- General Note:
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"Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity; United Nations Development Programme; United Nations Environment Programme; IUCN--The World Conservation Union."
- Bibliography, etc. Note:
- Includes bibliographical references (pages 445-514) and index.
- Formatted Contents Note:
- Foreword / Edward O. Wilson -- Prologue / Kofi Annan -- 1: What Is Biodiversity? / Stuart L. Pimm, Maria Alice S Alves, Eric Chivian, Aaron Bernstein -- Determining rates of species extinction -- Secondary extinctions -- Loss of populations and genes -- Conclusion -- Suggested readings -- 2: How Is Biodiversity Threatened By Human Activity? / Eric Chivian and Aaron Bernstein -- Habitat loss : on land -- Habitat loss : in the oceans -- Habitat loss : fresh water -- Overexploitation -- Introduced species -- Infectious diseases -- Pollution -- Ultraviolet radiation -- War and conflict -- Global climate change -- Suggested readings -- 3: Ecosystem Services / Jerry Melillo and Osvaldo Sala -- Character of ecosystem services -- Economic value of ecosystem services -- Threats to ecosystem services -- Conclusion -- Suggested readings -- 4: Medicines From Nature / David J Newman, John Kilama, Aaron Bernstein and Eric Chivian -- Why natural medicines? -- History of natural products as medicines -- Role of traditional medicine in drug discovery -- South American indigenous medicines -- Review of some medicines derived from nature -- Herbal medicines in industrialized countries -- Potential medicines in food -- Natural products as insecticides and fungicides -- Conclusion -- Suggested readings -- 5: Biodiversity And Biomedical Research / Eric Chivian, Aaron Bernstein, and Joshua P. Rosenthal -- Brief history of biomedical research -- Role of animals and microbes in biomedical research -- Conclusion -- Suggested readings -- 6: Threatened Groups Of Organisms Valuable To Medicine / Eric Chivian and Aaron Bernstein -- Amphibians -- Bears -- Primates -- Gymnosperms -- Cone snails -- Sharks -- Horseshoe crabs -- Conclusion -- Suggested readings -- 7: Ecosystem Disturbance, Biodiversity Loss, And Human Infectious Disease / David H. Molyneux, Richard S. Ostfeld, Aaron Bernstein and Eric Chivian -- Ecosystem disturbances and their effects on infectious diseases -- Vector, pathogen, and host diversity and human infectious disease -- Biological controls -- Species exploitation and the consumption of bushmeat -- Climate change and its effects on infectious diseases -- Conclusion -- Suggested readings -- 8: Biodiversity And Food Production / Daniel Hillel and Cynthia Rosenzweig -- Historical background -- Agriculture -- Livestock production -- Food from aquatic systems -- Conclusion -- Suggested readings -- 9: Genetically Modified Foods And Organic Farming / Eric Chivian and Aaron Bernstein -- Genetically modified foods -- Organic farming -- Integrated farming -- Conclusion -- Suggested readings -- 10: What Individuals Can Do To Help Conserve Biodiversity / Jeffrey A McNeely, Eleanor Sterling and Kalemani Jo Mulongoy -- What are we doing to our planet? -- Why do we consume so much? -- How can we conserve biodiversity? -- Some collective actions that have made a difference -- Individuals who have made a difference -- Ten things we all can do that can help conserve biodiversity -- Suggested readings -- Appendix A: Co-sponsors of sustaining life : how human health depends on biodiversity -- Appendix B: Treaties, conventions, and intergovernmental organizations for the conservation of biodiversity -- Appendix C: Nongovernmental organizations working to conserve biodiversity.
- Target Audience Note:
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1600L Lexile
