An exciting visual guide to catastrophes that have stunned the world, this book helps the reader understand what happened, and why. Vivid text takes the reader straight into each exciting scene. Richard Bonson's detailed cross-sectional artwork drives home the full impact of each disaster. Full color.
(source: Nielsen Book Data)

本书试图通过对湖南尤其是洞庭湖地区有史以来 各种自然灾害的研究, 探讨灾害发生的规律, 发生的自然原因和社会原因, 造成的影响, 以及历朝历代减灾防灾赈灾救灾政策措施的成败 得失, 为研究者提供较为翔实的历史资料, 为减灾防灾的政府决策提供历史的借鉴.

• Preface
• 1. Planet Earth: in a nutshell
• 2. Global warming: a lot of hot air?
• 3. The Ice Age cometh
• 4. The enemy within - super-eruptions, giant tsunamis, and the coming great quake
• 5. The threat from space - asteroid and comet impacts
• Epilogue
• Further reading
• Index.
• (source: Nielsen Book Data)

Life on earth will come to an end. It's just a matter of when. In this Very Short Introduction, Bill McGuire explores the many potential catastrophes facing our planet and our species in the future, and looks at both the probability of these events happening and our chances of survival. From the likely consequences of global warming to the inevitable destruction of the earth in the far future, McGuire considers a range of 'end of the world scenarios', including the New Ice Age, asteroid and comet impact, supervolcanoes, and mega-tsunami. Updated with a number of recent case studies from around the world, this new edition brings our understanding of global disasters and risk research up to date. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.
(source: Nielsen Book Data)

• Geologic consent : do we have it or not?
• Dynamics and disasters
• When terra isn't firma
• The flying carpet of elm
• The day the mountain blew -- The power of water : tsunamis
• Rogue waves, stormy weather
• Rivers in the sky
• Water, water everywhere, or not a drop to drink
• Earth and us.

In 2011, there were fourteen natural calamities that each destroyed over a billion dollars' worth of property in the United States alone. In 2012, Hurricane Sandy ravaged the East Coast and major earthquakes struck in Italy, the Philippines, Iran, and Afghanistan. In the first half of 2013, the awful drumbeat continued-a monster supertornado struck Moore, Oklahoma; a powerful earthquake shook Sichuan, China; a cyclone ravaged Queensland, Australia; massive floods inundated Jakarta, Indonesia; and the largest wildfire ever engulfed a large part of Colorado. Despite these events, we still behave as if natural disasters are outliers. Why else would we continue to build new communities near active volcanoes, on tectonically active faults, on flood plains, and in areas routinely lashed by vicious storms? A famous historian once observed that "civilization exists by geologic consent, subject to change without notice." In the pages of this unique book, leading geologist Susan W. Kieffer provides a primer on most types of natural disasters: earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanoes, landslides, hurricanes, cyclones, and tornadoes. By taking us behind the scenes of the underlying geology that causes them, she shows why natural disasters are more common than we realize, and that their impact on us will increase as our growing population crowds us into ever more vulnerable areas. Kieffer describes how natural disasters result from "changes in state" in a geologic system, much as when water turns to steam. By understanding what causes these changes of state, we can begin to understand the dynamics of natural disasters. In the book's concluding chapter, Kieffer outlines how we might better prepare for, and in some cases prevent, future disasters. She also calls for the creation of an organization, something akin to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention but focused on pending natural disasters.
(source: Nielsen Book Data)

Few subjects have caught the attention of the entire world as much as those dealing with natural hazards. The first decade of this new millennium provides a litany of tragic examples of various hazards that turned into disasters affecting millions of individuals around the globe. The human losses (some 225,000 people) associated with the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, the economic costs (approximately 200 billion USD) of the 2011 Tohoku Japan earthquake, tsunami and reactor event, and the collective social impacts of human tragedies experienced during Hurricane Katrina in 2005 all provide repetitive reminders that we humans are temporary guests occupying a very active and angry planet. Any examples may have been cited here to stress the point that natural events on Earth may, and often do, lead to disasters and catastrophes when humans place themselves into situations of high risk. Few subjects share the true interdisciplinary dependency that characterizes the field of natural hazards. From geology and geophysics to engineering and emergency response to social psychology and economics, the study of natural hazards draws input from an impressive suite of unique and previously independent specializations. Natural hazards provide a common platform to reduce disciplinary boundaries and facilitate a beneficial synergy in the provision of timely and useful information and action on this critical subject matter. As social norms change regarding the concept of acceptable risk and human migration leads to an explosion in the number of megacities, coastal over-crowding and unmanaged habitation in precarious environments such as mountainous slopes, the vulnerability of people and their susceptibility to natural hazards increases dramatically. Coupled with the concerns of changing climates, escalating recovery costs, a growing divergence between more developed and less developed countries, the subject of natural hazards remains on the forefront of issues that affect all people, nations, and environments all the time. This treatise provides a compendium of critical, timely and very detailed information and essential facts regarding the basic attributes of natural hazards and concomitant disasters. The Encyclopedia of Natural Hazards effectively captures and integrates contributions from an international portfolio of almost 300 specialists whose range of expertise addresses over 330 topics pertinent to the field of natural hazards. Disciplinary barriers are overcome in this comprehensive treatment of the subject matter. Clear illustrations and numerous color images enhance the primary aim to communicate and educate. The inclusion of a series of unique "classic case study" events interspersed throughout the volume provides tangible examples linking concepts, issues, outcomes and solutions. These case studies illustrate different but notable recent, historic and prehistoric events that have shaped the world as we now know it. They provide excellent focal points linking the remaining terms in the volume to the primary field of study. This Encyclopedia of Natural Hazards will remain a standard reference of choice for many years.
(source: Nielsen Book Data)

• PrologueEnergy Flows 1Natural Disasters and the Human Population 2Internal Energy and Plate Tectonics 3Earthquake Geology and Seismology 4Plate Tectonics and Earthquakes 5Earthquake Lessons and Regional Settings 6Volcanic Eruptions: Plate Tectonics and Magmas 7Volcano Case Histories: Killer Events 8Tsunami Versus Wind-Caused Waves 9External Energy Fuels Weather and Climate 10Tornadoes, Lightning, Heat, and Cold 11Hurricanes 12Climate Change 13Floods 14Fire 15Mass Movements
• 16 Impacts with Space Objects Epilogue Glossary Credits Index Available electronically: 7th edition's chapter on "The Great Dyings".
• (source: Nielsen Book Data)

"Natural Disasters, 8th Edition", is marked by major changes in organization and expanded coverage of weather and climate. The discussion of natural disasters is based on 4 main energy flows: Earth's internal energy flow underlies earthquakes and volcanoes, the external energy flow from the Sun fuels weather and climate including tornadoes, hurricanes, floods, wildfires, gravity acts to pull down mass movements of earth and snow, and impacts with asteroids and comets can have major effects on life. The book focuses on the Earth's natural processes and the disasters that occur when the Earth concentrates its energy and releases it to causing death and destruction. Throughout the book, certain themes are maintained: energy sources underlying disasters plate tectonics and climate change; earth processes operating in rock, water, and atmosphere; significance of geologic time; complexities of multiple variables operating simultaneously; and, detailed and readable case studies.
(source: Nielsen Book Data)

• 1 Natural Disasters and Their Energy Sources
• 2 Plate Tectonics and Earthquakes
• 3 Basic Principles of Earthquake Geology, Seismology and Tsunami
• 4 Some Earthquakes in Western North America
• 5 More United States and Canadian Earthquakes
• 6 Volcanic Eruptions: Plate Tectonics and Magmas
• 7 Volcanic Eruptions Continue
• 8 Mass Movements
• 9 Climate Change
• 10 Severe Weather
• 11 Hurricanes and the Coastline
• 12 Floods
• 13 Fire
• 14 The Great Dyings
• 15 Impacts with Space Objects.
• (source: Nielsen Book Data)

This book focuses on natural disasters: how the normal processes of the Earth concentrate their energies and deal heavy blows to humans and their structures. It is concerned with how the natural world operates and, in so doing, kills and maims humans and destroys their works. Throughout the book, certain themes are maintained: energy sources underlying disasters; plate tectonics and climate change; earth processes operating in rock, water, and atmosphere; significance of geologic time; complexities of multiple variables operating simultaneously; and detailed and readable case studies.
(source: Nielsen Book Data)