This study describes the fundamentals of assessing the vulnerability of coral islands, as well as environmental management and resource exploitation. Using seabird subfossils, such as bones, guano, eggshells etc., which have been well preserved on the Xisha Islands in the South China Sea, the author identifies the influences of climate change and human activity on seabird populations and diets. Understanding the past is of great importance for predicting the future, and seabird subfossils provide valuable information, which can be used to study changes in seabird ecology, paleoceanography and palaeoclimate. Furthermore, this study proposes examining the biogeochemical cycling of some elements present in the geosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere and atmosphere. Dr. Liqiang Xu works at the Hefei University of Technology, China.

Part of the Ecology of Indonesia series, this text presents extensive baseline data on the region's natural history, peoples, ecosystems, biodiversity, and land-use. It discusses these in historical context, as well as in the context of the socio-economic development of the region. Highly illustrated, and accessible to readers with an interest in the region, it also provides guidelines for scientific researchers on worthwhile ecological and socio-economic research projects. It should be valuable to individuals involved in development planning and environmental management within the region.

The interaction of microorganisms with geological activities results in processes influencing development of the Earth's geo- and biospheres. In assessing these microbial functions, scientists have explored short- and longterm geological changes attributed to microorganisms and developed new approaches to evaluate the physiology of microbes including microbial interaction with the geological environment. As the field of geomicrobiology developed, it has become highly interdisciplinary and this book provides a review of the recent developments in a cross section of topics including origin of life, microbial-mineral interactions and microbial processes functioning in marine as well as terrestrial environments. A major component of this book addresses molecular techniques to evaluate microbial evolution and assess relationships of microbes in complex, natural c- munities. Recent developments in so-called 'omics' technologies, including (meta) genomics and (meta)proteomics, and isotope labeling methods allow new insights into the function of microbial community members and their possible geological impact. While this book summarizes current knowledge in various areas, it also reveals unresolved questions that require future investigations. Information in these chapters enhances our fundamental knowledge of geomicrobiology that contributes to the exploitation of microbial functions in mineral and environmental biotechn- ogy applications. It is our hope that this book will stimulate interest in the general field of geomicrobiology and encourage others to explore microbial processes as applied to the Earth.

Soils have important roles to play in criminal and environmental forensic science. Since the initial concept of using soil in forensic investigations was mooted by Conan Doyle in his Sherlock Holmes stories prior to real-world applications, this branch of forensic science has become increasingly sophisticated and broad. New techniques in chemical, physical, biological, ecological and spatial analysis, coupled with informatics, are being applied to reducing areas of search by investigators, site identification, site comparison and measurement for the eventual use as evidence in court. Soils can provide intelligence, in assisting the determination of the provenance of samples from artifacts, victims or suspects, enabling their linkage to locations or other evidence. They also modulate change in surface or buried cadavers and hence affect the ability to estimate post-mortem or post-burial intervals, and locate clandestine graves. This interdisciplinary volume explores the conceptual and practical interplay of soil and geoforensics across the scientific, investigative and legal fields. Supported by reviews, case-studies from across the world, and reports of original research, it demonstrates the increasing convergence of a wide range of knowledge. It covers conceptual issues, evidence (from recovery to use in court), geoforensics, taphonomy, as well as leading-edge technologies. The application of the resultant soil forensics toolbox is leading to significant advances in improving crime detection, and environmental and national security.

The Russian Far North is immensely rich in resources, both energy and other resources, and is also one of the least developed regions of Russia. This book presents a comprehensive overview of the region. It examines resource issues and the related environmental problems, considers the Arctic and the problems of sea routes, maritime boundaries and military build-up, assesses economic development, and considers the ethnic peoples of the region and also cultural and artistic subjects. Overall, the book provides a rich appraisal of how the region is likely to develop in future.

This book offers a panorama of recent scientific achievements produced through the framework of the Large-Scale Biosphere-Atmosphere programme (LBA) and other research programmes in the Brazilian Amazon. The content is highly interdisciplinary, with an overarching aim to contribute to the understanding of the dynamic biophysical and societal/socio-economic structure and functioning of Amazonia as a regional entity and its regional and global climatic teleconnections. The target readership includes advanced undergraduate and post-graduate students and researchers seeking to untangle the gamut of interactions that the Amazon's complex biophysical and social system represent.

This book presents a timely investigation of radar remote sensing observations for agricultural crop monitoring and advancements of research techniques and their applicability for crop biophysical parameter estimation. It introduces theoretical background of radar scattering from vegetation volume and semi-empirical modelling approaches that are the foundation for biophysical parameter inversion. The contents will help readers explore the state-of-the-art crop monitoring and biophysical parameter estimation using approaches radar remote sensing. It is useful guide for academicians, practitioners and policymakers.

The Handbook of Australasian Biogeography is the most comprehensive overview of the biogeography of Australasian plants, fungi and animal taxa in a single volume. This volume is unique in its coverage of marine, freshwater, terrestrial, and subterranean taxa. It is an essential publication for anyone studying or researching Australasian biogeography. The book contains biogeographic reviews of all major plant, animal and fungal groups in Australasia by experts in the field, including a strong emphasis on invertebrates, algae, fungi and subterranean taxa. It discusses how Australasia is different from the rest of the world and what other areas share its history and biota.

Biogeography and Evolution in New Zealand provides the first in-depth treatment of the biogeography of New Zealand, a region that has been a place of long-enduring interest to ecologists, evolutionary scientists, geographers, geologists, and scientists in related disciplines. It serves as a key addition to the contemporary discussion on regionalization-how is New Zealand different from the rest of the world? With what other areas does it share its geology, history, and biota? Do new molecular phylogenies show that New Zealand may be seen as a biological 'parallel universe' within global evolution?

These are the final results and reflections of the project MEA-Scope. This project with the full title "Micro-economic instruments for impact assessment of multifunctional agriculture to implement the model of European Agriculture" was a pioneering project. It was among the first which were funded in the new activity Scientific Support to Policies of the th 6 Research Framework Programme. Policy decisions - especially at the European level - are never easy. What policy-makers decide will potentially affect the lives of millions of people for many years. This makes reaching informed decisions crucial, and scientific research can help illuminate their policy choices. MEA-Scope was one of two projects which addressed the research p- orities for European Rural areas which were identified in an EC workshop on Multifunctionality in Agriculture in 2001. Scientific Support to Policies in the Research Framework Programme is facing the challenge to identify in the discussions between policy makers and the research community those topics which can be addressed in a m- term strategic research programme. When the research topic was published Multifunctionality of Agriculture was among the concepts with many - search questions open. It was considered that positivistic approaches into technology aspects of agriculture, forestry and other rural activities based on natural resources and land use are needed, as well as more normative research with regard to trade, food quality and safety, animal welfare, en- ronment, rural development and cultural issues.

This detailed exposition gives background and context to how modern biogeography has got to where it is now. For biogeographers and other researchers interested in biodiversity and the evolution of life on islands, Biogeology: Evolution in a Changing Landscape provides an overview of a large swathe of the globe encompassing Wallacea and the western Pacific. The book contains the full text of the original article explored in each chapter, presented as it appeared on publication. Key features: Holistic treatment, collecting together a series of important biogeographical papers into a single volume Authored by an expert who has spent nearly three decades actively involved in biogeography Describes and interprets a region of exceptional biodiversity and extreme endemism The only book to provide an integrated treatment of Wallacea, Melanesia, New Zealand, the New Zealand Subantarctic Islands and Antarctica Offers a critique of fashionable neo-dispersalist arguments, showing how these still suffer from the same weaknesses of the original Darwinian formulation. The chapters also include analysis of many major theoretical and philosophical issues of modern biogeographic theory, so that those interested in a more philosophical approach will find the book stimulating and thought-provoking.

The human genome contains about 25,000 protein-coding and noncoding genes and many other functional elements, such as origins of replication, regulatory elements, and centromeres. Functional elements occupy only about 10% of the more than three billion base pairs in the human genome. Much of the rest is composed of ancient fragments of broken genes, transposons, and viruses. Almost all of this is thought to be junk DNA, based on evidence that dates back fifty years. This conclusion is controversial. What's in Your Genome? describes the arguments on both sides of the debate and attempts to explain the reasoning behind those different points of view. The book aims to correct a number of false narratives that have arisen in recent years and examine how they have affected the debate over junk DNA. In addition, Laurence A. Moran focuses on scientific misconceptions and misinformation and on how the junk DNA controversy has been incorrectly portrayed in both the scientific literature and the popular press. Tracing the earliest indications of junk DNA back to the 1960s, the book explains the success of Nearly-Neutral Theory and the importance of random genetic drift, which gave rise to the view that evolution produces sloppy genomes full of junk DNA. What's in Your Genome? aims to offer the most accurate and current account of the human genome.

While the possible depletion of energy sources has been emphasized in most literatures, this book aims to show that the increase of entropy in the biosphere, resulting since the dawn of industrial era, is a cause for urgent concern.As the entropy release puts a limit on sustainable growth, and the CO2 atmospheric content is a reliable indicator of global entropy release that threatens the biospheric balance, a change of paradigm is necessary with the need to switch from an economy of exploitation to an economy of entropy.

The Russian Far North is immensely rich in resources, both energy and other resources, and is also one of the least developed regions of Russia. This book presents a comprehensive overview of the region. It examines resource issues and the related environmental problems, considers the Arctic and the problems of sea routes, maritime boundaries and military build-up, assesses economic development, and considers the ethnic peoples of the region and also cultural and artistic subjects. Overall, the book provides a rich appraisal of how the region is likely to develop in future.

Animals, plants and soils interact with one another. They also interact with the terrestrial sphere--the atmosphere, hydrosphere, toposphere and lithosphere--and with the rest of the cosmos. On land, this rich interaction creates landscape systems or geoecosystems.
"Geoecology" investigates the structure and function of geoecosystems. Part one introduces geoecological systems, their nature, hierarchical structure and ideas about their interdependence and integrity. A simple dynamic systems model, referred to as the "brash" equation, is developed to provide an analytical and conceptual framework for the book. Part two explores internal or "ecological" interactions between geoecosystems and their near-surface environment, with individual chapters looking at the influence of climate, altitude, topography, insularity and substrate. Part three prospects the role of external factors, both geological and cosmic, as agencies disturbing the dynamics of the geoecosystems.
A new "evolutionary" view of geoecological systems, and the animals, plants and soils comprising them, emerges: geoecosystems are seen as dynamic entities, organized on an hierarchical basis, that perpetually respond to changes within themselves and in their surroundings. "Geoecology" will interest a wide range of environmental scientists, geographers, ecologists and pedologists.

Contents:
1. Bodily Openings; 2. 'Corporeographers'; 3. Pregnant Bodies in Public Places; 4. Men's Bodies and Bathrooms; 5. Managing Managerial Bodies; 6. Some Thoughts on Close(t) Spaces; Appendix, Notes, Bibliography

This book explores a range of biohealth and biosecurity threats, places them in context, and offers responses and solutions from global and local, networked and pyramidal, as well as specialized and interdisciplinary perspectives. Specifically covering bioterrorism, emerging infectious diseases, pandemic disease preparedness and remediation, agroterroism, food safety, and environmental issues, the contributors demonstrate that to counter terrorism of any kind, a global, networked, and multidisciplinary approach is essential. To be successful in biosecurity, this book argues it is necessary to extend partnerships, cooperation, and co-ordination between public health, clinical medicine, private business, law enforcement and other agencies locally, nationally and internationally. Internationally, a clear understanding is needed of what has happened in past epidemics and what was accomplished in past bioprograms (in Britain, South Africa, Russia, for example). This book also assesses how, with the right technology and motivation, both a state and a non-state actor could initiate an extremely credible biothreat to security at both local and national levels. This book will be of much interest to students, researchers and practitioners of security studies, public health, public policy and IR in general. Peter Katona is Associate Professor of Clinical Medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA in Infectious Diseases. He is co-founder of Biological Threat Mitigation, a bioterror consulting firm. John P. Sullivan is a lieutenant with the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department. He is also a researcher focusing on terrorism, conflict disaster, intelligence studies, and urban operations. He is co-founder of the Los Angeles Terrorism Early Warning (TEW) Group. Michael D. Intriligator is Professor of Economics at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). He is also Professor of Political Science, Professor of Public Policy in the School of Public Policy and Social Research, and Co-Director of the Jacob Marschak Interdisciplinary Colloquium on Mathematics in the Behavioral Sciences, all at UCLA.

This book explores a range of biohealth and biosecurity threats, places them in context, and offers responses and solutions from global and local, networked and pyramidal, as well as specialized and interdisciplinary perspectives.

Specifically covering bioterrorism, emerging infectious diseases, pandemic disease preparedness and remediation, agroterroism, food safety, and environmental issues, the contributors demonstrate that to counter terrorism of any kind, a global, networked, and multidisciplinary approach is essential. To be successful in biosecurity, this book argues it is necessary to extend partnerships, cooperation, and co-ordination between public health, clinical medicine, private business, law enforcement and other agencies locally, nationally and internationally. Internationally, a clear understanding is needed of what has happened in past epidemics and what was accomplished in past bioprograms (in Britain, South Africa, Russia, for example). This book also assesses how, with the right technology and motivation, both a state and a non-state actor could initiate an extremely credible biothreat to security at both local and national levels.

This book will be of much interest to students, researchers and practitioners of security studies, public health, public policy and IR in general.

Peter Katona is Associate Professor of Clinical Medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA in Infectious Diseases. He is co-founder of Biological Threat Mitigation, a bioterror consulting firm.

John P. Sullivan is a lieutenant with the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department. He is also a researcher focusing on terrorism, conflict disaster, intelligence studies, and urban operations. He is co-founder of the Los Angeles Terrorism Early Warning (TEW) Group.

Michael D. Intriligator is Professor of Economics at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). He is also Professor of Political Science, Professor of Public Policy in the School of Public Policy and Social Research, and Co-Director of the Jacob Marschak Interdisciplinary Colloquium on Mathematics in the Behavioral Sciences, all at UCLA.

This book presents new research and theory at the regional scale showing the forms metropolitan regions might take to achieve sustainability. At the city scale the book presents case studies based on the latest research and practice from Europe, Asia and North America, showing how both planning and flagship design can propel cities into world class status, and also improve sustainability. The contributors explore the tension between polycentric and potentially sustainable development, and urban fragmentation in a physical context, but also in a wider cultural, social and economic context.

Geochemistry at the surface of the earth is dominated by two somewhat antagonistic forces: chemical reactions which attempt to attain a steady state (equilibrium) and geological movement of materials in time and space which changes the parameters that control chemical equilibrium. Another aspect that is extremely important to earth surface geochemistry is the effect of plants on the chemical and physical stability of materials (soils). Plant systems in fact work against the normal chemical changes (loss of silica, potassium, etc.) and the normal physical changes (stabilizing fine grained materials (clays) in the surface zones to avoid erosion). Biological effects are clearly seen in redox effects in the various parts of the earth surface movement cycle; soil formation, stream transport, sedimentation. This book attempts to outline these different parameters and their interactions as they affect earth surface geochemsitry in order to give a better understanding of movement and accumulation of elements at the surface of the earth.

Animal population ecology comprises the study of variations, regulation, and interactions of animal populations. This book discusses the fundamental notions and findings of animal populations on which most of the ecological studies are based. In particular, the author selects the logistic law of population growth, the nature of competition, sociality as an antithesis of competition, the mechanism underlying the regulation of populations, predator-prey interaction processes, and interactions among closely related species competing over essential resources. These are the notions that are considered to be well-established facts or principles and are regularly taught at ecology classes or introduced in standard textbooks. However, the author demonstrates that these notions are still inadequately understood, or even misunderstood, creating myths that would misguide ecologists in carrying out their studies. He delves deeply into those notions to reveal their real nature and draws a road map to the future development of ecology.

A common assumption about cities throughout the world is that they are essentially an elaboration of the Euro-American model. Postcolonial Urbanism demonstrates the narrowness of this vision. The book shows that cities in the postcolonial world are producing novel forms of urbanism not reducible to Western models. Despite being heavily colonized in the past, Southeast Asia has been largely ignored in discussions about postcolonial theory in general considerations of global urbanism. An international cast of contributors focuses on the heavily urbanized world region of Southeast Asia to investigate the novel forms of urbanism germinating in postcolonial settings such as Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, Hanoi and the Philippines. Offering a mix of theoretical perspectives and empirical accounts, Postcolonial Urbanism presents a panoramic view of the cultures, societies and politics of the postcolonial city.

A common assumption about cities throughout the world is that they are essentially an elaboration of the Euro-American model. Postcolonial Urbanism demonstrates the narrowness of this vision. The book shows that cities in the postcolonial world are producing novel forms of urbanism not reducible to Western models. Despite being heavily colonized in the past, Southeast Asia has been largely ignored in discussions about postcolonial theory in general considerations of global urbanism. An international cast of contributors focuses on the heavily urbanized world region of Southeast Asia to investigate the novel forms of urbanism germinating in postcolonial settings such as Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, Hanoi and the Philippines. Offering a mix of theoretical perspectives and empirical accounts, Postcolonial Urbanism presents a panoramic view of the cultures, societies and politics of the postcolonial city.

Island biogeography is the study of the distribution and dynamics of species in island environments. Due to their isolation from more widespread continental species, islands are ideal places for unique species to evolve, but they are also places of concentrated extinction. Consequently, they are widely studied by ecologists, evolutionary biologists, and conservationists. This accessible textbook builds on the success and reputation of its predecessors, documenting the recent advances in this exciting field and explaining how islands have contributed to both theory development and testing. In addition, the book describes the main processes of island formation, subsequent dynamics, and eventual demise, explaining the relevance of island environmental history to island biogeography. The authors demonstrate the significance of islands as hotspots of biodiversity and of prehistoric and historic anthropogenic extinction. Since island species continue to feature disproportionally in the lists of threatened species today, the book examines both the chief threats to their persistence and some of the mitigation measures that can be put in play, with conservation strategies specifically tailored to islands.

This multidisciplinary book focuses on the relationships and interactions between palaeobiogeography, biogeography, dispersal, vicariance, migrations and evolution of organisms in the SE Asia-Australasian region. The book investigates biogeographic links between SE Asia and Australasia which go back more than 500 million years. It also focuses on the links between geological evolution and biological migrations and evolution in the region. It was in the SE Asian region that Alfred Russell Wallace established his biogeographic line, now known as Wallace's Line, which was the beginning of biogeography. Wallace also independently developed his theory of evolution based on his work in this area.;The book brings together, for the first time, geologists, palaeontologists, zoologists, botanists, entomologists, evolutionary biologists and archaeologists, in the one volume, to relate the region's geological past to its present biological peculiarities. The book is organized into six sections. Section 1 Paleobiogeographic Background provides overviews of the geological and tectonic evolution of SE Asia-Australasia, and changing patterns of land and sea for the last 540 million years. Section 2 Palaeozoic and Mesozoic Geology and Biogeography discusses Palaeozoic and Mesozoic biogeography of conodonts, brachiopods, plants, dinosaurs and radiolarians and the recognition of ancient biogeographic boundaries or Wallace Lines in the region. Section 3 Wallace's Line focuses on the biogeographic boundary established by Wallace, including the history of its establishment, its significance to biogeography in general and its applicability in the context of modern biogeography.;Section 4 Plant biogeography and evolution includes discussion on primitive angiosperms, the diaspora of the southern rushes, and environmental, climatic and evolutionary implications of plants and palynomorphs in the region. The biogeography and migration of insects, butterflies, birds, rodents and other non-primate mammals is discussed in section 5, Non Primates. The final section 6 Primates focuses on the biogeographic radiation, migration and evolution of primates and includes papers on the occurrence and migration of early hominids and the requirements for human colonization of Australia.