The main focus of this monograph is synthesizing the importance of geographic approaches to public health and patient care. The chapters are organized into four themed sections: the role of geography in health care reform; the geographies of human health; geospatial data and technologies; and geography in medicine. It is a highly informative book, providing scientific insight for geographers with an interest in advanced geospatial applications and health research. The author is an international expert in geography, GIS, and public health, who co-edited a special issue on "Geospatial Applications in Disease Surveillance," published in the International Journal of Applied Geospatial Research. "Health, Science, and Place is a well-intentioned overview of medical geography in the context of the ACA. Blatt does an excellent job synthesizing ecologic and geographic literatures with what we know about individual health, health care systems, and public health. ... this book fills a need in the field by offering a timely discussion of the ACA and medical geography." - Jennifer L. Moss, The AAG Review of Books, Vol. 4 (2), 2016 "Amy Blatt's pioneering new book on geomedicine and its exciting capacity to promote health and minimize risk is a robust call for understanding the role of geography for everyone's quality of life. In Health, Science, and Place: A New Mode, Dr. Blatt's contributions can be summarized in three categories: comprehensive analysis, creative curating, and targeted innovations... Overall, Dr. Blatt's Health, Science, and Place: A New Model is a pathbreaking book challenging all public health and health communication scholars and practitioners to explore vigorously the role of medical geography as a shining new bridge between geography and patient care." - John C. Pollock, PhD, MPA, Professor of Health Communication and Human Rights, and Faculty Affiliate in Public Health, The College of New Jersey, Ewing, NJ

This collected volume deals with emerging issues related to climate variation, climate change and adaptation technologies, with a special focus on Latin American countries. Presenting a variety of adaptation strategies and projects currently being undertaken and implemented, the book showcases how Latin American nations are struggling to meet the challenges of climate change. Latin America as a whole and Central America in particular is one of the most vulnerable regions of the world and is severely affected by recurrent extreme climate-related events. This volume documents and analyzes the main challenges and lessons learned, serving to disseminate knowledge beyond the region and enhance international research and policy cooperation.

This book describes how sand dunes work, why they are the way they are in different settings, and how they are being studied. Particular attention is paid to their formation and appearance elsewhere in the solar system. New developments in knowledge about dunes make for an interesting story – like the dunes themselves, dune science is dynamic – and the visual appeal of Aeolian geomorphology ensures that this is an attractive volume. The book is divided into 4 parts, the first of which introduces dunes as a planetary phenomenon, showing a landscape reflecting the balance of geological processes – volcanism, impact, tectonics, erosion, deposition of sediments. Dunes are then considered as emergent dynamical systems: the interaction of sand and wind conspires to generate very characteristic and reproducible shapes. Analogies are given with other emergent structures such as patterned ground before the influence of dunes on desert peoples and infrastructure is studied, together with their use as forensic climatological indicators. Dune Physics is looked at with regard to the mechanics of sand, the physics of wind, saltation – interaction of sand and air – dunes versus ripples and transverse Aeolian ridges, the classification of dune morphology and the sources and sinks of sand. Dune Trafficability considers soil mechanics, effects on mobility on Earth, Mars and elsewhere. In the second part, Earth, Mars, Titan and other moons and planets are examined, beginning with a survey of the major deserts and dunefields on Earth. The authors then turn to Mars and its environment, sediment type, dune stratigraphy, sediment source and sinks and the association of dunes with topographic features. Titan follows - its thick, cold atmosphere, methane dampness, low gravity, morphology – interaction with topography and the implications of dunes for climate and winds. Dunes elsewhere conclude this part. There are few dunefields on Venus, but there is a .possibility of Aeolian transport on Triton and volcanic-related windstreaks on Io.

The primary goals of this brief are to invoke alertness and solidarity among the public in earthquake prone areas of India, and to empower the community to prepare themselves to face and manage the aftermath of an earthquake. The work presented here sheds new light on the action plans to be taken by the common public and public agencies, before, during and after earthquakes to safeguard lives of people and minimize loss of assets. This carefully presented book articulates various factors related to earthquake preparedness, and develops guidelines and useful tips for communicating them to relevant stakeholders. The book has been divided into three parts: (i) the first providing background which explains earthquakes in general and seismicity of India (ii) the second explores earthquake preparedness intended for individuals, families and various stakeholders, and (iii) the final section which describes various strategies for communities to prepare themselves for a future earthquake.

Mangroves are basically salt tolerant forest ecosystems found mainly in tropical and sub-tropical inter-tidal regions. Till about 1960s, mangroves were largely viewed as “economically unproductive areas� and were therefore destroyed for reclaiming land for various economic and commercial activities. Gradually, with the passage of time, the economic and ecological benefits of mangroves have become visible and their importance is now well appreciated. Today, mangroves are observed in about 30 countries in tropical subtropical regions covering an area of about 99,300 Sq.Km. However, during the past 50 years, over 50% of the mangrove cover has been lost, mainly because of the increased pressure of human activities like shrimp farming and agriculture, forestry, salt extraction, urban development, tourist development and infrastructure. Also, dam on rivers, contamination of sea waters caused by heavy metals, oil spills, pesticides and other products etc. have been found to be responsible for the decline of mangroves. Although the temperature effect on growth and species diversity is not known, sea-level rise may pose a serious threat to these ecosystems The present book addresses all these important issues in separate chapters with some interesting case studies whose data may serve as pathfinder for future researches in the sphere of the influence of climate change on mangrove ecosystem. The role of mangroves in the sector of bioremediation is a unique feather in the crown of this coastal and brackishwater vegetation that may be taken up by the coastal industries in order to maintain the health of ambient environment. This book seeks to discover and to assess the vulnerability of climate change on mangrove flora and fauna, their role in carbon sequestration and some interesting case studies by some groups of dedicated researchers that may serve as the basis of future climate related policies.

The Karakoram contains the greatest concentration of glaciers and most of the largest ice masses outside high latitudes. They comprise major stores and sources of fresh water in an otherwise extreme, continental, dry region. As many as 200 million people living downstream, in the valleys of the Indus and Yarkand Rivers, depend on melt waters from snow and ice. They are at risk from climate-change impacts on glaciers and water supply, and from hazards such as glacial lake outburst floods. Useful research initiatives go back to the nineteenth century, but coverage has generally been limited geographically and has not been continuous over time. It is almost 80 years since a monograph was devoted to the Karakoram glaciers. The book presents a comprehensive overview, including statistics for the ice cover, glacier mass balance and dynamics, glacierized landscapes, rock glaciers, water resources and environmental hazards. Published glaciological and related research is surveyed along with expedition reports and archival materials in several languages. The expanding potential of satellite coverage is exploited, but conditions and processes reported from field investigations are the main focus. Previously unpublished observations by the author are presented, based on some 45 years of work in the region. Broad understanding of the glacial environment is used to address emerging concerns about the High Asian cryosphere and the fate of its glaciers. These are discussed in relation to the pressing issues of water supply, environmental risk and sustainability. Questions of what is not known help identify much needed monitoring and research. The book is of interest to researchers, professionals, and those studying glaciers, mountain environments, water resources and environmental hazards. The topics discussed should be of concern for anyone involved in regional development and global change in South and Inner Asia.

Agroforestry, the word coined in early seventies, has made its place in all the developed and the developing countries of the world and is now recognized as an important approach to ensuring food security and rebuilding resilient rural environments. India has been an all-time leader in agroforestry. The South and Southeast Asia region comprising India is often described as the cradle of agroforestry. Almost all forms of agroforestry systems exist across India in ecozones ranging from humid tropical lowlands to high-altitude and temperate biomes, and perhumid rainforest zones to parched drylands. The country ranks foremost among the community of nations not only in terms of this enormous diversity and long tradition of the practice of agroforestry, but also in fostering scientific developments in the subject. Agroforestry applies to private agricultural and forest lands and communities that also include highly erodible, flood-prone, economically marginal and environmentally sensitive lands. The typical situation is agricultural, where trees are added to create desired benefits. Agroforestry allows for the diversification of farm activities and makes better use of environmental resources. Owing to an increase in the population of human and cattle, there is increasing demand of food as well as fodder, particularly in developing countries like India. So far, there is no policy that deals with specifics in agroforestry in India. But, the Indian Council of Agricultural Research has been discussing on the scope of having a National Agroforestry Policy in appropriate platforms. However, evolving a policy requires good and reliable datasets from different corners of the country on the subject matter. This synthesis volume containing 13 chapters is an attempt to collate available information in a classified manner into different system ecologies, problems and solutions, and converging them into a policy support.

This book series is composed of peer-reviewed proceedings of selected symposia organized by the International Association of Geodesy. It deals primarily with topics related to Geodesy Earth Sciences : terrestrial reference frame, Earth gravity field, Geodynamics and Earth rotation, Positioning and engineering applications.

The structural optimization procedure presented in this book makes it possible to achieve seismic protection through integrated structural/control system design. In particular, it is explained how slender structural systems with a high seismic performance can be achieved through inclusion of viscous and viscoelastic dampers as an integral part of the system. Readers are provided with essential introductory information on passive structural control and passive energy dissipation systems. Dynamic analyses of both single and multiple degree of freedom systems are performed in order to verify the achievement of pre-assigned performance targets, and it is explained how the optimal integrated design methodology, also relevant to retrofitting of existing buildings, should be applied. The book illustrates how structural control research is opening up new possibilities in structural forms and configurations without compromising structural performance.

Focusing on geoscience, this book applies a uniquely cross-disciplinary perspective to its examination of the relationship between scientific research and teaching at universities. Contributions show how the use of technology and innovative pedagogical design allows students at different stages of their university studies to develop skills and experience in geoscience research. The book offers wide-ranging insight from academics in geoscience, science education and higher education policy and pedagogy, as well as from students and industry experts.   The opening section sets the context, with a chapter on teaching and research in the contemporary university by a world-leading academic in higher education, and an essay by the editor on the case of moving from research-implicit to research-enhanced teaching. Part Two addresses the research-teaching nexus in geoscience, offering chapters entitled The Challenge of Combining Research and Teaching: A Young Geoscientist’s Perspective; Teaching on the High Seas: How Field Research Enhances Teaching at All Levels; Curricula and Departmental Strategies to Link Teaching and Geoscience Research; and Geoscience Internships in the Oil and Gas Industry, among others. In Part Three, the use of technology is discussed in chapters such as Using Interactive Virtual Field Guides and Linked Data in Geoscience Teaching and Learning; and Towards Technology- and Research-enhanced Education (TREE): Electronic Feedback as a Teaching Tool in Geoscience.  The Program Design section includes chapters on Introducing University Students to Authentic, Hands-on Undergraduate Geoscience Research, and the opportunity to link research and teaching in students’ final projects and more.  Geoscience Research and Education: Teaching at Universities is a useful resource for understanding the research-teaching nexus and how it has been implemented in different types of universities and in different countries. Science academics seeking to integrate research into teaching will find the book highly relevant to their work. The emphasis on using technology as a means to link research and teaching will be of great interest and practical benefit to learning technologists, science educators and university policymakers.    Together with the companion volume Geoscience Research and Outreach: Schools and Public Engagement, this book showcases the key role that geoscience research plays in a wide spectrum of educational settings.

This book is one out of 8 IAEG XII Congress volumes and deals with education and the professional ethics, which scientists, regulators and practitioners of engineering geology inevitably have to face through the purposes, methods, limitations and findings of their works. This volume presents contributions on the professional responsibilities of engineering geologists; the interaction of engineering geologists with other professionals; recognition of the engineering geological profession and its particular contribution to society, culture, and economy and implications for the education of engineering geologists at tertiary level and in further education schemes. Issues treated in this volume are: the position of engineering geology within the geo-engineering profession; professional ethics and communication; resource use and re-use; managing risk in a litigious world; engineering and geological responsibility and engineering geology at tertiary level. The Engineering Geology for Society and Territory volumes of the IAEG XII Congress held in Torino from September 15-19, 2014, analyze the dynamic role of engineering geology in our changing world and build on the four main themes of the congress: Environment, processes, issues and approaches. The congress topics and subject areas of the 8 IAEG XII Congress volumes are: Climate Change and Engineering Geology. Landslide Processes. River Basins, Reservoir Sedimentation and Water Resources. Marine and Coastal Processes. Urban Geology, Sustainable Planning and Landscape Exploitation. Applied Geology for Major Engineering Projects. Education, Professional Ethics and Public Recognition of Engineering Geology. Preservation of Cultural Heritage.

These proceedings contain 25 papers, which are the peer-reviewed versions of presentations made at the 1st International Workshop on the Quality of Geodetic Observation and Monitoring (QuGOMS'11), held 13 April to 15 April 2011 in Garching, Germany. The papers were drawn from five sessions which reflected the following topic areas: (1) Uncertainty Modeling of Geodetic Data, (2) Theoretical Studies on Combination Strategies and Parameter Estimation, (3) Recursive State-Space Filtering, (4) Sensor Networks and Multi Sensor Systems in Engineering Geodesy, (5) Multi-Mission Approaches With View to Physical Processes in the Earth System.

The ARTEMIS mission was initiated by skillfully moving the two outermost Earth-orbiting THEMIS spacecraft into lunar orbit to conduct unprecedented dual spacecraft observations of the lunar environment. ARTEMIS stands for Acceleration, Reconnection, Turbulence and Electrodynamics of the Moon's Interaction with the Sun. Indeed, this volume discusses initial findings related to the Moon's magnetic and plasma environments and the electrical conductivity of the lunar interior. This work is aimed at researchers and graduate students in both heliophysics and planetary physics. Originally published in Space Science Reviews, Vol. 165/1-4, 2011.

This book review series presents current trends in modern biotechnology. The aim is to cover all aspects of this interdisciplinary technology where knowledge, methods and expertise are required from chemistry, biochemistry, microbiology, genetics, chemical engineering and computer science. Volumes are organized topically and provide a comprehensive discussion of developments in the respective field over the past 3-5 years. The series also discusses new discoveries and applications. Special volumes are dedicated to selected topics which focus on new biotechnological products and new processes for their synthesis and purification. In general, special volumes are edited by well-known guest editors. The series editor and publisher will however always be pleased to receive suggestions and supplementary information. Manuscripts are accepted in English.

The present book is based on the research papers presented in the International Conference on Emerging Trends in Science, Engineering and Technology 2012, held at Tiruchirapalli, India. The papers presented bridges the gap between science, engineering and technology. This book covers a variety of topics, including mechanical, production, aeronautical, material science, energy, civil and environmental energy, scientific management, etc. The prime objective of the book is to fully integrate the scientific contributions from academicians, industrialists and research scholars.

This book explores economic concepts related to disaster losses, describes mechanisms that determine the economic consequences of a disaster, and reviews methodologies for making decisions regarding risk management and adaptation. The author addresses the need for better understanding of the consequences of disasters and reviews and analyzes three scientific debates on linkage between disaster risk management and adaptation to climate change. The first involves the existence and magnitude of long-term economic impact of natural disasters on development. The second is the disagreement over whether any development is the proper solution to high vulnerability to disaster risk. The third debate involves the difficulty of drawing connections between natural disasters and climate change and the challenge in managing them through an integrated strategy. The introduction describes economic views of disaster, including direct and indirect costs, output and welfare losses, and use of econometric tools to measure losses. The next section defines disaster risk, delineates between "good" and "bad" risk-taking, and discusses a pathway to balanced growth. A section entitled "Trends in Hazards and the Role of Climate Change" sets scenarios for climate change analysis, discusses statistical and physical models for downscaling global climate scenarios to extreme event scenarios, and considers how to consider extremes of hot and cold, storms, wind, drought and flood. Another section analyzes case studies on hurricanes and the US coastline; sea-level rises and storm surge in Copenhagen; and heavy precipitation in Mumbai. A section on Methodologies for disaster risk management includes a study on cost-benefit analysis of coastal protections in New Orleans, and one on early-warning systems in developing countries. The next section outlines decision-making in disaster risk management, including robust decision-making, No-regret and No-risk strategies; and strategies that reduce time horizons for decision-making. Among the conclusions is the assertion that risk management policies must recognize the benefits of risk-taking and avoid suppressing it entirely. The main message is that a combination of disaster-risk-reduction, resilience-building and adaptation policies can yield large potential gains and synergies.

This book explores the common language of politics, ecology and risk, and crosses their conceptual divides. It seeks to shed light on the underlying structural factors, processes, players and interactions in the risk scenario, all of which influence decision-making that both increases and reduces disaster risk. The first section explores risk governance under conditions of increasing complexity, diversity and change. The discussion includes chapters on The problem of governance in the risk society; Making sense of decentralization; Understanding and conceptualizing risk in large-scale social-ecological systems; The disaster epidemic and Structure, process, and agency in the evaluation of risk governance. Part II, focused on governance in regions and domains of risk, includes nine chapters with discussion of Climate governance and climate change and society; Climate change and the politics of uncertainty; Risk complexity and governance in mountain environments; On the edge: Coastal governance and risk and Governance of megacity disaster risks, among other important topics. Part III discusses directions for further advancement in risk governance, with ten chapters on such topics as the transition From risk society to security society; Governing risk tolerability; Risk and adaptive planning for coastal cities; Profiling risk governance in natural hazards contexts; Confronting the risk of large disasters in nature and Transitions into and out of a crisis mode of socio-ecological systems. The book presents a comprehensive examination of the complexity of both risk and environmental policy-making and of their multiple-and not always visible-interactions in the context of social-ecological systems. Just as important, it also addresses unseen and neglected complementarities between regulatory policy-making and ordinary individual decision-making through the actions of nongovernmental actors. A range of distinguished scholars from a diverse set of disciplines have contributed to the book with their expertise in many areas, including disaster studies, emergency planning and management, ecology, sustainability, environmental planning and management, climate change, geography, spatial planning, development studies, economy, political sciences, public administration, communication, as well as physics and geology.

Commissioned by the Intergovernmental Meeting (IGM) of the Asia-Pacific Network for Global Change Research (APN), this book offers a detailed survey of the current status of climate change and climate variability in the Asia-Pacific region, a thorough and thoughtful assessment of climate and security and clear recommendations on the best paths of climate research in the future.

Featuring a collection of informative and descriptive chapters, this book is essential reading for environmental scientists, environmental toxicologists and people from allied fields. The research and its outcomes presented here focus on pollution prevention approaches, clean technologies and toxic use reduction that has the potential for eliminating worker exposure to health risks; and creates healthy and sustainable ecosystems. Readers will discover ways to incorporate prevention in the design of industrial processes that help to eliminate harmful environmental effects while promoting the competitiveness of industries. Issues such as biological control agents for sustainable urban agriculture, safe water and soil health; waste management and utilization in food processing industries, and ranking of Benzene, Toluene, Ethylbenzene and Xylene (BTEX) with respect to ozone formation are addressed in this book. Particular attention is given to interrelated issues associated with global warming and the use of genetically engineered organisms (GEM's) for combating pollution in extreme environments. The authors invite researchers to think through the critical analysis presented here and recommend future pathways for further research.

The national parks and reserves of East Africa are widely known for their rich and abundant wildlife. This book presents a new and exciting angle – the geological highlights of the region’s intriguing landscape. East Africa’s cataclysmic volcanic legacy, caused by rifting of the landmass, has resulted in a rich source of geological wonders. These range from the seemingly endless, peaceful plains of the Serengeti to the stark skyscraper walls of extinct calderas and the boiling magma cauldrons and belching vents of the Nyiragongo Volcano.

This handy guide escorts users around all the major – and some minor – parks of Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda, as well as the Virunga Mountains in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Descriptions of each park and its wildlife offerings, both fauna and flora, preface discussion of the geological origins, influences and current conditions. Key geosites in the parks, and how to access them, are indicated. Maps, satellite images and diagrams, along with vivid photography, help explain the dramatic landforms, both close up and from above.

For anyone planning a safari to the legendary East African game parks and reserves, this book adds an exciting new dimension.

This book explores the industrial use of secure, permanent storage technologies for carbon dioxide (CO2), especially geological CO2 storage. Readers are invited to discover how this greenhouse gas could be spared from permanent release into the atmosphere through storage in deep rock formations. Themes explored here include CO2 reservoir management, caprock formation, bio-chemical processes and fluid migration. Particular attention is given to groundwater protection, the improvement of sensor technology, borehole seals and cement quality. A collaborative work by scientists and industrial partners, this volume presents original research, it investigates several aspects of innovative technologies for medium-term use and it includes a detailed risk analysis. Coal-based power generation, energy consuming industrial processes (such as steel and cement) and the burning of biomass all result in carbon dioxide. Those involved in such industries who are considering geological storage of CO2, as well as earth scientists and engineers will value this book and the innovative monitoring methods described. Researchers in the field of computer imaging and pattern recognition will also find something of interest in these chapters.

1. Provides the fundamentals of subpixel mapping technology and its applications. 2. Discusses in detail the advantages of using different subpixel mapping techniques based on remote sensing data. 3. Summarizes in a systematic way current subpixel location methods. 4. Highlights authors' achievements in subpixel mapping technology. 5. Includes case studies based on remote sensing data from USA, Italy, China, and Cambodia.

The Galapagos Islands are renown for their unique flora and fauna, inspiring Charles Darwin in the elaboration of his theory of evolution. Yet in his "Voyage of the Beagle," published in 1839, Darwin also remarked on the fascinating geology and volcanic origin of these enchanted Islands. Since then, the Galapagos continue to provide scientists with inspiration and invaluable information about ocean island formation and evolution, mantle plumes, and the deep Earth.

Motivated by an interdisciplinary Chapman Conference held in the Islands, this AGU volume provides cross-disciplinary collection of recent research into the origin and nature of ocean islands, from their deepest roots in Earth's mantle, to volcanism, surface processes, and the interface between geology and biodiversity.

Volume highlights include: - Case studies in biogeographical, hydrological, and chronological perspective- Understanding the connection between geological processes and biodiversity- Synthesis of decades of interdisciplinary research in physical processes from surface to deep interior of the earth- In-depth discussion of the concept of the island acting as a natural laboratory for earth scientists- Integrated understanding of the Galapagos region from a geological perspective

Collectively, "The Galapagos "presents case studies illustrating the Galapagos Archipelago as a dynamic natural laboratory for the earth sciences. This book would be of special interest to a multidisciplinary audience in earth sciences, including petrologists, volcanologists, geochronologists, geochemists, and geobiologists.

This book studies the "Redox Complex", a complex of unconventional geophysical-geochemical exploration techniques used for the indirect detection, characterization and evaluation of various metal targets, while also illustrating selected applications of unconventional geophysical-geochemical methods for oil exploration in Cuba. This complex is successfully applied in various fields: oil & gas and metal ores exploration; studies of oil and metal contaminants in soils; and the search for metallic archaeological burials. The use of these techniques is intended to complement the conventional prospecting complex by reducing areas and/or facilitating the selection of the most favorable targets, improving the economical-geological effectiveness of investigations in the process. Further, the Redox Complex can be implemented without physical or chemical damage to the environment. The book's primary goals are to: 1) outline the general features characterizing the processes of metal mobilization, transport and accumulation on surficial media; 2) outline the methodology, data interpretation and mathematical apparatus that support quantitative estimates of the Redox Complex; and 3) design a database and applications system (the Redox System) to address storage processes, reports, graphics and the corresponding interpretations of the Redox Complex in a quick and reliable way. To do so, it examines the regions of Havana-Matanzas (Varadero Oil Field, Cantel Oil Field and Madruga Prospect) and Ciego de Avila (Pina Oil Field, Cristales Oil Field, Jatibonico Oil Field, Jatibonico Oeste Prospect and Cacahual Prospect). The methods covered include, in some cases, airborne gamma spectrometry (K/eTh ratio) beside ORP and, in others, the Redox Complex with reduced or standard attributes. In all cases, the anomalous complex of interest corresponds to the correlation of the minimum K/eTh ratio with minimum ORP and, in the case of the Redox Complex, Magnetic Susceptibility highs with ORP lows, Spectral Reflectance lows and maximum Content of Chemical Elements (V, Ni, Pb, Zn, Fe).