Geobiology: Objectives, Concepts, Perspectives

Geobiology: Objectives, Concepts, Perspectives

Author: N. Noffke

Publisher: Elsevier

Published: 2012-12-02

Total Pages: 205

ISBN-13: 0080931146

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Geobiology is an exciting and rapidly developing research discipline that opens new perspectives in understanding Earth as a system. To determine and to exploit its possibilities, this promising scientific field will benefit from a discussion of its definition as a research discipline, its objectives, and its methodological approaches. Such a spirited discussion is the goal of the book "Geobiology: Objectives, Concepts, Perspectives". Geobiology touches various subdisciplines of geology and biology in many ways. The book will serve biogeochemists, paleontologists, biomineralogists, microbiologists and many others as a forum to determine future directions of geobiological research. The book includes a section on the concept of geobiological studies, which combines the parent disciplines biology and geology. Several case studies describe geobiological investigations that serve to understand Earth in the present and past. The case studies give an overview of the general understanding of geobiology and lead the reader towards the current hot topics in this rising scientific discipline.* New definition of the rising scientific discipline "geobiology"* Overview into the broad spectrum of geobiological topics* Insight into hot topics of current geobiological research


Geobiology

Geobiology

Author: Nora Noffke

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2010-06-28

Total Pages: 199

ISBN-13: 364212772X

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A murmur is heard from the depths of time. Life and Earth are engaged in a dialog that has lasted for four billion years. Sometimes it’s a whisper, sometimes a roar. One part sometimes gets the upper hand, dominates the discussion and sets the agenda. But mostly the two have some kind of mutual understanding, and the murmur goes on. Most of us don’t listen. Nora does. She listens, and she tries to understand. Nora Noffke has focused her scientific career on the interaction between the living and the non-living. This is no mean task in an academic world where you are usually either this or that, such as either a biologist or a geologist. The amount of stuff you need to grasp is so large that it usually feels better to sit comfortably on one chair, rather than to risk falling between them. Geobiology is not for the faint of heart. Nora’s focus is on that all-important biological substance mucus, or EPS (ext- cellular polymeric substance). EPS is the oil in the machinery, the freeway to travel for many small animals and protists, the coat of armour for others, the mortar in the brick wall for yet others. For microbes such as cyanobacteria it may be the world they built, the world they live, eat, fight, multiply, and die in.


Astrobiology and Society in Europe Today

Astrobiology and Society in Europe Today

Author: Klara Anna Capova

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2018-08-07

Total Pages: 83

ISBN-13: 3319962655

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This White Paper describes the state of astrobiology in Europe today and its relation to the European society at large. With contributions from authors in twenty countries and over thirty scientific institutions worldwide, the document illustrates the societal implications of astrobiology and the positive contribution that astrobiology can make to European society. The White paper has two main objectives: 1. It recommends the establishment of a European Astrobiology Institute (EAI) as an answer to a series of challenges relating to astrobiology but also European research, education and the society at large. 2. It also acknowledges the societal implications of astrobiology, and thus the role of the social sciences and humanities in optimizing the positive contribution that astrobiology can make to the lives of the people of Europe and the challenges they face. This book is recommended reading for science policy makers, the interested public, and the astrobiology community.


Triple Oxygen Isotope Geochemistry

Triple Oxygen Isotope Geochemistry

Author: Ilya N. Bindeman

Publisher: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG

Published: 2021-02-22

Total Pages: 508

ISBN-13: 1501524674

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Volume 86 of Reviews in Mineralogy and Geochemistry concentrates on understanding the variations among ratios of the three isotopes of oxygen, with primary emphasis on terrestrial systems. Triple oxygen isotope variations may be related to large, mass-independent fractionation effects such observed in the Earth atmosphere or may be small and related to minute variations due to purely mass-dependent processes. Recent advancements in analytical resolution now allow for the identification of processes and distinct reservoirs that were formerly hidden in the paradigm of a "single terrestrial fractionation line". New, high-resolution measurements are accompanied by advances in theoretical calculations that dovetail with empirical calibrations and applications throughout this volume. 14 chapters span a wide range of subjects: from ab-initio theoretical approaches to observation of triple oxygen isotope variations in the Earth litho-, hydro- and atmosphere.


Iron Formations as Palaeoenvironmental Archives

Iron Formations as Palaeoenvironmental Archives

Author: Kaarel Mänd

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2022-01-20

Total Pages: 66

ISBN-13: 1009002279

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Ancient iron formations - iron and silica-rich chemical sedimentary rocks that formed throughout the Precambrian eons - provide a significant part of the evidence for the modern scientific understanding of palaeoenvironmental conditions in Archaean (4.0–2.5 billion years ago) and Proterozoic (2.5–0.539 billion years ago) times. Despite controversies regarding their formation mechanisms, iron formations are a testament to the influence of the Precambrian biosphere on early ocean chemistry. As many iron formations are pure chemical sediments that reflect the composition of the waters from which they precipitated, they can also serve as nuanced geochemical archives for the study of ancient marine temperatures, redox states, and elemental cycling, if proper care is taken to understand their sedimentological context.


Extremophiles as Astrobiological Models

Extremophiles as Astrobiological Models

Author: Joseph Seckbach

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons

Published: 2021-01-13

Total Pages: 416

ISBN-13: 1119591686

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The data in this book are new or updated, and will serve also as Origin of Life and evolutionary studies. Endospores of bacteria have a long history of use as model organisms in astrobiology, including survival in extreme environments and interplanetary transfer of life. Numerous other bacteria as well as archaea, lichens, fungi, algae and tiny animals (tardigrades, or water bears) are now being investigated for their tolerance to extreme conditions in simulated or real space environments. Experimental results from exposure studies on the International Space Station and space probes for up to 1.5 years are presented and discussed. Suggestions for extaterrestrial energy sources are also indicated. Audience Researchers and graduate students in microbiology, biochemistry, molecular biology and astrobiology, as well as anyone interested in the search for extraterrestrial life and its technical preparations.


Medical Geology

Medical Geology

Author: Majeti Narasimha Vara Prasad

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons

Published: 2023-02-20

Total Pages: 404

ISBN-13: 1119867363

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Medical Geology The key to understanding the relationship between the geological environment and human health Medical geology deals with of the impact of environmental factors on the health of individual human beings and communities. In particular, it studies environmental exposure to both macro- and micronutrients in the geosphere, hydrosphere, and atmosphere—respectively, soil, water, and airborne dust—which may positively or negatively impact human growth, development, and overall health. The insights contributed by this burgeoning field can aid not only in individual medical cases, but also in assessing disproportionately impacted communities and addressing global medical inequality. Medical Geology: En route to One Health is among the first books to address this vital subject by summarizing recent research in this field. It also serves as an introduction to the multidisciplinary One Health methodology, which unites medical, geological, and environmental insights in one continuous approach to public health. Medical Geology readers will also find: An explanation of the influence of the environment on nutrient availability Case studies of well-documented links between endemic diseases and environmental conditions A systematic analysis of the causes of essential element deficiencies in different world regions Medical Geology is an essential overview of the field, for advanced students as well as medical, environmental, or geological researchers who wish to understand the complex relationship between the geological environment and human health.


Treatise on Geomorphology

Treatise on Geomorphology

Author:

Publisher: Academic Press

Published: 2013-02-27

Total Pages: 6392

ISBN-13: 0080885225

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The changing focus and approach of geomorphic research suggests that the time is opportune for a summary of the state of discipline. The number of peer-reviewed papers published in geomorphic journals has grown steadily for more than two decades and, more importantly, the diversity of authors with respect to geographic location and disciplinary background (geography, geology, ecology, civil engineering, computer science, geographic information science, and others) has expanded dramatically. As more good minds are drawn to geomorphology, and the breadth of the peer-reviewed literature grows, an effective summary of contemporary geomorphic knowledge becomes increasingly difficult. The fourteen volumes of this Treatise on Geomorphology will provide an important reference for users from undergraduate students looking for term paper topics, to graduate students starting a literature review for their thesis work, and professionals seeking a concise summary of a particular topic. Information on the historical development of diverse topics within geomorphology provides context for ongoing research; discussion of research strategies, equipment, and field methods, laboratory experiments, and numerical simulations reflect the multiple approaches to understanding Earth’s surfaces; and summaries of outstanding research questions highlight future challenges and suggest productive new avenues for research. Our future ability to adapt to geomorphic changes in the critical zone very much hinges upon how well landform scientists comprehend the dynamics of Earth’s diverse surfaces. This Treatise on Geomorphology provides a useful synthesis of the state of the discipline, as well as highlighting productive research directions, that Educators and students/researchers will find useful. Geomorphology has advanced greatly in the last 10 years to become a very interdisciplinary field. Undergraduate students looking for term paper topics, to graduate students starting a literature review for their thesis work, and professionals seeking a concise summary of a particular topic will find the answers they need in this broad reference work which has been designed and written to accommodate their diverse backgrounds and levels of understanding Editor-in-Chief, Prof. J. F. Shroder of the University of Nebraska at Omaha, is past president of the QG&G section of the Geological Society of America and present Trustee of the GSA Foundation, while being well respected in the geomorphology research community and having won numerous awards in the field. A host of noted international geomorphologists have contributed state-of-the-art chapters to the work. Readers can be guaranteed that every chapter in this extensive work has been critically reviewed for consistency and accuracy by the World expert Volume Editors and by the Editor-in-Chief himself No other reference work exists in the area of Geomorphology that offers the breadth and depth of information contained in this 14-volume masterpiece. From the foundations and history of geomorphology through to geomorphological innovations and computer modelling, and the past and future states of landform science, no "stone" has been left unturned!


Biogeochemistry and the Environment

Biogeochemistry and the Environment

Author: Michael O'Neal Campbell

Publisher: Springer Nature

Published: 2023-12-14

Total Pages: 440

ISBN-13: 3031470176

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Biogeochemistry may be defined as the science that combines biological and chemical perspectives for the examination of the Earth’s surface, including the relations between the biosphere, lithosphere, atmosphere, and hydrosphere. Biogeochemistry is a comparatively recently developed science, that incorporates scientific knowledge and findings, research methodologies, and models linking the biological, chemical, and earth sciences. Therefore, while it is a definitive science with a strong theoretical core, it is also dynamically and broadly interlinked with other sciences. This book examines the complex science of biogeochemistry from a novel perspective, examining its comparatively recent development, while also emphasizing its interlinked relationship with the earth sciences (including the complementary science of geochemistry), the geographical sciences (biogeography, oceanography, geomatics, earth systems science), the biological sciences (ecology, wildlife studies, biological aspects of environmental sciences) and the chemical sciences (including environmental chemistry and pollution). The book covers cutting-edge topics on the science of biogeochemistry, examining its development, structure, interdisciplinary, multidisciplinary, and transdisciplinary relations, and the future of the current complex knowledge systems, especially in the context of technological, developments, and the computer and data fields.