Download or read book Thermodynamics and Ecological Modelling written by Sven E. Jorgensen and published by CRC Press. This book was released on 2018-10-03 with total page 384 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Thermodynamics is used increasingly in ecology to understand the system properties of ecosystems because it is a basic science that describes energy transformation from a holistic view. In the last decade, many contributions to ecosystem theory based on thermodynamics have been published, therefore an important step toward integrating these theories and encouraging a more wide spread use of them is to present them in one volume. An ecosystem consists of interdependent living organisms that are also interdependent with their environment, all of which are involved in a constant transfer of energy and mass within a general state of equilibrium or dis-equilibrium. Thermodynamics can quantify exactly how "organized" or "disorganized" a system is - an extremely useful to know when trying to understand how a dynamic ecosystem is behaving. A part of the Environmental and Ecological (Math) Modeling series, Thermodynamics and Ecology is a book-length study - the first of its kind - of the current thinking on how an ecosystem can be explained and predicted in terms of its thermodynamical behavior. After the introductory chapters on the fundamentals of thermodynamics, the book explains how thermodynamic theory can be specifically applied to the "measurement" of an ecosystem, including the assessment of its state of entropy and enthalpy. Additionally, it will show economists how to put these theories to use when trying to quantify the movement of goods and services through another type of complex living system - a human society.
Download or read book Towards a Thermodynamic Theory for Ecological Systems written by S.E. Jorgensen and published by Elsevier. This book was released on 2004-07-06 with total page 383 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The book presents a consistent and complete ecosystem theory based on thermodynamic concepts. The first chapters are devoted to an interpretation of the first and second law of thermodynamics in ecosystem context. Then Prigogine's use of far from equilibrium thermodynamic is used on ecosystems to explain their reactions to perturbations. The introduction of the concept exergy makes it possible to give a more profound and comprehensive explanation of the ecosystem's reactions and growth-patterns. A tentative fourth law of thermodynamic is formulated and applied to facilitate these explanations. The trophic chain, the global energy and radiation balance and pattern and the reactions of ecological networks are all explained by the use of exergy. Finally, it is discussed how the presented theory can be applied more widely to explain ecological observations and rules, to assess ecosystem health and to develop ecological models.
Download or read book Sex Ecology Spirituality written by Ken Wilber and published by Shambhala Publications. This book was released on 2001-01-02 with total page 880 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Hailed as “one of the most significant books ever published,” this work of far-reaching vision is a comprehensive exploration of the evolution of human consciousness In this tour de force of scholarship and vision, Ken Wilber traces the course of evolution from matter to life to mind and describes the common patterns that evolution takes in all three of these domains. From the emergence of mind, he traces the evolution of human consciousness through its major stages of growth and development. Wilber particularly focuses on modernity and postmodernity: what they mean; how they impact gender issues, psychotherapy, ecological concerns, and various liberation movements; and how the modern and postmodern world conceive of Spirit. This second edition features forty pages of new material, new diagrams, and extensively revised notes.
Download or read book Physis Biopower and Biothermodynamics written by Enrique Leff and published by Taylor & Francis. This book was released on 2024-04-16 with total page 278 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Building upon the idea that our current "environmental question" arises from the history of metaphysics—which privileged thought about Being (or ontology) over the conditions of life—this book reinterprets Heraclitus’s notion of physis as the fundamental, emergent potency of life, as the category to-be-thought by thinkers. In so doing, it deconstructs the interpretation offered by Heidegger and so stresses the struggle between the creative force of life and its subjection to the human Logos or "meaning". Physis, understood as the pre-ontological potentiality of life itself, thus becomes the cornerstone of a materialist philosophy of life. Following engagements with the work of Nietzsche, Foucault, and Janicaud to explore the significance of human intervention into the realm of life via the "will to power", "biopower" and the "power of rationality" respectively, the author explores twentieth-century rearticulations of the concept of physis through a range of developments in biothermodynamics, thus grounding a new philosophy of life and a new bioeconomics in a revisited biothermodynamics centered on the concept of negentropy. An extensive engagement with the history and development of thought about the generative force of life on Earth, Physis, Biopower, Biothermodynamics, and Bioeconomics: The Fire of Life will appeal to scholars of philosophy, social theory, and political theory with interests in environmental thought, political ecology, and questions of sustainability.
Download or read book Encyclopedia of Ecology written by Brian D. Fath and published by Elsevier. This book was released on 2018-08-23 with total page 2786 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Encyclopedia of Ecology, Second Edition, Four Volume Set continues the acclaimed work of the previous edition published in 2008. It covers all scales of biological organization, from organisms, to populations, to communities and ecosystems. Laboratory, field, simulation modelling, and theoretical approaches are presented to show how living systems sustain structure and function in space and time. New areas of focus include micro- and macro scales, molecular and genetic ecology, and global ecology (e.g., climate change, earth transformations, ecosystem services, and the food-water-energy nexus) are included. In addition, new, international experts in ecology contribute on a variety of topics. Offers the most broad-ranging and comprehensive resource available in the field of ecology Provides foundational content and suggests further reading Incorporates the expertise of over 500 outstanding investigators in the field of ecology, including top young scientists with both research and teaching experience Includes multimedia resources, such as an Interactive Map Viewer and links to a CSDMS (Community Surface Dynamics Modeling System), an open-source platform for modelers to share and link models dealing with earth system processes
Download or read book Fundamental Processes in Ecology written by David M Wilkinson and published by OUP Oxford. This book was released on 2007-09-13 with total page 200 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 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.
Download or read book Integration of Ecosystem Theories A Pattern written by Sven Erik Jørgensen and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2012-12-06 with total page 427 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The book presents an integration of existing ecosystem theories in such a comprehensive way as to enable a full ecological and theoretical pattern to be presented. It shows that ecosystems and their reactions may be understood, provided that all basic systems ecology is applied to different aspects of the properties of ecosystems. Since the publication of the previous two editions of this book, ongoing research and discussions on an international scale have greatly clarified and enhanced this pattern. This progress is presented as Chapter 16 in this new, third edition. It is shown that the integrated ecosystem theory presented can be applied to explain various ecological observations and rules. Audience: Researchers and decision makers whose work involves the study of ecosystems and ecology. This book is also recommended for use in graduate courses.
Download or read book The Fundamental Processes in Ecology written by David Wilkinson and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2023-09-05 with total page 177 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This thought-provoking book introduces a way to study ecosystems that is resonant with current thinking in the fields of earth system science, geobiology, and planetology. Instead of organizing the subject around a hierarchical series of entities (e.g. genes, individuals, populations, species, communities, and the biosphere), the book provides an alternative process-based approach and proposes a truly planetary view of ecological science. It demonstrates how the idea of fundamental ecological processes can be developed at the systems level, specifically their involvement in control and feedback mechanisms. This enables the reader to reconsider fundamental ecological processes such as energy flow, guilds, trade-offs, carbon cycling, and photosynthesis, and to put them in a global (and even planetary) context. In so doing, the book places a much stronger emphasis on microorganisms. Since publication of the first edition in 2006, ever growing societal concern about environmental sustainability has ensured that the earth system science/Gaian approach has steadily gained traction. Its integration with ecology is now more important than ever if ecological science is to effectively contribute to the massive problems and future challenges associated with global environmental change. The Fundamental Processes in Ecology is an accessible text for senior undergraduates, graduate student seminar courses, and researchers in the fields of ecology, environmental sustainability, earth system science, evolutionary biology, palaeontology, history of life, astrobiology, planetology, climatology, geology, and physical geography.
Download or read book Introduction to Systems Ecology written by Sven Jorgensen and published by CRC Press. This book was released on 2016-04-19 with total page 311 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Possibly the first textbook to present a practically applicable ecosystems theory, Introduction to Systems Ecology helps readers understand how ecosystems work and how they react to disturbances. It demonstrates-with many examples and illustrations-how to apply the theory to explain observations and to make quantitative calculations and predictions
Download or read book The Collected Works of Ken Wilber Sex ecology spirituality written by Ken Wilber and published by . This book was released on 1999 with total page 888 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Biology for AP Courses written by Julianne Zedalis and published by . This book was released on 2017-10-16 with total page 1923 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Biology for AP® courses covers the scope and sequence requirements of a typical two-semester Advanced Placement® biology course. The text provides comprehensive coverage of foundational research and core biology concepts through an evolutionary lens. Biology for AP® Courses was designed to meet and exceed the requirements of the College Board’s AP® Biology framework while allowing significant flexibility for instructors. Each section of the book includes an introduction based on the AP® curriculum and includes rich features that engage students in scientific practice and AP® test preparation; it also highlights careers and research opportunities in biological sciences.
Download or read book Ammonoid Paleobiology From anatomy to ecology written by Christian Klug and published by Springer. This book was released on 2015-07-22 with total page 943 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This two-volume work is a testament to the abiding interest and human fascination with ammonites. We offer a new model to explain the morphogenesis of septa and the shell, we explore their habitats by the content of stable isotopes in their shells, we discuss the origin and later evolution of this important clade, and we deliver hypotheses on its demise. The Ammonoidea produced a great number of species that can be used in biostratigraphy and possibly, this is the macrofossil group, which has been used the most for that purpose. Nevertheless, many aspects of their anatomy, mode of life, development or paleobiogeographic distribution are still poorly known. Themes treated are biostratigraphy, paleoecology, paleoenvironment, paleobiogeography, evolution, phylogeny, and ontogeny. Advances such as an explosion of new information about ammonites, new technologies such as isotopic analysis, tomography and virtual paleontology in general, as well as continuous discovery of new fossil finds have given us the opportunity to present a comprehensive and timely "state of the art" compilation. Moreover, it also points the way for future studies to further enhance our understanding of this endlessly fascinating group of organisms.
Download or read book The Ecological Significance of Sexual Size Dimorphism in Two Predatory Stoneflies written by Roger John Haro and published by . This book was released on 1994 with total page 274 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book A New Ecology written by Soeren Nors Nielsen and published by Elsevier. This book was released on 2019-08-30 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A New Ecology: Systems Perspective, Second Edition, gives an overview of the commonalities of all ecosystems from a variety of properties, including physical openness, ontic openness, directionality, connectivity, a complex dynamic for growth and development, and a complex dynamic response to disturbances. Each chapter details basic and characteristic properties that help the reader understand how they can be applied to explain a wide spectrum of current ecological research and environmental management applications. - Contains revised, updated or redeveloped chapters that include the most current research and technology - Reviews universal traits of ecosystems from multiple perspectives, giving the reader a complete overview of the systems perspective of ecology - Offers broad examples of ecology as a systems science, from the history of science, to philosophy and the arts - Brings together the systems perspective in a framework of four columns for greater understanding, including thermodynamics, network theory, hierarchy theory and biochemistry - Contains new chapter on the application of the theory to environmental management
Download or read book Global Ecology written by Sven Erik Jørgensen and published by Academic Press. This book was released on 2010-04-16 with total page 475 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Global Ecology focuses on the perception of the biosphere or the ecosphere as a unified cooperative system with numerous synergistic effects, which describe the distinctive properties of this sphere. This book is subdivided into five parts dealing with diverse aspects in global ecology. The first part of the book provides comprehensive description of the biosphere, including its unique characteristics and evolution. This part also describes various spheres in the biosphere, such as the hydrosphere, noosphere, and pedosphere as well as their composition. The next part focuses on the global cycles, including calcium, carbon, iron, microbial nitrogen, oxygen, phosphorus, sulfur, and water cycles. In addition, global balances and flows are explained. Presented in the third part are the results of the global cycles and flows as well as the patterns of the climatic factors and marine currents. There is also a part discussing the climate interactions, climatic changes, and its effect on the living organisms. The book concludes by covering the application of stoichiometry in the biosphere and in ecosystems. The book offers a comprehensive view of global ecology and ecological stoichiometry, which will aid in the processes of global ecology. - Provides an overview of the theory and application of global ecology - International focus and range of ecosystems makes Global Ecology an indispensable resource to scientists - Based on the bestselling Encyclopedia of Ecology - Full-color figures and tables support the text and aid in understanding
Download or read book Scientists Debate Gaia written by Stephen Henry Schneider and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2004 with total page 412 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Leading scientists bring the controversy over Gaia up to date by exploring a broad range of recent thinking on Gaia theory.
Download or read book Environmental Conscience written by Manmohan Singh Gill and published by Concept Publishing Company. This book was released on 2009 with total page 292 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In Indian context; contributed articles.
