Book Description

Handbook of Ecotoxicology, Second Edition focuses on toxic substances and how they effect ecosystems worldwide.It presents methods for quantifying and measuring ecotoxicological effects in the field and in the lab, as well as methods for estimating, predicting, and modeling in ecotoxicology studies. Completely revised and updated with 18 new chapters, this second edition includes contributions from over 75 international experts. Also, a Technical Review Board reviewed all manuscripts for accuracy and currency. This authoritative work is the definitive reference forstudents, researchers, consultants, and other professionals in the environmental sciences, toxicology, chemistry, biology, and ecology - in academia, industry, and government. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Serving the GW Conservative Agenda
Great disappointment... particularly on Global Warming. The author should drop the cheap quasi-scientific bubbles of the conservative anti-GW establishment and go read some real science. Less science should not "balance" good science merely to serve petty political correctness. I recommend to the author attention to the frequent publications of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). It has been established by WMO and UNEP to assess scientific, technical and socio- economic information relevant for the understanding of climate change, its potential impacts and options for adaptation and mitigation.

1 star for the cartoon work.

Great book to teach science!
This is a great book with which to teach science. It gets and keeps the attention of teenagers who have the attention span of a gnat. Each chapter is a great overview and summation of a unit that I teach at some time during the year.

For kids AND adults
Kids will tend to ignore this book because it is too serious for a comic book and they will believe it is a klutzy attempt by adults to sneak up on kids with something educational. They are mistaken. Adults may, with a glance, dismiss this book as being for kids. They should know better. It is a systematic approach using pictures and limited captions to explain the basics of environmental science. It also uses Gonick's humor, sometimes-- ahem-- mature humor, and charming cartoonery.

Not as good perhaps as some of Gonick's other works-- due to limitations posed by a difficult topic for him to do-- it is still pure Gonick and worth the money and worth keeping (or giving to a kid or adult). ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Great addition to conservation biology!
I think this is a great new addition not only to the study of primates in critical habitats but for the science of conservation biology. I recommend this book for anyone who is intersted in what is going on the the tropics. ... Read more

Book Description

Presents an overview of ecological modeling as it relates to current ecological theory.A Primer of Ecological Theory maintains its scientific objectivity while covering the full extent of current ecological modeling theory. The book introduces the use of computer technology to ecological modeling through MATLAB. This allows all work to be verified and the skills transferred to other disciplines. A valuable resource book for ecologists, resource managers, and economists. ... Read more

Book Description

Work on evolution on islands has a long-established biogeographical pedigree, stretching back to the work of Darwin and Wallace. Research generated ideas, theories, and models which have played a central role in the development of mainstream ecology, evolutionary biology, and biogeography.

Island Biogeography is a new textbook, aimed at advanced undergraduates and graduate students. This is the first comprehensive book to be written on the topic since 1981. It provides a much needed synthesis of recent development across the discipline, linking current theoretical debates with applied island ecology. Some themes that the book covers include: the nature and formationof island environments, island ecological theories concerning species numbers, species assembly, and composition, and an assessment of the human impact on island biodiversity.

Written by an author who has been researching and teaching biogeography for many years, Island Biogeography is wide-ranging, authoritative, and accessible to students from across geography and the life sciences. This is the first truly modern textbook on a fascinating and important subject in evolution and ecology. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Excellent, well-organised and highly-readable
This book is an excellent and much-needed textbook of Island Biogeography. The approach taken by Dr. Whittaker blends detail and overview, and the book is well-organised, informative and interesting. He says at the beginning of the book that he hopes to "provide access for students of differing backgrounds and disciplines to the full array of island biogeographical themes and issues." I think this book does just that.

The book starts by stressing the importance of islands as arenas for the study of the natural world: 'natural laboratories' in which the complexity of nature may be simplified, enabling the development and testing of theories of general importance. Dr. Whittaker then moves from the general and long-term (beginning with the physical and biological properties of islands themselves) to the more specific and shorter-term (including island evolution, species richness and endemism, and island theories). He finishes by applying the theories and insights gained from work on islands to present-day conservation issues.

There is sufficient detail to give the reader a fair understanding of the issues addressed, but never so much that the text gets dull or bogged. Throughout, the book is well-referenced, with appropriate and informative references, and provides plenty of encouragement for the reader to delve further into the literature. Considerable clarity is achieved, even when discussing complicated and contentious issues, and on many occasions Dr. Whittaker demonstrates his considerable ability to be insightful and pertinent. He maintains a fair and balanced outlook, even when he addresses opinions and authors that oppose his own work. There is also an air of pragmatism to his arguments that others would do well to emulate. This is borne out, for instance, in his treatment of the SLOSS (single large or several small nature reserves) debate, and in the way he manages to reconcile a number of dichotomies in the literature by noting that various apparently-conflicting theories actually represent different points along continua. As might be expected from the background of the author, Chapters 7 and 8, which deal with island ecological theory, are particularly impressive: erudite and authoritative, while still being interesting and highly readable. These chapters deal with areas in which Dr. Whittaker is well known for his professional contribution (in which he has published papers of considerable international repute).

Overall, I thoroughly recommend this book to anyone with any interest in island biogeography. Written primarily as a textbook for undergraduate students, it will provide very sound reading for students encountering the subject for the first time. It will be all the more useful for the fact that (to my knowledge), there is no other textbook written within the last 20 years that covers an equivalent subject area. But it will also interest experts in the field, who may well learn something from it, as well as finding it a useful reference for related literature. It will be a good addition to any science-related library, as well as to the personal collections of students of relevant subjects. ... Read more

Book Description

Ecological restoration is the process of repairing human damage to ecosystems. It involves reintroducing missing plants and animals, rebuilding soils, eliminating hazardous substances, ripping up roads, and returning natural processes such as fire and flooding to places that thrive on their regular occurrence. Thousands of restoration projects take place in North America every year. In Nature by Design, Eric Higgs argues that profound philosophical and cultural shifts accompany these projects. He explores the ethical and philosophical bases of restoration and the question of what constitutes good ecological restoration.

Higgs explains how and why the restoration movement came about, where it fits into the array of approaches to human relationships with the land, and how it might be used to secure a sustainable future. Some environmental philosophers and activists worry that restoration will dilute preservation and conservation efforts and lead to an even deeper technological attitude toward nature. They ask whether even well-conceived restoration projects are in fact just expressions of human will. Higgs prefaces his responses to such concerns by distinguishing among several types of ecological restoration. He also describes a growing gulf between professionals and amateurs. Higgs finds much merit in criticism about technological restoration projects, which can cause more damage than they undo. These projects often ignore the fact that changing one thing in a complex system can change the whole system. For restoration projects to be successful, Higgs argues, people at the community level must be engaged. These focal restorations bring communities together, helping volunteers develop a dedication to place and encouraging democracy. ... Read more

Book Description

This book surveys a wide variety of mathematical models of diffusion in the ecological context. It is written with the primary intent of providing scientists, particularly physicists but also biologists, with some background in the mathematics and physics of diffusion, and shows how they can be applied to ecological problems. The secondary intent is to provide a specialized textbook for graduate students who are interested in mathematical ecology. The reader is assumed to have a basic knowledge of probability and differential equations. Each chapter in this new edition has been substantially updated by appropriate leading researchers in the field, and contains much new material covering developments in the field in the last 20 years. ... Read more

Book Description

This book provides an analysis of frequently used research techniques in animal ecology, identifying their limitations and misuses, as well as possible solutions to avoid such pitfalls. The contributors provide an overarching account of central theoretical and methodological controversies. The editors have forged comprehensive presentations of key topics in animal ecology, such as territory and home range estimates, habitation evaluation, population viability analysis, GIS mapping, and measuring the dynamics of societies.

Reviews (1)

Very useful information for ecology students
This edited volume is comprised of 11 chapters that deal with a variety of the methods used to obtain and analyze ecological data pertaining to animals.Because each chapter is written by a different author, the chapters vary in style and level of detail.The book starts with a very broad treatment of hypothesis testing and then proceeds to outline such techniques as marking vertebrates for mark-recapture studies, calculating home range size, measuring habitat selection and use, assessing vertebrate food habits and diet, measuring population sizes (a chapter I would have placed earlier in the book), detecting density dependent population change, modeling predator-prey dynamics, performing population viability analysis, measuring animal behaviors, and modeling species distributions using a Geographic Information System.The chapters on habitat selection and PVA were especially well-written.The book differs from Krebs' classic "Ecological Methodology" in that it spends far less time on statistical modeling and far more time reviewing the pros and cons of technqiues that are found in every ecologist's toolbox.

The book has a distinctly vertebrate bias, making it not as useful as one might hope for those biologists like myself who study the other 99% of Kingdom Animalia.Even so, however, some of the techniques are directly transferrable to studies on invertebrates (and plants as well).

The book is written at the level of advanced undergraduates or graduate students, but even seasoned professionals will appreciate the book when they are brushing up on familiar methods or trying to learn new ones. ... Read more

Book Description

What is life? This is perhaps the most provocative and significant question our minds can address. It provides the soul and central impetus to the science of biology, which studies life through the example of living organisms. How we answer this question, and how we seek an answer, crucially influences every aspect of human thought and human action. For four centuries, it has been believed that the only possible scientific approach to this question proceeds from the Cartesian metaphor -organism as machine. Therefore, organisms are to be studied and characterized the same way "machines" are; the same way any inorganic system is. This strategy, derived from Newtonian mechanism, is embodied in reductionism: break what is complicated into simpler pieces, understand the pieces themselves, and reconstruct organisms from this understanding. InRobert Rosen argues that such a view is neither necessary nor sufficient to answer the question. He asserts that life is not a specialization of mechanism, but rather a sweeping generalization of it. Above all, Rosen argues that renouncing mechanism does not mean abandoning science. A radical alternative is proposed, drawn equally from experience in biology, physics, and mathematics; an alternative which draws attention to a new class of complex systems, which are radically different from mechanism.provides the context within which an effective answer can be found to satisfy the basic question with which we began: What is life? ... Read more

Reviews (6)

One of the most important science books of the 20th century
The other reviewers have already described the contents of Rosen's work sufficiently well that I will not bother to restate it all.

Instead, I want to stress that this book and his "Essays on Life Itself" are so profound and intelligently argued that anyone interested in any of the physical sciences, not just theoretical biology, will gain a great deal of insight and appreciation for the limitations of the current state of physics, upon which so much science is now based, as well as offering insights into ways of enriching physics, and the sciences in general.

The use of category theory and similar math should not deter any astute layperson, for although the math supports the arguments brilliantly, the arguments are well-described. What will be more difficult, in fact, is successfully grasping the results of the arguments in their full profundity.

This book rightfully deserves to have as widespread paradigm-shattering impact on physical science as Godel's "On Formally Undecidable Propositions of Principia Mathematica and Related Systems" had on mathematics.

Rosen showed that, in fact, biology is not merely a trivial subcategory of physics; but instead that biology displays physical systems that are beyond the limited scope of current physics. And that enriching physics to encompass biological systems would enhance all of physics in very profound ways.

Sadly, I can only assume that it was (and still is) the ideological view of biology as a mere curiosity of physics that has allowed so many in science to fail to read Rosen's work.

Groundbreaking...
It is hard to believe this book is not better known considering the nature of its views. At least, one wonders why so few who are "experts" in the area seem unaware of it since it appears to stand unrefuted. But then again, we are talking about a book that points out the serious limitations inherent in our whole scientific framework that has become today's religion.

Rosen starts by discussing concepts of life: what is it? He then runs through the reasons why it is considered a "hard" problem with the present Newtonian-based framework. He covers the difference between syntax and semantics, Godel, causality and complexity in a very informative yet also accessible manner.

He then gets to the meat of his thesis, the discussion of the fundamental axioms inherent in our present scientific viewpoint. This section has enough of an overview that I believe most people will grasp what he is driving at. That is, the concepts of modeling and entailment that are to be formally dissected in later chapters are very well explained so that there limitations may be understood.

It is the true nature of our models and their methods of encoding the world that Rosen is primarily exposing. Rosen goes back to Taylor's Theorem and demonstrates how Newton's "Laws of Nature" built in fundamental constraints on the nature of the whole scientific enterprise. Unfortunately I suspect the math here may be beyond some people although it really is only slightly more advanced that what is typically learned in high school - this is, in fact, the way it should be taught in the first place.

After laying this groundwork Rosen returns to his discussion of why the type of entailment specified through Newton's fundamental constraints limits any applicability to the "real" world. He introduces Rashevsky's ideas and then develops excellent methods of notation in order to delve more deeply into relational biology.

Then he moves to Analytic and Synthetic models which are compared and contrasted. The uses these ideas to introduce the concept of a machine (loosely based on Turing's ideas). And finally he delves into the relational limits of machines. All this work leads to:

"The picture we have painted looks bleak indeed, if we insist on identifying science with mechanism. But we must recall that there is no basis for such an identification."

And there we have it - just what many have been saying for quite a while just without the full technical details provided by Rosen.

There probably is enough evidence to finally convince the die-hards that this view is correct now that we have the spectacular failure of the genome-mapping project (well, it isn't a failure in some ways but it is for those fanatics of Dawkins and Crick) and the even more spectacular failure of the new priests of complexity. It should be more obvious that we need a new framework, not more shaky models built on axioms that are the problems in the first place.

Let us hope more people read this book so that some of the arrogance may be dispelled...

Deep and complex, like the topic
This is an deep and complex book. Rosen addresses what he considers to be the core theme of biology, "What is Life?" from a relational biology perspective. Although the book requires close reading and intense concentration, the journey is highly rewarding. Rosen's work is intricately constructed and addresses core foundations regarding modeling and the representation of living systems.

Written from a biological perspective with a fair amount of mathematics in the form of category theory, Rosen builds up the concepts of formalism, semantics, models and modeling relations, the concept of state, entailment, relational biology, simulations and machines. Rosen discusses the historical notion of recursive state in Newtonian science and the concept of functions entailing functions (and closed systems of entailment) in living systems.

Despite the biological perspective, this is intriguing stuff for systems researchers and systems theorists as well. Although the material relies heavily on mathematics, I'm no mathematician so there is hope for those who are merely comfortable with mathematical expression. Rosen does proceed very carefully through these topics, giving the non-mathematician a chance to keep up, although I suspect that a previous familiarity with abstract algebra, topology, set theory, or category theory would make the journy all the easier.

So, overall it is a challenging read. I have never really read anything quite like it. The exposition is tightly controlled and not a moment is wasted. My hardbound is well broken in and many a valuable nugget has been extracted on numerous successive readings of the material.

A very good book indeed.
A very good book indeed. Rosen's depth of understanding of a very wide range of issues pertaining to a aspects of science, philosophy, especially epistimology, is remarkable. It is obvious Rosen has thought long and hard about the problems he addresses in this book. A reminder however that this book is not for laymen, it is quite technical requiring I would say up to 3rd year undergraduate pure mathematics: set theory, group theory, lattice theory, graph theory and category theory. None of these are trivial or straightforward, although amazingly Rosen shows just how transparent these theories can be if explained in a way that has direct meaning rather than the dry, symbolic way they are taught in the usual pure maths courses. Rosen uses these mathematical constructions to configure a very solid basis of the modelling procedure used in science whether physics or biology. Through the idea of maps and constructing the so-called modelling relation" he investigates very thoroughly the way to both analyse and synthesise models of the natural world. He first takes one on a short discourse on the philosophy required such as the perceiver and the observer and how the world is related and seen by them. He looks closely at the standard approaches people have used throughout the centuries of the development of science. Aristotle whose work was discredited through a lack of understanding of it in the last 4 centuries is revived especially his ideas of causation: efficient, material, formal and also final cause which is the problem area of normal science today where no final cause could possibly be acceptable since in the usual interpretation it refers to the backward causation in time from effects to causes. Rosen touches on many areas of contention and one does not expect most scientists to accept his views.

Rosen then, through his very general relational approach, constructs the ideas of mechanism and machines as they are conceived of today. He shows very clearly that natural phenomena, especially living organisms, cannot possibly be machines or that physics, the science which is supposed to be more basic than biology, cannot encompass biology either given its mechanistic approach. He shows that organisms are entailed within themselves in a simple way and goes on to say that physics has much to learn from this approach. The comments of Bohm come to mind when he mentioned that the sea of electrons almost appears to be alive. Rosen doesn't waffle, he doesn't talk in round about ways or use approaches which have no relation to already existing ideas. He uses very simply well understood mathematics to construct a theory of the natural world which surpasses the normal mechanistic paradigm, very easily and completely so that one wonders why anyone was ever so captivated by it in the first place or why thinking is so confined by it. Rosen is always clear and his reasoning is sound.

All in all a remarkable book. I felt that this was just the start of his whole endeavour and that there is much that he hasn't said or written down. Too bad this and the book of essays was his last work.

There are a couple of criticisms, there are quite a few spelling mistakes and typing errors and he doesn't allow that set theory isn't the be all and end all, this is still his basis and stays that way. The possibility that there are other ways to approach reality than set theory and maps his never considered but then that would have been an incredible achievement. Who knows what gems he never mentioned.

A Revolution in Science
Robert Rosen asks the question: what is life?, and answers the question precisely after 10 chapters. His method of answering the question is ground breaking. In trying to answer the question of, What is Life? he first must explore what life is not. In that process of trying to answer the question about life, he had discovered something *very* important about science and mathematics: there are some unnecessary limitations placed them, currently.

Robert Rosen *precisely* shows the reader the logical limitations of current scientific thinking in the form of modern physics and the machine metaphor. This is not your typical rant on reductionism. Everybody has hear the reframe against reductionism, "the whole is more than the sum of the parts," but Rosen shows in precise terms, much more: there is a limitation of modes of entailment (inference). The book is not easy reading, not because it is poorly written, for Rosen is a great writer, but because it examines the foundations of science, mathematics, and computer science (essentially anything having to to logical investigation). By trying to answer the question: what is life?, Robert Rosen shows us that the Newtonian paradigm (including all of modern physics, such as string theory, quantum loop gravity, and relativity) cannot and will not be sufficient to answer the important questions that not being ask in physics. Their modes of entailment are limited unnecessarily using the machine metaphor (e.g. differential equations and recursion, such as the Schrödinger's wave equation or Einstein's field equations). One of his results is to show precisely why physics (including molecular biology) has little to say about life (and non-life). He proves that Alonzo Church's thesis cannot be true, and demonstrates a revolutionary methodology (akin to precise analogy -- category theory) can help answer questions not asked by reductionistic science. Rosen examines physics, mathematics, biology, computer science with great insight and points the way to the future of science, in the use of precise mathematical metaphor; that is, by reasoning about function (as opposed to structure) by doing a primitive form of comparative complexity.

Life Itself is the best introduction into Robert Rosen's revolutionary work: any scientist not completely blinded by the machine metaphor or lacking in enough background, should be able to "get it" with some work and concentration. Don't be fooled and bogged down by the first three chapters; this is, the ground breaking book: on par with Newton's Principia and Darwin's Origin of Species. However, don't expect to get everything on the first (or tenth) reading.

A guide to the book: getting through Preface, Note to Reader, Praeludium, Chaps 1-3, Chapter 4 is crucial, this is where he sets up the problem and deconstructs Newton's technique (dynamics) and shows its weakness. Chapter 5 shows that there is another way. (Life Itself is not the standard (and vague) rant against reductionism - he shows an alternative.) In Chapters 6-9 he deconstructs simulation and the machine metaphor and shows it is equivalent to the Newton paradigm. Chapter 10 and 11 give you a good understanding why he went to so much trouble. What he doesn't say explicitly in this book, for his interest is in biology, is that his methodology is applicable to ALL of Science and mathematics, not just biology.

His Anticipatory Systems book (his previous book) is just as good, but the book Life Itself is crucial to read to understand the importance of his ideas, and is the best introduction. Unfortunately, Anticipatory Systems is out of print. Its going to take awhile for science, mathematics, and computer science to catch up. His last book, published after his death, Essays on Life Itself, is icing on the cake. ... Read more

Book Description

Since the 1970s, the Endangered Species Act (ESA), by virtue of its regulatory impact, has been a frequent subject of policy analysis. In this comprehensive history and critique of the ESA, Brian Czech and Paul R. Krausman incorporate the new model of policy design theory to frame a larger discussion about conservation biology and American democracy.

Czech and Krausman provide a historical background of endangered species policy that integrates natural history, socioeconomic trends, political movements, and professional developments. Outlining the controversies surrounding the ESA, they find a connection between challenges to species conservation and challenges to democracy. After an assessment of ESA analyses that have been performed from traditional perspectives, they engage policy design theory to review the structural logic of the ESA, analyzing each clause of the legislation for its application of the fundamental elements of democracy. To address the technical legitimacy of ESA, they propose two new genetic considerations—functional genome size and molecular clock speed—to supplement phylogenetic distinctiveness as criteria with which to prioritize species for conservation. Next, they systematically describe the socioeconomic context of ESA by assessing and classifying the causes of species endangerment.

A hybrid of policy analysis and ecological assessment, The Endangered Species Act: History, Conservation Biology, and Public Policy will appeal to scholars and students in the fields of natural resource policy and law, conservation biology, political science, wildlife ecology, and environmental history, and to professionals at agencies involved in wildlife conservation. ... Read more

Book Description

This book explores the ecological concepts and ideas involved in the practice of habitat restoration by taking a theoretical approach that will appeal to ecologists concerned with the structure and dynamics of communities. The contributors examine aspects of this new realization and its implications for both ecology and the practice of habitat restoration. What emerges is the outline of a new paradigm for ecological research and the basis for a stronger relationship between theory and practice in this area. ... Read more

Book Description

Now available in paperback, the first comprehensive reference on Great White sharks separates fact from fiction and presents real evidence of the ecology and behavior of these remarkable animals. The volume begins with the evolution of the white shark and its relatives and continues with sections on its anatomy, behavior, ecology, distribution, population dynamics, and interactions with humans. Included in the volume are many illustrations, maps, diagrams, graphs and photos.

Key Features
* Covers all biological aspects of Great White sharks
* Includes contributions from an international team of leading authorities
* Heavily illustrated with maps, diagrams, graphs, and photos ... Read more

Reviews (3)

The most thorough book ever about Great Whites
It's absolutely great! You will learn everything about biology, behaviour and social interaction of the Great Whites. This is a MUST have!

shear brilliance
I think this book is great but a bit too expensive for my liking Danielle Mullins

Want to really know everything about the Great White?
In recent years, public opinion on the Great White Shark has turned away from the fierce bloodlust inspired by fiction and returned to the more civilized sense of awe and wonder at the amazing size and ferocity of these giant predators common to the days before Hollywood brought us 'Jaws' in its technicolor (mostly red) splendor. With specials common to PBS and the Discovery Channel, public awareness of the GW is higher now than ever before, making the shark more and more popular to study. The results of this scrutiny are brought to light in 'Great White Sharks : The Biology of Carcharodon carcharias', a collection of scientific papers edited by A. Peter Klimley and David G. Ainley. In this fascinating work, the picture of the GW as bloodthirsty killer is erased and replaced with the image of the predator's role as king of the sea. There are papers dedicated to nearly every scientific aspect of the animal from its ancestry to its behavior to its populations in oceans around the world. Nearly every serious question about the GW is explored, if not answered. The only thing that makes this book a little inaccessible is the fact that is geared for academic use and research. It is not a book written for the masses, such as Ellis and McCosker's 'The Great White Shark', another excellent book on the subject. But if it is depth you are looking for, Klimley and Ainley & Co. provide it. This book is not to missed by serious students of the GW. ... Read more

Book Description

Creating Freshwater Wetlands clearly demonstrates the step-by-step processes required to restore or create freshwater wetlands. It presents practical advice on choosing sites, getting help, attracting and stocking wildlife, selecting plants, and wetland operation and maintenance. This is an excellent book on one of the most fascinating ecosystems on the planet. ... Read more

Book Description

Wetlands are among the most productive and biologically diverse ecosystems on earth.Their very diversity has produced a fragmented area of study where each wetland type is considered in isolation. This work provides a synthesis of the existing field of wetland ecology using such central themes as basic characteristics of wetlands, key environmental factors that produce wetland community types, and some unifying problems such as assembly rules, restoration, and conservation. The volume draws on a complete range of wetland habitats and geographic regions including Californian vernal pools, Amazonian floodplains and Russian peat bogs. This book provides ecological syntheses over the entire geographical and habitat range of wetlands, making Wetland Ecology essential reading for anyone planning research or management in wetland habitats, regardless of specific area of interest. ... Read more

Book Description

Matrix Population Models, Second Edition, is a comprehensive treatment of matrix population models and their applications in ecology and demography. It begins with simple cases, presented in detail so that beginning students can learn how to use these powerful models. It goes on to cover advanced topics in stochastic and nonlinear models. Analytical methods and theoretical issues are illustrated with empirical examples throughout.

The decade since the publication of the First Edition of this book has seen enormous progress in the theory and application of matrix population models. The new edition includes greatly expanded treatment of stochastic and density-dependent models, sensitivity analysis, and statistical inference, and new chapters on parameter estimation, structured population models, demographic stochasticity, and applications of matrix models in conservation biology.

Matrix Population Models, Second Edition, is an indispensable reference for graduate students and researchers in ecology, population biology, conservation biology, and human demography. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

a classic - worth the wait
As a graduate student many years ago, I bought the last shelf copy of the first edition to Caswell's text on matrix population models for our bookstore. After 10+ years of using the book, both in research, and teaching, I'm glad I did. The 2nd edition is a lucid and masterful update, with several nice touches that should be appreciated by both newcomers and experienced modelers. In particular, some of the more turgid text from the first edition has been clarified, and expanded, and several new very important chapters have been added (yes, using branching process theory you can handle demographic stochasticity with matrix models). A superb book, made even better by the inclusion (at last!) of some basic MATLAB code for some of the more esoteric calculations. My only complaint (related perhaps to the 'code') is that the many good 'worked examples' are not treated more fully. I'd have liked to have seen the actual matrices involved, or some further detail, in some cases, rather than a figure or table summarizing the results. However, a minor complaint - perhaps easily solved by a companion website with code for each example in the book 9something I'm probably going to do on my own, but should be standard these days for any technical text).

Clear and accessible introduction to population modeling
There is often a false dichotomy drawn between differential (or difference) equation models of populations and agent-based (artificial life, individual-based, configuration) models. Agent-based models can represent more of the complexity of biological systems at the expense of analytical tractability. Matrix population models form a bridge between the two approaches.

Caswell shows how you can elaborate differential equation models to represent much of the population structure and characteristics of interest within a population. His descriptions are clear and easily accessible to biologists as well as people from the more quantitative fields of science.

The new edition of this book is due out in April 2000. I am looking forward to it. ... Read more

Book Description

Every customer-facing corporation has at least one call center. In the United States, call centers handle a billion calls per year. Call Center Operation gives you complete coverage of the critical issues involved in the design, implementation, organization, and management of a customer call center. Sharp provides information on advanced technology tools for workforce management, workshop examples for training call center staff, and an analysis of the significance of the call center to overall corporate customer relationship strategies.
A special feature of the book is its focus on call center case studies, describing a number of successful call center strategies and best practices, selected from various business sectors - financial, retail, healthcare, travel, technology, and others. These case studies provide useful guidelines based on successful corporate call centers that will guide you in establishing and maintaining the most effective call center operation for your enterprise.

· Presents key concepts and techniques, including a formal development process, in a real-world context
· Provides extensive management guidelines
· Stresses the importance of staff selection and training ... Read more

Book Description

The field of theoretical ecology has expanded dramatically in the past few years, while some of the most interesting work has been done using spatial models with stochasticity. This timely volume brings together the work of leading researchers working with this model and explores its role in the study of ecosystem dynamics. With its mathematically rigorous treatments, applications to real ecological problems, and proposals for extending the use of such modeling techniques in the future, this resource will be of great interest to all researchers in theoretical ecology, mathematical biology, and ecosystems analysis. ... Read more