Human Adaptability: An Introduction to Ecological Anthropology

by Moran,Emilio F.

• ISBN13: 9780813343679
• ISBN10: 0813343674
• Edition: 3rd
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2007-12-25
• Publisher: Routledge

Summary

Designed to help students understand the multiple levels at which human populations respond to their surroundings, this essential text offers the most complete discussion of environmental, physiological, behavioural and cultural adaptive strategies available. Among the unique features that make Human Adaptability outstanding as both a textbook for students and a reference book for professionals are a complete discussion of the development of ecological anthropology and relevant research methods; the use of an ecosystem approach with emphasis on arctic, high altitude, arid land, grassland and tropical rain forest environments; an extensive bibliography on ecological anthropology; and a comprehensive glossary of technical terms. Entirely new to the third edition are chapters on urban sustainability and methods of spatial analysis, with enhanced emphasis throughout on the role of gender in human adaptability research and on global environmental issues as they affect particular ecosystems. In addition, brand-new sections in each chapter guide students to websites that provide access to relevant material, complement the text's coverage of biomes and suggest ways to become active in environmental issues.

Author Biography

Emilio F. Moran is Distinguished Professor and James H. Rudy Professor of anthropology, professor of environmental sciences and adjunct professor of geography, Director of the Anthropological Center for Training and Research on Global Environmental Change, and Codirector of the Center for the Study of Institutions, Populations, and Environmental Change at Indiana University

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations	p. xi
Preface to the Third Edition	p. xv
List of Acronyms	p. xxi
Environmental Anthropology: History, Theory, and Method
People in Ecosystems	p. 3
Human Adaptability as a Response to Constraints	p. 6
Modeling	p. 11
Energy	p. 14
Matter	p. 18
Information	p. 20
Ecosystems and Global Change	p. 22
Suggested Readings and Useful Websites	p. 23
Note	p. 25
Theories of Human-Habitat Interaction	p. 27
Environmental Determinism	p. 28
Cultural Determinism: Nature as a Limiting Factor	p. 31
Human Adaptation to Environment	p. 34
Cultural Ecology: Comparison in Human-Environment Research	p. 39
Applications of the Cultural Ecological Method	p. 41
Ecological Anthropology	p. 47
Ethnoecological and Cognitive Approaches	p. 50
Historical Ecology	p. 51
Political Ecology	p. 53
Political Economy and Human Adaptability	p. 55
Suggested Readings and Useful Websites	p. 56
Notes	p. 58
Fundamental Concepts and Methods	p. 61
Ecosystem Relationships	p. 61
Soils and Plant Productivity	p. 68
Physiological Responses	p. 77
Sociocultural Regulatory Adjustments	p. 83
Information and Decisions: Toward Actor-Based Approaches	p. 86
Suggested Readings and Useful Websites	p. 89
Note	p. 91
Environmental Change and Spatial Analysis	p. 93
The Challenge of Scale and Levels of Analysis	p. 95
Human Adaptability to Global Environmental Change	p. 98
The Use of Remote Sensing and GIS in the Social Sciences	p. 100
Experimental Approaches in the Social Sciences	p. 113
Spatial Analysis and the Study of Institutions	p. 115
Suggested Readings and Useful Websites	p. 117
Notes	p. 120
Studies of Human Adaptability
Human Adaptability to Arctic Zones	p. 123
The Arctic Ecosystem	p. 124
Adaptation to Cold Stress	p. 130
Coping with Snow and Sea Ice	p. 136
Adaptation to Prolonged Light and Darkness	p. 139
Coping with Low Biological Productivity	p. 142
Change in the Arctic	p. 146
Suggested Readings and Useful Websites	p. 151
Note	p. 155
Human Adaptability to High Altitudes	p. 157
Mountain Ecosystems	p. 159
Adaptation to Hypoxia	p. 163
Adaptability to Cold Stress in the Andes	p. 174
Aridity and Low Productivity	p. 176
Climate Change and High Altitude Ecosystems	p. 182
Suggested Readings and Useful Websites	p. 183
Notes	p. 186
Human Adaptability to Arid Lands	p. 189
Desert Ecosystems	p. 190
Adjustments to Dry Heat	p. 196
Utilization of Resources	p. 201
Irrigation	p. 208
Change in Desert Ecosystems	p. 220
Suggested Readings and Useful Websites	p. 222
Human Adaptability to Grasslands	p. 227
Grasslands Ecosystems	p. 229
Herd Management	p. 236
Relations with Cultivators	p. 248
Adaptive Strategies in the Northern Plains	p. 249
Global Change and the Future of Grasslands and Pastoralism	p. 257
Suggested Readings and Useful Websites	p. 259
Human Adaptability to the Humid Tropics	p. 263
Tropical Rain Forest Ecosystems	p. 266
Coping with Ecosystem Complexity	p. 273
Adaptability to Humid Heat	p. 292
Global Change Processes and Alternatives to Deforestation	p. 295
Suggested Readings and Useful Websites	p. 300
Notes	p. 304
Urban Sustainability
Urban Ecology and Urban Sustainability	p. 307
The History of Cities	p. 310
The Ecology of Cities	p. 311
Spatial Aspects of the City: Compact Versus Sprawl Patterns	p. 315
Reducing Dependence on the Automobile	p. 317
Cities and the Upcoming Water Crisis	p. 319
An Integrative View of the Urban Ecosystem	p. 321
The Urban LTERs	p. 323
Final Remarks	p. 324
Suggested Readings and Useful Websites	p. 326
Glossary	p. 331
Bibliography	p. 345
Index	p. 459
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