An Introduction to Molecular Ecology
Trevor J. C. Beebee and Graham Rowe
Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press, 2004.
Call# QH541.15 .M63 B44 2004

From Oxford University Press:

“Ecology — the study of how individuals and species interact with their surroundings, and each other — has been revolutionized by a new molecular approach to the subject. By using molecular, biological and molecular genetic techniques, ecological interactions can be investigated in more detail and with more accuracy than ever before. An Introduction to Molecular Ecology makes this fascinating area of research accessible to students for the first time. Beginning with the history of molecular ecology, involving the relationships between natural history, genetics and evolution, the book moves on to discuss the areas of molecular population genetics, phylogeography, and molecular ecology in conservation biology. These are just a few of the ten chapters, which are individually structured to include background information, questions of interest, the underlying theory of the various molecular and analytical approaches, and a range of relevant examples. Two substantial appendices detail accounts of the main practical and analytical methods currently used in molecular ecology.”

Advances in Air Pollution Modeling for Environmental Security
Proceedings of the NATO Advanced Research Workshop Advances in Air Pollution Modeling for Environmental Security, Borovetz, Bulgaria, 8-12 May 2004
István Faragó, Krassimir Georgiev and Ágnes Havasi, eds.
Dordrecht: Springer, 2005.
Call# TD881 .A363 2004

From Springer:

“The protection of our environment is one of the major problems in society. More and more important physical and chemical mechanisms are to be added to the air pollution models. Moreover, reliable and robust control strategies for keeping pollution caused by harmful compounds under certain safe levels have to be developed and used in a routine way. Well based and correctly analyzed large mathematical models can successfully be used to solve this task. The use of such models leads to the treatment of huge computational tasks. The efficient solution of such problems requires combined research from specialists working in different fields.

The NATO ARW held at Borovetz (Bulgaria), in the period 8-12 May, 2004 was devoted to the above questions. This book contains selected papers of the meeting in the following topics:

• improving the abilities of air pollution models to calculate reliable predictions of the pollution levels in a given domain and in real time by using adequate description of the physical and chemical processes,
• implementation of advanced numerical methods and algorithms in the models,
• efficient utilization of up-to-date computer architectures,
• development of mechanisms for studying particles (including here fine and ultra-fine particles), biogenic emissions, etc.
• optimization techniques in the study of the pollution levels, etc.”

Australia, New Zealand, and the Pacific: an Environmental History
Donald S. Garden
Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 2005.
Call# GF798 G37 2005

From ABC-CLIO:

“A fascinating study of the environmental history of Australia, New Zealand, and the islands of the Pacific, from the time of the dinosaurs to the present day.

Why do kangaroos hop? Or koala bears nap so often? From how animals cope with the extremes of the Australian outback to the tragic impact of early human settlement on Easter Island, this volume provides a scholarly yet accessible survey of the environmental history of one quarter of the world’s surface.

Of interest to students and academics alike, this book provides a much-needed synthesis of the recent literature on the environmental history of Australia and Oceania. Charting the creation of the Australian continent from the ancient land mass of Gondwanaland to the arrival of humans, this book maps out the key trends in the region’s environmental history.

Especially fascinating are the chapters highlighting how successive waves of human migration created environmental havoc throughout the region, leading to the collapse of the Easter Island civilization and the spread of nonindigenous flora and fauna. From the controversies over the reasons why creatures such as the marsupial lion and the giant kangaroo became extinct to such contemporary problems as deforestation and global warming, this book contains sobering lessons for us all.

Series Features

• An A–Z reference section detailing key people, concepts, and events in world environmental history
• A region-by-region focus on how the environment has affected the rise of the world’s great civilizations

Title Features

• A chronology covers key phenomena and events in the region’s environmental history from before the dinosaurs to the present day
• Includes an annotated bibliography detailing the major works on the history of the region’s environment

Highlights

• Provides a detailed survey of the environmental history of the region’s diverse countries, from the Australian land mass to the coral atolls of the Pacific, drawing out common themes applicable to the environmental history of the region as a whole
• Brings together the environmental history of prehistoric, aboriginal, and modern Australia and Oceania in a single volume
• Provides a unique synthesis of recent scholarship on the region’s environmental history”