Jeffrey A. Lockwood - Böcker

In Six-Legged Soldiers, Jeffrey A. Lockwood paints a brilliant portrait of the many weirdly creative, truly frightening, and ultimately powerful ways in which insects have been used as weapons of war, terror, and torture. He concludes with a critical analysis of today's defenses--and homeland security's dangerous shortcomings--with respect to entomological attacks.Beginning in prehistoric times and building toward a near and disturbing future, the reader is taken on a journey of innovation and depravity. Lockwood, an award-winning science writer, begins with the use of ¨bee bombs¨ in the ancient world and explores the role of insect-borne disease in changing the course of major battles, from Napoleon's military campaigns to the trenches of World War I. He explores the horrific programs of insect weaponization during World War II: airplanes designed to drop plague-infested fleas, facilities rearing tens of millions of crop-devouring beetles, and prison camps where doctors tested disease-carrying lice on inmates. The Cold War saw secret government operations involving the mass release of specially developed strains of mosquitoes on an unsuspecting American public--along with the alleged use of disease-carrying and crop-eating pests against North Korea and Cuba. Lockwood reveals how easy it would be to use insects in warfare and terrorism today, pointing to how domestic eco-terrorists in 1989 extorted government officials and wreaked economic and political havoc by threatening to release the notorious Medfly into California's crops.A remarkable story of human ingenuity--and brutality--Six-Legged Soldiers is the first comprehensive look at the use of insects as weapons of war, from ancient times to the present day.

The papers in this volume were presented at a symposium/workshop on "The Estimation and Analysis of Insect Populations" that was held at the University of Wyoming, Laramie, in January, 1988. The meeting was organized with financial support from the United States - New Zealand Cooperative Science Program and the University of Wyoming. The purpose was to bring together approximately equal numbers of quantitative biologists and biometricians in order to (1) provide a synthesis and evaluation of currently available methods for modeling and estimating parameters of insect population, and to (2) stimulate research into new methods where this is appropriate. The symposium/workshop attracted 46 participants. There were 35 papers presented in four subject areas: analysis of stage-frequency data, modeling of population dynamiCS, analysis of spatial data, and general sampling and estimation methods. New results were presented in all these areas. All except one of the papers is included in the present volume.

Ecologists use a remarkable range of methods and techniques to understand complex, inherently variable, and functionally diverse entities and processes across a staggering range of spatial, temporal and interactive scales. These multiple perspectives make ecology very different to the exemplar of science often presented by philosophers. In Philosophical Foundations for the Practices of Ecology, designed for graduate students and researchers, ecology is put into a new philosophical framework that engages with this inherent pluralism while still placing constraints on the ways that we can investigate and understand nature. The authors begin by exploring the sources of variety in the practice of ecology and how these have led to the current conceptual confusion. They argue that the solution is to adopt the approach of constrained perspectivism and go on to explore the ontological, metaphysical, and epistemological aspects of this position and how it can be used in ecological research and teaching.

Ecologists use a remarkable range of methods and techniques to understand complex, inherently variable, and functionally diverse entities and processes across a staggering range of spatial, temporal and interactive scales. These multiple perspectives make ecology very different to the exemplar of science often presented by philosophers. In Philosophical Foundations for the Practices of Ecology, designed for graduate students and researchers, ecology is put into a new philosophical framework that engages with this inherent pluralism while still placing constraints on the ways that we can investigate and understand nature. The authors begin by exploring the sources of variety in the practice of ecology and how these have led to the current conceptual confusion. They argue that the solution is to adopt the approach of constrained perspectivism and go on to explore the ontological, metaphysical, and epistemological aspects of this position and how it can be used in ecological research and teaching.

An exploration of the environmental and economic costs and benefits of acridids (grasshoppers and locusts) both as essential ecological components and as serious grassland pests. Using a risk analysis approach to examine the ecological role of acridids and the effect of controlling these insects, the authors assess our current understanding of the grasshopper-grassland relationship. They also propose new directions for research and management in acridology and ecology that are consistent with developing a more economically productive and environmentally sustainable human presence on the world's grasslands. The integration of ecological, agricultural, economic, political and cultural perspectives brings into focus the enormous complexity of managing native insect populations in natural ecosystems. This general survey is supported by individual chapters devoted to particularly relevant and contemporary studies of grasshopper and locust ecology, pest management and conservation.

An exploration of the environmental and economic costs and benefits of acridids (grasshoppers and locusts) both as essential ecological components and as serious grassland pests. Using a risk analysis approach to examine the ecological role of acridids and the effect of controlling these insects, the authors assess our current understanding of the grasshopper-grassland relationship. They also propose new directions for research and management in acridology and ecology that are consistent with developing a more economically productive and environmentally sustainable human presence on the world's grasslands. The integration of ecological, agricultural, economic, political and cultural perspectives brings into focus the enormous complexity of managing native insect populations in natural ecosystems. This general survey is supported by individual chapters devoted to particularly relevant and contemporary studies of grasshopper and locust ecology, pest management and conservation.

Exploring censorship imposed by corporate wealth and power, this book focuses on the energy industry in Wyoming, where coal, oil, and gas are pillars of the economy. The author examines how governmental bodies and public institutions have suppressed the expression of ideas that conflict with the financial interests of those who profit from fossil fuels. He reveals the ways in which university administrations, art museums, education boards, and research institutes have been coerced into destroying artwork, abandoning studies, modifying curricula, and firing employees. His book is an eloquent story of the conflict between private wealth and free speech.Providing more of the nation’s energy than any other state, Wyoming is a sociopolitical lens that magnifies the conflicts in the American West. But the issues are relevant to any community that is dependent on a dominant industry—and wherever the liberties of citizens and the ethics of public officials are at risk.

A clear and engaging introduction to the philosophy of science, exploring the role of science within the broader framework of human knowledge and engagement with the worldWhat are the central features and advantages of a scientific worldview? Why do even reasonable scientists sometimes disagree with each other? How are scientific methods different than those of other disciplines? Can science provide an objective account of reality? This is Philosophy of Science introduces the most important philosophical issues that arise within the empirical sciences.Requiring no previous background in philosophy, this reader-friendly volume covers topics ranging from traditional questions about the nature of explanation and the confirmation of theories to practical issues concerning the design of physical experiments and modeling. Incisive and accessible chapters with relevant case-studies and informative illustrations examine the function of thought experiments, discuss the realism/anti-realism debate, explore probability and theory testing, and address more challenging topics such as emergentism, measurement theory, and the manipulationist account of causation. Describes key philosophical concepts and their application in the empirical sciencesHighlights past and present philosophical debates within the fieldFeatures numerous illustrations, real-world examples, and references to additional resourcesIncludes a companion website with self-assessment exercises and instructor-only test banksPart of Wiley-Blackwell’s popular This Is Philosophy series, This is Philosophy of Science: An Introduction is an excellent textbook for STEM students with interest in the conceptual foundations of their disciplines, undergraduate philosophy majors, and general readers looking for an easy-to-read overview of the subject.