Title Page -- Copyright Page -- Table of Contents -- Introduction -- About This Book -- Conventions Used in This Book -- What You're Not to Read -- Foolish Assumptions -- How This Book Is Organized -- Part I: Demystifying Science and the Environment -- Part II: Planting the Seed: Foundational Concepts in Environmental Science -- Part III: Getting Your Needs Met: Earth's Natural Resources -- Part IV: Giving a Hoot: Pollution and Environmental Quality -- Part V: Follow the Recycled Brick Road: A Sustainable Future -- Part VI: The Part of Tens -- Icons Used in This Book -- Where to Go from Here -- Part I: Demystifying Science and the Environment -- Chapter 1: Investigating the Environment -- Putting the "Science" in Environmental Science -- Using the scientific method -- Understanding the connection between atoms, energy, and life -- Analyzing the Earth's Physical Systems and Ecosystems -- Sorting the world into climate categories -- Dividing the Earth into ecosystems -- Observing the interactions between organisms within an ecosystem -- Supplies Limited! Natural Resources and Resource Management -- Factoring in food, shelter, and more -- Thinking about energy alternatives -- Keeping Things Habitable -- Clearing the air (and water) -- Tracking toxins and garbage -- Influencing climate -- Imagining the Future -- Realizing a sustainable economy -- Putting it on the books: Environmental policy -- Chapter 2: Lab Coats and Microscopes: Thinking Scientifically -- Asking and Answering Questions with the Scientific Method -- Reasoning one way or another: Inductive versus deductive -- Working through the scientific method -- Presenting Data Graphically -- Quantifying Uncertainty -- Recognizing Good Science When You See It -- Chapter 3: What's the Matter? Living and Nonliving Material -- Changing States of Matter.

Examining Atomic Structure -- Making and Breaking Chemical Bonds -- Ionic bonding -- Covalent bonding -- Hydrogen bonding -- Oxidizing and reducing compounds -- Surveying the Properties of Water -- Taking a closer look at the water molecule -- The unbearable lightness of ice -- What's pH Got to Do with It? Acids and Bases -- Defining acids and bases -- Measuring reactivity with the pH scale -- It's Alive! Organic Matter and Compounds -- Proteins -- Nucleic acids -- Carbohydrates -- Lipids -- Building Organisms One Cell at a Time -- Working together: Cell specialization -- Separating plant cells from animal cells -- Chapter 4: Making Things Happen: Energy -- Identifying the Different Types of Energy -- Transferring heat: Thermal energy -- Setting things in motion: Work and kinetic energy -- Storing potential energy -- Moving in waves -- Defining the Thermodynamic Laws -- Counting Calories (And Joules) -- Converting the Sun's Energy to a Useable Form -- Spinning sugar from sunlight: Photosynthesis -- Waiting to exhale: Respiration -- Part II: Planting the Seed: Foundational Concepts in Environmental Science -- Chapter 5: Studying the Environment and Your Place in It -- Integrating Multiple Disciplines -- Applying Common Tools of Environmental Science -- Reviewing case studies -- Assessing environmental indicators -- Measuring human impacts: The ecofootprint -- Tracing the Development of Modern Environmental Ethics -- Managing for use: Utilitarian conservation -- A life of its own: Preservation of wilderness -- Reducing pollution: Battling pesticides and other toxins -- It's a small world after all: Global environmentalism -- The Overall Goal: Seeking Sustainability -- To Be or Not to Be a Tree-Hugger: Looking Past Political Debates -- Chapter 6: Exploring Ecosystems -- Understanding Systems -- Defining open and closed systems.

Mapping out system dynamics -- Systematically Understanding the Earth's Environment -- Flowing through the hydrologic cycle -- Recognizing important nutrient cycles -- Transferring Energy and Matter through an Ecosystem -- Defining ecosystem boundaries -- Getting caught in the food web -- Measuring productivity -- Building ecological pyramids: Illustrating energy and biomass flow -- Chapter 7: Biogeography: How Earth's Climate Shapes Global Ecosystem Patterns -- Positioning Ecosystems: Latitude and Altitude -- Recognizing Major Climate Drivers -- Bringing on the heat: Differential absorption of the sun's energy -- The wide blue yonder: Atmospheric circulation -- Making waves around the globe: Patterns of ocean circulation -- Separating the Globe into Biomes -- Tundra to tropics: Terrestrial biomes -- Depending on depth: Aquatic biomes -- Swimming out to sea: Ocean ecosystems -- Chapter 8: Playing Well with Others: Population Biology -- Characterizing a Population -- Predicting Population Change -- Regulating populations with different growth factors -- Modeling population growth -- Reproducing strategies -- Watching Species Interact -- Survival of the fittest: Competition -- Eat or be eaten: Predation -- Mutually surviving: Symbiosis -- From Indicator Species to Ecosystem Engineers: Filling Every Niche -- Working Together: Biological Communities -- Succeeding through different stages -- Responding to disturbances -- The People Principle: Human Population Biology -- Tracking exponential growth -- Calculating population size -- Diagramming age structure -- Experiencing a demographic transition -- Getting caught in a demographic trap -- Understanding human impacts -- Part III: Getting Your Needs Met: Earth's Natural Resources -- Chapter 9: Water, Water Everywhere: Freshwater Resources.

Thirsty for More: The Never-Ending Need for Fresh Water -- Withdrawal versus consumption -- Scarcity and stress -- Meeting human water needs -- Finding Fresh Water -- Diverting surface flow -- Tapping what flows below: Groundwater -- Conserving Fresh Water -- Creating Fresh Water -- Chapter 10: This Land Belongs to You and Me: Land as a Resource -- Sharing Land -- Watching a tragedy unfold: Land resource depletion -- Classifying shared land -- Managing Land Resources -- Timber! Harvesting the forest -- Grazing the grasslands -- Questioning Smokey the Bear: Fire management -- Considering the Connection between Urbanization and Land Use -- Sprawling across the horizon -- Growing smarter -- Chapter 11: Dishing It Up: Food Resources -- Seeking Food Security -- Identifying the factors that lead to famine -- Eating for health -- Feeding the world: The green revolution -- Digging in the Dirt: Components of Healthy Soil -- Learning the ABC's of soil -- Considering erosion: The removal of topsoil -- The Pitfalls of Pesticides -- Concocting a formula for every pest -- Running in circles: The pesticide treadmill -- Spreading poisons far and wide -- "Frankenfood": Genetically Modifying Food -- Splicing and dicing chromosomes -- Debating GMOs -- Considering the ethical issues related to GMOs -- Farming Fish and Other Animals -- Eating less efficiently -- Confining animals for mass production -- Farming fish -- Establishing Sustainable Agriculture -- Conserving soil -- Integrating pest management -- Defining Organic -- Chapter 12: Greater Than the Sum of Its Parts: Biodiversity -- Variety Is the Spice of Life: Defi ning Biodiversity -- Examining species richness and evenness -- Benefitting from biodiversity -- Becoming Biodiverse: Evolution by Natural Selection -- Combining genetic material -- Selecting for survival.

The HIPPO in the Room: Major Threats to Biodiversity -- Habitat destruction -- Invasive species -- Pollution -- Population growth (of the human variety) -- Overharvesting -- Creating Effective Conservation Plans -- Of singular importance: The species approach to conservation -- Size does matter: Preserving entire ecosystems -- Chapter 13: Hitting the Hard Stuff: Geologic Resources and Energy -- Getting to Know the Earth -- Finding Value in Rocks -- Rocks and minerals -- Metals and ores -- Extracting Geologic Resources -- Scraping the surface: Surface mining -- Digging deep: Subsurface mining -- Forming and Depleting Fossil Fuels -- Creating rocks from life -- Down and dirty: Mining and burning coal -- Perusing petroleum and natural gas resources -- Reacting to Nuclear Energy -- Splitting atoms: Nuclear fi ssion -- Fusing atoms: Nuclear fusion -- The once and future fuel: Debating nuclear energy -- Chapter 14: Shifting Gears: Alternative Energy -- Looking for Alternative Energy -- Farming Fuel: Biofuel Energy Sources -- Biomass -- Biodiesel, ethanol, and other liquid biofuels -- Methane gas -- Harnessing Energy from Water -- Damming rivers: Hydropower -- Feeling the pull: Tidal and wave energy -- Getting Steamed: Geothermal Energy -- Soaking Up the Sun: Solar Energy -- Chasing Windmills: Wind Energy -- Energy on Demand: Creating Fuel Cells -- Making the Most of the Energy You Already Have: Energy Conservation -- Cogenerating: A two-for-one deal -- Building smarter power grids -- Getting around town more effi ciently -- Capturing energy at home -- Part IV: Giving a Hoot: Pollution and Environmental Quality -- Chapter 15: Breathing Room: Addressing Manmade Air Pollution -- Sorting Out Common Pollutants -- Observing the Effects of Air Pollution -- Losing vegetation -- Tinting the sky a hazy shade of brown.

Trapping pollutants: Temperature inversion and smog.