Synopses & Reviews
With a complex assemblage of largely intact ecosystems that support the earth's greatest diversity of life, the Amazon basin is a focal point of international scientific interest. And, as development and colonization schemes transform the landscape in increasing measure, scientists from around the world are directing attention to questions of regional and global significance. Some of these qustions are: What are the fluxes of greenhouse gases across the atmospheric interface of ecosystems? How mush carbon is stored in the biomass and soils of the basin? How are elements from the land transferred to the basin's surface waters? What is the sum of elements transferred from land to ocean, and what is its marine "fate"? This book of original chapters by experts in chemical and biological oceanography, tropical agronomy and biology, and the atmospheric sciences will address these and other important questions, with the aim of synthesizing the current knowledge of biochemical processes operating within and between the various ecosystems in the Amazon basin.
Review
"I recommend this book for those researchers and policy makers working in the Brazilian Amazon or similar tropical settings having similar geology."--Hydrological Processes
"[T]his setting of ... concerns about carbon sources/ sinks within the social context of land utilisation is refreshing. ... a comprehensive look at progress ... fascinating, well written and readable ... I would strongly recommend it for every library, and for anyone interested in the reported environmental changes associated with the Amazon forests."--Geoscientist
Synopsis
Overgrowth Syndromes presents a broad yet in-depth discussion of child ren who are large at birth or experience excessive postnatal growth or some combination of increased weight, length, and head circumference. Many of these syndromes are associated with an increased frequency of tumors. The book is important because of the ever-increasing number o f newly identified overgrowth syndromes and the rapid progression of m olecular knowledge of these conditions. It covers: Beckwith Wiedemann syndrome, Simpson-Golabi-Behmel syndrome, Sotos syndrome, Proteus synd rome, Bannayan-Riley-Ruvalcaba syndrome, Klippel-Trenaunay syndrome, n eurofibromatosis, and fragile X syndrome, among other topics. The boo k is encyclopedic in scope. It will be of value to pediatricians, medi cal geneticists, oncologists, hematologists, surgeons, pathologists, r adiologists, dermatologists, nephrologists, and molecular biologists.
Table of Contents
1. The Relevance of Biogeochemistry to Amazon Development and Conservation,
Michael McClain2. General Characteristic and Variability of Climate in the Amazon Basin and its Links to the Global Climate System, Jose A. Marengo and Carlos A. Nobre
3. The Atmospheric Component of Biogeochemical Cycles in the Amazon Basin, Paulo Artaxo
4. Soil Versus Biological Controls on Nutrient Cycling in Terra Firme Forests, Elvira Cuevas
5. Nutrient Cycling as a Function of Landscape and Biotic Characteristics in the Cerrados of Central Brazil, M. Haridasan
6. Linking Biogeochemical Cycles to Cattle Pasture Management and Sustainability in the Amazon Basin, Moacyr B. Dias-Filho, Eric A. Davidson and Claudio J. Reis de Carvalho
7. Nutrient Considerations in the Use of Silviculture for Land Development and Rehabilitation in the Amazon, Florencia Montagnini
8. Extractive Reserves and Participatory Research as Factors in the Biogeochemistry of the Amazon Basin, Foster Brown, Karen Kainer and Eufran do Amaral
9. The Recovery of Biomass, Nutrient Stocks, and Deep-Soil Functions in Secondary Forests, Daniel Nepstad, Paulo R.S. Moutinho and Daniel Markewitz
10. The Interface Between Economics and Nutrient Cycling in Amazon Land Development, Carl F. Jordan
11. Carbon Storage in Biomass and Soils, Martial Bernoux, et al.
12. Terrestrial Inputs to Amazon Streams and Internal Biogeochemical Processing, Michael E. McClain and Helmut Elsenbeer
13. Geo-ecological controls on elemental fluxes in communities of higher plants in Amazonian floodplains, Maria Tereza F. Piedade, Martin Worbes and Wolfgang J. Junk
14. Biogeochemistry of Amazon Floodplain Lakes and Associated Wetlands, John M. Melack and Bruce R. Forsberg
15. Organic Matter and Nutrients in the Mainstem Amazon River, Allan H. Devol and John I. Hedges
16. Trace Elements in the Mainstem Amazon River, Patrick T. Seyler and Gerald R. Boaventura
17. Biogeochemical Processes on the Amazon Shelf: Changes in Dissolved Particulate Fluxes During River/Ocean Mixing, David J. DeMaster and Robert C. Aller