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In the past two decades several activities in the field of water
resources management have been enhanced and intensified. This .
rise had at least two independent reasons. The first and main one
was the constantly increasing water demand for agriculture and
industry on one side and the concern about the deteriorating
environment on the other. While this last concern was lately
overshadowed by deterioration of national economies, the quantity
of available water resources has certainly not increased with the
growing scarcity of funds for its development and protection.
Furthermore, the standard of living, which raised across the world,
even in India and China, countries which concentrate more than a
third of the world population, has made people and their
governments more aware of natural disasters caused by weather.
Since a large percentage of losses in human life and material
damage from weather-related disasters are caused by water, either
by its excess or scarcity, the concern about water has been
increasingly associated with these disasters. The second reason for
intensified water resources management is man's spectacular
technological advance in electronics, computers and use of
satellites. The Koran says that two things cannot be predicted: the
sex of the child in its mother's womb and the quantity of water
that falls from the sky and flows in rivers. Technological progress
has disproved both of these caveats.
This collection of articles provides a unique overview of the state
of the science in the prediction of and response to natural
disaster events. The uniqueness of this volume is that it comprises
more than just the physical science perspective. For each natural
hazard included in this text, social scientists have provided
research summaries of how public perceptions are related to the
actions that are likely to be undertaken when people are confronted
with information about the existence of a natural hazard threat. In
this book the reader can find a truly international
characterization of both hazard perception and prediction. The
American and European contributors provide state-of-the-science
overviews of empirically-based research knowledge that expands
beyond any national boundaries. This approach has resulted in
broader understanding of what is currently known about predicting
natural hazard events and predicting how those events, or warnings
of them, will be responded to by different types of societies.
This collection of articles provides a unique overview of the state
of the science in the prediction of and response to natural
disaster events. The uniqueness of this volume is that it comprises
more than just the physical science perspective. For each natural
hazard included in this text, social scientists have provided
research summaries of how public perceptions are related to the
actions that are likely to be undertaken when people are confronted
with information about the existence of a natural hazard threat. In
this book the reader can find a truly international
characterization of both hazard perception and prediction. The
American and European contributors provide state-of-the-science
overviews of empirically-based research knowledge that expands
beyond any national boundaries. This approach has resulted in
broader understanding of what is currently known about predicting
natural hazard events and predicting how those events, or warnings
of them, will be responded to by different types of societies.
In the past two decades several activities in the field of water
resources management have been enhanced and intensified. This .
rise had at least two independent reasons. The first and main one
was the constantly increasing water demand for agriculture and
industry on one side and the concern about the deteriorating
environment on the other. While this last concern was lately
overshadowed by deterioration of national economies, the quantity
of available water resources has certainly not increased with the
growing scarcity of funds for its development and protection.
Furthermore, the standard of living, which raised across the world,
even in India and China, countries which concentrate more than a
third of the world population, has made people and their
governments more aware of natural disasters caused by weather.
Since a large percentage of losses in human life and material
damage from weather-related disasters are caused by water, either
by its excess or scarcity, the concern about water has been
increasingly associated with these disasters. The second reason for
intensified water resources management is man's spectacular
technological advance in electronics, computers and use of
satellites. The Koran says that two things cannot be predicted: the
sex of the child in its mother's womb and the quantity of water
that falls from the sky and flows in rivers. Technological progress
has disproved both of these caveats.
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