In recent years there has been an emerging interest in the process by which operational research is carried out in organisations. This has been driven by the rapid developments which have taken place in the discipline throughout the 1980s. During this time Operational Research (OR) has undergone a period of significant reappraisal and as a result a deeper understanding of OR and its use in an organisational setting has been gained. This book provides a broad historical context within which these recent developments can be evaluated and future change can be anticipated. Paul Keys brings together a collection of 19 readings drawn from the 1940s to the 1990s. Arranged in four chronologically ordered sections with introductory essays providing a thematic structure, this material acts as signpost to the major steps in the developments and understanding of OR as it is practiced. The book provides an opportunity for students who are not quantitatively oriented to appreciate the and strengths of the OR approach and will provide undergraduates and graduates with complementary reading to the standard techniques-based OR texts.

Achen builds a working philosophy of regression analysis that goes beyond the abstract, unrealistic treatment given in previous texts. What does it mean to say that one variable is more important than another? How can regression results be used? Achen sets out the procedures researchers employ, places them in the framework of statistical theory, and shows how good research takes account of both statistical theory and the demands of the real world.

About this book
Together with its companion Volume 190 Wetlands and Natural Resource Management, this volume gives a broad and well-integrated overview of recent major scientific results in wetland science and their applications in natural resource management issues.
After an introduction into the field, 12 chapters contributed by internationally known experts summarize the state of the art on a particular subject. They are divided into the following three sections:
• Functioning of Plants and Animals in Wetlands
• Conservation and Management of Wetlands
• Wetland Restoration and Creation

This second edition combines information from the original two books, Statistics from Scratch and Statistics Further from Scratch, to make one, comprehensive, user friendly, down-to-earth guide to elementary statistics. The book presents a detailed account of the most important procedures for the analysis of data, from the calculation of simple proportions, to a variety of statistical tests, and the use of regression models for modeling of clinical outcomes. The level of mathematics is kept to a minimum to make the material easily accessible to the novice, and a multitude of illustrative cases are included in every chapter, drown from the current research literature.

R is a powerful and free software system for data analysis and graphics, with over 1,200 add-on packages available. This book introduces R using SAS and SPSS terms with which you are already familiar. It demonstrates which of the add-on packages are most like SAS and SPSS and compares them to R’s built-in functions. It steps through over 30 programs written in all three packages, comparing and contrasting the packages’ differing approaches. The programs and practice datasets are available for download.

The glossary defines over 50 R terms using SAS/SPSS jargon and again using R jargon. The table of contents and the index allow you to find equivalent R functions by looking up both SAS statements and SPSS commands. When finished, you will be able to import data, manage and transform it, create publication quality graphics, and perform basic statistical analyses.

It is a well-known fact that eutrophication of coastal waters causes significant changes in the species composition of the primary producers. Usually a shift from an ecosystem dominated by sea grasses or large brown algae to an ecosystem dominated by fast-growing green algae or phytoplankton is observed. While this shift has been documented in a number of research papers and books, the consequences of this shift are less well known. This book focuses on the consequences of such changes for nutrient cycling.

The aim is to investigate how different types of primary producers influence nutrient cycling in coastal marine waters, and how nutrient cycling changes qualitatively and quantitatively as a consequence of the changes in the primary producer community caused by eutrophication. The various chapters address specific ecological processes such as grazing, decomposition, burial and export of biomass from the ecosystem. The book is intended for researchers and professionals working in the field of coastal marine ecology and estuarine ecology and for advanced students in this field.

Grasslands are characterized as lands dominated by grasses rather than large shrubs or trees. In the Miocene and Pliocene Epochs, which spanned a period of about 25 million years, mountains rose in western North America and created a continental climate favorable to grasslands. Ancient forests declined and grasslands became widespread. Following the Pleistocene Ice Ages, grasslands expanded in range as hotter and drier climates prevailed worldwide.

Written by a team of leading international specialists, Behavioral Ecology of Insect Parasitoids examines the optimal behaviors that parasitoids exhibit in order to maximize long term offspring production. It is an essential reference for research scientists and students studying these fascinating insects or for anyone involved in using parasitoids in biological control programs.

Reviews topical issues, including cutting edge research on parasitoid decision making and the implications for biological control
Explores applications in other fields, provides information on the latest research methods, and includes helpful case studies and statistical tools
Creates a deeper understanding of the link between behavioural strategies and host mortality, resulting in more efficient selective pest management programs

Methods in Stream Ecology provies a complete series of field and laboratory protocols in stream ecology that are ideal for teaching or conducting research. This new edition is updated to reflect recent advances in the technology associated with ecological assessment of streams, including remote sensing. In addition, the relationship between stream flow and alluviation has been added, and a new chapter on riparian zones is also included. With a student-friendly price, this Second Edition is key for all students and researchers in stream and freshwater ecology, freshwater biology, marine ecology, and river ecology. This text is also supportive as a supplementary text for courses in watershed ecology/science, hydrology, fluvial geomorphology, and landscape ecology.

Allee effects are (broadly) defined as a decline in individual fitness at low population size or density. They can result in critical population thresholds below which populations crash to extinction. As such, they are very relevant to many conservation programmes, where scientists and
managers are often working with populations that have been reduced to low densities or small numbers. There are a variety of mechanisms that can create Allee effects including mating systems, predation, environmental modification, and social interactions. The abrupt and unpredicted collapses of many
exploited populations is just one illustration of the need to bring Allee effects to the forefront of conservation and management strategies.
Allee Effects in Ecology and Conservation provides a concise yet authoritative overview of the topic, collating and integrating a widely dispersed literature from various fields - marine and terrestrial, plant and animal, theoretical and empirical, academic and applied. This accessible text, with
its clear and simple explanations of both empirical observations and theoretical predications is particularly suitable for professional and academic ecologists requiring an overview of the state-of-the-art in Allee effect research, as well as for graduate students in population ecology and
conservation biology. It will also be of relevance to a wide readership of professionals in conservation and management requiring a concise summary of the topic.

The main impetus for climate change is the elevated concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide and air pollutants arise largely from the same industrial sources and are diffused throughout the world, so that air pollution is also part of global change. The impacts on plants have complex interrelationships and lead to changes in land cover and atmospheric and soil environments. Plant metabolism of CO2 and air pollutants and gas fluxes in plant ecosystems influence global gas cycles as well. This book includes current topics on plant metabolism of air pollutants and elevated CO2, responses of whole plants and plant ecosystems, genetics and molecular biology for functioning improvement, experimental ecosystems and climate change research, global carbon-cycle monitoring in plant ecosystems, and other important issues. The authors, conducting research in Europe, the United States, Australia, and East Asia, present a wealth of information on their work in the field.

Research in tropical forestry is confronted with the task of finding strategies to alleviate pressure on remaining forests, and techniques to enhance forest regeneration and restore abandoned lands, using productive alternatives that can be attractive to local human populations. In addition, sustainable forestry in tropical countries must be supported by adequate policies to promote and maintain specific activities at local and regional scales.

Here, a multi-disciplinary approach is presented, to better the understanding of tropical forest ecology, as a necessary step in developing adequate strategies for conservation and management. The authors have long experience in both academic and practical matters related to tropical forest ecology and management.

The goal of this transdisciplinary book is to identify the problems and challenges facing implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) – from the global, regional and local points of view. The valuation and conservation of biodiversity constitute critical first steps necessary for the adequate protection of the environment. The authors give insights into the current trends in this field and on the influences the CBD exerts.

This book first synthesises in a complete, accessible way all the basic knowledge provided by the different disciplines of Soil Science. It then proposes integrative concepts and models that organise this knowledge, taking into account the multiple interactions that exist at a number of different scales among the living and inanimate components. This consideration of basic knowledge in a novel integrative approach is necessary to make significant progress in such critical issues as the improvement of the sustainability of soil and land use, the maintenance or restoration of soil quality, the understanding of the function and value of soil biodiversity, the role of soils in carbon sequestration, and the effects of global changes upon their function.

This widely anticipated revision of the groundbreaking book, Ecological Understanding, updates this crucial sourcebook of contemporary philosophical insights for practicing ecologists and graduate students in ecology and environmental studies. The second edition contains new ecological examples, an expanded array of conceptual diagrams and illustrations, new text boxes summarizing important points or defining key terms, and new reference to philosophical issues and controversies. Although the first edition was recognized for its clarity, this revision takes the opportunity to make the exposition of complex topics still clearer to readers without a philosophical background.

Readers will gain an understanding of the goals of science, the structure of theory, the kinds of theory relevant to ecology, the way that theory changes, what constitutes objectivity in contemporary science, and the role of paradigms and frameworks for synthesis within ecology and in integration with other disciplines. Finally, how theory can inform and anchor the public use of ecological knowledge in civic debates is laid out. This new edition refines the understanding of how the structure and change of theory can improve the growth and application of one of the 21st centurys key sciences