Fire and Climatic Change in Temperate Ecosystems of the Western Americas
Fire and Climatic Change in Temperate Ecosystems of the Western Americas

Author: Thomas T. Veblen

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2006-05-10

Total Pages: 456

ISBN-13: 038721710X

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Both fire and climatic variability have monumental impacts on the dynamics of temperate ecosystems. These impacts can sometimes be extreme or devastating as seen in recent El Nino/La Nina cycles and in uncontrolled fire occurrences. This volume brings together research conducted in western North and South America, areas of a great deal of collaborative work on the influence of people and climate change on fire regimes. In order to give perspective to patterns of change over time, it emphasizes the integration of paleoecological studies with studies of modern ecosystems. Data from a range of spatial scales, from individual plants to communities and ecosystems to landscape and regional levels, are included. Contributions come from fire ecology, paleoecology, biogeography, paleoclimatology, landscape and ecosystem ecology, ecological modeling, forest management, plant community ecology and plant morphology. The book gives a synthetic overview of methods, data and simulation models for evaluating fire regime processes in forests, shrublands and woodlands and assembles case studies of fire, climate and land use histories. The unique approach of this book gives researchers the benefits of a north-south comparison as well as the integration of paleoecological histories, current ecosystem dynamics and modeling of future changes.

Principles and Methods in Landscape Ecology
Principles and Methods in Landscape Ecology

Author: Almo Farina

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2008-01-22

Total Pages: 412

ISBN-13: 1402055358

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Landscape ecology is an integrative and multi-disciplinary science and Principles and Methods in Landscape Ecology reconciles the geological, botanical, zoological and human perspectives. In particular ,new paradigms and theories such as percolation, metapopulation, hierarchies, source-sink models have been integrated in this last edition with the recent theories on bio-complexity, information and cognitive sciences. Methods for studying landscape ecology are covered including spatial geometry models and remote sensing in order to create confidence toward techniques and approaches that require a high experience and long-time dedication. Principles and Methods in Landscape Ecology is a textbook useful to present the landscape in a multi-vision perspective for undergraduate and graduate students of biology, ecology, geography, forestry, agronomy, landscape architecture and planning. Sociology, economics, history, archaeology, anthropology, ecological psychology are some sciences that can benefit of the holistic vision offered by this texbook.

Pavement Management for Airports, Roads, and Parking Lots
Pavement Management for Airports, Roads, and Parking Lots

Author: M.Y. Shahin

Publisher: Springer

Published: 1994-08-31

Total Pages: 450

ISBN-13: 9780412992018

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Emphasizing sound, cost-effective management rather than emergency repairs, this comprehensive volume offers practical guidelines on evaluating and managing pavements for airports, roads, and parking lots. The author focuses on the implementation and maintenance of successful management strategies for both network and project levels, with repair techniques also described . Detailed chapters: 1) outline step-by-step procedures for project and network level pavement management 2) illustrate effective cost analysis and budget planning for pavement maintenance 3) guide the reader in the selection and use of non-destructive deflection, roughness measurement, and friction measurement equipment 4) present state-of-the-art pavement rehabilitation and condition prediction techniques 5) demonstrates the Pavement Condition Index (PCI) procedure for airfields and surfaced and unsurfaced roads. Extensive appendices serve as a field manual for identifying all types of pavement distress and their causes, and hundred of photographs facilitate accurate pavement evaluation. Civil and pavement engineers will find complete information on pavement inspection, evaluation, and management in this indispensable reference.