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The Material Point Method: Theory, Implementations and Applications (Scientific Computation)
by Vinh Phu Nguyen Alban de Vaucorbeil Stephane BordasThis book provides an introduction to the fundamental theory, practical implementation, and core and emerging applications of the material point method (MPM) and its variants. The MPM combines the advantages of both finite element analysis (FEM) and meshless/meshfree methods (MMs) by representing the material by a set of particles overlaid on a background mesh that serves as a computational scratchpad.The book shows how MPM allows a robust, accurate, and efficient simulation of a wide variety of material behaviors without requiring overly complex implementations. MPM and its variants have been shown to be successful in simulating a large number of high deformation and complicated engineering problems such as densification of foam, sea ice dynamics, landslides, and energetic device explosions, to name a few, and have recently found applications in the movie industry. It is hoped that this comprehensive exposition on MPM variants and their applications will not only provide an opportunity to re-examine previous contributions, but also to re-organize them in a coherent fashion and in anticipation of new advances.Sample algorithms for the solutions of benchmark problems are provided online so that researchers and graduate students can modify these algorithms and develop their own solution algorithms for specific problems. The goal of this book is to provide students and researchers with a theoretical and practical knowledge of the material point method to analyze engineering problems, and it may help initiate and promote further in-depth studies on the subjects discussed.
The Materiality of Literary Narratives in Urban History (Routledge Advances in Urban History)
by Richard Dennis Lieven Ameel Jason Finch Silja LaineThe Materiality of Literary Narratives in Urban History explores a variety of geographical and cultural contexts to examine what literary texts, grasped as material objects and reflections on urban materialities, have to offer for urban history. The contributing writers’ approach to literary narratives and materialities in urban history is summarised within the conceptualisation ‘materiality in/of literature’: the way in which literary narratives at once refer to the material world and actively partake in the material construction of the world. This book takes a geographically multipolar and multidisciplinary approach to discuss cities in the UK, the US, India, South Africa, Finland, and France whilst examining a wide range of textual genres from the novel to cartoons, advertising copy, architecture and urban planning, and archaeological writing. In the process, attention is drawn to narrative complexities embedded within literary fiction and to the dialogue between narratives and historical change. The Materiality of Literary Narratives in Urban History has three areas of focus: literary fiction as form of urban materiality, literary narratives as social investigations of the material city, and the narrating of silenced material lives as witnessed in various narrative sources.
The Materials Sourcebook For Design Professionals
by Rob ThompsonAn indispensable reference for design professionals on selecting and using materials in new ways to make their designs ever more efficient and effective. Today’s technological advancements have resulted in traditional materials being used in increasingly innovative ways; designers are able to push the materials they use to their limits. Understanding these materials helps designers make inspired, practical decisions with confidence. The Materials Sourcebook for Design Professionals provides comprehensive, accurate information about the basic materials with which designers work on a daily basis, as well as a complete breakdown of new and exciting developments in high-tech materials. This inspiring and useful book is organized into six main sections on all the major design material groups: Metal, Plastic, Wood, Plant, Animal, and Mineral. Each section is broken down into chapters examining individual types of material within each larger group. Nearly one hundred material types are featured, each one supported by examples of how it can be used in a variety of industries, an outline of its most desirable properties, and details about its form and texture.
The Mathematical Structure of Classical and Relativistic Physics: A General Classification Diagram
by Enzo TontiThe theories describing seemingly unrelated areas of physics have surprising analogies that have aroused the curiosity of scientists and motivated efforts to identify reasons for their existence. Comparative study of physical theories has revealed the presence of a common topological and geometric structure. The Mathematical Structure of Classical and Relativistic Physics is the first book to analyze this structure in depth, thereby exposing the relationship between (a) global physical variables and (b) space and time elements such as points, lines, surfaces, instants, and intervals. Combining this relationship with the inner and outer orientation of space and time allows one to construct a classification diagram for variables, equations, and other theoretical characteristics. The book is divided into three parts. The first introduces the framework for the above-mentioned classification, methodically developing a geometric and topological formulation applicable to all physical laws and properties; the second applies this formulation to a detailed study of particle dynamics, electromagnetism, deformable solids, fluid dynamics, heat conduction, and gravitation. The third part further analyses the general structure of the classification diagram for variables and equations of physical theories. Suitable for a diverse audience of physicists, engineers, and mathematicians, The Mathematical Structure of Classical and Relativistic Physics offers a valuable resource for studying the physical world. Written at a level accessible to graduate and advanced undergraduate students in mathematical physics, the book can be used as a research monograph across various areas of physics, engineering and mathematics, and as a supplemental text for a broad range of upper-level scientific coursework.
The Mathematical Theory of Cosmic Strings: Cosmic Strings in the Wire Approximation (Series in High Energy Physics, Cosmology and Gravitation)
by M.R. AndersonThis book is a comprehensive survey of the current state of knowledge about the dynamics and gravitational properties of cosmic strings treated in the idealized classical approximation as line singularities described by the Nambu-Goto action. The author's purpose is to provide a standard reference to all work that has been published since the mid-1
The Mathematics of Thermal Modeling: An Introduction to the Theory of Laser Material Processing, 2e
by John Michael DowdenThe Mathematics of Thermal Modeling, Second Edition, provides an introduction to the basics of the mathematics and physics needed to understand and use the physical principles employed in constructing models of a number of aspects of thermal modeling in industrial processes, notably laser welding; most of the techniques are applicable to many other technological processes, however.The book demonstrates how insight can be gained from mathematical enquiry at a simple level and helps workers understand the way in which more sophisticated models can be constructed. Some necessary but less familiar mathematical techniques are explained in greater detail than before and some discussion of wave-like features in welds is now included. An understanding will be gained of the importance of studying the interaction of multiple features.The book is equally suitable for engineers and material scientists at the Master's or first-year PhD level at university, to similar students with a background in mathematics or physics who are new to laser or industrial technology, or for research workers coming to mathematical modeling of industrial thermal processes for the first time, whatever stage they have reached in their career development.
The Mathematics of Urban Morphology (Modeling and Simulation in Science, Engineering and Technology)
by Michael Batty Luca D'AcciThis edited volume provides an essential resource for urban morphology, the study of urban forms and structures, offering a much-needed mathematical perspective. Experts on a variety of mathematical modeling techniques provide new insights into specific aspects of the field, such as street networks, sustainability, and urban growth. The chapters collected here make a clear case for the importance of tools and methods to understand, model, and simulate the formation and evolution of cities.The chapters cover a wide variety of topics in urban morphology, and are conveniently organized by their mathematical principles. The first part covers fractals and focuses on how self-similar structures sort themselves out through competition. This is followed by a section on cellular automata, and includes chapters exploring how they generate fractal forms. Networks are the focus of the third part, which includes street networks and other forms as well. Chapters that examine complexity and its relation to urban structures are in part four.The fifth part introduces a variety of other quantitative models that can be used to study urban morphology. In the book’s final section, a series of multidisciplinary commentaries offers readers new ways of looking at the relationship between mathematics and urban forms.Being the first book on this topic, Mathematics of Urban Morphology will be an invaluable resource for applied mathematicians and anyone studying urban morphology. Additionally, anyone who is interested in cities from the angle of economics, sociology, architecture, or geography will also find it useful."This book provides a useful perspective on the state of the art with respect to urban morphology in general and mathematics as tools and frames to disentangle the ideas that pervade arguments about form and function in particular. There is much to absorb in the pages that follow and there are many pointers to ways in which these ideas can be linked to related theories of cities, urban design and urban policy analysis as well as new movements such as the role of computation in cities and the idea of the smart city. Much food for thought. Read on, digest, enjoy." From the foreword by Michael Batty
The Mathematics of the Universe
by Soledad Romero MariñoThe lyrical verses and captivating illustrations of this picture book explore how the concepts and patterns of mathematics shape the natural world. The universe seems in such disarray, but it follows an order, not one thing astray. So the planets and stars have been created, atoms brought together as if they were fated. Nature's secrets are brought to life through an innovative blend of science, poetry, and art, making complex math concepts accessible and engaging for children aged five to nine. Young readers will discover the hidden mathematical patterns in everyday phenomena, from honeycombs and butterflies to celestial bodies and intricate geometric shapes. • This charming STEM educational resource encourages students to see the world through a mathematical lens. • Spheres, hexagons, symmetry, fractals, and spirals are among the concepts explored. • Each mathematical concept is presented alongside an observation, linking math to the universe's natural rhythms. • Thought-provoking quotes from renowned figures such as Galileo, Marcel Proust, and Jules Verne add depth to the learning experience. • The book’s large size, die-cut cover, and gorgeous art make it ideal for gifting and displaying.
The Matrix Perturbation Method in Quantum Mechanics
by Francisco Soto-Eguibar Braulio Misael Villegas-Martínez Héctor Manuel Moya-CessaThis book provides an alternative approach to time-independent perturbation theory in non-relativistic quantum mechanics. It allows easy application to any initial condition because it is based on an approximation to the evolution operator and may also be used on unitary evolution operators for the unperturbed Hamiltonian in the case where the eigenvalues cannot be found. This flexibility sets it apart from conventional perturbation theory. The matrix perturbation method also gives new theoretical insights; for example, it provides corrections to the energy and wave function in one operation. Another notable highlight is the facility to readily derive a general expression for the normalization constant at m-th order, a significant difference between the approach within and those already in the literature. Another unique aspect of the matrix perturbation method is that it can be extended directly to the Lindblad master equation. The first and second-order corrections are obtained for this equation and the method is generalized for higher orders. An alternative form of the Dyson series, in matrix form instead of integral form, is also obtained. Throughout the book, several benchmark examples and practical applications underscore the potential, accuracy and good performance of this novel approach. Moreover, the method's applicability extends to some specific time-dependent Hamiltonians. This book represents a valuable addition to the literature on perturbation theory in quantum mechanics and is accessible to students and researchers alike.
The Maya Forest Waterlands: Shared Conservation, Entangled Politics, and Fluid Borders (Routledge Studies in Conservation and the Environment)
by Hanna Laako Edith KaufferThis book examines the entanglements and blurred edges of nature conservation and geopolitical relations in the borderlands of the trinational Maya Forest.Maya Forest is an umbrella term for transboundary conservation developed by scientists and conservationists in the 1990s to protect the threatened rainforest in the borderlands of Mexico, Belize, and Guatemala. Currently, the Maya Forest is a biodiversity hotspot composed of a network of protected areas and heritage sites. However, issues related to water, land, and forests have often been treated as separate political units, and not as part of the same history. Written by two authors with decades of hands-on experience in this region, this book sheds light on the complex dynamics by which conservation and natural resource management geopolitically shape borderlands such as the Maya Forest. The book introduces the novel concept of forest waterlands as borderlands and fluid edges, which are now subject to concern by conservationists. These are entangled spaces in which conservation, peoples, and politics interact, connect, and disconnect with the nexus of waters, forests, and lands. The book sheds light on the building and mapping of the Maya Forest ecoregion, with particular attention to water as an often neglected, but unifying element. It showcases how the Maya Forest is a distinct region characterized by transformations entangled with the Maya, trails of biological stations, the shared history of chicleros (chewing-gum hunters), fluid international rivers and transboundary basins, and various geopolitical discrepancies. It offers a contemporary glimpse into the Maya Forest’s intertwined bio- and geopolitics, which urge us to rethink borders and boundaries.This book will be of great interest to students and scholars of nature conservation, global environmental politics, geopolitics, borderlands, international relations, and natural resource management.
The Maya Tropical Forest: People, Parks, and Ancient Cities
by James D. NationsThe Maya Tropical Forest, which occupies the lowlands of southern Mexico, Guatemala, and Belize, is the closest rainforest to the United States and one of the most popular tourist destinations in the Western Hemisphere. It has been home to the Maya peoples for nearly four millennia, starting around 1800 BC. Ancient cities in the rainforest such as Palenque, Yaxchilan, Tikal, and Caracol draw thousands of tourists and scholars seeking to learn more about the prehistoric Maya. Their contemporary descendants, the modern Maya, utilize the forest's natural resources in village life and international trade, while striving to protect their homeland from deforestation and environmental degradation. Writing for both visitors and conservationists, James Nations tells the fascinating story of how ancient and modern Maya peoples have used and guarded the rich natural resources of the Maya Tropical Forest. He opens with a natural history that profiles the forest's significant animals and plants. Nations then describes the Maya peoples, biological preserves, and major archaeological sites in Mexico, Guatemala, and Belize. Drawing on more than twenty-five years of conservation work in the Maya Tropical Forest, Nations tells first-hand stories of the creation of national parks and other protected areas to safeguard the region's natural resources and archaeological heritage. He concludes with an expert assessment of the forest's future in which he calls for expanded archaeological tourism to create an ecologically sustainable economic base for the region.
The Mazinaw Experience: Bon Echo and Beyond
by John CampbellThe Mazinaw, a place of striking natural beauty, is famous for Bon Echo Rock, a massive sheer cliff, dropping into one of Ontario’s deepest lakes. The Mazinaw Experience traces the presence of human habitation on the shores of the Mazinaw from its earliest beginnings to the present, from the nomadic Aboriginal people who believed the cliff top to be a sacred place and the rugged lumbermen whose entrepreneurial zeal cleared out the mighty pine, to the settlers who struggled to create new lives for their families. Mini-profiles of personalities such as Johnny Bey and Billa Flint, along with stories involving colonization roads, the settlement towns, the mining and the coming of the railway, provide insights into the Mazinaw area of today. The memory of Bon Echo Inn lives on in Bon Echo Park, as does the legacy of Flora MacDonald and her son Merrill Denison. Today, the Mazinaw area continues to grow in popularity.
The Meaning of Fossils: Episodes in the History of Palaeontology
by Martin J.S. Rudwick"It is not often that a work can literally rewrite a person's view of a subject. And this is exactly what Rudwick's book should do for many paleontologists' view of the history of their own field."—Stephen J. Gould, Paleobotany and Palynology "Rudwick has not merely written the first book-length history of palaeontology in the English language; he has written a very intelligent one. . . . His accounts of sources are rounded and organic: he treats the structure of arguments as Cuvier handled fossil bones."—Roy S. Porter, History of Science
The Meaning of Geese: A Thousand Miles in Search of Home
by Nick Acheson‘A magisterial diary for bird lovers.’ Observer ⭐⭐⭐⭐ The Telegraph As seen on BBC Winterwatch 2023 ‘Honest, human and heart-grabbing. I loved this book so much.’ Sophie Pavelle, author of Forget Me Not ‘Delightful’ Stephen Moss, author of Ten Birds that Changed the World ‘Fascinating and thought-provoking’ Jake Fiennes, author of Land Healer ‘Awe-filled and absorbing’ Nicola Chester, author of On Gallows Down The Meaning of Geese is a book of thrilling encounters with wildlife, of tired legs, punctured tyres and inhospitable weather. Above all, it is the story of Nick Acheson’s love for the land in which he was born and raised, and for the wild geese that fill it with sound and spectacle every winter. Renowned naturalist and conservationist Nick Acheson spent countless hours observing and researching wild geese, transported through all weathers by his mother’s 40-year-old trusty red bicycle. He meticulously details the geese’s arrival, observing what they mean to his beloved Norfolk and the role they play in local people’s lives – and what role the birds could play in our changing world. During a time when many people faced the prospect of little work or human contact, Nick followed the pinkfeet and brent geese that filled the Norfolk skies and landscape as they flew in from Iceland and Siberia. In their flocks, Nick encountered rarer geese, including Russian white-fronts, barnacle geese and an extremely unusual grey-bellied brant, a bird he had dreamt of seeing since thumbing his mother’s copy of Peter Scott’s field guide as a child. To honour the geese’s great athletic migrations, Nick kept a diary of his sightings as well as the stories he discovered through the community of people, past and present, who loved them, too. Over seven months Nick cycles over 1,200 miles – the exact length of the pinkfeet’s migration to Iceland.
The Measure of All Things: The Seven-Year Odyssey and Hidden Error That Transformed the World
by Ken AlderIn June 1792, amidst the chaos of the French Revolution, two intrepid astronomers set out in opposite directions on an extraordinary journey. Starting in Paris, Jean-Baptiste-Joseph Delambre would make his way north to Dunkirk, while Pierre-François-André Méchain voyaged south to Barcelona. Their mission was to measure the world, and their findings would help define the meter as one ten-millionth of the distance between the pole and the equator--a standard that would be used "for all people, for all time." The Measure of All Things is the astonishing tale of one of history's greatest scientific adventures. Yet behind the public triumph of the metric system lies a secret error, one that is perpetuated in every subsequent definition of the meter. As acclaimed historian and novelist Ken Alder discovered through his research, there were only two people on the planet who knew the full extent of this error: Delambre and Méchain themselves. By turns a science history, detective tale, and human drama, The Measure of All Things describes a quest that succeeded as it failed--and continues to enlighten and inspire to this day.
The Measurement and Analysis of Housing Preference and Choice
by Henny C.C.H. Coolen Sylvia J.T. Jansen Roland W. GoetgelukWhat are the current trends in housing? Is my planned project commercially viable? What should be my marketing and advertisement strategies? These are just some of the questions real estate agents, landlords and developers ask researchers to answer. But to find the answers, researchers are faced with a wide variety of methods that measure housing preferences and choices. To select and value a valid research method, one needs a well-structured overview of the methods that are used in housing preference and housing choice research. This comprehensive introduction to this field offers just such an overview. It discusses and compares numerous methods, detailing the potential limitation of each one, and it reaches beyond methodology, illustrating how thoughtful consideration of methods and techniques in research can help researchers and other professionals to deliver products and services that are more in line with residents' needs.
The Measurement of Environmental and Resource Values: Theory and Methods
by Catherine L. Kling Joseph A. Herriges A. Myrick Freeman IIIThe first edition of this important work was the winner of the 2002 Publication of Enduring Quality award by the Association of Environmental and Resource Economists. The continuing premise for the book is that estimates of the economic values of environmental and natural resource services are essential for effective policy-making. As previous editions, the third edition, which includes two additional co-authors, presents a comprehensive treatment of the theory and methods involved in estimating environmental benefits. Researchers, policy-makers, and practitioners will welcome the work as an up-to-date reference on recent developments. Students will gain a better understanding of the contribution that economics as a discipline can make to decisions concerning pollution control and human health, recreation, environmental amenities, and other critical issues concerning the way we use and interact with environmental and natural resource systems. To reflect recent progress in both the theory and practice of non-market valuation, the third edition includes more details on empirical approaches to measurement, expanded discussion of the reasons for divergence between "willingness to pay" and "willingness to accept compensation," and increased coverage of econometric issues encountered in estimation. In keeping with its cutting edge orientation, it also includes more discussion of survey design, equilibrium sorting models, and the implications of behavioral economics for welfare measurements and benefit cost analysis.
The Mechanical Behavior of Salt X: PROCEEDINGS OF THE 10TH CONFERENCE ON THE MECHANICAL BEHAVIOR OF SALT (SALTMECH X), UTRECHT, THE NETHERLANDS, 06-08 JULY 2022
by J.H.P. de BresserRock salt formations have long been recognized as a valuable resource - not only for salt mining but for construction of oil and gas storage caverns and for isolation of radioactive and other hazardous wastes. Current interest is fast expanding towards construction and re-use of solution-mined caverns for storage of renewable energy in the form of hydrogen, compressed air and other gases. Evaluating the long term performance and safety of such systems demands an understanding of the coupled mechanical behavior and transport properties of salt. This volume presents a collection of 60 research papers defining the state-of-the-art in the field. Topics range from fundamental work on deformation mechanisms and damage of rock salt to compaction of engineered salt backfill. The latest constitutive models are applied in computational studies addressing the evolution and integrity of storage caverns, repositories, salt mines and entire salt formations, while field studies document ground truth at multiple scales. The volume is structured into seven themes: Microphysical processes and creep models Laboratory testing Geological isolation systems and geotechnical barriers Analytical and numerical modelling Monitoring and site-specific studies Cavern and borehole abandonment and integrity Energy storage in salt caverns The Mechanical Behavior of Salt X will appeal to graduate students, academics, engineers and professionals working in the fields of salt mechanics, salt mining and geological storage of energy and wastes, but also to researchers in rock physics in general.
The Mechanical Behavior of Salt XI
by Steven R. SobolikRock salt formations have long been recognized as a valuable resource - not only for salt mining but for construction of oil and gas storage caverns and for isolation of radioactive and other hazardous wastes. Current interest is fast expanding towards construction and re-use of solution-mined caverns for storage of renewable energy in the form of hydrogen, compressed air and other gases. Evaluating the long-term performance and safety of such systems demands an understanding of the coupled mechanical behavior and transport properties of salt. This volume presents a collection of 83 research papers defining the state-of-the-art in the field. Topics range from fundamental work on deformation mechanisms and damage of rock salt to compaction of engineered salt backfill. The latest constitutive models are applied in computational studies addressing the evolution and integrity of storage caverns, repositories, salt mines and entire salt formations, while field studies document in situ salt behavior and conditions at multiple scales. The volume is structured into ten themes:• Laboratory Testing• Field and Geological Investigations• Constitutive Modeling• Modeling and Simulation• Micromechanics and Microstructures• Salt Caverns, Cavern Abandonment & Long-Term Integrity• Crushed Salt Engineered Barriers• Geological and Engineered Barriers• Energy Storage and Mining Investigations• Geological Storage of HydrogenThe Mechanical Behavior of Salt XI will appeal to graduate students, academics, engineers and professionals working in the fields of salt mechanics, salt mining and geological storage of energy and wastes, but also to researchers in rock physics in general.
The Mechanical Behavior of Salt – Understanding of THMC Processes in Salt: Proceedings of the 6th Conference (SaltMech6), Hannover, Germany, 22–25 May 2007
by Manfred Wallner Karl-Heinz Lux Wolfgang Minkley H. Reginald HardyA unique opportunity to review the latest progress in an expanding area of interest: the Mechanical Behaviour of Salt. These Proceedings include over fifty papers and summaries describing the latest findings in ongoing studies from a number of research groups. For the 2007 conference, there was a particular focus on the understanding of thermal, mechanical, hydraulic and chemical coupled processes (THMC). Such processes are of specific interest when considering advanced problems in waste disposal, storage and mining. The book includes a number of themes: - laboratory and in-situ investigations modelling, e.g. derivation of constitutive equations - numerical computations and prediction of long-term behaviour - THMC processes in mining projects, storage and permanent disposal - case studies - geology - mining and storage applications and abandonment The International Conferences on the Mechanical Behaviour of Salt have a long tradition, being initiated in 1981 at The Pennsylvania State University, USA. The present conference, the sixth of the series, took place in Hannover, Germany, in May 2007. The conference brought together mining engineers, researchers, and university professors interested in the mechanical behaviour of salt, mostly from Europe and beyond.
The Mechanics of Earthquakes and Faulting
by Christopher H. ScholzOur understanding of earthquakes and faulting processes has developed significantly since publication of the successful first edition of this book in 1990. This revised edition, first published in 2002, was therefore thoroughly up-dated whilst maintaining and developing the two major themes of the first edition. The first of these themes is the connection between fault and earthquake mechanics, including fault scaling laws, the nature of fault populations, and how these result from the processes of fault growth and interaction. The second major theme is the central role of the rate-state friction laws in earthquake mechanics, which provide a unifying framework within which a wide range of faulting phenomena can be interpreted. With the inclusion of two chapters explaining brittle fracture and rock friction from first principles, this book is written at a level which will appeal to graduate students and research scientists in the fields of seismology, physics, geology, geodesy and rock mechanics.
The Mechanics of Earthquakes and Faulting
by Christopher H. ScholzThis essential reference for graduate students and researchers provides a unified treatment of earthquakes and faulting as two aspects of brittle tectonics at different timescales. The intimate connection between the two is manifested in their scaling laws and populations, which evolve from fracture growth and interactions between fractures. The connection between faults and the seismicity generated is governed by the rate and state dependent friction laws - producing distinctive seismic styles of faulting and a gamut of earthquake phenomena including aftershocks, afterslip, earthquake triggering, and slow slip events. The third edition of this classic treatise presents a wealth of new topics and new observations. These include slow earthquake phenomena; friction of phyllosilicates, and at high sliding velocities; fault structures; relative roles of strong and seismogenic versus weak and creeping faults; dynamic triggering of earthquakes; oceanic earthquakes; megathrust earthquakes in subduction zones; deep earthquakes; and new observations of earthquake precursory phenomena.
The Medea Hypothesis: Is Life on Earth Ultimately Self-Destructive?
by Peter WardIn The Medea Hypothesis, renowned paleontologist Peter Ward proposes a revolutionary and provocative vision of life's relationship with the Earth's biosphere--one that has frightening implications for our future, yet also offers hope. Using the latest discoveries from the geological record, he argues that life might be its own worst enemy. This stands in stark contrast to James Lovelock's Gaia hypothesis--the idea that life sustains habitable conditions on Earth. In answer to Gaia, which draws on the idea of the "good mother" who nurtures life, Ward invokes Medea, the mythical mother who killed her own children. Could life by its very nature threaten its own existence? According to the Medea hypothesis, it does. Ward demonstrates that all but one of the mass extinctions that have struck Earth were caused by life itself. He looks at our planet's history in a new way, revealing an Earth that is witnessing an alarming decline of diversity and biomass--a decline brought on by life's own "biocidal" tendencies. And the Medea hypothesis applies not just to our planet--its dire prognosis extends to all potential life in the universe. Yet life on Earth doesn't have to be lethal. Ward shows why, but warns that our time is running out. Breathtaking in scope, The Medea Hypothesis is certain to arouse fierce debate and radically transform our worldview. It serves as an urgent challenge to all of us to think in new ways if we hope to save ourselves from ourselves.
The Media Commons: Globalization and Environmental Discourses
by Patrick D MurphyToday's global media sustains a potent new environmental consciousness. Paradoxically, it also serves as a far-reaching platform that promotes the unsustainable consumption ravaging our planet. Patrick Murphy musters theory, fieldwork, and empirical research to map how the media communicates today's many distinct, competing, and even antagonistic environmental discourses. The media draws the cultural boundaries of our environmental imagination--and influences just who benefits. Murphy's analysis emphasizes social context, institutional alignments, and commercial media's ways of rendering discussion. He identifies and examines key terms, phrases, and metaphors as well as the ways consumers are presented with ideas like agency and the place of nature. What emerges is the link between pervasive messaging and an "environment" conjured by our media-saturated social imagination. As the author shows, today's complex, integrated media networks shape, frame, and deliver many of our underlying ideas about the environment. Increasingly--and ominously--individuals and communities experience these ideas not only in the developed world but in the increasingly consumption-oriented Global South.
The Media Ecosystem
by Antonio LopezIn The Media Ecosystem, Antonio Lopez draws together the seemingly disparate realms of ecology and media studies to present a fresh and provocative interpretation of the current state of the mass media--and its potential future. Lopez explores the connections between media and the environment, arguing that just as the world's powers have seized and exploited the physical territories and natural resources of the earth, so, too, have they colonized the "cultural commons"--the space of ideas that everyone shares. He identifies the root of the problem in the privileging of "mechanistic" thinking over ecological intelligence, which recognizes that people live in a relationship with every other living thing on the planet. In order to create a more sustainable media ecosystem--just like the preservation of organic ecosystems--we must reconnect our daily media activities to their impact on others and the environment. To become "organic media practitioners," we must become aware of the impact of media use on the environment; recognize media's influence on our perception of time, space, and place; understand media's interdependence with the global economy; be conscious of media's interaction with cultural beliefs; and develop an ethical framework in order to act upon these understandings. Above all, Lopez calls for media producers and consumers alike to bring a sense of ritual and collaboration back to the process of communication, utilizing collective intelligence and supporting a new culture of participation. Containing both wide-reaching analysis and practical tips for more conscious media use, The Media Ecosystem is designed for all those who seek a more sustainable future.From the Trade Paperback edition.ent. Be aware of the environments that engage your attention. What do these environments (be they computer interfaces, shopping malls, churches, or forests) demand of your awareness? What possibilities or restrictions do they afford? · Know your gadget. Our media gadgets are part of vast networks of material extraction, production, and waste. Disengage those systems of power that are enabling environmental destruction and injustice. · Know your connectivity. Every screen is a portal. Such portals are nodes into vast possibilities of experience. Enter into these spaces with eyes wide open and feet on the ground. You are the medium for the planet's spirit. Channel wisely.