The Ecology Book pdf Download.
Book Name: The Ecology.
As a small child, I was fascinated by nature—birds,
butterflies, plants, reptiles, fossils, rivers, weather, and much
else. My youthful passions set me on the path to being a
life-long naturalist, and to working as an environmentalist,
studying the natural world and promoting action for its
conservation. I have worked as a field ornithologist, writer,
campaigner, policy advocate, and environmental advisor. All
of these diverse interests and activities have, however, been
linked by a single theme: ecology.
Ecology is a vast subject, embracing the many disciplines
needed to understand the relationships that exist between
different living things, and the physical worlds of air, water,
and rock within which they are embedded. From the study
of soil microorganisms to the role of pollinators, and from
research into the water cycle to investigating Earth’s climate
system, ecology involves many specialist areas. It also
unites many strands of science, including zoology, botany,
mathematics, chemistry, and physics, as well as some
aspects of social science—especially economics—while
at the same time raising profound philosophical and
ethical questions.
Because of the fundamental ways in which the human
world depends on healthy natural systems, some of the most
important political issues of our age are ecological ones. They
include climate change, the effects of ecosystem damage,
the disappearance of wildlife, and the depletion of resources,
including fish stocks, freshwater, and soils. All these
ecological changes have implications for people and are
increasingly pressing.
Considering the huge importance of ecology for our
modern world, and the many threads of thought and ideas
that must be woven to gain an understanding of the subject,
I am delighted that Dorling Kindersley decided to produce
The Ecology Book, setting out the key concepts that have
helped shape our understanding of how Earth’s incredible
natural systems function. In the pages that follow readers
will also discover something about the history of ecological
concepts, the leading thinkers, and the different perspectives
from which they approached the questions they sought
to answer.
One thing that sets this book apart is the manner
in which the rich, memorable, and attractive content
is presented. A huge body of information and insight is
effectively conveyed by clear layout, graphics, illustrations,
and quotes, enabling readers to quickly achieve an
understanding of many important ecological ideas and
the people behind them: James Lovelock’s Gaia Hypothesis,
Norman Myers’s warnings about impending mass extinction,
and Rachel Carson’s work to expose the effects of toxic
pesticides among them.
The diverse body of information found in the pages that
follow could not be more important. For while the headlines
and popular debate suggest it is politics, technology, and
economics that are the vital forces shaping our common
future, it is in the end ecology that is the most important
context determining societies’ prospects, and indeed the
future of civilization itself.
I hope you find The Ecology Book to be an enlightening
overview of what is not only the most important subject, but
also the most interesting.
Tony Juniper CBE
Environmentalist.
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