Focus on Biodiversity ResearchJan Schwartz Biological diversity, or "biodiversity," refers to the variety of all life on earth, and the complex relationships among living things, and between living things and their environment. Biodiversity includes genetic variety, species diversity, and variability in communities, ecosystems and landscapes. Biodiversity sustains the environments in which we live and on which our lives and those of every other living creature on Earth depend. Thanks to biodiversity, we are able to obtain such necessary goods as food, clothing, medicine, and fuel. Equally important are the ecosystem services that biodiversity provides, such as clean air and drinkable water. Conservation scientists have identified a number of universal threats to biodiversity: habitat loss and degradation, invasive species, pollution, overpopulation, overexploitation and consumption, and global climate change. This book examines critical issues in this field from researchers around the globe. |
Contents
| 1 | |
BIODIVERSITY AND CLIMATE CHANGE A MODELING PERSCPECTIVE | 27 |
DRUG DISCOVERY BIODIVERSITY CONSERVATION AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT A MICOROLOAN PROGRAM AT CUC PHUONG C... | 43 |
HISPANIOLAN SPIDER BIODIVERSITY AND THE IMPORTANCE OF COMBINING NEONTOLOGICAL AND PALAEONTOLOGICAL DATA ... | 63 |
ON THE STRUCTURE OF BIODIVERSITY SOME METAPHYSICAL ESSAYS | 101 |
SPONTANEOUS PATTERNS FORMATION AND DIVERSITY IN SPATIALLY STRUCTURED EVOLUTION ECOLOGY | 115 |
Common terms and phrases
acid activity adhesins adhesion agriculture animals anthrax antimalarial apicoplast Araneae areas artemisinin atherosclerosis autoimmune biodiversity biogeography biological diversity biomass biota birds Bryant cells chemical climate change clinical conservation constitutional immunity Cuc Phuong Commune disruptive selection distribution Dominican amber Dong drug discovery ecological ecosystems effects environmental enzyme epidemic erythrocytes evolutionary extant extinction families fauna Figure forest fossil function gene genetic diversity genetic immunity genome global gradients habitat Hispaniola human hybrid zones ICBG increase individual infection infectious agents infectious diseases influenza influenza virus interactions isoniazid loan malaria mammals meningococcal mice microbes Miocene models molecules Mycobacterium tuberculosis mycolic acids natural products obesity organisms parasite pathogenic Penney phylogenetic Pimentel plant species Plasmodium falciparum population protein receptors reductase relevant resistance result Salmonella Salticidae schizophrenia senescence sensitivity shikimate soil spatial species richness species turnover spider structure studies susceptible synthase target taxa taxonomic groups tissue transects viruses Wunderlich