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Value Addition of Horticultural Crops: Recent Trends and Future Directions
by Amit Baran Sharangi Suchand DattaThis book combines several ideas and philosophies and provides a detailed discussion on the value addition of fruits, vegetables, spices, plantation crops, floricultural crops and in forestry. Separate chapters address the packaging, preservation, drying, dehydration, total quality management and supply chain management of horticultural crops. The book explains value addition as a process of increasing the economic value and consumer appeal of a commodity with special reference to horticultural crops. Each chapter focuses on a specific area, exploring value addition as a production/ marketing strategy driven by customer needs and preferences. But, as such, it is also a more creative field, calling for more imagination than calculated, routine work. Value is added to the particular produce item when the product is still available when the season is out and the demand for the product exceeds the available supply. Value addition is an important factor in the growth and development of the horticultural sector, both in India and around the world. But very little information is available on this particular aspect of horticulture. Albert Einstein famously said, "Try not to become a man of success, but rather try to become a man of value. " This message is not only true for those people who want to make more of themselves, but also for those who want their creation or product in any form to excel. And it certainly applies to horticultural crops, which are extremely perishable. It is true that loss reduction is normally less costly than equivalent increases in production. The loss of fresh produce can be minimized by adopting different processing and preservation techniques to convert the fresh vegetables into suitable value-added and diversified products, which will help to reduce the market glut during harvest season. Value-added processed products are products that can be obtained from main products and by-products after some sort of processing and subsequently marketed for an increased profit margin. Generally speaking, value-added products indicate that for the same volume of primary products, a higher price is achieved by means of processing, packing, enhancing the quality or other such methods. The integrated approach from harvesting to the delivery into the hands of the consumer, if handled properly, can add value to fresh produce on the market. But most of the fresh produce has a limited life, although it can be stored at appropriate temperature and relative humidity for the same time. If such produce is processed just after harvesting, it adds value and stabilizes the processed products for a longer time. Preparing processed products will provide more variety to consumers and improve the taste and other sensory properties of food. This will also promote their fortification with nutrients that are lacking in fresh produce. By adopting suitable methods for processing and value addition, the shelf life of fresh produce can be increased manifold, which supports their availability year-round to a wider spectrum of consumers on both the domestic and international market. With increased urbanization, rising middle class purchasing power, changing food habits and a decline in making preserved products in individual homes, there is now a higher demand for industry-made products on the domestic market. In spite of all these aspects, only 1-2. 2% of the total produce is processed in developing countries, as compared to 40-83% in developed countries. The horticultural export industry offers an important source of employment for developing countries. For instance, horticulture accounts for 30% of India''s agricultural GDP from 8. 5% of cropped area. India is the primary producer of spices, second largest producer of fruits and vegetables and holds a prominent position with regard to most plantation crops in the world. The cultivation of horticultural crops is substantially more labor-intensive than growing cereal crops and offers more post-harvest opportunities for the development of value-added products....
Value-based Radiology: A Practical Approach (Medical Radiology)
by Carlos Francisco Silva Oyunbileg Von Stackelberg Hans-Ulrich KauczorThis cutting-edge guide to value-based radiology provides readers with the latest information on all aspects of the subject. Healthcare delivery is experiencing a rapid transition towards a value-based model, the underlying idea being that providers are paid on the basis of patient’s health outcomes rather than the total services delivered. Radiology departments are facing many challenges as they attempt to improve operational efficiency, performance, and quality in order to keep pace with this transition. In the first part of this book, readers will find information on the theoretical basis and general concepts of value-based radiology. The second part focuses on value-based practice in specific areas of radiology: neuro/head and neck, thoracic, abdominopelvic, musculoskeletal, breast, cardiovascular, and pediatric. All topics are discussed by prominent experts in a clearly organized and well-illustrated form that will help readers to gain the most from each chapter. The book will be a valuable resource for radiologists and healthcare managers working in public or private institutions, as well as an excellent quick reference guide for all other physicians interested in the topic.
Value Chain Dynamics in a Biodiverse Environment: Advances in Biodiversity, Sustainability, and Agri-food Supply Chain Development (Cooperative Management)
by Konstadinos Mattas George Baourakis Constantin Zopounidis Christos StaboulisThis book offers comprehensive insights into the latest developments in biodiversity, sustainability, and agri-food supply chains, fostering an informed approach to policymaking decisions in the agriculture and agri-food industry within the global economy. By addressing key societal and environmental challenges, such as desertification, floods, epidemics, rising trade costs, and food insecurity, it presents pioneering research initiatives to guide informed decision-making. Addressing the inadequate sustainability performance of agri-food supply chains due to complex stakeholder interactions and conflicting objectives, the book includes chapters on mapping the Cretan vegetable supply chain, trade initiatives in Latin America and the Caribbean, cooperative member commitment, sustainable food consumption patterns, water resource management in Africa, value-chain development, a financial analysis of the brewery industry, and the value chain of carob-flour production. The book aims to promote biodiversity conservation by establishing sustainable supply chains in the global agri-food sector. Given its scope, the book is intended for a diverse audience, including academics, businesses, policymakers, and stakeholders.
Value Creation in the Pharmaceutical Industry
by Alexander Schuhmacher Oliver Gassmann Markus HinderThis practical guide for advanced students and decision-makers in the pharma and biotech industry presents key success factors in R&D along with value creators in pharmaceutical innovation. A team of editors and authors with extensive experience in academia and industry and at some of the most prestigious business schools in Europe discusses in detail the innovation process in pharma as well as common and new research and innovation strategies. In doing so, they cover collaboration and partnerships, open innovation, biopharmaceuticals, translational medicine, good manufacturing practice, regulatory affairs, and portfolio management. Each chapter covers controversial aspects of recent developments in the pharmaceutical industry, with the aim of stimulating productive debates on the most effective and efficient innovation processes. A must-have for young professionals and MBA students preparing to enter R&D in pharma or biotech as well as for students on a combined BA/biomedical and natural sciences program.
Value-Free Science? Purity and Power in Modern Knowledge
by Robert N. ProctorWhy have scientists shied away from politics, or defended their work as value free? How has the ideal of neutrality come to dominate the world of science? These are some of the central questions that Robert Proctor addresses in his study of the politics of modern science.<P><P> Value-Free Science? emphasizes the importance of understanding the political origins and impact of scientific ideas. Proctor lucidly demonstrates how value-neutrality is a reaction to larger political developments, including the use of science by government and industry, the specialization of professional disciplines, and the efforts to stifle intellectual freedoms or to politicize the world of the academy.<P> The first part of the book traces the origins of value-neutrality prior to the eighteenth century. Plato and Aristotle saw contemplative thought as superior to practical action, and this separation of theory and practice is still invoked today in defense of "neutral science." In the seventeenth century the Baconian search for useful knowledge allowed a new and closer tie between theory and practice, but it also isolated moral knowledge from natural philosophy. Another version of neutrality was introduced by the mechanical conception of the universe, in which the idea of a benevolent, human-centered cosmos was replaced with a "devalorized" view of nature.<P> The central part of the book explores the exclusion of politics and morals with the emergence of the social sciences. Proctor highlights the case of Germany, where the ideal of value-neutrality was first articulated in modern form by social scientists seeking to attack or defend Marxism, feminism, and other social movements. He traces the rise and fall of positivist ethical and economic theory, showing that arguments for value-free science often mask concrete political maneuvers. Finally, he reviews critiques of science that have been voiced in recent debates over critical issues in agricultural science, military research, health and medicine, and biological determinism.<P> This provocative book will interest anyone seeking ways to reconcile the ideals of scientific freedom and social responsibility.
Value in Business: A Holistic, Systems-based Approach to Creating and Achieving Value (Contributions to Management Science)
by Jeffrey Yi-Lin Forrest Yong LiuThis book uses a system-based approach to decipher and organize the concepts and conclusions relevant for creating and capturing value in business. It develops a scientific theory based on systems science and logical reasoning that is commonly employed in mathematics and natural science. The resulting new theory focuses on the organizational nature of the world and the organic and holistic feature of human organizations and their interactions. To this end, this book identifies a few axioms, instead of empirical discoveries, on which it reliably constructs the entire theory.
Value of Information in the Earth Sciences
by Eidsvik, Jo and Mukerji, Tapan and Bhattacharjya, Debarun Jo Eidsvik Tapan Mukerji Debarun BhattacharjyaGathering the right kind and the right amount of information is crucial for any decision-making process. This book presents a unified framework for assessing the value of potential data gathering schemes by integrating spatial modelling and decision analysis, with a focus on the Earth sciences. The authors discuss the value of imperfect versus perfect information, and the value of total versus partial information, where only subsets of the data are acquired. Concepts are illustrated using a suite of quantitative tools from decision analysis, such as decision trees and influence diagrams, as well as models for continuous and discrete dependent spatial variables, including Bayesian networks, Markov random fields, Gaussian processes, and multiple-point geostatistics. Unique in scope, this book is of interest to students, researchers and industry professionals in the Earth and environmental sciences, who use applied statistics and decision analysis techniques, and particularly to those working in petroleum, mining, and environmental geoscience.
The Value of Life: Biological Diversity And Human Society
by Stephen R. KellertThe Value of Life is an exploration of the actual and perceived importance of biological diversity for human beings and society. Stephen R. Kellert identifies ten basic values, which he describes as biologically based, inherent human tendencies that are greatly influenced and moderated by culture, learning, and experience. Drawing on 20 years of original research, he considers: the universal basis for how humans value nature differences in those values by gender, age, ethnicity, occupation, and geographic location how environment-related activities affect values variation in values relating to different species how vlaues vary across cultures policy and management implications Throughout the book, Kellert argues that the preservation of biodiversity is fundamentally linked to human well-being in the largest sense as he illustrates the importance of biological diversity to the human sociocultural and psychological condition.
The Value of Science: Essential Writings of Henri Poincare (Modern Library Science)
by Henri PoincaréMore than any other writer of the twentieth century, Henri Poincaré brought the elegant, but often complicated, ideas about science and mathematics to the general reader. A genius who throughout his life solved complex mathematical calculations in his head, and a writer gifted with an inimitable style, Poincaré rose to the challenge of interpreting the philosophy of science to scientists and nonscientists alike. His lucid and welcoming prose made him the Carl Sagan of his time. This volume collects his three most important books: Science and Hypothesis (1903); The Value of Science (1905); and Science and Method (1908).
The Value of Species
by Edward L. MccordWe humans value a great variety of plant and animal species for their usefulness to us. But what is the value--if any--of a species that offers no practical use? In the face of accelerating extinctions across the globe, what ought we to do? Amid this sea of losses, what is our responsibility? How do we assess the value of nonhuman species? In this book, naturalist and philosopher Edward L. McCord explores urgent questions about the destruction of species and provides a new framework for appreciating and defending every form of life. The book draws insights from philosophy, ethics, law, and biology to arrive at a new way of thinking about the value of species to humanity is intellectual: individual species are phenomena of such intellectual moment--so interesting in their own right--that they rise above other values and merit enduring human embrace. The author discusses the threats other species confront and delineates the challenges involved in creating any kind of public instrument to protect species.
The Value of Systems and Complexity Sciences for Healthcare
by Joachim P. SturmbergThis visionary reframing of health and healthcare uses a complexity science approach to building healthcare systems that are accessible, effective, and prepared for change and challenges. Its holistic map for understanding the human organism emphasizes the interconnectedness of the individual's physical, psychological, cognitive, and sociocultural functioning. Applications of this approach are described in primary, specialist, and emergency care and at the organizational and policy levels, from translating findings to practice, to problem solving and evaluation. In this model, the differences between disease and illness and treating illness and restoring health are not mere wordplay, but instead are robust concepts reflecting real-world issues and their solutions. Based on the Proceedings of the 1st International Conference of Systems and Complexity for Healthcare, topics covered include: * Coping with complexity and uncertainty: insights from studying epidemiology in family medicine * Anticipation in complex systems: potential implications for improving safety and quality in healthcare * Monitoring variability and complexity at the bedside * Viewing mental health through the lens of complexity science * Ethical complexities in systems healthcare: what care and for whom? * The value of systems and complexity thinking to enable change in adaptive healthcare organizations supported by informatics * If the facts don't fit the theory, change the theory: implications for health system reform The Value of Systems and Complexity Sciences for Healthcare will interest and inspire health and disease researchers, health professionals, health care planners, health system financiers, health system administrators, health services administrators, health professional educators, and, last but not least, current and future patients.
The Value of the Moon: How to Explore, Live, and Prosper in Space Using the Moon's Resources
by Paul D. SpudisWhile the Moon was once thought to hold the key to space exploration, in recent decades, the U.S. has largely turned its sights toward Mars and other celestial bodies instead. In The Value of the Moon, lunar scientist Paul Spudis argues that the U.S. can and should return to the moon in order to remain a world leader in space utilization and development and a participant in and beneficiary of a new lunar economy.Spudis explores three reasons for returning to the Moon: it is close, it is interesting, and it is useful. The proximity of the Moon not only allows for frequent launches, but also control of any machinery we place there. It is interesting because recorded deep on its surface and in its craters is the preserved history of the moon, the sun, and indeed the entire galaxy. And finally, the moon is useful because it is rich with materials and energy. The moon, Spudis argues, is a logical base for further space exploration and even a possible future home for us all. Throughout his work, Spudis incorporates details about man's fascination with the moon and its place in our shared history. He also explores its religious, cultural, and scientific resonance and assesses its role in the future of spaceflight and our national security and prosperity.
The Value of the Weather
by W. J. MaunderOriginally published in 1970, this book brings together the most significant and pertinent associations between man’s economic and social activities, and the variations in the atmospheric environment. Particular emphasis is placed on economic activities and the weather, economic analysis of weather and the benefits and costs of weather knowledge. In addition, some of the sociological, physiological, political, planning and legal aspects of atmospheric resources are discussed.
The Value of Using Hydrological Datasets for Water Allocation Decisions: Earth Observations, Hydrological Models and Seasonal Forecasts (IHE Delft PhD Thesis Series)
by Alexander José Kaune SchmidtAn increasing number of hydrological datasets from earth observations, hydrological models and seasonal forecasts have become available for water managers, consultants and the general public. These datasets are state-of-the-art products which are usually accessible online and may contribute to develop hydrological studies and support water resources management. However, the added value of these datasets has not been completely explored in decision-making processes. Research studies have assessed how well data can help in predicting climate, but there is a lack of knowledge on how well data can help in water allocation decisions. This work provides numerical tools, methods and results to evaluate the value of using hydrological datasets to support water allocation decisions at river basin and irrigation district scale. An integrated approach is used to predict climate, improve decisions and reduce negative impacts. Results show that investing in hydrological data with finer spatial and temporal resolution and longer periods of record improves water allocation decisions and reduces agricultural production loss in large irrigation schemes. Using river discharge data from hydrological models and global precipitation enhances irrigation area planning when little in-situ data is available. Moreover, using seasonal streamflow forecasts improves available water estimates resulting in better water allocation decisions. The framework was tested in Costa Rica, Colombia and Australia, but can be applied in any case study around the world.
Valued Environments (Routledge Library Editions: Environmental Policy #7)
by John R. Gold Jacquelin BurgessFirst published in 1982. People care about places. Inhabitants demand more participation in the changes proposed for their local environments, activists urge greater protection of countryside and natural environments, decision-makers feel threatened by the antagonism aroused by their powers and plans. The essays in this book have been drawn together to discover what lies behind these expressions of concern and discontent. Valued environments are places for which people feel commitment and affection, places which support a sense of personal identity and well-being. The authors explore the character and constituents of valued environments asking how our experiences of environments may be enhanced. What is the impact of environmental change? How can the future be accommodated in both rural and urban environments without destroying their essential qualities? The reader will find substantive evidence from case studies of environments valued by inhabitants and outsiders which answer these questions. Examples are taken from wilderness areas, fenland, market towns and large cities, commercial streets and residential neighbourhoods, environments of the past and those imagined in science fiction. The essays are united in their focus on the meaning of places and landscapes. The subtle but highly significant role of valued environments is examined thoroughly in the book. It will be of interest to all who care deeply about their surroundings, reflecting perhaps some of their own experiences as well as conveying information about the environmental experiences of others. Students of geography, environmental planning and conservation should also find the book directly relevant to their interests in man-environment relationships.
Values and Functions for Future Cities (Green Energy and Technology)
by Giulio Mondini Alessandra Oppio Stefano Stanghellini Marta Bottero Francesca AbastanteThis book features a selection of the best papers presented at two SIEV seminars held in Venice, Italy, in September 2017 and 2018, in the context of the Urbanpromo Green events. Bringing together experts from a diverse range of fields – economics, appraisal, architecture, energy, urban planning, sociology, and the decision sciences – and government representatives, the seminars encouraged reflections on the role of future cites in terms of sustainable development, with a particular focus on improving collective and individual well-being. The book provides a multidisciplinary approach to contemporary green urban agendas and urban sustainability, and addresses the demand for policies and strategies to strengthen resilience through concrete measures to reduce energy consumption, mitigate pollution, promote social inclusion and create urban identity.
Values and Technology: Religion and Public Life (Religion And Public Life Ser.)
by James BurkIn 1749 Jean-Jacques Rousseau's Discourse on the Arts and Sciences, surprised leading Enlightenment thinkers who had enthusiastically upheld the positive benefits of humanity's technological advance. Voltaire, who celebrated the ends of civilization, mocked Rousseau's praise for an original creative state of nature in which man enjoyed an optimum level of freedom.Given the unprecedented intrusion of technology into our lives, the question raised by Rousseau's critique may be even more pertinent. In this volume of Religion and Public Life contributors address some of the challenges to conventional morality brought on by the technological augmentation of the social structure. John Barker's essay explores how Luciano Floridi's philosophy of technology has complicated the conventional way of determining what ought to receive moral consideration. Fani Zlatarova provides a practical guide for incorporating ethical components into teaching computer technology.Grant Havers explores the controversies surrounding the biogenetic explosion through an examination of the competing philosophical perspectives and Christopher Vassilopolos examines the science-based justification for taking life. Gabriel R. Ricci looks at recent political history in the United States in order to highlight the sometimes uneasy relationship between science and social policy. Volume 37 is a welcome addition to the acclaimed Religion and Public Life series.
Values at Work: Sustainable Investing and ESG Reporting
by Daniel C. Esty Todd CortSustainable investing is a rapidly growing and evolving field. With investors expressing ever greater interest in environmental, social, and governance (ESG) metrics and reporting, companies face a sustainability imperative and the need to remake their business models to respond to an array of pressing issues including climate change, air and water pollution, racial justice, workplace diversity, economic inequality, privacy, corporate integrity, and good governance. From equities to fixed income and from private equity to impact-investing, investors of all kinds now want to understand which companies will be marketplace leaders in a business future redefined by sustainability. Thus, investment strategies, risk models, financial vehicles, applications, data, metrics, standards, and regulations are all changing rapidly around the world.In an effort to better understand the current status and movement of this dynamic field and to provide a practical reference for the growing pool of investors, financial advisors, companies, and academics seeking information on sustainable investing and ESG reporting, this edited book covers the latest trends, tools, and thinking. It showcases the work of authors from leading companies and academic institutions across a range of vital topics such as financial disclosure, portfolio assessment, ESG metrics construction, and law as well as regulation. Readers of the book will be better able to identify and address the hurdles to moving mainstream capital toward more sustainable companies, investments, and projects.
Values, Identity, and Sustainable Development in Africa (Sustainable Development Goals Series)
by Ezra Chitando Eunice KamaaraThis book contends that Africa’s sustainable development must be built on African identity and values. Contributors reflect of the role of values in Africa’s effort to overcome poverty, the focus of SDG 1. The volume reflects on how indigenous values such as Ubuntu constitute a critical resource in addressing poverty. It reiterates the importance of positioning the response to poverty in Africa on the continent’s own, home grown values. Contributors also interrogate how values such as integrity, hard work, tolerance, solidarity, respect and others serve to position Africa strategically to overcome poverty. The volume focuses on how values can help Africa to overcome challenges such as corruption, violence, intolerance, competitive ethnicity, xenophobia, misplaced priorities and others. It provides fresh and critical reflections on the role of values and identity in anchoring Africa’s development in the light of SDG 1.
Values in Science Education: The Shifting Sands
by Deborah Corrigan Cathy Buntting Angela Fitzgerald Alister JonesIn 2007, the Monash-Kings College London International Centre for the Study of Science and Mathematics Curriculum edited a book called The Re-emergence of Values in Science Education. This book reflects on how values have been considered since this original publication, particularly in terms of socio-cultural, economic and political factors that have impacted broadly on science, technology and society, and more specifically on informal and formal science curricula. Hence, the title of this book has been framed as Values in Science Education: The shifting sands. As in the first book, this collection focuses on values that are centrally associated with science and its teaching, and not the more general notion of values such as cooperation or teamwork that are also important values in current curricula. Such values have indeed become more of a focus in science education. This may be a response to the changing global context, where technological changes have been rapid and accelerating. In such complex and risky environments, it is our guiding principles that become the important mainstays of our decisions and practices. In terms of science education, what is becoming clearer is that traditional content and traditional science and scientific methods are not enough for science and hence science education to meet such challenges. While shifts in values in science education continue, tensions remain in curriculum development and implementation, as evidenced by the continued diversity of views about what and whose values matter most.
Values of Love and Ethical Reflection (Husserlian Legacies: Themes for the 21st Century)
by Edmund HusserlThis first volume of Husserlian Legacies: Themes for the 21st Century focuses on hitherto underexamined dimensions of Husserl’s philosophical thinking and in particular, values and love. Texts in this series draw from the variety of Husserl’s rich original works; they are selected and arranged with the support of the Husserl Archives, Leuven. The texts are made available in English and are primarily targeted to advanced undergraduates, graduate students, and scholars. This volume helps the reader both to investigate the themes of value and love and to gauge their role in Husserl’s reflections on related topics: his analysis of philosophy, the sciences as vocational tasks, the emotions and the community of love, as well as his personalistic reformulation of the categorical imperative. The texts gathered, edited, and translated in this volume have far-reaching implications, ranging from axiology and individual and social ethics to the philosophy of emotions, action theory, and the philosophy of science.
The Values of Precision
by M. Norton WiseThe Values of Precision examines how exactitude has come to occupy such a prominent place in Western culture. What has been the value of numerical values? Beginning with the late eighteenth century and continuing into the twentieth, the essays in this volume support the view that centralizing states--with their increasingly widespread bureaucracies for managing trade, taxation, and armies--and large-scale commercial enterprises--with their requirements for standardization and mass production--have been the major promoters of numerical precision. Taking advantage of the resources available, scientists and engineers have entered a symbiotic relationship with state and industry, which in turn has led to increasingly refined measures in ever-widening domains of the natural and social world. At the heart of this book, therefore, is an inquiry into the capacity of numbers and instruments to travel across boundaries of culture and materials. Many of the papers focus attention on disagreements about the significance and the credibility of particular sorts of measurements deployed to support particular claims, as in the measures of the population of France, the electrical resistance of copper, or the solvency of insurance companies. At the same time they display the deeply cultural character of precision values. Contributors to the volume include Ken Alder, Graeme J. N. Gooday, Jan Golinski, Frederic L. Holmes, Kathryn M. Olesko, Theodore M. Porter, Andrea Rusnock, Simon Schaffer, George Sweetnam, Andrew Warwick, and M. Norton Wise.
Valuing Animals: Veterinarians and Their Patients in Modern America (Animals, History, Culture)
by Susan D. JonesOver the course of the twentieth century, the relationship between Americans and their domestic animals has changed dramatically. In the 1890s, pets were a luxury, horses were the primary mode of transport, and nearly half of all Americans lived or worked on farms. Today, the pet industry is a multibillion-dollar-a-year business, keeping horses has become an expensive hobby, and consumers buy milk and meat in pristine supermarkets. Veterinarians have been very much a part of these changes in human-animal relationships. Indeed, the development of their profession—from horse doctor to medical scientist—provides an important perspective on these significant transformations in America's social, cultural, and economic history.In Valuing Animals, Susan D. Jones, trained as both veterinarian and historian, traces the rise of veterinary medicine and its impact on the often conflicting ways in which Americans have assessed the utility and worth of domesticated creatures. She first looks at how the eclipse of the horse by motorized vehicles in the early years of the century created a crisis for veterinary education, practice, and research. In response, veterinarians intensified their activities in making the livestock industry more sanitary and profitable. Beginning in the 1930s, veterinarians turned to the burgeoning number of house pets whose sentimental value to their owners translated into new market opportunities. Jones describes how vets overcame their initial doubts about the significance of this market and began devising new treatments and establishing appropriate standards of care, helping to create modern pet culture.Americans today value domestic animals for reasons that typically combine exploitation and companionship. Both controversial and compelling, Valuing Animals uncovers the extent to which veterinary medicine has shaped—and been shaped by—this contradictory attitude.
Valuing Assessment in Science Education: Pedagogy, Curriculum, Policy
by Alister Jones Richard Gunstone Deborah CorriganAssessment is a fundamental issue in research in science education, in curriculum development and implementation in science education as well as in science teaching and learning. This book takes a broad and deep view of research involving assessment in science education, across contexts and cultures (from whole countries to individual classrooms) and across forms and purposes (from assessment in the service of student learning to policy implications of system wide assessment). It examines the relationships between assessment, measurement and evaluation; explores assessment philosophies and practices in relation to curriculum and scientific literacy/learning; and details the relationships between assessment and science education policy. The third in a series, Valuing Assessment in Science Education has chapters from a range of international scholars from across the globe and staff from Monash University, King's College London and University of Waikato. The two previous books in the series examined research relevant to the re-emergence of values in science education and teaching across the spectrum of science education as well as across cultural contexts through the professional knowledge of science teaching. This third book now moves to examine different aspects of generating understanding about what science is learnt, how it is learnt, and how it is valued. Valuing Assessment in Science Education will appeal to all those with some engagement with and/or use of research in science education, including research students, academics, curriculum development agencies, assessment authorities, and policy makers. It will also be of interest to all classroom science teachers who seek to keep abreast of the latest research and development and thinking in their area of professional concern.
Valuing Ecosystem Services: Toward Better Environmental Decision-making
by National Research Council of the National AcademiesNutrient recycling, habitat for plants and animals, flood control, and water supply are among the many beneficial services provided by aquatic ecosystems. In making decisions about human activities, such as draining a wetland for a housing development, it is essential to consider both the value of the development and the value of the ecosystem services that could be lost. Despite a growing recognition of the importance of ecosystem services, their value is often overlooked in environmental decision-making. This report identifies methods for assigning economic value to ecosystem services—even intangible ones—and calls for greater collaboration between ecologists and economists in such efforts.