This updated and expanded second edition of a much lauded work provides a current overview of the impacts of climate change on tropical forests. The authors also investigate past, present and future climatic influences on the ecosystems with the highest biodiversity on the planet. Tropical Rainforest Responses to Climatic Change, Second Edition, looks at how tropical rain forest ecology is altered by climate change, rather than simply seeing how plant communities were altered. Shifting the emphasis on to ecological processes, e.g. how diversity is structured by climate and the subsequent impact on tropical forest ecology, provides the reader with a more comprehensive coverage. A major theme of the book is the interaction between humans, climate and forest ecology. The authors, all foremost experts in their fields, explore the long term occupation of tropical systems, the influence of fire and the future climatic effects of deforestation, together with anthropogenic emissions. Incorporating modelling of past and future systems paves the way for a discussion of conservation from a climatic perspective, rather than the usual plea to stop logging. This second edition provides an updated text in this rapidly evolving field. The existing chapters are revised and updated and two entirely new chapters deal with Central America and the effect of fire on wet forest systems. In the first new chapter, the paleoclimate and ecological record from Central America (Lozano, Correa, Bush) is discussed, while the other deals with the impact of fire on tropical ecosystems. It is hoped that Jonathon Overpeck, who has been centrally involved in the 2007 and 2010 IPCC reports, will provide a Foreword to the book.

Integrated Regional Assessment (IRA) promotes a better understanding of how regions contribute to global environmental change. This book provides a detailed treatment of the methodological challenges of IRA and a set of international examples illustrating the practice of such assessments at the regional scale. The first nine chapters address questions of scale, uncertainty, quantitative versus qualitative approaches, and particular conceptual frameworks for IRA evaluation. The next five chapters illustrate a range of IRA activities combining qualitative and quantitative approaches in innovative ways. The final five chapters review IRA as a process from an implementation perspective. This volume is the culmination of the START/CIRA/IHDP initiative: a collection of international research programmes, including the International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme (IGBP), the World Climate Research Programme (WCRP), and the International Human Dimensions Programme on Global Environmental Change (IHDP). This is an important resource for researchers and policymakers in environmental science and policy.

The work is aimed at the review of hot topics in modern light scattering and radiative transfer. A special attention will be given to the description of the methods of integro-differential radiative transfer equation solution. In particular, the asymptotic radiative transfer and the method of discrete ordinates will be considered. A comprehensive review of light absorption in the terrestrial atmosphere will be given as well. The inverse problem solution will be reviewed as well.

In the biogeochemical dynamics of marine ecosystems, silicon is a major element whose role has, for a long time, been underestimated. It is however indispensable to the activity of several biomineralizing marine organisms, some of which play an essential role in the biological pump of oceanic carbon. This book presents notions indispensable to the knowledge on the silicon biogeochemical cycle in ocean systems, first of all describing the main quantitative analysis techniques and examination of the major organisms involved in the cycle. The author then moves on to study the most up-to-date processes to control the use of silicon and its regeneration in natural conditions, before mentioning the central role played by this original element in the control of all the biogeochemical cycles in the global ocean. The available information finally enables the global biogeochemical budget of silicon in the marine environment to be quantified.

This textbook aims to be a one stop shop for those interested in aerosols and their impact on the climate system. It starts with some fundamentals on atmospheric aerosols, atmospheric radiation and cloud physics, then goes into techniques used for in-situ and remote sensing measurements of aerosols, data assimilation, and discusses aerosol-radiation interactions, aerosol-cloud interactions and the multiple impacts of aerosols on the climate system. The book aims to engage those interested in aerosols and their impacts on the climate system: graduate and PhD students, but also post-doctorate fellows who are new to the field or would like to broaden their knowledge. The book includes exercises at the end of most chapters. Atmospheric aerosols are small (microscopic) particles in suspension in the atmosphere, which play multiple roles in the climate system. They interact with the energy budget through scattering and absorption of solar and terrestrial radiation. They also serve as cloud condensation and ice nuclei with impacts on the formation, evolution and properties of clouds. Finally aerosols also interact with some biogeochemical cycles. Anthropogenic emissions of aerosols are responsible for a cooling effect that has masked part of the warming due to the increased greenhouse effect since pre-industrial time. Natural aerosols also respond to climate changes as shown by observations of past climates and modelling of the future climate.

This paper collection is the second volume of the LNMOB series on Road Vehicle Automation. The book contains a comprehensive review of current technical, socio-economic, and legal perspectives written by experts coming from public authorities, companies and universities in the U.S., Europe and Japan. It originates from the Automated Vehicle Symposium 2014, which was jointly organized by the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) and the Transportation Research Board (TRB) in Burlingame, CA, in July 2014. The contributions discuss the challenges arising from the integration of highly automated and self-driving vehicles into the transportation system, with a focus on human factors and different deployment scenarios. This book is an indispensable source of information for academic researchers, industrial engineers, and policy makers interested in the topic of road vehicle automation.

In this volume, top seismic experts and researchers from Europe and around the world, including the George E. Brown, Jr. Network for Earthquake Engineering Simulation (NEES) in the USA, present the most recent outcome of their work in experimental testing, as well as the results of the transnational access activities of external researchers who have used Europe's seven largest and most advanced seismic testing facilities in the framework of the Seismic Engineering Research Infrastructures for European Synergies (SERIES) Project financed by the European Commission in its 7th Framework Programme (2007-2013). This includes EU’s largest reaction wall facility, EU's four largest shaking table laboratories and its two major centrifuges. The work presented includes state-of-the-art research towards the seismic design, assessment and retrofitting of structures, as well as the development of innovative research toward new fundamental technologies and techniques promoting efficient and joint use of the research infrastructures. The contents of this volume demonstrate the fruits of the effort of the European Commission in supporting research in earthquake engineering.

This books analyzes different approaches to modeling earthquake-induced structural pounding and shows the results of the studies on collisions between buildings and between bridge segments during ground motions. Aspects related to the mitigation of pounding effects as well as the design of structures prone to pounding are also discussed. Earthquake-induced structural pounding between insufficiently separated buildings, and between bridge segments, has been repeatedly observed during ground motions. The reports after earthquakes indicate that it may result in limited local damage in the case of moderate seismic events, or in considerable destruction or even the collapse of colliding structures during severe ground motions. Pounding in buildings is usually caused by the differences in dynamic properties between structures, which make them vibrate out-of-phase under seismic excitation. In contrast, in the case of longer bridge structures, it is more often the seismic wave propagation effect that induces collisions between superstructure segments during earthquakes.

The book highlights and analyses the distress to buildings caused by sulphate-induced heave, with particular reference to the recent problems in the Dublin area of Ireland. It describes the formation of pyrite, the processes involved in its oxidation and the various ways in which consequential expansion takes place. For the first time in the literature it discusses the way that buildings can be raised above their supporting foundation walls by the expansion of pyritiferous fill which has been used beneath ground-bearing floor slabs in Ireland. The significance of fractures through the iron sulphide microcrystals for the rate and extent of oxidation is discussed. Photographs and profiles of sulphate ingress into concrete/concrete blocks are presented. Case histories from the UK, North America and Ireland are discussed.

This book contains peer-reviewed papers from the Second World Landslide Forum, organised by the International Consortium on Landslides (ICL), that took place in September 2011. The entire material from the conference has been split into seven volumes, this one is the second: 1. Landslide Inventory and Susceptibility and Hazard Zoning, 2. Early Warning, Instrumentation and Monitoring, 3. Spatial Analysis and Modelling, 4. Global Environmental Change, 5. Complex Environment, 6. Risk Assessment, Management and Mitigation, 7. Social and Economic Impact and Policies.

This edited volume brings together findings and case studies on fundamental and applied aspects of structural engineering, applied to buildings, bridges and infrastructures in general. It focuses on the application of advanced experimental and numerical techniques and new technologies to the built environment. This volume is part of the proceedings of the 1st GeoMEast International Congress and Exhibition on Sustainable Civil Infrastructures, Egypt 2017.

This thesis transforms satellite precipitation estimation through the integration of a multi-sensor, multi-channel approach to current precipitation estimation algorithms, and provides more accurate readings of precipitation data from space. Using satellite data to estimate precipitation from space overcomes the limitation of ground-based observations in terms of availability over remote areas and oceans as well as spatial coverage. However, the accuracy of satellite-based estimates still need to be improved. The approach introduced in this thesis takes advantage of the recent NASA satellites in observing clouds and precipitation. In addition, machine-learning techniques are also employed to make the best use of remotely-sensed "big data." The results provide a significant improvement in detecting non-precipitating areas and reducing false identification of precipitation.

This book traces the evolution of climate change research, which, long dominated by the natural sciences, now sees greater involvement with disciplines studying the socio-cultural implications of change. In their introduction, the editors chart the changing role of the social and cultural sciences, delineating three strands of research: socio-critical approaches which connect climate change to a call for cultural or systemic change; a mitigation and adaption strand which takes the physical reality of climate change as a starting point, and focuses on the concerns of climate change-affected communities and their participation in political action; and finally, culture-sensitive research which places emphasis on indigenous peoples, who contribute the least to the causes of climate change, who are affected most by its consequences, and who have the least leverage to influence a solution. Part I of the book explores interdisciplinarity, climate research and the role of the social sciences, including the concept of ecological novelty, an assessment of progress since the first Rio climate conference, and a 'global village' case study from Portugal. Part II surveys ethnographic perspectives in the search for social facts of global climate change, including climate and mobility in the West African Sahel, and human-non human interactions and climate change in the Canadian Subarctic. Part III shows how collaborative and comparative ethnographies can spin "global webs of local knowledge," describing case studies of changing seasonality in Labrador and of rising water levels in the Chesapeake Bay. These perspectives are subjected to often-amusing, always incisive analysis in a concluding chapter entitled "You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet: a death-defying look at the future of the climate debate." The contributors engage critically with the research subject of 'climate change' itself, reflecting on their own practices of knowledge production and epistemological presuppositions. Finely detailed and sympathetic to a broad range of viewpoints, the book sets out a profile for the social sciences and humanities in the climate change field by systematically exploring methodological and theoretical challenges and approaches.

This multi-authored book provides a comprehensive overview of the latest developments in porous CO2 capture materials, including ionic liquid-derived carbonaceous adsorbents, porous carbons, metal-organic frameworks, porous aromatic frameworks, micro porous organic polymers. It also reviews the sorption techniques such as cyclic uptake and desorption reactions and membrane separations. In each category, the design and fabrication, the comprehensive characterization, the evaluation of CO2 sorption/separation and the sorption/degradation mechanism are highlighted. In addition, the advantages and remaining challenges as well as future perspectives for each porous material are covered. This book is aimed at scientists and graduate students in such fields as separation, carbon, polymer, chemistry, material science and technology, who will use and appreciate this information source in their research. Other specialists may consult specific chapters to find the latest, authoritative reviews. Dr. An-Hui Lu is a Professor at the State Key Laboratory of Fine Chemicals, School of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Chemical, Environmental and Biological Science and Technology, Dalian University of Technology, China. Dr. Sheng Dai is a Corporate Fellow and Group Leader in the Chemical Sciences Division at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and a Professor of Chemistry at the University of Tennessee, USA.

Christian George, Barbara D’Anna, Hartmut Herrmann, Christian Weller, Veronica Vaida, D. J. Donaldson, Thorsten Bartels-Rausch, Markus Ammann - Emerging Areas in Atmospheric Photochemistry. Lisa Whalley, Daniel Stone, Dwayne Heard - New Insights into the Tropospheric Oxidation of Isoprene: Combining Field Measurements, Laboratory Studies, Chemical Modelling and Quantum Theory. Neil M. Donahue, Allen L. Robinson, Erica R. Trump, Ilona Riipinen, Jesse H. Kroll - Volatility and Aging of Atmospheric Organic Aerosol. P. A. Ariya, G. Kos, R. Mortazavi, E. D. Hudson, V. Kanthasamy, N. Eltouny, J. Sun, C. Wilde - Bio-Organic Materials in the Atmosphere and Snow: Measurement and Characterization. V. Faye McNeill, Neha Sareen, Allison N. Schwier - Surface-Active Organics in Atmospheric Aerosols.

This book presents a selection of the best papers from the HEaRT 2013 conference, held in Cosenza, Italy, which provided a valuable forum for engineers and architects, researchers and educators to exchange views and findings concerning the technological history, construction features and seismic behavior of historical timber-framed walls in the Mediterranean countries. The topics covered are wide ranging and include historical aspects and examples of the use of timber-framed construction systems in response to earthquakes, such as the gaiola system in Portugal and the Bourbon system in southern Italy; interpretation of the response of timber-framed walls to seismic actions based on calculations and experimental tests; assessment of the effectiveness of repair and strengthening techniques, e.g., using aramid fiber wires or sheets; and modelling analyses. In addition, on the basis of case studies, a methodology is presented that is applicable to diagnosis, strengthening and improvement of seismic performance and is compatible with modern theoretical principles and conservation criteria. It is hoped that, by contributing to the knowledge of this construction technique, the book will help to promote conservation of this important component of Europe’s architectural heritage.

This handy reference manual puts a wealth of ready-to-use information, data, and practical procedures within immediate reach of geo-engineers and technicians, whether they be in the field or office. It assembles and organizes the most-needed set of equations, tables, graphs and check-lists on six major subfields of geo-engineering: investigations, testing, properties, hazards, structures and works. This practical reference for the professional and others interested in the subject of ground engineering skips lengthy definitions to highlight best practice and methods proven most effective. While reflecting codes and standards, it also fills the gaps with non-standard approaches when existing ones are skimpy on practical details or agreement. Enhanced by 146 illustrations and 83 tables, the Practical Guide to Geo-Engineering points users to supporting information and data through its extensive reference list. Audience: This book is of interest to everyone involved in practical geo-engineering.

This thesis confirms many changes, including sharp temperature rise, interannual variability of precipitation, extreme climate events and significant decreases of sunshine duration and wind speed in southwestern China, and systemically explores the action mechanism between large-scale atmospheric circulation systems, the complicated topography, human activities and regional climate changes. This study also analyzes the response of glaciers to climate change so that on the one hand it clearly reflects the relationship between glacier morphologic changes and climate change; on the other, it reveals the mechanism of action of climate warming as a balance between energy and matter. The achievements of this study reflect a significant contribution to the body of research on the response of climate in cold regions, glaciers and human activities to a global change against the background of the typical monsoon climate, and have provided scientific basis for predictions, countermeasures against disasters from extreme weather, utilization of water and the establishment of counterplans to slow and adapt to climate change. Zongxing Li works at the Cold and Arid Region Environmental and Engineering Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China.

In this book an international group of specialists discusses studies of exoplanets subjected to extreme stellar radiation and plasma conditions. It is shown that such studies will help us to understand how terrestrial planets and their atmospheres, including the early Venus, Earth and Mars, evolved during the host star’s active early phase. The book presents an analysis of findings from Hubble Space Telescope observations of transiting exoplanets, as well as applications of advanced numerical models for characterizing the upper atmosphere structure and stellar environments of exoplanets. The authors also address detections of atoms and molecules in the atmosphere of “hot Jupiters� by NASA’s Spitzer telescope. The observational and theoretical investigations and discoveries presented are both timely and important in the context of the next generation of space telescopes. The book is divided into four main parts, grouping chapters on exoplanet host star radiation and plasma environments, exoplanet upper atmosphere and environment observations, exoplanet and stellar magnetospheres, and exoplanet observation and characterization. The book closes with an outlook on the future of this research field.

Farmers Agricultural policymakers Environmentalists

Computational Challenges in the Geosciences addresses a cross-section of grand challenge problems arising in geoscience applications, including groundwater and petroleum reservoir simulation, hurricane storm surge, oceanography, volcanic eruptions and landslides, and tsunamis. Each of these applications gives rise to complex physical and mathematical models spanning multiple space-time scales, which can only be studied through computer simulation. The data required by the models is often highly uncertain, and the numerical solution of the models requires sophisticated algorithms which are mathematically accurate, computationally efficient and yet must preserve basic physical properties of the models. This volume summarizes current methodologies and future research challenges in this broad and important field.

Forests and vegetation emit biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOCs) into the atmosphere which, once oxidized, can partition into the particle phase, forming secondary organic aerosols (SOAs). This thesis reports on a unique and comprehensive analysis of the impact of BVOC emissions on atmospheric aerosols and climate. A state-of-the-art global aerosol microphysics model is used to make the first detailed assessment of the impact of BVOC emissions on aerosol microphysical properties, improving our understanding of the role of these emissions in affecting the Earth’s climate. The thesis also reports on the implications for the climate impact of forests. Accounting for the climate impacts of SOAs, taken together with the carbon cycle and surface albedo effects that have been studied in previous work, increases the total warming effect of global deforestation by roughly 20%.

This book presents state-of-the-art information on seismic ground response analysis, and is not only very valuable and useful for practitioners but also for researchers. The topics covered are related to the stages of analysis: 1. Input parameter selection, by reviewing the in-situ and laboratory tests used to determine dynamic soil properties as well as the methods to compile and model the dynamic soil properties from literature;2. Input ground motion; 3. Theoretical background on the equations of motion and methods for solving them; 4. The mechanism of damping and how this is modeled in the equations of motions; 5. Detailed analysis and discussion of results of selected case studies which provide valuable information on the problem of seismic ground response analysis from both a theoretical and practical point of view.

This textbook develops a fundamental understanding of geophysical fluid dynamics by providing a mathematical description of fluid properties, kinematics and dynamics as influenced by earth's rotation. Its didactic value is based on elaborate treatment of basic principles, derived equations, exemplary solutions and their interpretation. Both starting graduate students and experienced scientists can closely follow the mathematical development of the basic theory applied to the flow of uniform density fluids on a rotating earth, with (1) basic physics introducing the "novel" effects of rotation for flows on planetary scales, (2) simplified dynamics of shallow water and quasi-geostrophic theories applied to a variety of steady, unsteady flows and geophysical wave motions, demonstrating the restoring effects of Coriolis acceleration, earth's curvature (beta) and topographic steering, (3) conservation of vorticity and energy at geophysical scales, and (4) specific applications to help demonstrate the ability to create and solve new problems in this very rich field. A comprehensive review of the complex geophysical flows of the ocean and the atmosphere is closely knitted with this basic description, intended to be developed further in the second volume that addresses density stratified geophysical fluid dynamics.

There are three specific purposes of Construction Dispute Research. First, this volume aims to summarise studies on construction dispute. Second, apart from the theoretical constructs, where appropriate empirical tests are also included. This approach serves to go beyond the commonly used anecdotal approach for the subject matters. Third, it is the sincere hope of the authors that this book will help shaping research agenda of construction dispute.  The studies are mostly framed from a management perspective drawing on methods and concepts in contract law, economics, psychology and management science.  The book has twenty chapters that are arranged in four parts covering conceptualisation, avoidance, negotiation and mediation. Part 1 is devoted for dispute conceptualisation. A building is only as strong as its foundation. Thus it is no better start to study construction dispute by conceptualisation. The theme of Part 2 is dispute avoidance. The conventional wisdom of ‘prevention is better than cure’ seems can be applied to all problems. As far as construction dispute is concerned, equitable risk allocation and trust are the two most commonly accepted avoidance strategies. Part 3 focuses on negotiation that is the gateway to resolution as almost all disputes are negotiated first before the service of other mechanisms. Negotiation is sometimes described as an art because settlement may not be obtained solely from legal and rational approaches. Part 3 discusses the behavioral dimensions of construction dispute negotiation. Part 4 deals with Mediation- a form of assisted negotiation. Specially, the skill of the mediators in facilitating settlement, the interrelationships among dispute sources, mediator tactics and mediation outcomes are explored.  The studies presented in Construction Dispute Research collectively demonstrate holistic approach in dispute management. Each chapter can be read as a study on its own. Practitioners will find the book a handy reference in dispute management and resolution. Students would find the book useful in explaining in details the causes of dispute, the processes to resolve them. The research design and empirical approaches are particularly useful to students in construction management, architectural, surveying and civil engineering programs.