An extraordinary life, recorded for posterity, by a man who beat adversity in his earlier days to fulfil his ambition to succeed in the commercial world. John Lucken tells the story of his time from an old-style naval school of the 1930s, thorugh WW11 and the Korean War to entering the field of hydrographic survey and exploration worldwide. He recalls working in Borneo and in the former Dutch New Guinea before the arrival there of the powerful mining companies and the influx of thousands of immigrants from other parts of Indonesia. He was present in Nigeria when the first oil well was discovered and stayed in contact throughout the Biafran civil war. Emotional recollections that are a real eye-opener and a lesson to anyone sat behind a desk in Britain about just how different a life can be.

Climate Change and Life: The Complex Co-evolution of Climate and Life on Earth, and Beyond covers the critical tectonic and biogeochemical cycles that drive climate and shape the modern world. It compares the history of Earth to the histories of Venus and Mars, including new findings of Martian climate change. The book is multidisciplinary and will instruct readers on the range of extremes in climate and biogeochemical cycling that shape life on Earth. Topics covered include climate drivers on Earth (atmospheric gases, non-gaseous particulates in the atmosphere, etc.), various techniques to assess past climates, mass extension drivers, and future predictions. The book takes a long view on climate change and evolution while also focusing on defining moments in Earth history where critical thresholds and events occur. Climate scientists, earth scientists, environmental scientists and researchers in all other areas related to climate change will find value in the research presented in this book.

In this ambitious, myth-busting book, leading scientist and internationally bestselling author Vaclav Smil investigates many of the burning questions facing the world today:

Why are some of the world’s biggest food producers also the countries with the most undernourished populations?

Why is food waste a colossal 1,000kcal per person daily, and how can we solve that?

Could we all go vegan and be healthy? Should we?

How will we feed the ballooning population without killing the planet?

How Food Really Works shows how we misunderstand the essentials of where our food really comes from, how our dietary requirements shape us, and why this impacts our planet in drastic ways. Ultimately, this data-based, rigorously researched guide explains how we will survive and thrive long into the future.

Novel Materials for Environmental Remediation Applications: Adsorption and Beyond presents detailed, comprehensive coverage of novel and advanced materials that can be applied to address the growing global concern of the pollution of natural resources in water, the air, and in soil. The book provides up-to-date knowledge of state-of-the-art materials and treatment processes, as well as details of applications, including adsorptive remediation and catalytic remediation. Chapters include the characteristics of materials, basic and important physicochemical features for environmental remediation applications, routes of synthesis, recent advances as remediation medias and future perspectives. This book offers an interdisciplinary and practical examination of novel materials and processes for environmental remediation that will be valuable to environmental scientists, materials scientists, environmental chemists, and environmental engineers alike.

Die grasfamilie, bekend as Poaceae, is waarskynlik die belangrikste plantfamilie op aarde. Grasse is die eerste voedselplante wat deur mense aangeplant is. Graangewasse, soos mielies, koring, rys en suikerriet (almal grasse), is steeds ons belangrikste bron van energie. Gras, in die vorm van voer, is ook die belangrikste bron van kos vir vee en die groot kuddes grasvreters in die natuur. Die akkurate identifikasie van grasse raak belangrik tydens veldbestuur aangesien grasse ten opsigte van hul weidingswaarde en ander ekologiese funksies verskil. Verder reageer verskillende onkruidgrasse anders op chemise onkruiddoders en moet daarom akkuraat geidentifiseer word. Hierdie boek, Gids tot Grasse van suider-Afrika, is die omvattendste volkleur identifikasiegids tot die algemene grasse in suider-Afrika en sluit onder meer die volgende kenmerke in: Beskrywings en illustrasies van die 320 belangrikste grasse in suider-Afrika; 'n Gebruikersvriendelike indentifikasiesleutel; Meer as 1 000 uitstekende kleurfoto's; Dertien kort en volledig geillustreerde inleidende hoofstukke oor grasse; Algemene grasname in verskeie inheemse tale; Simbole wat die leser in staat stel om inligting met 'n oogopslag te bekom.

A grandmother of four, dons a 25lb rucksack and treks the 700kms El Camino to Santiago de Compostela in a sponsored quest to protect Manx wildlife. Her diary and notes of the route have been compiled into an inspirational journal of adventures across the vineyards, sierras and cities of northern Spain. Her light-hearted informative approach brings to life all that is to be seen on El Camino and an excellent guide for anyone contemplating walking this ancient and well-trodden path.

Wangari Maathai tells the story of this scientist and women's rights activist. It explores how she inspired thousands across Africa to plant 30 million trees in 30 years, saving many from hunger and poverty.

Great Scientists are first biographies introducing some of the world's great scientists, simply retelling their lives and explaining why their work was important. Perfect for children aged 7 plus. Each book has been book banded and includes a quiz at the end to test what has been learned.

Vegetation Dynamics and Crop Stress: An Earth-Observation Perspective focuses on vegetation dynamics and crop stress at both the regional and country levels by using earth observation (EO) data sets. The book uniquely provides a better understanding of natural vegetation and crop failure through geo-spatial technologies. This book covers biophysical control of vegetation, deforestation, desertification, drought, and crop-water efficiency, as well as the application of satellite-derived measures from optical, thermal, and microwave domains for monitoring and modeling crop condition, agricultural drought, and crop health in contrasting monsoon/weather episodes.

Climate Impacts on Extreme Weather: Current to Future Changes on a Local to Global Scale presents fundamentals and advances in the science of weather and climate extremes, building on the existing knowledge by using regional and global case studies. The book provides an analysis of historical and future changes, physical processes, measurements, space-time variability, socioeconomic impact, and risk management. It provides policy makers, researchers and students working in climate change with a thorough reference for understanding the diverse impacts of extreme weather and climate change on varying geographic scales. With contributions from experts across the globe, the book utilizes methods, case studies, modeling, and analysis to present valuable, up-to-date knowledge about the interaction of climate change, weather and the many implications of the changing environment.

Our beautiful planet is in danger: the warning signs are there, year after year – from vast forest fires across Australia to coral bleaching in the Pacific and the rapid break up of polar ice and the consequent rise in sea levels, threatening low-lying coastal communities everywhere. Arranged by continent, Endangered Places introduces the reader to many of the most stunning natural locations from the around the world that are currently under threat. Learn about the magnificent Bornean rainforest, home to threatened species such as orangutans, probiscis monkeys and the Sumatran rhinoceros; marvel at the beauty of the Great Barrier Reef, stretching 2,300 kilometres along Australia’s east coast and built by billions of tiny organisms, known as coral polyps; explore the Aral Sea, formerly the fourth largest lake in the world and today less than 10 per cent of it’s original size after the rivers that fed it were diverted by Soviet irrigation projects; and understand the process of desertification, which has led to the huge expansion of the Sahara Desert and the dramatic shrinkage of Lake Chad. Illustrated with more than 180 photographs of more than 100 threatened locations, Endangered Places celebrates the beauty of our planet while reminding us of how easily this can be lost through human behaviour and climate change.

Pauline McHardy takes a methodical approach to her subject explaining Jamaican geography and urban development as well as the political and social factors that have influenced, and will influence, the country's planning regulations. She outlines the major acts that have shaped the evoltuion of the planning system in Jamaica since its independence from Britain, and considers their impact on both major urban and rural regions of the island. She draws on her educational background in geography and community and regional planning, as well as eighteen years experience of working with the Jamaican government in this area, to produce a book which meticulously defines the the developing role of town and regional planning in Jamaica.

'. . . there is a quiet here that doesn't exist on land, a fluid suspension that reminds me that humans were never meant to be so rigid, so fixed in place. In the sea, we are both vulnerable and free . . .'

Deep Blue is a love letter to the sea, exploring humans' deep connection with the ocean and the bliss of swimming, diving, dipping and simply being in salt water.

Join Veruska De Vita, a learner free diver and open-water swimmer, as she delves into why the ocean calls to us. Along the way she talks to those who find healing and wellness in swimming groups and cold-water immersion, scientists who study complex marine environments, elite athletes who swim super-human distances along our coasts and free divers who plumb the depths with one breath.

Water is primordial. It gives life. It represents hope and renewal. This book is not only for sea worshippers. It promises to inspire everyone to jump with joy into the waves - and offers reflections on our intimate relationship with the sea, which supports life on earth and requests that we respect it.

Waste Biorefineries: Advanced Design Concepts for Integrated Waste to Energy Processes presents a detailed guide to the design of energy-efficient and cost-effective waste-integrated biorefineries. Integrating thermochemical processing of waste with existing waste-to-energy technologies, the book includes the latest developments and technologies. It introduces current waste valorization techniques and examines reasons to modify existing waste-to-energy systems through the integration of new processes. In addition, the book explains the design of novel biorefineries and methods to assess these processes alongside detailed results, including the integration of waste-based CHP plants with waste gasification and the integration of pyrolysis technologies and biogas plants with waste thermochemical processing. Other sections discuss the issues and challenges of commercializing waste-to-energy technologies, including uncertainty in waste thermochemical process designs, the environmental impact of waste-integrated biorefineries, and the role of integrated waste-to-energy management in smart cities and urban energy systems. This book will be an invaluable reference for students, researchers and those in industry who are interested in the design and implementation of waste-to-energy systems, waste biomass-based combined heat and power plants, biogas plants and forest-based industries.

On 14 April 1912, less than a week into a transatlantic trip from Southampton to New York, the largest luxury cruise liner in the world struck an iceberg off the coast of Labrador, causing the hull to buckle. The massive 50,000 ton ship hailed as 'unsinkable' was soon slipping into the cold Atlantic Ocean, the crew and passengers scrambling to launch lifeboats before being sucked into the deep. Of the 2,224 passengers and crew aboard, more than 1,500 died, making the sinking one of the deadliest for a single ship up to that time. The sinking has captured the public imagination ever since, in part because of the scale of the tragedy, but also because the ship represented in microcosm Edwardian society, with the super-rich sharing the vessel with poor migrants seeking a new life in North America. Other factors, such as why there were only enough lifeboats to hold half the passengers, also caused controversy and led to changes in maritime safety. In later years many survivors told their stories to the press, and Titanic celebrates these accounts. A final chapter examines the shipwreck today, which has been visited underwater by explorers, scientists and film-makers, and many artifacts recovered as the old liner steadily disintegrates. Titanic offers a compact, insightful photographic history of the sinking and its aftermath in 180 authentic photographs.