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This book summarizes what is known about mesophotic coral ecosystems (MCEs) geographically and by major taxa. MCEs are characterized by light-dependent corals and associated communities typically found at depths ranging from 30-40 m. and extending to over 150 m. in tropical and subtropical ecosystems. They are populated with organisms typically associated with shallow coral reefs, such as macroalgae, corals, sponges, and fishes, as well as specialist species unique to mesophotic depths. During the past decade, there has been an increasing scientific and management interest in MCEs expressed by the exponential increase in the number of publications studying this unique environment. Despite their close proximity to well-studied shallow reefs, and the growing evidence of their importance, our scientific knowledge of MCEs is still in its early stages. The topics covered in the book include: regional variation in MCEs; similarities and differences between mesophotic and shallow reef taxa, biotic and abiotic conditions, biodiversity, ecology, geomorphology, and geology; potential connectivity between MCEs and shallow reefs; MCE disturbances, conservation, and management challenges; and new technologies, key research questions/knowledge gaps, priorities, and future directions in MCE research.
Deals with biodiversity from evolution and interpretation of evolution as well as taxonomy. The relationships of Plant Systematics to Biodiversity is in the conclusion has an index to Taxa Index to subjects
This volume, the tenth in the series, comprises modern treatments for the families and genera of the eudicot orders Sapindales and Cucurbitales. The circumscription of the orders, families and genera conforms to the most recent systematic studies. The family treatments include descriptions of the families and the genera, genera classification keys, discussions of relationships and data on their morphology, reproductive biology, distribution, ecology and economic importance. Sapindales and Cucurbitales, as understood in this volume, comprise 16 families with 637 genera and roughly 9,240 species. Sapindales include large tropical and southern temperate tree families such as the Anacardiaceae, Sapindaceae (these in the modern circumscription, which includes Aceraceae and Hippocastanaceae), Meliaceae and Rutaceae, which have long been considered to be closely related. Cucurbitales represent a relatively new ordinal concept; apart from some small woody groups, the order contains two large families, Cucurbitaceae and Begoniaceae, which are predominantly, and likely basically, herbaceous. A detailed treatment of the tropical and southern temperate woody family Myrtaceae (itself comprising 142 genera and 6,700 species) is an addendum to the treatment of the Myrtales in Vol. IX of this series.
This ninth volume of the Artefacts series explores how artists have responded to developments in science and technology, past and present. Rather than limiting the discussion to art alone, editors Anne Collins Goodyear and Margaret Weitekamp also asked contributors to consider aesthetics: the scholarly consideration of sensory responses to cultural objects. When considered as aesthetic objects, how do scientific instruments or technological innovations reflect and embody culturally grounded assessments about appearance, feel, and use? And when these objects become museum artifacts, what aesthetic factors affect their exhibition? Contributors found answers in the material objects themselves. This volume reconsiders how science, technology, art, and aesthetics impact one another.
With the advent of the atomic bomb in 1945 and its impact on strategic thinking, the future of naval aviation looked bleak. Rapid demobilization after the war eliminated many carriers, and most policy makers believed that future wars would be fought with nuclear weapons delivered by land-based aircraft. In Nuclear Weapons and Aircraft Carriers, Jerry Miller traces the struggle of respected naval leaders to promote a different vision and the innovations in the design and engineering of carriers and aircraft that resulted. He argues that the Navy's hard-won nuclear capability played a significant role in ending the Cold War.