Synopses & Reviews
G. Tyler Miller's worldwide bestsellers have evolved right along with the changing needs of your diverse student population. Focused specifically on energizing and engaging all your students, Miller and new contributor Scott Spoolman have been at work scrutinizing every line--enhancing, clarifying, and streamlining to reduce word density as well as updating with the very latest environmental news and research. The resulting texts are shorter, clearer, and so engaging that your students will actually want to read their assignments. The Fifteenth Edition's engaging, streamlined coverage includes over 4,000 updates and new topics; hundreds of new "Thinking About" exercises that engage students in critical thinking about environmental science topics; "Core Case Studies" that reinforce chapter concepts; 127 new photos; and superb, integrated coverage of sustainability! New to this edition for instructors is PowerLecture, a one-stop shop for lecture prep that includes everything you need to create dynamic lectures all in one place.
Synopsis
In this current, thought-provoking environmental science textbook, G. Tyler Miller and new coauthor Scott Spoolman bring the concept of sustainability to the forefront. Students are engaged and motivated with vivid case studies and hands-on quantitative exercises. As the authors showcase four scientific principles of sustainability, they immerse students in the many practical steps they, as individuals, can take toward more sustainable lifestyles. The book?s new concept-centered format transforms complex environmental topics and issues into key concepts that students will understand and remember.
Synopsis
In this current, thought-provoking environmental science textbook, G. Tyler Miller and new coauthor Scott Spoolman bring the concept of sustainability to the forefront. Students are engaged and motivated with vivid case studies and hands-on quantitative exercises. As the authors showcase four scientific principles of sustainability, they immerse students in the many practical steps they, as individuals, can take toward more sustainable lifestyles. The book's new concept-centered format transforms complex environmental topics and issues into key concepts that students will understand and remember.
About the Author
GG. Tyler Miller, Jr., has written 58 textbooks for introductory courses in environmental science, basic ecology, energy, and environmental chemistry. They include ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE, LIVING IN THE ENVIRONMENT, SUSTAINING THE EARTH, and ESSENTIALS OF ECOLOGY. Since 1975, Miller's books have been the most widely used textbooks for environmental science in the United States and throughout the world. They have been used by almost 3 million students and have been translated into eight languages. Miller has a Ph.D. from the University of Virginia and has received two honorary doctorate degrees for his contributions to environmental education. He taught college for 20 years and developed an innovative interdisciplinary undergraduate science program before deciding to write environmental science textbooks full time since 1975. Currently, he is the President of Earth Education and Research, devoted to improving environmental education. He describes his hopes for the future as follows: "If I had to pick a time to be alive, it would be the next 75 years. Why? First, there is overwhelming scientific evidence that we are in the process of seriously degrading our own life support system. In other words, we are living unsustainably. Second, within your [students'] lifetime we have the opportunity to learn how to live more sustainably by working with the rest of nature, as described in this book."
Table of Contents
Part I: HUMANS AND SUSTAINABILITY: AN OVERVIEW. 1. Environmental Problems, Their Causes, and Sustainability. Part II: ECOLOGY AND SUSTAINABILITY. 2. Science, Systems, Matter, and Energy. 3. Ecosystems: What Are They and How Do They Work? 4. Evolution and Biodiversity. 5. Climate and Terrestrial Biodiversity. 6. Aquatic Biodiversity. 7. Community Ecology. 8. Population Ecology. 9. Applying Population Ecology: The Human Population. Part III: SUSTAINING BIODIVERSITY. 10. Sustaining Terrestrial Biodiversity: The Ecosystem Approach. 11. Sustaining Biodiversity: The Species Approach. 12. Sustaining Aquatic Biodiversity. Part IV: SUSTAINING KEY RESOURCES. 13. Food, Soil Conservation, and Pest Management. 14. Water. 15. Geology and Nonrenewable Mineral Resources. 16. Nonrenewable Energy Resources. 17. Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. Part V: SUSTAINING ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY. 18. Environmental Hazards and Human Health. 19. Air Pollution. 20. Climate Change and Ozone Loss. 21. Water Pollution. 22. Solid and Hazardous Waste. Part VI: SUSTAINING HUMAN SOCIETIES. 23. Sustainable Cities. 24. Economics, Environment, and Sustainability. 25. Politics, Environment, and Sustainability. 26. Environmental Worldviews, Ethics, and Sustainability. APPENDICES. 1. Measurement Units, Precision, and Accuracy. 2. Graphing (Science). 3. Environmental Science: Concept Map Overview (Science). 4. Biodiversity and Ecological Footprints (Science). 5. Overview of U.S. Environmental History (Science and History). 6. Norse Greenland, Sumerian, and Icelandic Civilizations (Science and History). 7. Some Basic Chemistry (Science). 8. Classifying and Naming Species (Science). 9. Deforestation and Nutrient Cycling in an Experimental Forest (Science). 10. Weather Basics, El Niño, Tornadoes, and Tropical Cyclones (Science). 11. Earthquakes, Tsunamis, and Volcanic Eruptions (Science). 12. Wolf and Moose Interactions on Isle Royal, Michigan (USA) (Science). 13. Effects of Genetic Variation on Population Size (Science). 14. Shade-Grown Coffee and Tropical Forests (Science). 15. Reducing the Harmful Effects of Insects and Pathogens on Forests (Science). 16. Using the Marketplace to Control Access to Fisheries (Science and Economics). 17. Feeding Japan and China (Science and Economics). 18. Using Isotope Hydrology to Understand Aquifers (Science). 19. The U.S. General Mining Law of 1872 (Economics and Politics). 20. Brief History of the Age of Oil (Science, Economics, and Politics). 21. Maps of Nonrenewable and Renewable Energy Resources (Science). 22. Estimating the Toxicity of a Chemical (Science). 23. Dioxins (Science and Politics). 24. Global Free Trade and the Environment. 25. Philosophy, Religion, Ethics, and Nature. 26. How to Analyze a Scientific Article.