Download or read book Human Earth System Dynamics written by Rongxing Guo and published by Springer. This book was released on 2018-05-16 with total page 207 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book explores the factors and mechanisms that may have influenced the dynamic behaviors of earliest civilizations, focusing on both environmental (geographic) factors on which traditional historic analyses are based and human (behavioral) factors on which anthropological analyses are usually based. It also resurrects a number of common ancestral terms to help readers understand the complicated process of human and cultural evolution around the globe. Specifically, in almost all indigenous languages, the words ‘wa’ and any variants of it were originally associated with the sound of crying of – and certainly were selected as the common ancestral word with the meanings of “house, home, homeland, motherland, and so on” by – early humans living in different parts of the world.This book provides many neglected but still crucial environmental and biological clues about the rise and fall of civilizations – ones that have largely resulted from mankind’s long-lasting “Win-Stay Lose-Shift” games throughout the world. The narratives and findings presented at this book are unexpected but reasonable – and are what every student of anthropology or history needs to know and doesn't get in the usual text. “Professor Guo explores the dynamics of civilizations from the beginnings to our perplexingly complex world. There are lots of thought-provoking ideas here on the rise and decline of civilizations and nations... Anyone wishing to understand global developments should give this book serious consideration.” ----John Komlos, University of Munich, Germany, and Duke University, USA “It is interesting to see a Chinese perspective on the questions of deep history that have engaged Jared Diamond, Yuval Harari and David Christian. Guo argues that understanding cyclical threats has been the key to human progress, which is driven by the dialectic of material privation and human ingenuity.” ----Peter Rutland, Wesleyan University, USA
Download or read book Climate System Dynamics and Modelling written by Hugues Goosse and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2015-08-10 with total page 377 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This textbook presents all aspects of climate system dynamics, on all timescales from the Earth's formation to modern human-induced climate change. It discusses the dominant feedbacks and interactions between all the components of the climate system: atmosphere, ocean, land surface and ice sheets. It addresses one of the key challenges for a course on the climate system: students can come from a range of backgrounds. A glossary of key terms is provided for students with little background in the climate sciences, whilst instructors and students with more expertise will appreciate the book's modular nature. Exercises are provided at the end of each chapter for readers to test their understanding. This textbook will be invaluable for any course on climate system dynamics and modeling, and will also be useful for scientists and professionals from other disciplines who want a clear introduction to the topic.
Download or read book Global Change and the Earth System written by Will Steffen and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2005-12-29 with total page 346 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Global Change and the Earth System describes what is known about the Earth system and the impact of changes caused by humans. It considers the consequences of these changes with respect to the stability of the Earth system and the well-being of humankind; as well as exploring future paths towards Earth-system science in support of global sustainability. The results presented here are based on 10 years of research on global change by many of the world's most eminent scholars. This valuable volume achieves a new level of integration and interdisciplinarity in treating global change.
Download or read book Earth System Analysis written by Hans-Joachim Schellnhuber and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-12-06 with total page 548 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Since this new science is of an unprecedented interdisciplinary nature, the book does not merely take stock of its numerous ingredients, but also delivers their multifaceted integration. The resulting master paradigm - the co-evolution of nature and anthroposphere within a geo-cybernetic continuum of processes - is based on a structured manifold of partial paradigms with their specific ranges. Most importantly, this serves the scientific foundation of a meaningful, safe and efficient environment and development management for solving the most burning questions concerning humankind and its natural environment. The more concrete elucidation of the natural and human dimensions, as well as various attempts and instruments of integration are represented in the different parts of the book, while the didactic quality is heightened by many allegoric illustrations.
Download or read book Defiant Earth written by Clive Hamilton and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2017-06-05 with total page 200 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Humans have become so powerful that we have disrupted the functioning of the Earth System as a whole, bringing on a new geological epoch – the Anthropocene – one in which the serene and clement conditions that allowed civilisation to flourish are disappearing and we quail before 'the wakened giant'. The emergence of a conscious creature capable of using technology to bring about a rupture in the Earth's geochronology is an event of monumental significance, on a par with the arrival of civilisation itself. What does it mean to have arrived at this point, where human history and Earth history collide? Some interpret the Anthropocene as no more than a development of what they already know, obscuring and deflating its profound significance. But the Anthropocene demands that we rethink everything. The modern belief in the free, reflexive being making its own future by taking control of its environment – even to the point of geoengineering – is now impossible because we have rendered the Earth more unpredictable and less controllable, a disobedient planet. At the same time, all attempts by progressives to cut humans down to size by attacking anthropocentrism come up against the insurmountable fact that human beings now possess enough power to change the Earth's course. It's too late to turn back the geological clock, and there is no going back to premodern ways of thinking. We must face the fact that humans are at the centre of the world, even if we must give the idea that we can control the planet. These truths call for a new kind of anthropocentrism, a philosophy by which we might use our power responsibly and find a way to live on a defiant Earth.
Download or read book A Framework for K 12 Science Education written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2012-02-28 with total page 400 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Science, engineering, and technology permeate nearly every facet of modern life and hold the key to solving many of humanity's most pressing current and future challenges. The United States' position in the global economy is declining, in part because U.S. workers lack fundamental knowledge in these fields. To address the critical issues of U.S. competitiveness and to better prepare the workforce, A Framework for K-12 Science Education proposes a new approach to K-12 science education that will capture students' interest and provide them with the necessary foundational knowledge in the field. A Framework for K-12 Science Education outlines a broad set of expectations for students in science and engineering in grades K-12. These expectations will inform the development of new standards for K-12 science education and, subsequently, revisions to curriculum, instruction, assessment, and professional development for educators. This book identifies three dimensions that convey the core ideas and practices around which science and engineering education in these grades should be built. These three dimensions are: crosscutting concepts that unify the study of science through their common application across science and engineering; scientific and engineering practices; and disciplinary core ideas in the physical sciences, life sciences, and earth and space sciences and for engineering, technology, and the applications of science. The overarching goal is for all high school graduates to have sufficient knowledge of science and engineering to engage in public discussions on science-related issues, be careful consumers of scientific and technical information, and enter the careers of their choice. A Framework for K-12 Science Education is the first step in a process that can inform state-level decisions and achieve a research-grounded basis for improving science instruction and learning across the country. The book will guide standards developers, teachers, curriculum designers, assessment developers, state and district science administrators, and educators who teach science in informal environments.
Download or read book Understanding Climate s Influence on Human Evolution written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2010-04-17 with total page 128 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The hominin fossil record documents a history of critical evolutionary events that have ultimately shaped and defined what it means to be human, including the origins of bipedalism; the emergence of our genus Homo; the first use of stone tools; increases in brain size; and the emergence of Homo sapiens, tools, and culture. The Earth's geological record suggests that some evolutionary events were coincident with substantial changes in African and Eurasian climate, raising the possibility that critical junctures in human evolution and behavioral development may have been affected by the environmental characteristics of the areas where hominins evolved. Understanding Climate's Change on Human Evolution explores the opportunities of using scientific research to improve our understanding of how climate may have helped shape our species. Improved climate records for specific regions will be required before it is possible to evaluate how critical resources for hominins, especially water and vegetation, would have been distributed on the landscape during key intervals of hominin history. Existing records contain substantial temporal gaps. The book's initiatives are presented in two major research themes: first, determining the impacts of climate change and climate variability on human evolution and dispersal; and second, integrating climate modeling, environmental records, and biotic responses. Understanding Climate's Change on Human Evolution suggests a new scientific program for international climate and human evolution studies that involve an exploration initiative to locate new fossil sites and to broaden the geographic and temporal sampling of the fossil and archeological record; a comprehensive and integrative scientific drilling program in lakes, lake bed outcrops, and ocean basins surrounding the regions where hominins evolved and a major investment in climate modeling experiments for key time intervals and regions that are critical to understanding human evolution.
Download or read book Next Generation Earth Systems Science at the National Science Foundation written by National Academies of Sciences Engineering and Medicine and published by . This book was released on 2022-06-22 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The National Science Foundation (NSF) has played a key role over the past several decades in advancing understanding of Earth's systems by funding research on atmospheric, ocean, hydrologic, geologic, polar, ecosystem, social, and engineering-related processes. Today, however, those systems are being driven like never before by human technologies and activities. Our understanding has struggled to keep pace with the rapidity and magnitude of human-driven changes, their impacts on human and ecosystem sustainability and resilience, and the effectiveness of different pathways to address those challenges. Given the urgency of understanding human-driven changes, NSF will need to sustain and expand its efforts to achieve greater impact. The time is ripe to create a next-generation Earth systems science initiative that emphasizes research on complex interconnections and feedbacks between natural and social processes. This will require NSF to place an increased emphasis on research inspired by real-world problems while maintaining their strong legacy of curiosity driven research across many disciplines ? as well as enhance the participation of social, engineering, and data scientists, and strengthen efforts to include diverse perspectives in research.
Download or read book Thermodynamic Foundations of the Earth System written by Axel Kleidon and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2016-03-11 with total page 397 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Thermodynamics sets fundamental laws for all physical processes and is central to driving and maintaining planetary dynamics. But how do Earth system processes perform work, where do they derive energy from, and what are the limits? This accessible book describes how the laws of thermodynamics apply to Earth system processes, from solar radiation to motion, geochemical cycling and biotic activity. It presents a novel view of the thermodynamic Earth system explaining how it functions and evolves, how different forms of disequilibrium are being maintained, and how evolutionary trends can be interpreted as thermodynamic trends. It also offers an original perspective on human activity, formulating this in terms of a thermodynamic, Earth system process. This book uses simple conceptual models and basic mathematical treatments to illustrate the application of thermodynamics to Earth system processes, making it ideal for researchers and graduate students across a range of Earth and environmental science disciplines.
Download or read book Revolutions that Made the Earth written by Tim Lenton and published by OUP Oxford. This book was released on 2013-04-11 with total page 440 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Earth that sustains us today was born out of a few remarkable, near-catastrophic revolutions, started by biological innovations and marked by global environmental consequences. The revolutions have certain features in common, such as an increase in complexity, energy utilization, and information processing by life. This book describes these revolutions, showing the fundamental interdependence of the evolution of life and its non-living environment. We would not exist unless these upheavals had led eventually to 'successful' outcomes - meaning that after each one, at length, a new stable world emerged. The current planet-reshaping activities of our species may be the start of another great Earth system revolution, but there is no guarantee that this one will be successful. The book explains what a successful transition through it might look like, if we are wise enough to steer such a course. This book places humanity in context as part of the Earth system, using a new scientific synthesis to illustrate our debt to the deep past and our potential for the future.
Download or read book Thriving on Our Changing Planet written by National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2019-01-20 with total page 717 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: We live on a dynamic Earth shaped by both natural processes and the impacts of humans on their environment. It is in our collective interest to observe and understand our planet, and to predict future behavior to the extent possible, in order to effectively manage resources, successfully respond to threats from natural and human-induced environmental change, and capitalize on the opportunities â€" social, economic, security, and more â€" that such knowledge can bring. By continuously monitoring and exploring Earth, developing a deep understanding of its evolving behavior, and characterizing the processes that shape and reshape the environment in which we live, we not only advance knowledge and basic discovery about our planet, but we further develop the foundation upon which benefits to society are built. Thriving on Our Changing Planet presents prioritized science, applications, and observations, along with related strategic and programmatic guidance, to support the U.S. civil space Earth observation program over the coming decade.
Download or read book The Geography of Contemporary China written by Jing’ai Wang and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2022-06-28 with total page 466 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This textbook provides a comprehensive and very detailed insight into Chinese Contemporary Geography in English. It documents the geographical issues associated with China's rapid growth. Since initiating the reforms and open policy, China has achieved tremendous success. China's rapid growth is now a driving force in the global economy and is achieving unprecedented rates of poverty reduction. However, China also faces a number of sustainability and emerging challenges associated with rapid growth such as growing regional disparities in terms of per capita income and social-economic development, sustainable resource development, and issues related to regional and global economic integration. In addition, rapid economic growth has also brought about major challenges such as resource shortages, ecological and environmental destruction, land degradation and frequent disasters. This book presents the authors’ reflections. This lavishly illustrated book covers physical geography, history, and economic and political systems of the world's most populous country. The major focus is on geographical issues in China's contemporary development: agriculture, population, urbanization, resource and energy, and environment. The lead author of the book has taught relevant courses in China for three decades, and authored and edited multiple textbooks for Chinese students. This book will appeal to undergraduate students of geography and related disciplines with a regional focus on China and to the general reader who wants to learn different geographical aspects of modern China with little academic background in geography.
Download or read book Planetary Health written by Samuel Myers and published by Island Press. This book was released on 2020-08-13 with total page 538 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Human health depends on the health of the planet. Earth’s natural systems—the air, the water, the biodiversity, the climate—are our life support systems. Yet climate change, biodiversity loss, scarcity of land and freshwater, pollution and other threats are degrading these systems. The emerging field of planetary health aims to understand how these changes threaten our health and how to protect ourselves and the rest of the biosphere. Planetary Health: Protecting Nature to Protect Ourselves provides a readable introduction to this new paradigm. With an interdisciplinary approach, the book addresses a wide range of health impacts felt in the Anthropocene, including food and nutrition, infectious disease, non-communicable disease, dislocation and conflict, and mental health. It also presents strategies to combat environmental changes and its ill-effects, such as controlling toxic exposures, investing in clean energy, improving urban design, and more. Chapters are authored by widely recognized experts. The result is a comprehensive and optimistic overview of a growing field that is being adopted by researchers and universities around the world. Students of public health will gain a solid grounding in the new challenges their profession must confront, while those in the environmental sciences, agriculture, the design professions, and other fields will become familiar with the human consequences of planetary changes. Understanding how our changing environment affects our health is increasingly critical to a variety of disciplines and professions. Planetary Health is the definitive guide to this vital field.
Download or read book SYSTEM DYNAMICS Volume II written by Yaman Barlas and published by EOLSS Publications. This book was released on 2009-06-29 with total page 306 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: System Dynamics is a component of Encyclopedia of Technology, Information, and Systems Management Resources in the global Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems (EOLSS), which is an integrated compendium of twenty one Encyclopedias. The world is facing a wide range of increasingly complex, dynamic problems in the public and private arenas alike. System dynamics discipline is an attempt to address such dynamic, long-term policy problems. Applications cover a very wide spectrum, including national economic problems, supply chains, project management, educational problems, energy systems, sustainable development, politics, psychology, medical sciences, health care, and many other areas. This theme provides a comprehensive overview of system dynamics methodology, including its conceptual / philosophical framework, as well as the technical aspects of modeling and analysis. System dynamics can address the fundamental structural causes of the long-term dynamic contemporary socio-economic problems. Its "systems" perspective challenges the barriers that separate disciplines. The interdisciplinary and systemic approach of system dynamics could be critical in dealing with the increasingly complex problems of our modern world in this new century. These two volumes are aimed at the following five major target audiences: University and College students Educators, Professional practitioners, Research personnel and Policy analysts, managers, and decision makers and NGOs.
Download or read book Agency in Earth System Governance written by Michele M. Betsill and published by . This book was released on 2020-01-02 with total page 273 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An accessible synthesis of a decade of multidisciplinary research into how diverse actors exercise authority in environmental decision making.
Download or read book Research Directions Challenges and Achievements of Modern Geography written by Jerzy Bański and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2023-12-01 with total page 297 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book identifies and discusses research directions, challenges and achievements in contemporary geography. It also documents the most current theoretical and methodological considerations undertaken by scientists representing various sub-disciplines of geography with particular reference to human geography. It was assumed that the thematic structure of the currently active International Geographical Union (IGU) problem commissions corresponds to the most relevant and current research directions in geography. Reflecting this assumption, the book consists of 14 chapters contributed by geographers representing 14 problem commissions of the IGU, which allows us to examine geography from different perspectives and to provide the reader with a complete overview of contemporary research issues in human geography. The first part discusses contemporary research problems and issues related to scientific methodology and achievements of selected geographical sub-disciplines, including urban geography, agricultural geography, transport geography, and political geography, among others. The second part focuses on the interdisciplinarity of geography and the topics of global dimension undertaken by geographers such as global change, GIS and geospatial technology, marginalization, and environmental change. This part also discusses the internal relations between geographical specializations and their links with other related sciences, including geology, sociology, and economics. The third part discusses the holistic approaches of geography applied to particular regions, territories, or conditions (Africa, costal systems, geomorphology and local development).
Download or read book Earth System Law Standing on the Precipice of the Anthropocene written by Timothy Cadman and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2021-12-13 with total page 300 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book systematically explores the emerging legal discipline of Earth System Law (ESL), challenging the closed system of law and marking a new era in law and society scholarship. Law has historically provided stability, certainty, and predictability in the ordering of social relations (predominantly between humans). However, in recent decades the Earth’s relationship in law has changed with increasing recognition of the standing of Mother Earth, inherent rights of the environment (such as flora and fauna, rivers), and now recognition of the multiple relations of the Anthropocene. This book questions the fundamental assumption that ‘the law’ only applies to humans, and that the earth, as a system, has intrinsic rights and responsibilities. In the last ten years the planet has experienced its hottest period since human evolution, and by the year 2100, unless substantive action is taken, many species will be lost, and planetary conditions will be intolerable for human civilisation as it currently exists. Relationships between humans, the biosphere, and all planetary systems must change. The authors address these challenging topics, setting the groundwork of ESL to ensure sustainable development of the coupled socio-ecological system that the Earth has become. Earth System Law is an interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary research project, and, as such, this book will be of great interest to researchers and stakeholders from a wide range of disciplines, including political science, anthropology, economics, law, ethics, sociology, and psychology.
