Since the dawn of social science, theorists have debated how and why societies appear to change, develop and evolve. Today, this question is pursued by scholars across many different disciplines and our understanding of these dynamics has grown markedly. Yet, there remain important areas of disagreement and debate: what is the difference between societal change, development and evolution? What specific aspects of cultures change, develop or evolve and why? Do societies change, develop or evolve in particular ways, perhaps according to cycles, or stages or in response to survival necessities? How do different disciplines-from sociology to anthropology to psychology and economics-approach these questions? This book provides complex and nuanced answers to these, and many other, questions. First, the book invites readers to consider the broad landscape of societal dynamics across human history, beginning with humanity's origins in small nomadic bands of hunter gatherers through to the emergence of post-industrial democracies. Then, the book provides a tour of several prominent existing theories of cultural change, development and evolution. Approaches to explaining cultural dynamics will be discussed across disciplines and schools of thought, from "meme" theories to established cumulative cultural evolutionary theories to newly emerging theories on cultural tightness-looseness. The book concludes with a call for theoretical integration and a frank discussion of some of the most unexamined structures that drive cultural dynamics across schools of thought.

Women on the Land tells the remarkable story of women's contribution to agriculture and forestry during the two World Wars. It traces the formation and history of the Women's Land Army, and shows how women, mostly untrained and from non-farming backgrounds, helped maintain food production for a beleaguered nation, by filling the places of men away at the war. At the height of the First World War the Land Army had a full-time membership of 23,000 members, a number that was to exceed 80,000 during the Second World War. The book pays tribute to women like Lady Denman, who administered the Land Army during the Second World War and who was its chief inspiration and driving force, and also outlines the part played by other women's groups in wartime. Containing many first-hand reminiscences by the women who served, and a number of evocative illustrations, Women on the Land highlights the years when women were effectively to challenge long-established preconceptions as to what properly constituted 'women's work'.

This book presents an analysis of the evolution of competitive strategies within the forestry industry. Although the discussion takes place in a relatively narrow field of business on the global scale, the argument is that the chosen context serves as an illustrative setting for a discussion related to global corporate evolution of firms since the industry studied has only recently entered a stage of development characterized by intensified global competition. Moreover, the global forestry industry provides also an ideal setting for the analysis of the changing dynamics of competition within an industry. We propose that the development within the studied industry serves as a symptomatic illustration of the ongoing development processes in other industries: from a competitive setting characterized by a number of small competitors to one dominated by few large equally strong competitors aiming for global presence.

This book is a novel contribution to a field dominated by conventional approaches to project management, it is about narratives in megaprojects. Some of the questions examined in this original new book include: * What are narratives? * Why are they important in megaprojects? * How are they formed and used in megaprojects? * How do promotors of and protestors against megaprojects craft narratives to their advantage? * What strategies can project managers employ to effectively use narratives in megaprojects? Built from longitudinal research studies in combination with internationally recognised teaching materials, this book will provide readers with a theoretical understanding of narratives and projects, as well as practical international case studies, including HS2, the Eden Project, the Sochi Olympics, Hyderabad and Chennai Metros, Westconnex and Tideway, to support their understanding. The authors explain the different types of narrative, how and why they are important in general and in relation to a megaproject and its life-cycle, but also how to craft narratives in different situations, and how they are changed and maintained over a project life-cycle. Narratives in Megaprojects doubles as a text supporting more advanced courses on project management or aspects thereof, and as a reflection of the state of the art in this particular perspective on megaprojects. It is essential reading for all students and professionals in Project Management, Construction, Infrastructure and Executive Leaders involved in megaprojects and infrastructure delivery.

Nano-Enabled Agrochemicals in Agriculture presents a targeted overview of the safe implementation of nanotechnologies within agricultural and horticultural settings, with the purpose of achieving enhanced production while maintaining ecological integrity. The growing global request for agricultural crops and products requires high standards of quality and safety, which has stimulated the search for new technologies that preserve their quality and delay their decomposition. Nanotechnology may boost plant production by improving nutrient uptake/use efficiency with nanoformulations of fertilizers and agrochemicals for plant enhancement, detection and treatment of diseases, and host-parasite interactions at the molecular level using nanosensors. It also may improve plant disease diagnostics, removal of contaminants from soil and water, postharvest management of vegetables and flowers, and reclamation of salt-affected soils. Although the markets for nanoproducts and nanoformulations continue to increase, there are also growing concerns regarding the fate and behavior of nanomaterials in environmental systems. Exploring important topics related to nanotechnology and nanomaterials, the book includes the use of nanochemicals in insect pest management, as nanofungicides, nanoherbicides, micronutrient supply, and nanosensors to monitor crop and soil health conditions, from detection of agrochemicals to their slow release of agrochemicals, and their impact on related environs. This book will serve as an excellent resource for a wide range of plant scientists who have concerns about nanomaterial interactions with terrestrial and aquatic plants.

Detection canines have been utilized throughout the world for over a century, and while numerous attempts have been made to replicate the canine's ability to detect substances by mechanical means, none has been as successful. The olfactory system is a highly intricate and sophisticated design for chemical sensing, and the olfactory capacity of many animals, including canines, is considered unmatched by machine due to not only their great sensitivity and superior selectivity but also their trainability and mobility. These unique features have led to the use of such animals as "whole-animal" biosensors. Amplifying the benefits and diminishing the limitations of detection canines' interdisciplinary research is crucial to understanding canine olfaction and detection and enhancing this powerful and complex detector. The past 50 years have produced vast advancements in animal behavior/training technology to develop canines into more proficient and reliable sensors, while scientific research has provided tremendous support to help practitioners better understand how to utilize this powerful sensor. This book assembles a diverse group of authors with expertise in a variety of fields relating to detection canines and the chemical sensing industry, including both research and operational perspectives on detection canines. It illustrates how science enhances our understanding of how canines are employed for solving some of the world's leading detection challenges.

Providing a holistic understanding of extensive oil extraction in rural Mexico, this book focuses on a campesino community, where oil extraction is deeply inscribed into the daily lives of the community members. The book shows how oil shapes the space where it is extracted in every aspect and produces multiple uncertainties. The community members express these uncertainties using the metaphor of the time bomb. The book shows how they find ways to "live off the time bomb" by using mechanisms of short-term coping and long-term adaptation and thus, developing the capability to determine their lives despite the ever-changing challenges.

The food market is changing from a producer-controlled to a consumer-directed market. A main driving force is consumer concern about agricultural production methods and food safety. More than before, the consumer demands transparency of the production and processing chain.
A food chain can be quite complex and the use of models has become indispensable to handle this complexity. Modelling tools are becoming increasingly important to guide the decisions for production of high-quality and safe agricultural foods. With the aid of models it becomes possible to control and predict quality attributes, so that product innovation can be done more efficiently. However, quality is an elusive concept, and there is always an aspect of subjectivity and uncertainty.
A novel approach in the agro-food chain would be to tackle subjective elements and uncertainty in modelling by using Bayesian statistics and Bayesian Belief Networks. Bayesian approaches use prior probabilities (partly accounting for subjectivity) to estimate posterior probabilities, resulting in higher accuracy than is possible with classical statistical techniques. Thus, the variability and uncertainty in data and decisions, inherent in a complex food chain, can be dealt with.

Mine areas left behind by companies that no longer exist are defined as derelict mines- those that were operated and closed at a time when most countries did not have adequate regulations requiring rehabilitation of the impacted mine areas. This new book provides unique information on the extent and severity of derelict mines' impact on environmental degradation and human and environmental health. It examines the nature of derelict mines, short- and long-term risks to sensitive receptors, tools for monitoring and prioritizing risks, and technological advances for rehabilitation. This book considers a risk-based approach to managing derelict mines, which is both reliable and cost effective.

Public Responses to Fossil Fuel Export provides wide-ranging theoretical and methodological international contributions on the human dimensions of fossil fuel export, with a distinctive focus on exporting countries, some of which are new entrants into the marketplace. What do members of the public think about exporting fossil fuels in places where it is happening? What do they see as its main risks and benefits? What connections are being made to climate change and the impending energy transition? How have affected communities responded to proposals related to fossil fuel export, broadly defined to include transport by rail, pipeline, and ship? Contributions to the work are presented in three parts. The first part synopsizes the background of the project, outlines major social science theories and relevant previous research, and identifies global trends in energy production. Regional and national case studies related to public opinion on fossil fuel export are included in part two of the manuscript. Part three highlights community-based case studies. Implications for research and practice feature in the concluding chapter.

In this book, Po-Yi Hung uses tea production as a lens to investigate the tension between nature and society under the market economy in frontier China. By focusing on the landscape of the 'ancient tea forest' (guchalin), this book aims to understand the interactions among tea trees, entrepreneurs, the state, and the Bulang, an ethnic minority population. Intensive ethnographic research conducted by the author examines local Bulang villagers' everyday lives as entrepreneurs in the market economy at a time of changing moralities and cultural renovations. The author explores the dilemmas that arise in this unique region between tradition and modernity, territorial margin and connected space, and nature and development.

This book, written by global experts, provides a comprehensive and topical analysis on the economics of chocolate. While the main approach is economic analysis, there are important contributions from other disciplines, including psychology, history, government, nutrition, and geography. The chapters are organized around several themes, including the history of cocoa and chocolate - from cocoa drinks in the Maya empire to the growing sales of Belgian chocolates in China; how governments have used cocoa and chocolate as a source of tax revenue and have regulated chocolate (and defined it by law) to protect consumers' health from fraud and industries from competition; how the poor cocoa producers in developing countries are linked through trade and multinational companies with rich consumers in industrialized countries; and how the rise of consumption in emerging markets (China, India, and Africa) is causing a major boom in global demand and prices, and a potential shortage of the world's chocolate.

The collectivization of Soviet agriculture in the late 1920s and 1930s forever altered the country's social and economic landscape. It became the first of a series of bloody landmarks that would come to define Stalinism. This revelatory book presents--with analysis and commentary--the most important primary Soviet documents dealing with the brutal economic and cultural subjugation of the Russian peasantry. Drawn from previously unavailable and in many cases unknown archives, these harrowing documents provide the first unimpeded view of the experience of the peasantry during the years 1927-1930.
The book, the first of four in the series, covers the background of collectivization, its violent implementation, and the mass peasant revolt that ensued. For its insights into the horrific fate of the Russian peasantry and into Stalin's dictatorship, "The War Against the Peasantry "takes""its place an as unparalleled resource."

Takes the reader step by step through the process of completing a survey and valuation on a residential property Addresses the basic skills required for valuation, the risks posed, key drivers of value, emerging issues, and key legal and RICS regulatory considerations There is no other book particularly addressed to this target market of residential surveyors appraising and surveying for lending purposes. i.e. for banks/mortgages Essential for students studying to enter the residential survey and valuation profession and for existing practitioners who wish to improve their knowledge of industry practices.

Food security is defined as the ability of countries, regions, or households to meet their required levels of food consumption at all times. Food security is an important component of human welfare, and it can act as an indicator of a region's development. This book addresses the roles of trade, policy development, and economic cooperation in creating sustainable food security in the West African region. The largely micro-level analysis is conducted on empirical data from the household where decisions on production and consumption take place. Food security is discussed in terms of its component parts, namely: availability of food (production and trade), its accessibility (incomes and poverty status), and its utilisation (health and nutrition).

Food quality is the foundation for the maintenance of human health, and one of the most important elements in health prevention systems. However, the production of healthy and safe food requires access to high-quality agricultural products, which are free from pollutants that can result from poor quality soil, water, unbalanced chemical fertilization or the use of crop protection products. In recent years, food produced according to organic farming standards, which is based on eliminating the use of fertilizers, pesticides or genetically modified seeds, has become increasingly popular. This book presents the results of a comparison of the quality of raw materials, such as cereals, vegetables, fruits, honey and other bee products, produced in organic and conventional farming systems, and selected products made from them. This book covers environmental, social and economic aspects of organic food production from a sustainable development perspective, and provide answers to the following questions: Does organic farming ensure obtaining high-quality agricultural products that are safe for health? Can food produced from organic raw materials be considered more valuable in the human diet compared to conventional food? Is organic farming able to meet the food needs of the world population?

Focusses on solving problems in the Structural Dynamics using ABAQUS Software. Helps analyze and model different types of structures with various dynamic and cyclic loads. Discusses simulation of irregular-shaped objects composed of several different materials with multipart boundary conditions. Includes application of various load effects to the developed structural models in ABAQUS Software. Covers broad array of applications such as bridges, offshores, dam, seismic resistant systems, and so forth.

This book addresses the important issue of food prices across EU Member States. Although recent attention has focused on events in world commodity markets following the spikes in world prices in 2007-2008 and 2011, there has been comparatively little attention addressing food price dynamics at the retail level. This volume addresses the characteristics of retail food price behaviour and the nature and drivers of price transmission across the EU. There are several inter-related features of the research reported here. First, the volume reports the characteristics of retail food inflation across the EU and the extent to which it differs from non-food inflation. Second, given the different experience of food inflation across EU Member States, it details the process of price transmission as shocks from upstream and world markets are passed through the food sector to the retail stage. Third, it addresses how the extent and nature of price transmission is determined by various aspects of competition throughout the domestic food sector and how the nature of vertical contracting between stages can determine the price transmission process. Finally, it outlines the potential of high-frequency, product-specific scanner data to address price dynamics and adjustment issues and how scanner data can also be used to measure food price inflation. The book will be of interest to researchers on price transmission and competition issues in the EU and, given the wider interest on these issues coupled with the novel use of scanner data, to researchers further afield. The contributions will also be of interest to policymakers and stakeholders as they seek to make sense of, and to address, regulation issues as they relate to the food sector.

This book deals with the consequences of the inclusion of African states and communities in the global aluminium chain. The so-called "New Scramble for Africa" of the 2000s illustrated how seriously African living conditions are affected by continuous cycles of boom and bust, and how strongly the quality of life currently depends on the investment decisions and corporate social responsibility policies of transnational corporations. Taking the example of the global production network of bauxite and aluminium, the author focuses on the socio-political aspects of this dependency, which he achieves through the conducting of a series of interviews with various involved parties.

Smart Agrochemicals for Sustainable Agriculture proposes products that fulfill the need for chemicals that provide a sustainable delivery system for nutrients necessary to maximize the production of agricultural animals and plants while producing the smallest possible environmental footprint. This book addresses all aspects related to the production process, including chemical formulas, stability of formulations, and the application of the effect of its utilization. Over the past decade, biobased chemicals have received significant attention as candidate resource materials in fertilizers and agrochemicals production due to their renewability. Substitution of conventional raw materials with biobased requires a new approach towards the development of technology. On the other hand, the use of biobased chemicals, such as biostimulants, bioregulators and biofertilizers offers a new palette of products that are natural, thus their application does not pose an impact on the environment (residues) or cultivated plants.

Nitrogen Assessment: Pakistan as a Case-Study provides a detailed overview of issues and challenges related to nitrogen use and overuse, thus serving as a reference for researchers in Pakistan and providing important insights for other geographic regions. Excess and inefficient nitrogen use in crops and livestock sectors is polluting our rivers, seas, atmosphere, and ecosystems, contributing to climate change, hampering biodiversity, and contributing to stratospheric ozone depletion. This book covers the importance of nitrogen in relation to food security, human health, and economic stability in South Asia. It also discusses nitrogen status, sources, sinks, and drivers of nitrogen use in Pakistan, focusing on current nitrogen measures and policies. Nitrogen pollution is one of the biggest challenges of 21st Century, and the international scientific community is beginning to recognize the significance of nitrogen pollution and to explore how to combat it. The editors' institution, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, partners with South Asia Nitrogen Hub, which includes about 30 organizations from South Asia and UK working on nitrogen assessment, budgeting, awareness, and policy guidance, as well as possible measures to reduce nitrogen pollution. Nitrogen Assessment: Pakistan as a Case-Study provides an important guide to this work and is written in a way that is accessible to an audience with a wide range of experience from advanced students to seasoned researchers.

Trade in temperate zone farm products between the developed countries has been beset with problems since the GATT's inception in 1947. The basic problem was always that the conditions in world agricultural markets were distorted by the national agricultural policies followed by all developed countries - policies which national authorities were reluctant to adapt to conform with the requirements of a liberal international trading system for agricultural products. This book describes and analyses the attempts that were made to make trade in agriculture less distorted, more stable and predictable, and less of a dangerous source of political friction between nations, in successive rounds of negotiations under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade in the 45-year period from GATT's inception in 1947 to the end of the Uruguay Round in 1993. While the book analyses the development of international trade policy throughut the post-war period, particular attention is given to the Kennedy, Tokyo and Uruguay Rounds of GATT negotiations in which the problems of trade in agricultural products were confronted.

Presents a major case study of how agriculture and biodiversity conservation can work in harmony towards more sustainable outcomes for both the environment and local communities. Shows how Cuba has provided a unique testbed for such approaches through its specific political status and focus on traditional agricultural methods. Provides the essential background for understanding future options for agriculture and conservation in Cuba, as it emerges from economic and political isolation.