Organic reactions in water : principles, strategies and applications
By U. Marcus Lindström
Oxford ; Ames, Iowa : Blackwell Pub., 2007.

Call # QD169 .W3 O74 2007

From Wiley.com

“Volatile organic solvents are the normal media used in both research scale and industrial scale synthesis of organic chemicals. Their environmental impact is significant, however, and so the development of alternative reaction media has become of great interest. Developments in the use of water as a solvent for organic synthesis have reached the point where it could now be considered a viable solvent for many organic reactions. Organic Reactions in Water demonstrates the underlying principles of using water as a reaction solvent and, by reference to a range of reaction types and systems, it’s effective use in synthetic organic chemistry. Written by an internationally respected team of contributors, and with a strong focus on the practical use of water as a reaction medium, this book illustrates the enormous potential of water for the development of new and unique chemistries and synthetic strategies, while at the same time offering a much reduced environmental impact.”

The spatial distribution of microbes in the environment
By Rima Franklin
Dordrecht, The Netherlands : Springer, 2007.
Call # QR100 .S68 2007

From Springer.com

“Microbes are very small and, as individuals, are capable of influencing a portion of the environment only slightly larger than their own body size, i.e., a few microns.  However, their impact on the landscape is enormous, and ecosystem processes such as organic matter decomposition, denitrification, and metal oxidation/reduction are measured on scales of meters to kilometers.  This volume highlights recent advances that have contributed to our understanding of spatial patterns and scale issues in microbial ecology, and brings together research conducted at a range of spatial scales (from µm to km) and in a variety of different types of environments.  These topics are addressed in a quantitative manner, and a primer on statistical methods is included to aid the unfamiliar reader.  In soil ecosystems, both bacteria and fungi are discussed, and the spatial patterns are interpreted in an ecological context that considers issues such as nutrient availability, vegetation distribution and growth patterns, and microbial colonization.  In aquatic systems, focus is on the distribution of planktonic forms including phytoplankton and microzooplankton.  The reader should gain insight on how to integrate information across spatial scales, which is necessary in order to understand and predict how these tiny organisms can have such a profound effect on landscape and ecosystem-level processes.”

The synthetic organic chemist’s companion
Michael C. Pirrung
Hoboken, N.J. : Wiley-Interscience, 2007.
Call # QD262 .P574 2007

From Wiley:

“The Organic Chemists’ Companion provides a practical, hands-on resource for students and practitioners of organic synthesis. The book presents the fundamentals and guides the reader through the entire process of organic synthesis. It includes basic instructions on everything from on handling reagents, gases, and solvents to conducting and working up/purifying reactions as well as applying analytical techniques to identify the reaction product.”

Status, distribution, and conservation of native freshwater fishes of western North America : a symposium proceedings
American Fisheries Society
Bethesda, Md. : American Fisheries Society, 2007.
Call # QL628 .W39 S96 2004

From the American Fisheries Society:

“Throughout the western United States, Canada, and northern Mexico during the past century, the status of many western native freshwater fish species has become questionable. Native fish have been adversely impacted by land and watershed development, habitat loss, direct human harvest, and increased competition from introduced non-native fish species. As population growth within the western region continues, understanding where remaining populations of native fish fauna occur and the threat presented to them is critical for conservation and restoration.”

A History of the Forest Survey in the United States: 1830-2004, June 2007
United States Forest Service
Call # GovDocs A 13.2:H 62/10

From The United States Forest Service:

“This publication presents a history of the Forest Survey (now known as Forest Inventory and Analysis) program in the United States as it evolved within the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Service over a period of more than 100 years. It draws on the writings of several authors who have published on various aspects of the Forest Survey program. A review is presented of nine ground plot designs used in the Forest Survey and Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) programs since 1931. This publication also highlights the major events contributing to the current FIA program, beginning as far back as 1830.
It is impressive to look at the many contributions of various people working with the Nation’s Forest Survey program, as well as the various methodologies that have contributed to understanding and updating the national forest survey statistics.
It is especially timely that this historical report should occur at the time the Forest Service just celebrated the anniversary of its 100 years of service to the American people.”

Life in the estuary : illustrated guide and ecology
by Malcolm B. Jones
Canterbury University Press, 2005.
Call# QL139 .J65 2005

From Canterbury University Press:

“Estuaries are places where rivers meet the sea, and they have a unique environment as a result of the mixing of fresh water with seawater. They provide diverse opportunities for observing and understanding wildlife.

This guide to the estuarine environment describes the dominant organisms and their ecology.

Based on the successful formula of an earlier book (Animals of the Estuary Shore), Life in the Estuary includes easy to use keys and illustrations to identify many common species of plants and animals, including invertebrates, birds and fish.

Although based primarily on organisms found within the Avon-Heathcote Estuary, Christchurch, this book is an ideal beach-combing companion for the identification of common species found throughout New Zealand in estuaries, mudflats, rocky shores, salt marshes, sand and surf beaches.

The environment and international politics : international fisheries, Heidegger and social method
by Hakan Seckinelgin
New York : Routledge, 2006.
Call#: GC1015.2 .S43 2006

From Routledge:

“This new study shows how environmental issues represent a deep problem in conceptualising the relationship between human beings and nature.

This key relationship grounds the implicit ethical and political concerns of International Relations and our understandings of environmental politics. It demonstrates that the core theoretical orientations of the study of International Relations are not only incapable of understanding and responding to contemporary problems, but are profoundly complicit in creating the ecological problems in the first place.

This major book develops a sense of these realities based on the thinking of Martin Heidegger. It forwards new ways of rethinking the environmental questions and addresses crucial issues such as sovereignty, the International Law of The Sea, the Kyoto Protocol, Northern Alaskan oil exploration and exploitation and the impact of the United Nations Convention on the Law of The Sea III.

This is essential specialist reading for readers concerned with the environment.”

Modernizing nature : forestry and imperial eco-development 1800-1950
by S. Ravi Rajan
Oxford ; New York: Oxford University Press, 2006.
Call# SD131 .R35 2006

From Oxford University Press

“Modernizing Nature contributes to the debate regarding the origins, institutionalization, and politics of the sciences and systems of knowledge underlying colonial frameworks of environmental management. It departs from the widely prevalent scholarly perspective that colonial science can be understood predominantly as a handmaiden of imperialism. Instead, it argues that the myriad colonial sciences had ideological and interventionist traditions distinct from each other and from the colonial bureaucracy and that these tensions better explain environmental politics and policy dilemmas in the post-colonial era.

Professor Rajan argues that tropical forestry in the nineteenth century consisted of at least two distinct approaches towards nature, resource, and people; and what won out in the end was the Continental European forestry paradigm. Rajan also shows that science and scientists were relatively marginal until the First World War. It was the acute scientific and resource crisis felt during the War, along with the rise of experts and expertise in Britain during that period and the lobby-politics of an organized empire-wide scientific community, that resulted in resource management regimes such as forestry beginning to get serious state backing. Over time, considerable differences in approach and outlook towards policy emerged between different colonial scientific communities, such as foresters and agriculturists. These different colonial sciences represented different situated knowledges, with different visions of nature, people, and empire, and in different configurations of power.

Finally, in a panoramic overview of post-colonial developments, Rajan argues that the hegemony of these state-scientific regimes of resource-management during the period 1950-1990 engendered not just social revolt, as recent historical work has shown, but also intellectual protest. Consequently, the discipline of forestry became systematically re-conceptualized, with newapproaches to sylviculture, economics, law, and crucially, with new visions of modernity. This disciplinary change constitutes nothing short of a cognitive revolution, one that has been brought about by a clearly articulated political perspective on the orientation of the discipline of forestry by its practitioners.”

Seeking the sacred raven : politics and extinction on a Hawaiian Island
by Mark Jerome Walters
Washington: Island Press/Shearwater Books, 2006.
Call# QL696 .P2367 W35 2006

From Island Press:

“Will the ‘Alala ever return to the wild? A bird sacred to Hawaiians and a member of the raven family, the ‘Alala today survives only in captivity. How the species once flourished, how it has been driven to near-extinction, and how people struggled to save it, is the gripping story of Seeking the Sacred Raven.

For years, author Mark Jerome Walters has tracked the sacred bird’s role in Hawaiian culture and the indomitable ‘Alala’s sad decline. Trekking through Hawaii’s rain forests high on Mauna Loa, talking with biologists, landowners, and government officials, he has woven an epic tale of missed opportunities and the best intentions gone awry. A species that once numbered in the thousands is now limited to about 50 captive birds.

Seeking the Sacred Raven is as much about people and culture as it is about failed policies. From the ancient Polynesians who first settled the island, to Captain Cook in the 18th century, to would-be saviors of the ‘Alala in the 1990s, individuals with conflicting passions and priorities have shaped Hawaii and the fate of this dwindling cloud-forest species.

Walters captures brilliantly the internecine politics among private landowners, scientists, environmental groups, individuals and government agencies battling over the bird’s habitat and protection. It’s only one species, only one bird, but Seeking the Sacred Raven illustrates vividly the many dimensions of species loss, for the human as well as non-human world.”

The geoscience handbook : AGI data sheets
American Geological Institute
Compiled by J. Douglas Walker and Harvey A. Cohen
Alexandria, Va.: American Geological Institute, 2006.
Call# QE52 .G46 2006

From The Geological Society of America:

“One of the best-kept secrets in geology is this handy compilation of geological information. The essential reference for geoscientists in the field, office, or lab, The Geoscience Handbook provides quick reference for the key metrics and concepts, as well as short tutorials on subjects that may not be familiar to all geoscientists. The Handbook covers diverse subjects, from geophysics to geologic map symbols to GPS usage, and everything in between! Newly updated for 2006, The Geoscience Handbook is now a larger, but still portable, format for easier reading. Also now in full color, the Handbook uses color photos when possible to better illustrate geology in the real world.”