Book Description

Miller's LIVING IN THE ENVIRONMENT, 13th Edition is a science-based book designed for introductory courses in environmental science. Tyler Miller is the most successful author in environmental science instruction because of his attention to currency, trend-setting presentation, outstanding student and instructor supplements, and his ability to retain and refine the pedagological hallmarks on which instructors have come to depend. In this edition Miller has added an on-line Web- based resource, entitled the Resource Integration Guide, which is updated quarterly with CNN® Today video clips, animations, and articles from InfoTrac® College Edition.Instructors can seamlessly incorporate current news articles and research findings to support classroom instruction. And, for the first time ever, students will receive a complementary CD-ROM entitled Interactive Concepts in Environmental Science. This groundbreaking addition integrates nearly 100 engaging animations and interactions with chapter summaries, flashcards, and Web-based quizzes. Organized by chapter, students will find links to relevant resources, narrated animations, interactive figures and prompts to review material and test themselves. The content in the Thirteenth Edition of LIVING IN THE ENVIRONMENT is everything you have come to expect and more. There is more information on ecology and basic science than ever before. Instructors can continue to expect high quality end-of-chapter questions, an orientation toward solutions and prevention rather than clean-up,the integration of Web resources, and balanced presentation of controversial ideas that are supported through Pro/Con diagrams and discussions. ... Read more

Reviews (27)

The proof is in your hands
Proof that our technologically advanced, high-consumption industrial system can make environmentally sound and sustainable products. We can manufacture a whole range of goods that are ecologically efficient in that they reduce waste and yet are less expensive to make than traditionally manufactured items. Pick up CRADLE TO CRADLE and the proof is right there in your hands. "This book is not a tree" the authors tell us. Its slightly heavier than your average paperback, the pages are whiter and they're also waterproof (I took the authors word on that one and am happy to say I was able to read on). The pages are made from plastic resins and fillers and in keeping with the message of "eliminating waste", the book is 100% recyclable.

McDonough and Braungart's vision of "Remaking the Way We Make Things" goes way beyond books. Why not buildings that produce more energy than they consume? Or "green" roofs that give off oxygen while cooling the occupants? How about factories that produce drinkable effluent? or products that when their useful life is over can be used as nutrients for soil? What sounds like science fiction is convincingly shown to be quite feasible by the authors. They offer numerous examples to prove it.

"We see a world of abundance, not limits" they say. As an architect (McDonough) and chemist (Braungart) they don't have any special qualifications for this re-thinking and re-doing. What they simply have done is re-imagine the whole manufacturing process beginning with the design elements. Sometimes it's simply a matter of asking the right questions and looking at things differently. They are not talking about smaller-scale industry or limiting themselves to the "four R's" of traditional environmentalism - reuse, recycle, reduce, and regulate. With their intelligent designs, "bigger and better" is possible "in a way that replenishes, restores, and nourishes the rest of the world."

McDonough and Braungart cover topics such as the history of the industrial revolution, new business strategies that emphasize eco-efficiency, the relationship between man, nature, and science, and the importance of design and planning. Hopeful, well written, thoroughly researched, and packed with practical examples, this refreshing book offers an alternative to our current industrial system that "takes, makes and wastes". We have the talent, technology, and with the enthusiasm of these authors, we have the capability to achieve economic and ecological sustainability.

People and their stuff CAN co-exist
At 1-1/4 lbs, "Cradle to Cradle" is more than twice as heavy as a same-size paperback edition of John Steinbeck's "The Winter of Our Discontent" and the fact is more than incidental.

"Remaking the Way We Make Things", the book's subtitle, is the social agenda of its authors, architect Bill McDonough and chemist Michael Braungart. They take issue with the three R's of environmentalism, "reduce, reuse and recycle." The process by which plastic bottles are recycled into carpet, for example, also produces considerable waste and the carpet itself "is still on its way to a landfill; it's just stopping off in your house en route."

The authors advocate designing products so that after their useful lives, either the product components provide biological nutrients for new products or circulate in a closed industrial loop.

The Yanomamo of Brazil whose banana soup dish may contain the ashes of their dearly departed was one source of inspiration for Braungart and McDonough was moved by the simple, natural and effective technology of the Bedouin whose goat hair tents ventilate hot air up and out and, when it rains, swell with absorbed moisture and provide protection.

The authors are walking the talk with the physical design of this new book. It is made of a waterproof polymer developed by Melcher Media so it can be read in the bath or at the beach, provided you have sufficient wrist strength to hoist it to viewing level. And the book can be "upcycled", made into a high quality polymer, at least theoretically. Until such time, place this book on the shelf above your hot tub next to Aqua Erotica, a collection of stories dealing with water and sex, another book of "Durabook" construction.

Undoubtedly, an electronic edition of the book would be most eco-effective. Also, a digital version would be searchable and might compensate for lack of an index. Despite its flaws as a model, it offers a vision of the future in which people and their stuff can co-exist.

Highly Recommended!
This is an extraordinary and unlikely book. It is not printed on paper, but on a waterproof polymer with the heft of good paper and more strength, a substance that reflects the right amount of light, yet holds the ink fast. It seems like an impossible fantasy, but so does much of what the authors propose about design and ecology. They speak with the calm certainty of the ecstatic visionary. Could buildings generate oxygen like trees? Could running shoes release nutrients into the earth? It seems like science fiction. Yet, here is this book, on this paper. The authors make a strong case for change, and just when you're about to say, "if only," they cite a corporation that is implementing their ideas. However, it's hard to believe their concepts would work on a large scale, in the face of powerful economic disincentives. We believe authors do aim some of their criticism at obsolete marketing and manufacturing philosophies, but the overall critique is well worth reading.

Interesting ideas
This book is a sometimes interesting, often meandering treatise on design. The authors, and American architect and a German chemist, have a very sincere desire to realign the world of design of objects and buildings so that they contribute to the betterment of the environment rather than destroy it. The title of the book "Cradle to Cradle" encapsulates their goal of designing objects that when they are no longer needed, naturally become useful inputs for the production of other objects rather than getting sent to the grave (or buried in a landfill). For example, they would like to see the creation of food packaging that could be thrown on the ground when the contents are consumed and would become fertilizer rather than non-biodegradable litter. (By this measure, the women concessionaires selling steamed rice treats in Indonesian trains are masters of design. The rice is both steamed and packaged in banana leafs, which are simply thrown out the train windows once the rice is consumed. But this practice also creates enormous problems- -since Indonesians have been accustomed to using such environmentally beneficial packaging for generations, they assume that "modern" packaging can be discarded in the same manner, much to the detriment of the Indonesian countryside. If you are living in a world of mixed packaging, some of which can be thrown out the window, and some of which must be discarded by other means, it's hard to keep straight which stuff goes where. That's a vital cultural issue that the authors don't explore here.)

McDounough and Braungart list the goals for their design program. They challenge inventors and industry leaders to design factories that "produce more energy than they consume, and purify their own waste water," and products that "can be tossed on the ground to decompose" or become "high-quality raw materials for new products" rather than simply "down-cycled". At the outset, these goals can sound a bit far-fetched. After, all, a factory that produces more energy than it consumes would seem to violate the Second Law of Thermodynamics. But what the authors really mean here is not that the factory would miraculously produce something from nothing, but that the design of the factory would include such things as solar collectors on the roof and devices to capture heat that could then send energy back out to the power grid, perhaps even in excess of electrical energy coming in. They illustrate their lofty dreams with concrete designs that they have helped develop and implement, such as a cosmetics plant in Germany whose wastewater is actually cleaner than the water coming in to the plant, thanks to the new chemical formulations they recommended. What's more, they point out that such design efforts can be even be good for business, since in this particular example, the company was able to cut costs on hazardous materials handling and storage enough to more than offset slightly increased production costs with the new formulas. Such design efforts are fabulous examples of the potential benefits of thinking "out of the box".

The book contains quite a few additional examples of brilliant design ideas that can save resources as well as money. The book is also filled with surprising tidbits that haven't become general knowledge yet, like the potential hazards of wearing fabric made of recycled plastic bottles, and the fact that PET bottles were found to leach antimony when used as soap containers. The authors point out that the decision to use either recycled paper or virgin paper is not as clear cut as it seems- -while the production of virgin paper necessitates the cutting down of trees, recycling paper requires enormous amounts of bleaching, which produces PCBs. To demonstrate an alternative, the book itself is printed on a paper-free composite of plastics, which could be easily recycled into more book-grade plastics. The informative details and design goals of the book are quite interesting. However, the text often meanders around and through topics that are at best tangential or described better in other volumes. At times, some details or issues are also rehashed repetitively. In these places, it would have been better to focus on explicating McDonough and Braungart's own design program more fully. They've got some neat ideas that are well worth exploring, and it would have been great to be able to read even more about them and less about the general problems of environmental destruction that are described better in other books.

Every student of design should read this book
I am a graduate student in a school of architecture that talks alot about doing 'sustainable design' and the 'green' architecture that has become a fad of late. This book makes the designer think not about efficiently designing buildings, but efficiently designing MATERIALS to eliminate the dangers that are inherent to the chemistry of almost every modern building product. It was an eye-opening read for me and has changed the way i think about 'sustainable design' and what the true goal of 'green' architecture should be. ... Read more

Book Description

This is the primary reference, how-to guide, and sourcebook for energy conservation.It lets you improve efficiency and save money in all types of buildings and plants, ranging from individual houses to commercial buildings to large institutions and industrial plants.It is organized around 400 logically grouped energy conservation actions, presented in language that everyone understands.

It's for everyone who uses energy, pays for utilities, manages property, operates energy systems, designs, builds, and values conservation and the environment.It's loaded with features that help you quickly find the right information for each application. "Ratings" and "Selection Scorecards" identify your best conservation opportunities."Traps & Tricks" ensure success."Economics" estimate savings and costs.It has been acclaimed by professional and non-technical users.Publishers Weekly says it "answers just about any question [from] homeowner, plant manager, energy policy guru ... as practically useful as it is informative."830 photographs and drawings illustrate the methods.Hundreds of examples give you a feel for real applications.A complete index makes it easy to find every topic and term. ... Read more

Reviews (9)

Superlative! A must have!
Superlative!  The ENERGY EFFICIENCY MANUAL by Donald Wulfinghoff is a "must have" for professionals, libraries, facility managers, policy makers, homeowners, and anyone else who is serious about saving energy and cashing in on lower energy bills. It is the ultimate energy saving resource for businesses, industry, and government. PLUS, it will save money and reduce pollution, satisfying corporate bottom lines, policy makers, and environmentalists all at the same time. This book is unique. Highly informative, illustration-rich, and user-friendly, it is treasure trove of everything you need to know about energy efficiency from A to Z. Don't bother looking elsewhere -- the ENERGY EFFICIENCY MANUAL simply has it all. This book will pay for itself almost as fast as you can spot a hot air leak or install an energy-efficient light bulb!

-- Amy Vickers

A secret weapon for the energy auditor
As an energy auditor I'd almost call the Energy Efficiency Manual a secret weapon, except it has so many good ideas that I can't help but show it to many of the customers and prospective customers I meet. The diagrams are very useful, as is the self contained but well cross-referenced way in which each improvement measure has been written. For example, talking to the maintenance manager of a hospital, we looked at the diagrams of hot/cold deck multi-zone systems while discussing the pros and cons of upgrading a constant volume air conditioning system to a variable volume system. It is by far the most useful book on energy management that I have ever read (well, in the case of the Energy Efficiency Manual, that I have partially read - its an enormously large book!), and the ratings of each of the measures are particularly useful, along with the practical, no-nonsense approach. The book is extremely well cross referenced and Wulfinghoff has covered an enormous body of knowledge in writing the book. As someone fairly new to the field I'm grateful that he went to the effort of documenting and making available his knowledge and 30 odd years experience in the Energy Efficiency Manual.

Everything you always wanted to know, in plain English
I nodded my head in agreement while reading Wulfinghoff's philosophy about energy savings in commercial and light industrial facilities. He distills 20+ years of experience in this field with practical, no-nonsense how-tos to gain energy and dollar savings in a wide variety of facilities and end-uses: lighting, water use, steam systems, space heating, water heating, air conditioning, scheduling, pumps, energy management controls: its all here in a well-written, well-illustrated book.

Perhaps best of all, the author goes beyond theoretical considerations of high-tech efficiency products, with precautions of what works and what might fall short. He also reminds facility managers to be mindful of the human factors that can foil our best efforts. He offers suggestions on how to plan and manage efficiency upgrades complete with information for building operators and occupants, so that the savings persist.

Highly recommended for anyone managing energy use in facilities, ranging from individual buildings to college campuses to government facilities. [I am a local government energy manager myself.]

Provides practical advice for avoiding pitfalls
Donald Wulfinghoff's Energy Efficiency Manual is a massive, 1,536-page reference work that is organized to guide the reader quickly to the right information for their particular energy project, problem, or inquiry. The first part of this "user friend" manual has 400 logically grouped activities for improving energy efficiency. each activity begins with Ratings and a Selection Scorecard to help the reader judge the merits and difficulties of that particular activity. "Economics" sidebars estimates the savings, cost, and payback period. The "Traps & Tricks" sidebars provides practical advice for avoiding pitfalls plaguing energy conservation efforts. Energy Efficiency Manual will earn back its cover price over and over again and is an essential, core reference for personal, professional, and community library energy conservation and energy efficiency reference book collections.

Efficiency in technical publications.
I have been in the Architect/Engineering business for over 20 years. There were several cases in the past where this book would have been of great value. The Energy Efficiency Manual is now my standard resource in saving money and energy for my clients. Mr. Wulfinghoff has invested over 20 years in compiling this manual and this is reflected in the quality of the content. I am particularly impressed with the format, which is extremely accessible to anyone. The book gets right to the point in a highly straightforward manner. I would recommend that authors of other technical books take note and attempt the same. It would certainly make my life easier. In other words I honestly feel that I got my money's worth this time and recommend it to anyone who wants to save energy. ... Read more

Book Description

In Book 3 of this four-volume work, Alexander presents hundreds of his own buildings and those of other contemporaries who have used methods consistent with the theory of living process.

Nearly seven hundred pages of projects, built and planned in many countries over a thirty-year period, illustrate the impact of living process on the world. The book provides the reader with an intuitive feel for the kind of world, its style and geometry, which is needed to generate living structure in the world and its communities, together with its ecological and natural character.

The projects include public buildings, neighborhoods, housing built by people for themselves, public urban space, rooms, gardens, ornament, colors, details of construction and construction innovation. The many buildings shown, and the methods needed to design and build these buildings, define living structure in a practical way that can be understood and copied.

". . . Alexander's approach presents a fundamental challenge to us and our style-obsessed age. It suggests that a beautiful form can come about only through a process that is meaningful to people. It also implies that certain types of processes, regardless of when they occur or who does them, can lead to certain types of forms."-Thomas Fisher, former editor of Progressive Architecture.

Christopher Alexander is a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, architect, builder, and author of many books and technical papers. He is the winner of the first medal for research ever awarded by the American Institute of Architects, and Emeritus Professor of Architecture at the University of California, Berkeley, where he taught for 40 years.

Book Description

If the US continues with its current policies, the next decades will be marked by war, economic collapse, and environmental catastrophe. Resource depletion and population pressures are about to catch up with us, and no one is prepared. The political elites, especially in the US, are incapable of dealing with the situation and have in mind a punishing game of "Last One Standing."

The alternative is "Powerdown," a strategy that will require tremendous effort and economic sacrifice in order to reduce per-capita resource usage in wealthy countries, develop alternative energy sources, distribute resources more equitably, and reduce the human population humanely but systematically over time. While civil society organizations push for a mild version of this, the vast majority of the world's people are in the dark, not understanding the challenges ahead, nor the options realistically available.

Powerdown speaks frankly to these dilemmas. Avoiding cynicism and despair, it begins with an overview of the likely impacts of oil and natural gas depletion and then outlines four options for industrial societies during the next decades:

Last One Standing: the path of competition for remaining resources;
Powerdown: the path of cooperation, conservation and sharing;
Waiting for a Magic Elixir: wishful thinking, false hopes, and denial;
Building Lifeboats: the path of community solidarity and preservation.

Finally, the book explores how three important groups within global society-the power elites, the opposition to the elites (the antiwar and antiglobalization movements, et al: the "Other Superpower"), and ordinary people-are likely to respond to these four options. Timely, accessible and eloquent, Powerdown is crucial reading for our times.

Richard Heinberg is an award-winning author of five previous books, including The Party's Over: Oil, War and the Fate of Industrial Societies. A member of the Core Faculty of New College of California, he lives in Santa Rosa, California.

Book Description

The world is about to run out of cheap oil and change dramatically. Within the next few years, global production will peak. Thereafter, even if industrial societies begin to switch to alternative energy sources, they will have less net energy each year to do all the work essential to the survival of complex societies. We are entering a new era, as different from the industrial era as the latter was from medieval times.

In The Party's Over, Richard Heinberg places this momentous transition in historical context, showing how industrialism arose from the harnessing of fossil fuels, how competition to control access to oil shaped the geopolitics of the 20th century, and how contention for dwindling energy resources in the 21st century will lead to resource wars in the Middle East, Central Asia, and South America. He describes the likely impacts of oil depletion, and all of the energy alternatives. Predicting chaos unless the U.S. -- the world's foremost oil consumer -- is willing to join with other countries to implement a global program of resource conservation and sharing, he also recommends a "managed collapse" that might make way for a slower-paced, low-energy, sustainable society in the future.

More readable than other accounts of this issue, with fuller discussion of the context, social implications, and recommendations for personal, community, national, and global action, Heinberg's book is a riveting wake-up call for humankind as the oil era winds down, and a critical tool for understanding and influencing current U.S. foreign policy.

Richard Heinberg, from Santa Rosa, California, has been writing about energy resources issues and the dynamics of cultural change for many years. A member of the core faculty at New College of California, he is an award-winning author of three previous books. His Museletter was nominated for its "Best Alternative Newsletter" award by Utne Reader in 1993.

Reviews (31)

Up The Creek Without A Paddle!
This volume begins with a discussion of what energy is and how it has been used to develop our industrial way of life. Brief histories of wood, coal, and oil use are also included. Much of this book centers around the amounts of oil, coal, and natural gas remaining to be harnessed in the future, with several experts giving their predictions for the peak production of the world production of oil, not far away by most accounts. The United States had it's oil production peak in 1970 (predicted in 1956 by M. King Hubbert) and has been in decline since, with a slight temporary increase in the 1980's due to Alaskan oil.

As Richard Heinberg emphasizes continually in this book, the decline in world oil production seems imminent, along with the ensuing decline in national industrial economies which rely on oil, the United States being by far the biggest example. Per capita energy use by Americans is five times the world average, Heinberg writes, and he makes it abundantly clear that this waste and extravagance cannot continue much longer, and no number of Iraqi type excursions will make a difference. Heinberg writes that this decline of energy availability and use can be achieved peacefully with individual countries cooperating with each other, or violently with nations squabbling over the remaining oil. However, one thing stands out very clearly now, back in the 1970's during the initial problems with energy shortages due to the Arab oil embargo, it should have been a wake-up call to our leaders to develop sustainable energy sources then, it was not done, our short-sighted leaders failed us. But as Heinberg says, corporate leaders are also at fault, with their massive self-interest at risk, they could make less money if the country shifted more to alternate energy sources, and their lobby is very strong on Capital Hill in Washinton, D.C.. If that alternate energy program was began on a massive scale in the 1970's we would probably be in much better shape now, in terms of our energy future, but as Heinberg states in this book, at this late stage our options are limited. The massive industrial military machine the United States has is given attention here also, as Heinberg writes, this massive allocation of resources can and should be directed to more pressing concerns, the citizens of the United States do not need a military budget that equals the rest of the world combined (we are'nt going to fight the Soviets, that is now clear).

This volume also covers alternate energy sources today, and what they can do to help us in the future, again, as Heinberg says, we have began with too little and too late to prevent a collapse of our industrial way of life. How large of a collapse will it be? No one is certain. Heinberg also touches on the subject of overpopulation and immigration. Did you know that approximately 90% of the population growth in the United States over the next 50 years will be due to immigration? This is an area that has been neglected, and as Heinberg says, it is politically sensitive and politicians rarely stick their necks out in areas such as this. Also, in terms of overpopulation, have we, due to the use of oil in creating a large world food supply, exceeded the carrying capacity of the planet? This is another area Heinberg writes much about.

Heinberg envisions, after the world oil supply peaks and begins it's inevitable decline, a slower paced, more idyllic lifestyle, and as he says, probably a more agreeable one, at that, to most people.

Chilling Examination Of Coming Crisis In World Oil Supply!
As someone who now has the time and energy to watch current world events with interest, I have puzzled over what seem to be possible ulterior motives for our aggressive intervention in Iraq. Yet, given its rich supply of so much marker (or high quality) crude oil, this well documented book by author and academic Richard Heinberg book gives one a new perspective as to why we seem to be taking the actions we are to consolidate the stranglehold the Western world needs to guarantee a continuing and uninterrupted flow of it in its various forms. The author makes a strong and persuasive case for the notion that the world is running dangerously close to serious shortfall and consequent disruption in the overall supplies of crude oil for variety of reasons.

In "The Party's Over", Heinberg threads an argument that the world is quickly running out of inexpensive oil, and that the world economy as it is currently oriented around the premise of such cheap sources of oil is about to undergo a relatively sudden sea change. In fact, he argues, within the next few yeas the high mark of such oil production will peak, much to the dismay of consistently expanding requirements for ever more total production. Given this gradual but consistently greater historical requirements for oil and its products, momentary gluts on the world market are more representative of temporary relaxation of segments of the world oil market rather than indicative of an overall trend, which slowly but surely increases from decade to decade. To wit, Heinberg argues, the Western world is about to enter a new era, one that will dramatically change the nature of international commerce and the increasingly unified world economy, in which a sneeze in Asia gives Canadians a cold.

Thus, posits the author, even if the Western democracies are willing and able to initiate conservation programs and develop strategies for switching to alternative energy sources such as solar and wind power, the overall effect of the declining availability of crude oil over the coming decade or so will be to force a de-facto decline in the total availability of energy for overall consumption. Such a set of circumstances could prove to be a serious challenge to the attempts to grow the global economy, and may also seriously damage overall standards of living, especially in modern post-industrial societies like our own that are so intensively energy dependent. According to Heinberg, we may well be on the cusp of a new era as different from our current culture of extravagance and plenty as the times after the industrial revolution were from the feudal era. Yet this time the progress may be in the opposite direction.

What all this represents is a massive transition placed in its proper historical context, illustrating the several ways in which our long dependence on fossil fuels and its corollary development of corporate forces with immense geo-political influence may face a fractious and much more difficult future in the face of such dwindling sources of overall supply, including the possible of resource wars in the Middle east and elsewhere as well. Given our seemingly obsession with SUVs and all the other petroleum intensive products of modern life, the impact may be one that is especially difficult and troublesome for affluent societies such as our own. This is a troubling yet quite informative book, and one I highly recommend. Enjoy! .

Entertaining. . .
If I were rating this book solely on entertainment value, I'd have given it 4 stars. . . it was a very enjoyable read. That said, I'm not sure I could even give the arguments in the book 2 stars. I found it particularly ironic that while he repeatedly disparages economist, he liberally quote Paul Ehrlich, who was so thoroughly embarrassed in his 1980's bet with the economist Julian Simon.

Read it then Judge
Notice how almost all of the criticism of the book is not directed at what is said in the book but at some doomsayers from 30 or so years ago. Since the 1970's technology has given us a much better handle on what we have in the ground. We know from such innovations as 3-D seismic mapping that only 40% of the world's land and oceans have any potential for oil discovery and that there is a 50% chance that less than 1 trillion barrels of recoverable oil are in this 40%. This is something we had no clue about before the 1990's. As technology has enabled us to become more efficient at extracting the oil we know we have, it has ominously showed us how little is actually left. Heinberg's greatest success is in showing how the energy returned must exceed the energy spent when analyzing a source of energy. Hence it does not matter how cheap all these renewables get. Since oil is needed to build solar panels and ethanol plants and nuclear plants, we will not have enough cheap oil to upgrade the infrastructure in time to prevent a collapse.

a huge oversupply
...of bad books on the coming shortage of oil. Other reviews point out the flaws in the book including a lack of adaquet knowledge of alternative sources of fuel. For example, many reading this book may not realize that the cost of renewables has gone done 50% each decade since the 1970s. The energy future is much brighter than Heinburg portrays, and his book will soon stand next to my copy of The Coming Collapse of 1993! ... Read more

Book Description

First published by Houghton Mifflin in 1962, Silent Spring alerted a large audience to the environmental and human dangers of indiscriminate use of pesticides, spurring revolutionary changes in the laws affecting our air, land, and water. "Silent Spring became a runaway bestseller, with international reverberations . . . [It is] well crafted, fearless and succinct . . . Even if she had not inspired a generation of activists, Carson would prevail as one of the greatest nature writers in American letters" (Peter Matthiessen, for Time"s 100 Most Influential People of the Century). This fortieth anniversary edition celebrates Rachel Carson"s watershed book with a new introduction by the author and activist Terry Tempest Williams and a new afterword by the acclaimed Rachel Carson biographer Linda Lear, who tells the story of Carson"s courageous defense of her truths in the face of ruthless assault from the chemical industry in the year following the publication of Silent Spring and before her untimely death in 1964. ... Read more

Reviews (94)

The New Awakening
Silent Spring, written by Rachel Carson was presented to the world half century ago. Although old, this book is a new overview and reflection of the power humans have to destroy. The book does not only give detailed information about each kind of pesticide, but it also presents a general picture of what the world might become if we don't stop the imprudent use of these deadly chemicals. This book set a precedent for modern biologists and ecologists. It also changed the view that mankind had toward the lethal weapons it didn't know how to use. Thanks to the advice and research of Rachel Carson, innovative ways of handling pesticides have been developed and human concern for the environment has been greatly awakened in the last half of the century. This is a magnificient work in which not only information has been recopilated, but also expresses human nature and sense for preserving our only home and partners, the animals.

good science book
Rachel Carson's novel Silent Spring was written in order to express the author's many concerns over the affects of DDT and other chemicals on the environment. The author takes facts from personal stories that she has read about, while at the same time incorporating some of her own opinions on those individuals who blindly use chemicals as a way to control the environment. Her charges against major chemical companies opened a new window to the public, and made aware the growing problem of man's abuse of their environment. Carson shows the effects of these chemicals on plants, animals, water and humans through a natural chain of events.The author believes that in this small world all beings are linked, and a defilement of one creature will affect the rest. Rather than use chemicals to wipe out growing species of insects, it is important to use foreign insects to aid in decreasing the number of potentially dangerous species with the aid of Mother Nature. Carson felt that in the end these chemical sprayings were ineffective and potentially harmful to innocent people.

Silent Spring has been considered one of the most significant books in the nation's history, because it brought to light the abuse of the environment by man. In the novel's introduction, Vice President Al Gore states that "In 1962, when Silent Spring was first published, 'environment' was not even an entry in the vocabulary of public policy" (Carson xv). The novel forced political officials to take a closer look at this growing problem. Her book even influenced President Kennedy, to call for testing of the chemicals that were mentioned in the text. The book introduced the average citizen to the environment's unstable state, which was caused by man and his chemicals.

Overall I was impressed by the novel, because it gave excellent facts that could convince any reader while at the same time incorporating the author's own passionate opinions. A book that has such a profound impact on American politics and society should be read by everyone.

DR. HULDA CLARK'S PREDESSOR
I am pleased to write this very short review of Carson's book. I have joined an eco reading group in hopes of saving at least two or three of human kind to continue life on this planet. Carson has set the background for what my favorite scientist/writer of the 21st century, Dr. Hulda Clark has dovetailed on. It comes as no surprise that Dr. Clark books which were written starting 1993 were met by the same kind of corporate outcry and government disclaimer as what happened to Rachel Carson. I hope society learns something from how they mistreated Carson and not make the same mistake with Dr. Clark.

I am a strong supporter of Dr. Clark and her protocols for curing/preventing/treating many of the ills,--cancer, hiv/aids and immune system destroying diseases--as Carson fortold in her books some 42 years ago.

Presently, the government is dragging Dr. Clark to court because they do not want her work to be recognized for improving the health of many Americans. I SCREAM FROM THE HIGHEST TOWER THAT HER SCIENCE HAS SAVED MY LIFE AND I AM ETERNALLY GREATFUL.

remember
In most countries, DDT was banned only for agricultural use, NOT for control of malaria, in fact it is still widely used today for that purpose. Of course this isn't a long term solution, because of the resistance problem, as Carson foretold all those years ago.

DONT LISTEN TO BAD REVIEWS
Many people are accusing this book for causing deaths in places like Africa from malaria. They aren't paying attention to what this book is trying to say. She may have said several times that DDT is dangerous, and should not be used, but she also mentioned how quickly these insects are going to evolve and adapt to it. It will not stay poisonous to them forever. Once they have adapted to it malaria will once again be a problem, and our environment will be hurt. This world is meant for many different organisms to live on. We should try our best not to interupt the cycle of nature, because we too make up a small part of nature. I thionk it is time we start thinking about every animal that will be affected, and what might happen in the long run. Please people, think seriously about this situation, don't continue on the same path of ignorance and greed! ... Read more

Reviews (49)

Natural Capitalism is a MUST READ for MBA's, CEO's, Politici
Throughout this extensively researched book, the three authors (Paul Hawken, Amory Lovins and Hunter Lovins) eloquently describe the mind-set required of businesses that wish to evolve their models of business successfully into the next millennium.

By providing a mix of real-world examples, coupled with logical extensions to the philosophies that have dominated main stream economic theories for the majority of the 20th century - the authors allow us to peak through the curtain - to catch a glimpse of what the world will be like in 50 years time.

Natural Capitalism espouses a vision of a world where long term profit is the driving force behind global strategy, where 'whole system thinking' dominates rather than simplistic compartmentalised agendas.

We have only just discovered the technologies that allow us to assess the impact of the techno-industrial systems which we have grown over the past 150 years. With a little imagination, and a lot of logic Natural Capitalism gently points out the way forward. Toward a trajectory where the (re)application of such systems can construct a new environment, together with the economic opportunities and rewards that come from such an evolution...

This a must read book for all entrepreneurs, businessmen, politicians, researchers, economists, environmentalists, educationalists in fact just about anybody who wishes to live both comfortably, profitably and in harmony during the next century. It argues for an extension to the economic theories that pervade organisational thinking, for a more realistic assessment of the life cycle costs involved in business processes, and above all for a more realistic assessment of the value of natural resources.

This book will help you think. This book will help you live. This book will help you work. This book will help add value to your life... READ IT!

Beyond Darwin
As this new century begins, if there is only one book which everyone on the planet should read, it would be Natural Capitalism. Why is it so important? In my opinion, because it provides the most convincing, the most compelling argument in support of Wendell Berry's assertion that "what is good for the world will be good for us." Darwin's concept of natural selection becomes irrelevant if there is no environment in which such selection can occur. The authors introduce us to "The Next Industrial Revolution" with all oif its emerging possibilities. In subsequent chapters, they continue to examine natural capitalism in terms of "four central strategies": radical resource productivity, biomimicry, service and flow economy, and investment in it. According to the authors, natural capitalism "is about choices we can make that can start to tip economic and social outcomes in positive directions. And it is already occurring -- because it is necessary, possible, and practrical." For me, the information provided in Chapter 3 was almost incomprehensible in terms of the nature and extent of waste. Of the $9 trillion spent every year in the United States, at least $2 trillion is wasted annually. How? For example: Highway accidents ($150 billion), highway congestion ($100 billion in lost productivity), total hidden costs of driving (nearly $1 trillion), nonessential/fraudulent healthcare ($65 billion), inflated and unnecessary medical overhead ($250 billion), and crime ($450 billion). All of this waste can and should be reduced, if not eliminated. What the authors present, in effect, is a blueprint for the survival of the planet. All manner of statistical evidence supports their specific recommendations. Unless "The Next Industrial Revolution" succeeds in implementing those recommendations, natural capitalism will eventually be depleted ...and no one left to regret its loss.

Not the environmental economics bible people seem to think
Natural Capitalism suffers some fatal flaws, while not a complete waste of time, not a book to read if you want great ideas that can make it out of the ivory tower. While claiming to provide a path for evnvironmental and social justice, this book blithely ignores the actual impacts of its ideas on the lower classes as well as the prevalence and tenacity of international monetary and banking organizations. While touting that having people pay for rental on material goods, or pay for the service they supply, rather than purchasing the item(such as washing machines) will reduce the number of them in landfills each year, he is ignoring that ultimately someone is going to be owning the machines and therefore holding the capital investment. Those who pay for the service(sound a lot like going to the laundrymat?) will simply be throwing their money into the maintenance of the company's capital investment. The authors further ignore that most countries outside the first world have their economics and politics dictated by international monetary regulations. While this book does present some instances of environmentally friendly ideas and archtecture, such as a banking building in Amsterdam, they do not provide the scripture that most people seem to feel they do. Further, they are basing environmental sustainability off technology such as photovoltaic cells, which do provide cleaner energy by process than oil or coal, but contain heavy metals that are put back into the environment as toxins and require large scale mining and smelting technology to produce. Ultimately, I thought this book was geared more toward engineering social response through the pocketbook, which the U.S. government already does, than a study in environmental econimics within the capitalist framework.

Nothing new Here
I find that this book fails to live up to expectations as
the authors are treading old water. Their idea of
Radical Resource Productivity, is already happening and
is a natural progression, sometimes taking longer than
we would hope, but nonetheless inevitable. They seem more
interested in Social Engineering than Economics, and simply
make observations about things already taking place, while
sprinkling in some projections for good measure.

If you're looking for ideas read Fuller's Critical Path, written
in 1981. His ideas are original and groundbreaking for the
time. Reading Natural Capitalism, I honestly felt like I was
attending a lecture given by people lauding mother nature.

I agree with their ideals and think that by and large many of the
methods can be implemented, over time, but the book isn't ground
breaking, and it fails to truly discuss economic factors, which
are so crucial to the success or failure of these methods. The
bottom line is there isn't enough practical discussion of the
factors holding these methods back. If there were it might be
possible for the authors to cut through them. Too often there are
economic factors holding companies back from making improvements
they may be fully aware would help them. That is one reason these
changes take time, lack of capital (not natural).

I think the authors are dreaming of a future that could
not possibly unfold as easily and seamlessly as they entail.

A new lease on life
Paul Hawken and the Lovins have teamed up to provide one of the best overall books on "Natural Capitalism" which offers a whole new approach to the way in which we do business. For too long we have taken natural capital for granted, squandering our natural resources and unleashing an unhealthy array of by-products which have further contaminated our world. It is time to add natural capital to the ledger sheets, properly balancing our record books. But, far from being a screed the book is meticulously researched with extensive notes and references to help guide your own research into the subject.

Everything from the Toyota Production System, which offered a leaner, much less wasteful approach to auto manufacturing, to the Hypercar which offers a hybrid-electric propulsion engine which would result in much greater fuel effeciency are illustrated. It is this lean thinking which the authors think will revolutionize the industrial sector, making for the greatest breakthroughs since the microchip revolution.

What is most heartening is that major companies such as Ford Motor Company and Carrier Air Conditioning are adopting these practices and making them work. They are doing so because it saves money and provides them with endless growth possibilities. The authors support the lease-use system which puts the onus on the manufacturer to produce better products and maintain them throughout their service to the user, the so called "cradle to cradle" concept. New materials are resulting in much lighter and more efficient components that would reduce our dependency on foreign oil, and in time phase out petroleum products all together.

Too good to be true you might say, but this is the shape of things to come once we get past the tired old dogmas that have greatly limited our economic potential. The authors show how regressive tax policies and federal subsidies have greatly handicapped our productivity and they encourage political leaders to rethink the way we hand out incentives for better business practice. This book will give you a whole new lease on life, and encourage you to rethink the way you live. ... Read more

Book Description

Wetlands are ecosystems that help the environment process toxins, thereby maintaining its relative health. Mitsch and Gosselink's Wetlands is the professional reference, a longstanding bestseller that continues to set the standard for books on any type of ecosystem. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

The Wetlands Textbook
I first picked this book up to consider a career as a wetland scientist (among other things) and instantly dove into the heaps of information provided. It is well written and easy to read with nicely labelled sections. I found that it had all sorts of information on the subject. It is highly useful.

To date, this is THE book to get in the field. If you get any book on the subject, this is it. I was only mildly surprised after reading through much of it to find that it's the only textbook in my graduate class on wetland ecology and management and there appears to be no competition as a textbook.

In short, it's very readable and immensely useful: A combination you can't go wrong with.

An Excellent Resource on Wetland Sciences!
This resource would be considered the "Bible" of wetland sciences. It is highly valuable for understanding the ecological systems involved in a wetland. A must for wetland regulators, scientists, and just interested people!

Extremely useful
Mitsch and Gosselink have written an excellent text/reference book on wetland ecology and management. The book is perfect as a text for a wetlands ecology course in upper level or graduate courses. I use it as a reference that I pull from the shelf again and again. ... Read more

Book Description

Principles of Conservation Biology, Second Edition, is a major revision of the most comprehensive textbook on conservation biology. First published in 1994, and richly praised by reviewers, teachers, and students, Principles was adopted for courses at more than 145 colleges and universities in the United States and Canada. Written by leading experts in the field, it is intended for use in conservation biology courses at the advanced undergraduate (junior and senior) and graduate levels, as well as by researchers and practitioners, and assumes a basic background in biology and ecology.

Principles' nineteen chapters address several themes, including introductory topics that serve as the foundation for the field, population-level issues, community and ecosystem-level concerns, and a large section on human dimensions, the practical application of conservation biology in a real and complex world. Two chapters specifically grapple with complex management and sustainable development issues using a series of case studies written by individuals intimately involved with problem solving.

The Second Edition features a new chapter on becoming more effective in implementation of science in conservation policy, a much expanded and in-depth treatment of ecosystem management, a large number of new and updated guest essays and case studies, and rigorous revisions throughout. The book is richly illustrated, and chapters are complemented with annotated reading lists and questions designed to stimulate thought and class discussions. Principles of Conservation Biology concludes with an extensive glossary of useful terms and a large bibliography that has proved a valuable reference for students and researchers. ... Read more

Book Description

A tradition of excellence established in multiple editions! Dr. Nadakavukaren has crafted an up-to-date, comprehensive survey of the major environmental issues facing the world today. Its dual approach describes the ecological impact of various human activities combined with specific issues of personal and community health, emphasizing the interrelatedness of the two. Clear, engaging writing imparts readers with a sense of how various environmental issues affect their own lives, and makes them aware of opportunities to participate in the decision-making processes that will influence health and environmental quality in years to come. Our Global Environment, 5/E features new and updated material on a wide array of exciting topics, the liberal inclusion of effective photographs, numerous charts and tables that help clarify information and identify trends, and dozens of carefully chosen "boxed" items within chapters that highlight relevant, current, and illustrative issues and examples. Inserts include: Demographic Disaster in Russia, Fishing Down the Food Chain, New Hope for the Everglades, Microbial Killers, Quicksilver's Dangerous Allure, Black-Market Poison, Global Supermarket, Food Irradiation, Tragedy of the Radium Dial Painters, Nuclear Wastelands, CFC Smuggling, The Politics of Global Warming, Radon: A Hidden Menace in Your House?, and War Over Water?, and Fighting Smog with Reformulated Gasoline. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Good Reading
The book is well written with many important topics.

I can't put it down!
Anyone who reads this book will find that it is wonderful. I have only read a few chapters of if for a college course that I am taking, and am looking forward to reading more of it. The information included in the text was so easy to grasp and to remember. The author thinks about every little aspect concerning the issue and draws on it clearly so as to make sure that the reader understands each and every issue involved. This surely is a book for anyone who is interested in environmental issues and what causese those issues to come about and how much of an impact that we humans have on the planet.

I love it
I think that this book is very educational and successful in getting the point across to the readers. I would personally reccomend this book to anyone who is interested in evironmental issues because it is very thorough and easy to understand. ... Read more

Book Description

In Boiling Point, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Ross Gelbspan argues that, unchecked, climate change will swamp every other issue facing us today. Indeed, what began as an initial response of many institutions-denial and delay-has now grown into a crime against humanity. Gelbspan's previous book, The Heat Is On, exposed the financing of climate-change skeptics by the oil and coal companies. In Boiling Point, he reveals exactly how the fossil fuel industry is directing the Bush administration's energy and climate policies -payback for helping Bush get elected. Even more surprisingly, Gelbspan points a finger at both the media and environmental activists for unwittingly worsening the crisis. Finally, he offers a concrete plan for averting a full-blown climate catastrophe.

According to Gelbspan, a proper approach to climate change could solve many other problems in our social, political, and economic lives. It would dramatically reduce our reliance on oil, and with it our exposure to instability in the Middle East. It would create millions of jobs and raise living standards in poor countries whose populations are affected by climate-driven disease epidemics and whose borders are overrun by environmental refugees. It would also expand the global economy and lead to a far wealthier and more peaceful world. A passionate call-to-arms and a thoughtful roadmap for change, Boiling Point reveals what's at stake for our fragile planet ... Read more

Book Description

The most comprehensive introduction to environmental ethics available today, this anthology is organized into two main parts. The first focuses on theory, the second on application. The fourth edition of this popular anthology, like its predecessors, includes numerous topic areas not covered in other anthologies. Featuring articles carefully selected for clarity and accessibility, the text follows a dialogic pro-con format presenting divergent positions on each topic. The bulk of royalties for this book are donated to groups dedicated to protecting the environment, such as the Wilderness Society and the Sierra Club. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

An Alternative View of Forests Based on Hard Science
Ever sense that television news is more about cosmetics, sound bites, and talk-show celebrity journalism than it is about digging for hard facts and verifying authentic sources? Misinformation about forests and forestry appears to be like that - superficial and unsubstantiated. The problem with lazy thinking like "where there's smoke, there's fire" is that any actual firefighter can tell you it is smoke that kills, almost never fire. Yet society sits in judgement amid great black clouds of speculation while never asking the experts about the true operating principles.

What is amazing is that Patrick Moore's highly educated and scientific position on forest management should be so widely assailed in the court of common knowledge and public opinion. There is very little examination of fact. Widespread untruths circulate freely, and every opposing viewpoint is demonized. Further reason to carefully consider Patrick Moore's contrarian view and verifyable science -- and note his incredible courage to put his personal reputation on the line, given the fact that his name is in the pantheon of great environmentalists of the 20th Century.

Eye-opening is an understatement. The facts presented in this book alone should warrant a careful reexamination of public opinion, government policy, and precipitate an audit of facts presented by various sides of environmental issues. Most people want to do the right thing to insure a vigorously healthy environment. What we don't need is to give over leadership of human destiny to extremist viewpoints which are founded on a belief that humans are a cancer on the face of the Earth, that technology and science are evil, and that the only solution is rolling back the clock 500 years to a pre-Columbian Garden of Eden.

Green Spirit has the courage to look at the environmental movement in a constructive way and say, "The Emperor Has No Clothes." On the issue of forests, it is as if some crazy Theodore Kaczynski is head environmental activist, public opinion trendsetter, and public policy oracle. Who can deny that the show is being run based on some kind of anti-human, anti-technology Unibomber manifesto? ... Read more

Book Description

Written from a sustainable perspective, this readable, yetrigorous, book provides comprehensive coverage of a variety of local, regional, national, and global resource and environmental issues from population growth to wetlands to agriculture to global air pollution. It emphasizes practical, cost-effective, sustainable solutions to these problems that make sense from social, economic, and environmental perspectives.Overall increased emphasis on international and global issues (includes many examples from Canada). New information on Geographic Information Systems and Remote Sensing—integrated GIS Remote Sensing boxed information appears throughout, including 12 case studies. Expanded coverage of ecosystem management and watershed management, global climate change, ozone depletion, wetlands protection, and policy—including new international treaties, new federal laws, and more.The friendly, approachable writing style makes the book accessible to a wide range of readers—from those who want an introduction in natural resource conservation and natural resource management to professionals in this field. ... Read more

Book Description

Extensively illustrated, balanced, broad–based, and up–to–date, this book explores the nature and critical issues of all major types of earth resources--energy, metallic, nonmetallic, water, soil--and the impacts that resource usage has on the earth environment. It provides geologic background of resource formation and occurrence of most of the various types of resources; offers an international perspective; discusses resources not only from the scientific point of view, but also from the point of economic, political, historical considerations; and considers how the extraction and use of the resources creates impacts--local or global, immediate or delayed, visible or invisible, singular or cumulative.Minerals: The Foundations of Society. Plate Tectonics and The Origins of Mineral Resources.Earth's Resources Through History. Environmental Impacts of Resource Exploitation and Use. Energy from Fossil Fuels. Nuclear Power and Alternative Energy Sources. Abundant Metals. The Geochemically Scare Metals. Fertilizer and Chemical Minerals. Building Materials and Other Industrial Minerals. Water Resources. Soil as a Resource. Future Resources.For anyone interested in earth resources. ... Read more

Book Description

This book will change the way we understand the future of our planet. It is both alarming and hopeful. James Gustave Speth, renowned as a visionary environmentalist leader, warns that in spite of all the international negotiations and agreements of the past two decades, efforts to protect Earth's environment are not succeeding. Still, he says, the challenges are not insurmountable. He offers comprehensive, viable new strategies for dealing with environmental threats around the world.The author explains why current approaches to critical global environmental problems-climate change, biodiversity loss, deterioration of marine environments, deforestation, water shortages, and others-don't work. He offers intriguing insights into why we have been able to address domestic environmental threats with some success while largely failing at the international level. Setting forth eight specific steps to a sustainable future, Speth convincingly argues that dramatically different government and citizen action are now urgent. If ever a book could be described as "essential," this is it. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Ms. Carson, meet Mr. Speth
This book deserves ten stars.
It is more important than the sacrosanct Silent Spring. It is impossible to overstate this books importance. I wish the author had published initially in both hardcover and paperback to get it more widely disseminated. ... Read more

Book Description

Evaluating environmental policy while considering the lasting implications of today's environmental controversies for the future is no easy task, especially given the dramatic changes of the past couple years. Assessing new strategies prompted by the George W. Bush administration, Norman J. Vig and Michael E. Kraft head a team of distinguished contributors to help students make sense of the underlying trends, institutional shortcomings, and policy dilemmas that shape the contentious world of environmental politics. Accessibly written, each chapter attempts to explain the most important developments in environmental politics in recent decades-at the local, state, national, and international levels-and at the same time points to new policy directions for the future. Environmental Policy is essential reading for students of public policy and for anyone who is interested in the current debate over reforming environmental policies and promoting sustainable development in the future. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Newest in a classic series
This is the new edition of "Environmental Policy in the 1990s," a series now considered to be the most important in the field. This edition has some of the classic essays from earlier editions, but is expanded to cover the Clinton administration and address issues of a global nature.

I have been using this series as a basic text in graduate courses in environmental policy for years. I consider it to be a primary source of not only teaching, but research and basic information. All of the essays are clearly written and as unbiased as possible. I give this my highest recommendation. ... Read more

Book Description

Wangari Muta Maathai was born in Nyeri, Kenya in 1940. In 1960, she won a Kennedy scholarship to study in America and earned a master’s degree in biology from the University of Pittsburgh and became the first woman in East Africa to earn a Ph.D.

Returning to Kenya in 1966, Wangari Maathai was shocked at the degradation of the forests and the farmland caused by deforestation. Heavy rains had washed away much of the topsoil, silt was clogging the rivers, and fertilizers were depriving the soil of nutrients. Wangari decided to solve the problem by planting trees.

Under the auspices of the National Council of Women of Kenya, of which she was chairwoman from 1981 to 1987, she introduced the idea of planting trees through citizen foresters in 1976, and called this new organization the Green Belt Movement (GBM). She continued to develop GBM into broad-based, grassroots organization whose focus was women’s groups planting of trees in order to conserve the environment and improve their quality of life. Through the Green Belt Movement, Wangari Maathai has assisted women in planting more than 20 million trees on their farms and on schools and church compounds in Kenya and all over East Africa.

In Africa, as in many parts of the world, women are responsible for meals and collecting firewood. Increasing deforestation has not only meant increasing desertification, but it has also meant that women have had to travel further and further afield in order to collect the firewood. This in turn has led to women spending less time around the home, tending to crops, and looking after their children. By staying closer to home, earning income from sustainably harvesting the fruit and timber from trees, women not only can be more productive, they can provide stability in the home. They can also create time for education opportunities—whether for themselves or their children.

This virtuous circle of empowerment through conservation is serving as a model throughout the world, where women both individually and coll