/pn.112.5

7 January 1974 – Gombe, Tanzania.

A young Kahama male by the name of Gobi was relaxing on a tree when he was set upon and killed by six male aggressors of the neighbouring Kasakela. This event marked the beginning of Gombe’s ‘Four-Year War’, which saw the Kasakela systematically hunt down and wipe out the Kahama before seizing their territories. This was the first recorded incidence of war in one of our closest relatives, the common chimpanzee.

Humans are also an intensely tribal species; we thrive when surrounded by others of similar origin, habits and social graces. The desire to find one’s tribe is so integral to us, it had become the driving force behind our hunter-gatherer ancestors move from wandering troupes to great nation states. While much beauty in the forms of music, art and poetry have arisen from our species’ en masse tribalism, when faced with difference, we are not unlike our chimpanzee cousins. We too can wage war and seek to expand our empires, albeit on a grand scale like no other.

As the children of immigrants, we, Keith and Julia, both had the privilege of growing up exposed to many cultures, creeds and nationalities. To be different was to be normal; our tribes were many. We lived through a time when the ‘troubles’ in Northern Ireland were coming to an end, the EU was expanding and the internet allowed us to have friendships which transcended distance. Perhaps unlike our forebears, in this relatively stable and increasingly globalised world, viewing ourselves as citizens of the world as well as citizens of our own nations came quite naturally to us.

Like many before us, science gave us the opportunity to travel (Crossing the pond;  p. 24) and we both left home for study and our careers. As the products of international collaboration of sorts, our citizenships meant transitions to life abroad were seamless. Other than the odd misunderstanding over pronunciation or terminology, we had no immigration visas to worry about and could come and go as we pleased. Attending international universities, we met students and lecturers from far-away lands and borders often seemed nothing more than an abstract concept. This view, shared by many of our peers was only bolstered by our study of science. After all, science – the pursuit of knowledge – had no nationality!

Fast forward to present day and things seem far less utopian: the Doomsday clock sits two minutes to midnight, resistance to globalisation is at an all-time high and the rise of nationalism is bringing about instability and uncertainty for all. As nations that were once friends see relations turn sour, and demagogues threaten the very foundations which have allowed international collaboration and science mobility to thrive, we should remind ourselves that moments of great division in our history have been much worse and yet we recovered (War & Peace p. 36).

In fact, as this very issue of Physiology News is hot off the press, the inaugural Europhysiology meeting will be held in London amidst significant concern from the scientific community about Brexit. No doubt some of you are reading this at Europhysiology. The topic seemingly unavoidable when surrounded by your European colleagues, a mere stone’s throw from Parliament with barely six months until the UK must leave the EU and still no deal in sight! Many feel committed to protecting current collaborations, maintaining freedom of movement, or simply espousing their virtues, and we hope this international themed issue will give you food for thought in these politically uncertain times (Together Science Can; p. 9 // CaSE on Brexit; p. 12 //  Knowledge without borders?; p. 16 // Future Partnership Project; p. 11 // Brexit and animal legislation?; p. 19).

Another goal of this special issue was to generate discussion around the virtues (and vices) of science mobility and collaboration, both at home and abroad (Collaboration: friend or foe?; p. 27 // A global career from home; p. 47 // Inter-institutional opportunities; p. 48). As proponents of  mobility, we thought it important to highlight some of the great success stories that could only have been borne out of large-scale international collaboration (International Mouse Phenotyping Consortium; p. 14  // Cardiac physiome project; p. 18 // Human Brain Project; p. 10 // Friends in high places;  p. 30 // Hypoxia research; p. 34). And if you feel passionate enough, we encourage you to get involved with the activities of your local and regional societies to promote the same (The International Working Group; p8 //Physiology across borders; p. 39).

In the end, perhaps our prevailing nature will prove to be closer to that of our other cousin, the bonobo. Known for their ‘make love, not war’ approach to conflict resolution, bonobos have evolved to reap the benefits of collaboration. When different groups meet, they socially mingle and form alliances; in fact, unrelated immigrating members are welcomed and even gain priority access to food and reach high social status.

So the question remains, which cousin are we truly closer to?