1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910797837603321

Autore

Bardgett Richard D.

Titolo

Earth matters : how soil underlies civilization / / Richard D. Bardgett

Pubbl/distr/stampa

Oxford, England ; ; New York, New York : , : Oxford University Press, , 2016

©2016

ISBN

0-19-191833-4

0-19-164563-X

Edizione

[First edition.]

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (216 p.)

Collana

Oxford scholarship online

Disciplina

574.90948

Soggetti

Soil biology

Soil and civilization

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Note generali

This edition previously issued in print: 2016.

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Nota di contenuto

Cover; EARTH MATTERS: How soil underlies civilization; Copyright; Dedication; PREFACE; ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS; CONTENTS; LIST OF FIGURES; 1: Soil and the Distant Past; PARENT MATERIAL; TOPOGRAPHY; CLIMATE; THE BIOTIC FACTOR; TIME; MAN AS A SOIL-FORMER; 2: Soil and Biodiversity; A JOURNEY ACROSS THE GLOBE; A WALK IN THE PARK; SOIL BIODIVERSITY AND TIME; DOES SOIL BIODIVERSITY MATTER?; THE ENGINEERS; THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UGLY; 3: Soil and the Grower; EARLY IDEAS ON SOIL FERTILITY; THE GREEN REVOLUTION; SOIL DEGRADATION; LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL; TERROIR; 4: Soil and the City

ASPHALT, BRICKS, AND CONCRETETHE HIDDEN SOILS OF THE CITY; THE SPORTS PITCH; CONTAMINATED SOIL; NIGHT SOIL; 5: Soil and War; MUD AND THE FIRST WORLD WAR; THE MUD MARCH AND WATERLOO; TUNNELS OF WAR; BOMBTURBATION; AGENT ORANGE; DEPLETED URANIUM; FALLOUT FROM NUCLEAR WEAPONS; DIG FOR VICTORY; 6: Soil and Climate Change; THE GREENHOUSE GASES; SOIL AS A CARBON SINK; CLIMATE CHANGE AND SOIL CARBON CYCLING; CLIMATE, PLANTS, AND SOILS; STORING CARBON; 7: Soil and the Future; NOTES AND REFERENCES; INDEX; COLLIDING CONTINENTS: A geological exploration of the Himalaya, Karakoram, and Tibet

THE EMERALD PLANET: How plants changed Earth's historyTHE



GOLDILOCKS PLANET The 4 billion year story of Earth's climate; OCEAN WORLDS: The story of seas on Earth and other planets; THE PLANET IN A PEBBLE: A journey into Earth's deep history; WAKING THE GIANT: How a changing climate triggers earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanoes

Sommario/riassunto

'Earth Matters' describes the importance of soil, the many ways in which we depend on it, and how humans have worked with the soil throughout history. Exploring the reasons for increasing recognition and respect for soil even among town and city dwellers, Bardgett concludes with a look at current efforts to stop widespread soil degradation.