Download Free Ecology A Systems Approach Book in PDF and EPUB Free Download. You can read online Ecology A Systems Approach and write the review.

Fundamental Processes in Ecology presents a way to study ecosystems that is not yet available in ecology textbooks but is resonant with current thinking in the emerging fields of geobiology and Earth System Science. It provides an alternative, process-based classification of ecology and proposes a truly planetary view of ecological science. To achieve this, it asks (and endeavours to answer) the question, "what are the fundamental ecological processes which would be found on any planet with Earth-like, carbon based, life?" The author demonstrates how the idea of fundamental ecological processes can be developed at the systems level, specifically their involvement in control and feedback mechanisms. This approach allows us to reconsider basic ecological ideas such as energy flow, guilds, trade-offs, carbon cycling and photosynthesis; and to put these in a global context. In doing so, the book puts a much stronger emphasis on microorganisms than has traditionally been the case. The integration of Earth System Science with ecology is vitally important if ecological science is to successfully contribute to the massive problems and future challenges associated with global change. Although the approach is heavily influenced by Lovelock's Gaia hypothesis, this is not a popular science book about Gaian theory. Instead it is written as an accessible text for graduate student seminar courses and researchers in the fields of ecology, earth system science, evolutionary biology, palaeontology, history of life, astrobiology, geology and physical geography.
A New Ecology presents an ecosystem theory based on the following ecosystem properties: physical openness, ontic openness, directionality, connectivity, a complex dynamic for growth and development, and a complex dynamic response to disturbances. Each of these properties is developed in detail to show that these basic and characteristic properties can be applied to explain a wide spectrum of ecological obsevations and convections. It is also shown that the properties have application for environmental management and for assessment of ecosystem health. * Demonstrates an ecosystem theory that can be applied to explain ecological observations and rules* Presents an ecosystem theory based upon a systems approach* Discusses an ecosystem theory that is based on a few basic properties that are characteristic for ecosystmes
Over half of the world’s population now lives in urban areas. Few who live in cities understand that cities, too, are ecosystems, as beholden to the laws and principles of ecology as are natural ecosystems. Understanding Urban Ecology: An Interdisciplinary Systems Approach introduces students at the college undergraduate level, or those in advanced-standing college credit high school courses, to cities as ecosystems. For graduate students it provides an overview and rich literature base. Urban planners, educators, and decision makers can use this book to help in designing a more sustainable or “green” future. The authors use a systems approach to explore the complexity and interactions of different components of a city’s ecology with an emphasis on the energy and materials required to maintain such concentrated centers of human activity and consumption. The book is written by seventeen specialized contributors and includes ten accompanying detailed field exercises to promote hands-on experience, observation, and quantification of urban ecosystem structure and function.The chapters describe one by one the different subsystems of the urban environment, their individual components and functions, and the interactions among them that create the social-ecological environments in which we live. The book’s emphasis on social-ecological metabolism provides students with the knowledge and methods needed to evaluate proposed policies for urban sustainability in terms of ecosystem capacity, potential positive and negative feedbacks, the laws of thermo-dynamics, and socio-cultural perception and adaptability.
Here is a book that challenges the very basis of the way psychologists have studied child development. According to Urie Bronfenbrenner, one of the world's foremost developmental psychologists, laboratory studies of the child's behavior sacrifice too much in order to gain experimental control and analytic rigor. Laboratory observations, he argues, too often lead to "the science of the strange behavior of children in strange situations with strange adults for the briefest possible periods of time." To understand the way children actually develop, Bronfenbrenner believes that it will be necessary to observe their behavior in natural settings, while they are interacting with familiar adults over prolonged periods of time. This book offers an important blueprint for constructing such a new and ecologically valid psychology of development. The blueprint includes a complete conceptual framework for analysing the layers of the environment that have a formative influence on the child. This framework is applied to a variety of settings in which children commonly develop, ranging from the pediatric ward to daycare, school, and various family configurations. The result is a rich set of hypotheses about the developmental consequences of various types of environments. Where current research bears on these hypotheses, Bronfenbrenner marshals the data to show how an ecological theory can be tested. Where no relevant data exist, he suggests new and interesting ecological experiments that might be undertaken to resolve current unknowns. Bronfenbrenner's groundbreaking program for reform in developmental psychology is certain to be controversial. His argument flies in the face of standard psychological procedures and challenges psychology to become more relevant to the ways in which children actually develop. It is a challenge psychology can ill-afford to ignore.
The question of sustainability affects most areas of human activity. It is intrinsically complex and multi-disciplinary. Sustainable policies have to adapt to new knowledge and changing circumstances. Understanding sustainability and ways of achieving it have to involve an understanding of complex adaptive systems and general systems theory - a rapidly developing new branch of social studies.;This book provides an introduction and thorough explanation of this field, and shows its application in the social and economic management of sustainability. It is written for readers at an undergraduate level and should be useful for a wide range of undergraduate courses.
Here is a comprehensive introductory discussion of Earth, energy, and the environment in an integrated manner that will lead to an appreciation of our complex planet. The book looks at Earth from the perspective of a livable planet and elaborates on the surface and subsurface processes and the various energy cycles where energy is transformed and stored in the planet’s various spheres. The chapters discuss the interactions between the different parts of Earth—how energy is exchanged between the atmosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere, and geosphere, and how they impact the environment in which we live.
The pursuit of sustainability has generated lifestyle changes for individuals across the globe; innovations within the arts and sciences, business, design, engineering, and agriculture; historic policies and laws at municipal and state levels; and crucial international protocols and agreements. Yet the meaning of sustainability remains unsettled, and the term frequently serves as green veneer for business as usual rather than a driver of fundamental change. The second edition of this popular and lively book explores the concept and practice of sustainability through a broad range of current issues and debates. Fully revised and updated, the book integrates expanded global breadth with increased attention to the importance of local relationships and responsibilities, while illustrating that sustainability demands creativity as well as conservation. New Inquiry and Exploration sections with links to web-based resources are also included to help students probe and deepen central debates and topics. Sustainability presents a hopeful account of crucial opportunities while directly confronting the hurdles, disputes and challenges that lie ahead. It will be a valuable resource for students and general readers keen to grapple with one of the most pressing issues of our times.
'The scope and clarity of this book make it accessible and informative to a wide readership. Its messages should be an essential component of the education for all students from secondary school to university... [It] provides a clear and comprehensible account of concepts that can be applied in our individual and collective lives to pursue the promising and secure future to which we all aspire' From the Foreword by Maurice Strong, Chairman of the Earth Council and former Secretary General of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (Earth Summit) The most important questions of the future will turn on the relationship between human societies and the natural ecosystems on which we all, in the end, depend. The interactions and interdependencies of the social and natural worlds are the focus of growing attention from a wide range of environmental, social and life sciences. Understanding them is critical to achieving the balance involved in sustainable development. Human Ecology: Basic Concepts for Sustainable Development presents an extremely clear and accessible account of this complex range of issues and of the concepts and tools required to understand and tackle them. Extensively supported by graphics and detailed examples, this book makes an excellent introduction for students at all levels, and for general readers wanting to know why and how to respond to the dilemmas we face.