William B. Meyer – författare

This revealing book synthesizes research from many fields to offer the first complete history of the roles played by weather and climate in American life from colonial times to the present. Author William B. Meyer characterizes weather events as neutral phenomena that are inherently neither hazards nor resources, but can become either depending on the activities with which they interact. Meyer documents the ways in which different kinds of weather throughout history have represented hazards and resources not only for such exposed outdoor pursuits as agriculture, warfare, transportation, construction, and recreation, but for other realms of life ranging from manufacturing to migration to human health. He points out that while the weather and climate by themselves have never determined the course of human events, their significance as been continuously altered for better and for worse by the evolution of American life.

The Earth as Transformed by Human Action is the culmination of a mammoth undertaking involving the examination of the toll our continual strides forward, technical and social, take on our world. The purpose of such a study is to document the changes in the biosphere that have taken place over the last 300 years, to contrast global patterns of change to those appearing on a regional level, and to explain the major human forces that have driven these changes. The first section deals strictly with the major human forces of the past 300 years and the second is a detailed account of the transformations of the global environment wrought by human action. The final section examines a range of perspectives and theories that purport to explain human actions with regard to the biosphere.

At a level accessible to the educated lay reader, this book describes the changes human activities have produced in the global environment from 300 years ago to the present day. It offers a comprehensive and authoritative inventory of human impact in its varied forms - on the oceans, atmosphere, and climate - ranging from long-standing alterations to new and surprising ones that have emerged in recent years, from environmental disasters to success stories of environmental management, and false alarms. This balanced, non-polemical survey will interest all those concerned about the environment and the likely fate of the planet.

Uncovers the facts behind the celebrated 1889 case of Riggs v. Palmer and shows how they transform our understanding of the decision.In 1882, Elmer Palmer was convicted of poisoning his grandfather Francis in rural northern New York State. In a famous decision in 1889, the New York Court of Appeals denied Elmer the right to inherit from Francis, even though the statute governing wills seemed to entitle him to the legacy. Twentieth-century commentators have treated Riggs v. Palmer as a model of the judicial craft and a key to understanding the nature of law itself; however, the case's history suggests that it is neither of these things. In its own time, the decision was radically at odds with legal doctrine as then understood by American judges. Rather than a quintessentially principled ruling, it was most likely ad hoc and ad hominem, concocted to thwart a particular individual thought to have been punished too lightly for his crime. The book illustrates the value of two approaches to interpreting decisions, those of "case biography" and "legal archaeology." Both draw upon historical sources neglected in conventional legal scholarship. In doing so, they may challenge-or confirm-the validity as precedent today of classic cases from the past.

Uncovers the facts behind the celebrated 1889 case of Riggs v. Palmer and shows how they transform our understanding of the decision.In 1882, Elmer Palmer was convicted of poisoning his grandfather Francis in rural northern New York State. In a famous decision in 1889, the New York Court of Appeals denied Elmer the right to inherit from Francis, even though the statute governing wills seemed to entitle him to the legacy. Twentieth-century commentators have treated Riggs v. Palmer as a model of the judicial craft and a key to understanding the nature of law itself; however, the case's history suggests that it is neither of these things. In its own time, the decision was radically at odds with legal doctrine as then understood by American judges. Rather than a quintessentially principled ruling, it was most likely ad hoc and ad hominem, concocted to thwart a particular individual thought to have been punished too lightly for his crime. The book illustrates the value of two approaches to interpreting decisions, those of "case biography" and "legal archaeology." Both draw upon historical sources neglected in conventional legal scholarship. In doing so, they may challenge-or confirm-the validity as precedent today of classic cases from the past.

This book is devoted to the exploration of environmental Prometheanism, the belief that human beings can and should master nature and remake it for the better. This book appeals to anyone with an interest in environmental politics, environmental history, global history, geography andAnthropocene studies.

In each case, the authors draw on the insights and approaches of geography, the academic discipline most conversant with the interactions of society and environment, to challenge the widespread acceptance that such approaches have won.

This book is devoted to the exploration of environmental Prometheanism, the belief that human beings can and should master nature and remake it for the better. This book appeals to anyone with an interest in environmental politics, environmental history, global history, geography andAnthropocene studies.