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2285 results in Ebooks in ecology and environment

Page 37 of 115

  • 2 - A Perspective on Dynamic Systems

  • from Part I - Introduction, Dynamic Systems, and Change
  • Chadwick Dearing Oliver, Yale University, Connecticut, Fatma Arf Oliver
  • Book:
    Global Resources and the Environment
    Published online:
    05 July 2018
    Print publication:
    21 June 2018, pp 12-21

  • Summary

    Socio-environmental systems and their subsystems will be viewed as “complex systems” lying between “organized complexity” and “disorganized complexity.” Studies of these systems in recent decades have developed under the label “complexity science.” Complex systems involve a large number of variables with complicated interactions and feedback loops. They typically display some degree of self-organization—pattern formation without central control. They exhibit behaviors that cannot be explained through studying the subcomponents. A conceptual scheme describing the dynamics and the evolution of such systems is presented. Order and some degree of disorder can conflict and keep a system vibrant. At times, a system can decline or disappear. Building blocks can then form a new system that can be quite different from the former one. Models are simplified depictions of reality as perceived by the people constructing them. They allow one to understand and somewhat predict the behaviors of the modeled system. Two structural organizations are hierarchies and networks.

  • 5 - People, Societies, Populations, and Changes

  • from Part II - People
  • Chadwick Dearing Oliver, Yale University, Connecticut, Fatma Arf Oliver
  • Book:
    Global Resources and the Environment
    Published online:
    05 July 2018
    Print publication:
    21 June 2018, pp 47-64

  • Summary

    People with our present brain capacity lived primarily as hunter-gatherers for at least 60 thousand years before changing to agrarian societies about 12 thousand years ago. The world’ human population began increasing about 4 thousand years ago and increased again since 1950. Human societies began shifting to a “technological/industrial phase” about 400 years ago and recently to the Anthropocene, when people started affecting the Earth strongly. As countries develop, people migrate to cities, concentrate agriculture, and develop complex societies with new occupations and few people engaged in resource production. The result has been crowded cities, lower fertility rates, stable or increased forest area, and less fuelwood use. Populations continued to have more young people in poorly developed countries and stable to decreasing numbers in developed countries. The world population will continue to grow because the world fertility rate is still above replacement and because the older age class will “fill out” over time. World population is expected to reach over nine billion by 2050. The world population is probably so high that uncontrollable diseases or famines could occur.

  • 25 - Future Energy: Reducing Fossil Fuel Use

  • from Part VIII - Energy
  • Chadwick Dearing Oliver, Yale University, Connecticut, Fatma Arf Oliver
  • Book:
    Global Resources and the Environment
    Published online:
    05 July 2018
    Print publication:
    21 June 2018, pp 395-406

  • Summary

    Problems are emerging from continued, extreme fossil fuel use, emissions of carbon dioxide, and resulting climate change. The proportion of fossil fuels traded is much higher than any food group, and it is exported from only a few regions. This high dependency on a few areas has made a volatile situation where wars are fought over access to the fuels. A movement away from fossil fuels would probably reduce future military actions in the Middle East. And, if the $695 billion spent on the Iraq war had been spent toward renewable energy, the world be far advanced in renewables. Fossil fuel consumption can be dramatically curtailed by eliminating fossil fuel electricity generation, which wastes 70% of the fossil fuel energy; building with wood—such as mass construction CLT mid-rise buildings; and better home and commercial building insulation. Fossil fuel savings can become a social driver by providing more, sustainable rural employment in managing and harvest timber for wood construction. And, countries without a power infrastructure can “leapfrog” to photovoltaics and similar technologies to avoid the costly infrastructures of power lines, pipelines, and refineries.

  • 3 - Change, Sustainability, and Related Concepts

  • from Part I - Introduction, Dynamic Systems, and Change
  • Chadwick Dearing Oliver, Yale University, Connecticut, Fatma Arf Oliver
  • Book:
    Global Resources and the Environment
    Published online:
    05 July 2018
    Print publication:
    21 June 2018, pp 22-32

  • Summary

    A societal challenge is to become aware of and acknowledge change. Scientific understanding can alter changes from being harmful to opportunities. Preventive, adaptive, and reactive responses to change involve sustainability. Early foresters “sustained” timber; “sustainable development” later promoted intergenerational equity. Sustainability now includes maintaining what can/should not be changed while channeling changes desirably. Research is revealing the principles and opportunities of change. Resilience is the ability to absorb perturbations and maintain desired properties. Adaptability is the ability to recover from disturbances and retain a previous behavior, while transformability is to change to a system with different behaviors.A system can change by gradual, abrupt, and reversible shifts after thresholds are reached. Small action can produce large result (non-linearity) at leverage points-- characteristics of complex systems. Knowing how to change leverage points favorably is often more difficult than identifying them. Frameworks are conceptual structures of systems and provide guidelines for models. Resource management is the art and science of dealing with change.

  • 28 - Forest Commodity and Non-Commodity Values

  • from Part X - Forests
  • Chadwick Dearing Oliver, Yale University, Connecticut, Fatma Arf Oliver
  • Book:
    Global Resources and the Environment
    Published online:
    05 July 2018
    Print publication:
    21 June 2018, pp 445-458

  • Summary

    Forest occupy about thirty percent of the Earth’s land area, but are underutilized and often neglected, degraded, or burned. Forests can provide many timber and non-timber products and non-commodity values--ecosystem services. The values depend on thetand structures. Non-commodity values include biodiversity, water quality and quantity, fire protection, refuge, recreation and aesthetics, albedo, as sense of place, existence, carbon sequestration in the forest and by using forest products instead of steel or concrete in construction, and employment. Non-timber commodities include decorative greenery, mushrooms, medicinal plants, honey, resins, and nuts. Most of the value from forests currently comes from timber, which is used for fuelwood, lumber, and paper making. Trees are classified as broadleafs (hardwood) and conifers (gymnosperms). Conifers are generally used for construction because of their light strength to weight ratio. Hardwoods are generally used for furniture, flooring, and other things needing hardness. Trees grow wood differently at different ages, tree densities, and other tending regimes.

  • 20 - Food Groups and Nutrition

  • from Part VII - Agriculture
  • Chadwick Dearing Oliver, Yale University, Connecticut, Fatma Arf Oliver
  • Book:
    Global Resources and the Environment
    Published online:
    05 July 2018
    Print publication:
    21 June 2018, pp 313-326

  • Summary

    All food comes initially from photosynthesizing plants, that make sugar which is converted to proteins, fats and starches/cellulose in plants. Starches can be readily converted back to sugars by the same plants, but cellulose can only be decomposed by microbes in the guts of ruminants and other grazers. Starches and cellulose can also be converted to alcohol by microbes. Other herbivorous animals do not digest the cellulose. Plants are divided into food groups, with different carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. Meat is efficient to eat because it generally contains all amino acids people need in appropriate proportions; individual plant foods contain only some needed amino acids, so mixtures of plants are needed. Animal foods and aquatic foods can also be divided into groups, similar to plant food groups. People can consume about 2,500 Calories per day in modern life styles, but over 9,000 Calories when very active. Daily protein requirements vary with experts, but generally 65 grams per day is appropriate. Different foods were seasonal until preservation and greenhouses developed. Non-food commodities comprise less than one percent of total agriculture production.

  • 14 - Biodiversity: Communities and Landscapes

  • from Part V - Biodiversity
  • Chadwick Dearing Oliver, Yale University, Connecticut, Fatma Arf Oliver
  • Book:
    Global Resources and the Environment
    Published online:
    05 July 2018
    Print publication:
    21 June 2018, pp 211-235

  • Summary

    A now outdated concept assumed these communities were stable and co-evolved. Plant communities were assumed to “partition” areas between forests, grasslands, and other vegetation types. And, plants within a community interacted mutualistically to help the community remain intact (relay floristics). We now know that plants compete, and the ones that gain initial advantage after a disturbance can dominate a community—and make the same area into different vegetation types. This changes complicate vegetation mapping. Following a disturbance, plant communities undergo times of rapid plant invasion, followed by exclusion of new stems when the growing space is becomes occupied. Later, other structures appear. Species diversity is generally highest during initial plant invasion (“stem exclusion stage”), lowest in the “stem exclusion stage”, and increases with different species in the later stages. All stages are needed in a landscape to protect biodiversity. Recent declines in forest species may be because stages have been excluded and because communities have been fragmented with roads and cities. All structures will be important for maintaining all species with climate changes.

  • 26 - Rocks and Mineral Properties, Mining

  • from Part IX - Minerals
  • Chadwick Dearing Oliver, Yale University, Connecticut, Fatma Arf Oliver
  • Book:
    Global Resources and the Environment
    Published online:
    05 July 2018
    Print publication:
    21 June 2018, pp 409-423

  • Summary

    The Earth’s crust is dominated by oxygen, silica, and aluminum although about 100 elements exist—about 20 non-metals and 80 metals. They exist in minerals, which have a somewhat definite chemical composition and structure, and rocks, which are consolidated aggregates of one or more minerals. Minerals exist in fixed amounts; and some minerals may be too rare or unavailable to satisfy all demands. Pure metals are generally lustrous; malleable; flexible; strong in compression, tension, and torque; and hard. Metals can be subdivided into groups with more common properties. Non-metal elements can form long covalent molecules or radicals that bond with metals. Minerals are used in a variety of ways, quantities, and chemical forms. Forms include amorphous, covalent molecule, pure crystal, ionic compound. Mineral elements, molecules, and compounds are created, concentrated, and/or found in igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary geologic formations. They are mined in various methods including shaft, open pit, hydraulic, placer, fracking, and acid leach. These have various degrees of difficulty, danger, and impact on the environment.

  • 9 - Past and Future Climate Changes

  • from Part III - Climates
  • Chadwick Dearing Oliver, Yale University, Connecticut, Fatma Arf Oliver
  • Book:
    Global Resources and the Environment
    Published online:
    05 July 2018
    Print publication:
    21 June 2018, pp 116-134

  • Summary

    The Earth’s long term climate is always changing. The continents’ positions changed and shifted ocean currents as the continents changed sea passages; mountains form or disappear; and atmospheric carbon dioxide levels change. The Earth’s Ice Age for the past 2.6 million years is because of global mountain positions. During this time, glaciers advanced and retreated—and the Earth has cooled and warmed—based on systematic variations in the Earth’s orbit around the sun. The Earth has been in a rare “mild” climate period for the past 12,000 years. Glaciers covered much of Europe and Canada; low latitudes were hotter and drier; and oceans were 300 meters lower 17,000 years ago. The Earth is scheduled to leave its mild period and may already be doing so, with a noticeable drying of low latitudes. Many scientists suggest the glaciers may not return soon because of the Earth’s warming with GHG's. Whether Milankovitch cycles or GHG's dominate, the Earth’s climate will continue to change. And, preparing for uncertain changes can allow people to fare them well. Reducing atmospheric carbon dioxide is probably a priority, since its effects are less certain than Milankovitch cycle changes.

  • 6 - Influences on Human Well-Being and Cultures, Societies, and Technologies

  • from Part II - People
  • Chadwick Dearing Oliver, Yale University, Connecticut, Fatma Arf Oliver
  • Book:
    Global Resources and the Environment
    Published online:
    05 July 2018
    Print publication:
    21 June 2018, pp 65-84

  • Summary

    Climates are the prevalent, long term atmospheric conditions. The atmosphere consists primarily of nitrogen and oxygen. Small amounts of human-induced atmospheric pollutants can spread and ruin protective atmospheric layers, harm animals and people, and cause the earth to become warmer. Warming gases—carbon dioxide, methane, and others--are “greenhouse gases” and fossil fuel burning emits most of them. Carbon dioxide also comes from forest land clearing for agriculture, to a lesser extent and with quicker reversibility. Solar energy heats the earth in intricate ways. Some solar wavelengths are reflected or absorbed in the atmosphere. Others reach the earth and are reflected back into space or to the clouds, where energy is absorbed or again relected. Other solar energy heats the land, which heats the air, causing the air to rise and initiate wind patterns. Solar energy can heat water, evaporating some and causing it to move into the air and travel with the wind. Heated water can also move the energy through currents. The result is a complex system of recirculating energy to the Earth. Mountains and other features cause the energy and water to move in predictable ways.

  • 29 - Forest Distribution, Area, and Volume Changes

  • from Part X - Forests
  • Chadwick Dearing Oliver, Yale University, Connecticut, Fatma Arf Oliver
  • Book:
    Global Resources and the Environment
    Published online:
    05 July 2018
    Print publication:
    21 June 2018, pp 459-467

  • Summary

    Forests exist in many structures based on growth, disturbances, and human manipulations. Sustained timber yields were a forerunner to sustainable development. A modification in which all stand structures are maintained across a landscape gives the greatest promise for providing the most commodity and non-commodity values sustainably. Silviculture, the tending of forests, has gained centuries of knowledge. Silviculture has been categorized into “systems,” but is now being separated into “pathways” and “operations.” Silviculture pathways are changes in stand structures resulting from growth and specific manipulations. The specific manipulations are “operations” and include protection, restoration, tree removal, site preparation, regeneration and genetic improvement, and timber stand improvement. Maintaining all structures and timber flow sustainably across a landscape is more feasible than trying to manage each stand through selective harvesting; and computer models are aiding People have cleared 11% of the land that would otherwise be forests. People are harvesting only 20% of the wood that grows annually, with the remaining growth either rotting, burning, or making forests more crowded. Forest area and volume is generally increasing in more developed world, but declining elsewhere. Most wood harvested in the developing world is used for subsistence fuel wood, while developed countries use most for construction timber and paper. Most forest volume is in North America, Russia, Brazil, and central Africa. Most forests contain native species, and so reflect their Floristic Realms. Conifers are native almost exclusively to the Holarctic Realm. Countries vary greatly in forest ownership. Despite excess wood growth, intensive plantations are grown, but not always profitable. In addition to low harvest, dangers of crowded stands burning, and poor distributions of stand structures, forests employ a very small part of the world’s workforce. Opportunities exist to make forest management for biodiversity and other commodity and non-commodity values a social driver by employing technically skilled people to restore the forest structures.

  • 12 - Landforms of Transported Materials

  • from Part IV - Landforms
  • Chadwick Dearing Oliver, Yale University, Connecticut, Fatma Arf Oliver
  • Book:
    Global Resources and the Environment
    Published online:
    05 July 2018
    Print publication:
    21 June 2018, pp 170-190

  • Summary

    Transported materials cover bedrock and provide new properties. Volcanoes deposit ash and tuff downwind. Sand dunes cover other landforms and vegetation, and create relatively useless and hazardous landforms. Loess (windblown silt) can create thin or thick layers of productive, erodible soils. Eroding rivers deposit their suspended materials in flat areas known as alluvial floodplains. They are highly productive for agriculture but usually flood without levee infrastructures. Coastal plains are uplifted continental shelves with exposed sediments; they have little vertical relief and a variety of soils. Glaciated areas are where glaciers overran the landscape, scraped and compacted the soil, and then melted and washed the soil; they create a variety of till (upland), outwash (lowland washed sand and gravel), and lacustrine (lakebed) soils. Bogs form in cold or water-saturated areas where organic matter does not decompose. Nutrients stay in organic matter, trees, and sphagnum moss grows on them. Permafrost areas contain permanently frozen soils at high latitudes or elevations. Wetlands are seasonal or permanently wet areas that are extremely valuable for biodiversity.

  • 16 - Managing Biodiversity

  • from Part V - Biodiversity
  • Chadwick Dearing Oliver, Yale University, Connecticut, Fatma Arf Oliver
  • Book:
    Global Resources and the Environment
    Published online:
    05 July 2018
    Print publication:
    21 June 2018, pp 251-262

  • Summary

    People have altered species or their genetic compositions by domesticating them, inducing changes in wild species, changing habitats and structures, introducing exotic species, changing species behaviors, migrating to new areas and changing habitats, and hunting. Species conservation is already being promoted, with a first step already underway of making inventories of all and endangered species. Individual species are beginning to be protected under various laws and treaties. And, various conservation groups are trying to identify specific areas to preserve or conserve. More habitats could be provided by proactively maintaining them while managing forests for timber. Landcare, restoration of habitats, is being done as a business in Australia. A mitigation bank could be established to compensate countries with high biodiversity for protecting it. Legally preventing movement of raw organic materials between floristic realms could stop invasive exotic species. We can accept some “novel” ecosystems that consist of species that never been together before. We can replace extinct species with existing, analogous species. And, hunting can be done in a way that promotes biodiversity.

Page 37 of 115