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  • From: "Lawrence F. London, Jr." <lflondon AT mindspring.com>
  • To: market-farming
  • Subject: Agriculture bibliography Part 24
  • Date: Sat, 04 Mar 2000 01:09:15 -0500




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Kinship to Mastery : Biophilia in Human Evolution and Development
by Stephen R. Kellert List Price: $25.00 Our Price: $17.50 You Save:
$7.50
(30%)
Availability: Usually ships within 24 hours. Hardcover (June 1997)
Island
Press;
ISBN: 1559633727 ; Dimensions (in inches): 1.01 x 9.25 x 6.31
Reviews Amazon.com Do human beings have an innate,
biologically-based
attraction
to nature? According to Stephen R. Kellert, author of Kinship to
Mastery,
"biophilia" is a distinct possibility. Certainly
humankind'srelationship with the
physical world has long been evident in our dependence on nature for
the tools
of
survival--everything from clothing to fossil fuel--but is there also a
deeper,
less
obvious role that nature plays in our lives? Kellert posits that our
abilities
to
emotionally bond, to create, imagine, or even simply recognize our
existence as
purposeful all stem from our relationships with the world around us.
And if
our
physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being depends on the natural
world, then
the
environment's degradation could have more disastrous effects than we
realize.
With
Kinship to Mastery, Stephen Kellert presents yet another element in
the ongoing
debate over conservation, growth, and the environment; this is a book
well worth
reading.
The New York Times Book Review, Dorion Sagan : Modern science, like
law,
requires a
preponderance of evidence to convince us. In Kinship to Mastery,
Kellert ...
uses a
method that is the antithesis of that--he tells anecdotes: a boy
brought back
from
despair at the death of his father by the gift of a dog from his
sister; a
parrot-toting prisoner who becomes an expert on psittacines; a yuppie
couple
whose
marriage is saved by a trip to an island off Nova Scotia ... Unlike
the often
seen,
numbingly impersonal statistics on the biological decrepitude of our
planet,
these
anecdotal fictions strike home personally. Kellert's vignettes wake us
up to
smell
the flowers--the ones that are left.
Customer Comments : A reader , July 25, 1997 "Kinship" a good read
but not
complete
"Biophilia" is a term used to describe the innate human affinity to
nature. This
book provides a fairly exhaustive exploration into this concept.
Notable
observations include that of nature as a metaphor, an abstract,
freeform world
to
apply meaning to and derive meaning from. He makes a good case for
natural
settings
as critical to our mental and physical well being. Unfortunately the
core
notion
of biophilia is fuzzy at best, not scientifically studied at all-one
could make
a
case that this is all just talk. Furthermore the book barely delves
into
biophobia
at all, despite it being a certain characteristic of our ancestors.
Still, I
give
this book an 8.

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The Biophilia Hypothesis
by Stephen R. Kellert (Editor), Edward O. Wilson (Editor) List Price:
$19.95
Our
Price: $15.96 You Save: $3.99 (20%) Availability: This title usually
ships
within
2-3 days. Paperback - 439 pages Reissue edition (April 1995) Island
Pr; ISBN:
1559631473 ; Dimensions (in inches): 1.35 x 8.97 x 5.99
Reviews Nature and Ecology Editor's Recommended Book : Why is it that
most of
us
find baby animals irresistibly cute? Why do so many people fear even
the sight
of
snakes? What prompts us to feed birds, to allow cats to roam around
the house at
will, to admire the lines of dogs and horses? Stephen Kellert and
Edward Wilson,
the
prolific Harvard biologist, gather essays by various hands on these
and other
questions, and the result is a fascinating glimpse into our relations
with other
animals. Humans, Wilson writes, have an innate (or at least extremely
ancient)
connection to the natural world, and our continued divorce from it has
led to
the
loss of not only "a vast intellectual legacy born of intimacy" with
nature but
also
our very sanity. There is much to ponder in this timely book.
Synopsis This
book
brings together the views of some of the most creative scientists of
our time,
each
attempting to amplify and refine the concept of biophilia.
Contributors to this
volume include Jared Diamond, Aaron Katcher, Richard Nelson and
others.
Synopsis : Today's scientists offer a variety of perspectives on such
theoretical
issues as people's preference for trees that are climbable, fears of
snakes and
spiders as opposed to a lack of fear of knives, guns, and cars, and
other
topics.
--This text refers to the hardcover edition of this title
Booknews, Inc. , April 1, 1994 : A collection of invited papers
exploring Edward
O.
Wilson's biophilia hypothesis, which declares humanity's innate
affinity for the
natural world to be a biological need, integral to our development as
individuals
and as a species. Annotation copyright Book News, Inc. Portland, Or.
--This text
refers to the hardcover edition of this title
Customer Comments : A reader from USA , October 8, 1998 Sorry, but
the authors
got
it all backwards The great biologist Edward O. Wilson noted that
human beings
seem
to have some constants in what they like in the natural world.
Everybody likes
the
landscape they grew up in, but there appears to be a surprising
consensus, at
least
among men, in favor of landscape with these features: grassy parklands
with
intermittent trees, water, high points providing vistas across a
complex
landscape,
and the ability to see but not be seen. Researchers believe that this
represents
an
inborn affinity toward the superb hunting grounds in which humans
evolved in
East
Africa. From this work, Wilson announced the existence of biophilia,
the innate
human love of nature, and asserted that this means we should Save the
Rainforests
(home to most of the species of Wilson's beloved ants). As much as I
admire
Wilson, I have to point out that his political argument is absolutely
not
supported
by this research, which demonstrates not that humans like all forms of
nature
but
that they have strong opinions about which landscapes they prefer.
Reread the
description of the consensus pleasurable landscape: does it remind you
of
anything
that modern humans all around the world spend billions upon? Yup, what
we males
really have an innate affinity for are golf courses. In fact, we
probably have
an
innate aversion toward rainforests, with their snakes, bugs, and lack
of
sunlight.
Humans have largely avoided rainforests throughout our history, and
today
rainforests are much more popular on the Upper West Side of Manhattan
than in
the
Amazon. None of this implies that we shouldn't Save The Rainforests

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Ecological Identity : Becoming a Reflective Environmentalist
by Mitchell Thomashow List Price: $14.95 Our Price: $11.96 You Save:
$2.99
(20%)
Availability: Usually ships within 24 hours. Paperback Reprint
edition
(September
1996) MIT Press; ISBN: 0262700638 ; Dimensions (in inches): 0.57 x
8.90 x 5.96

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The Nature Reader
by Daniel Halpern (Editor), Dan Frank (Editor) List Price: $16.00 Our
Price:
$12.80
You Save: $3.20 (20%) Availability: Usually ships within 24 hours.
Paperback -
368
pages 1st Ecco p edition (March 1998) Ecco Press; ISBN: 0880015543 ;
Dimensions
(in
inches): 1.06 x 9.02 x 6.30
Reviews Synopsis : A rich anthology of essays and articles on nature,
natural
history, and the environment features contributions by Barry Lopez,
Joyce Carol
Oates, Annie Dillard, Peter Matthiessen, Edward O. Wilson, Ann
Zwinger, Edward
Hoagland, Gretel Ehrlich, and many others. -
Synopsis : This remarkable and exciting anthology proves beyond a
doubt that
some
of the finest writing today is being done by nature writers--26 of
whom are
featured
in this text. The Nature Reader belongs on the short shelf of the best
books of
nature writing. -- A splendid anthology that began as a sellout issue
of Antaeus
more than a decade ago, this completely revised and expanded edition
is larger
by
half than its forebear - reflecting the virtual explosion of great
writing on
nature
that has taken place in the interim. Twenty-seven writers from a wide
range of
disciplines have added to the original roster of contributors. Whether
it's
Julia
Blackburn describing the disappearance of a paradise called St.
Helena's between
the
sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, David Quammen describing
twentieth century
"Rattlesnake passion," David Abrams introducing us to local magic in
Indonesia,
or
Terry Tempest Williams locking horns with her family over the
Endangered Species
Act, the subject of Nature is no longer limited to contemplative
pastorales.
Without
a doubt, some of the most exciting work being written late in the
twentieth
century
is about nature and natural history, as we begin again to assess the
serious
question of how humankind is part of nature, and how nature expresses
itself
through
us. --This text refers to the hardcover edition of this title

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Green Space, Green Time: The Way of Science
by Connie Barlow List Price: $25.00 Our Price: $17.50 You Save: $7.50
(30%)
Availability: Usually ships within 24 hours. Hardcover - 327 pages
(December
1997)
Copernicus Books; ISBN: 0387947949 ; Dimensions (in inches): 1.23 x
6.48 x 9.48
Reviews George Eberhardt, Booklist, October 1, 1997 This is
cutting-edge
science
on the broadest scale. Kurt Lauren de Boer, EarthLight, Fall 1997
This book
takes
a giant step toward clearing up some of the confusion around
eco-spiritual
thought
and religious environmentalism...Connie is a sure-footed and spirited
guide,
equally
at home in the two terrains of scientific theory and eco-religious
experience.
Customer Comments : Curtiss Hoffman (teximus AT erols.com) from Ashland,
Mass. ,
November 30, 1998 A much-needed synthesis of science and religion
Connie
Barlow's
Green Space, Green Time is a testimonial to the emerging bridge
between science
and
religion. Writing primarily from the perspective of biology and
ecology, Barlow
predicts that a New Age religion is now in the process of forming, and
that its
underlying tenets will be the wonderful discoveries about evolution
and ecology
which science has provided. She acknowledges that previously science
has not
really
provided an image of the meaningfulness of human life within the
greater cosmos,
and
this has been a shortcoming. Humanity needs a story in order to
achieve
integration,
to feed the human spirit. What better story, she asks, than the one
which
science
provides us about where we all come from and why we (all beings) need
to relate
to
each other in harmony? The book is well written and easily accessible
to the
non-scientific reader. Moreover, it celebrates the cooperation of a
group of
leading-edge scientists and inclusive religionists, in the form of
conversations
and
dialogues with leading thinkers in both fields such as Edward Wilson,
Ursula
Goodenough, Brian Swimme, Loyal Rue, Lynn Margulis, James Lovelock,
and Stephen
Harding. Jay Dixit,M.D (Krishni AT aol.com) from DeRidder, La ,
February 27, 1998
Interesting reading. Interesting and enlightening. However, difficult
to
separate
facts from faith. Similar to Tiplers' "Physics of immortality".
Difficult to
imagine
that a tiny superficial layer of life is a major geologic force on a
planet of
8000
miles in diameter.

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Forcing the Spring : The Transformation of the American Environmental
Movement
by Robert Gottlieb List Price: $19.95 Our Price: $15.96 You Save:
$3.99 (20%)
Availability: This title usually ships within 2-3 days. Paperback -
413 pages
Reprint edition (January 1995) Island Press; ISBN: 1559631228 ;
Dimensions (in
inches): 1.15 x 8.96 x 6.04
Reviews From Kirkus Reviews , September 1, 1993 An earnest
dissertation on
environmentalism as a complex social movement that began in response
to
industrialization, urbanization, and the closing of the frontier.
Gottlieb (A
Life
of Its Own, 1988, etc.), an environmental activist and lecturer at
UCLA's Urban
Planning Program, rejects as too narrow the view of the environmental
movement
as
one rooted in the struggle to preserve nature. This view, he claims,
overlooks
environmentalism's urban and industrial ancestry: the social-reform
movements of
the
19th century that sought to improve the daily lives of working people.
Gottlieb
diligently traces the history of this more broadly defined
environmentalism from
the
1890's on. He selects Earth Day 1970 as a transitional event, marking
the
emergence
of a new mainstream environmentalism as a powerful force in shaping
policy at
the
federal level, and he scrutinizes the conflict between this
professional,
institutionalized environmentalism and alternative, community- based,
direct-action
groups. Unlike mainstream environmentalists, whom Gottlieb describes
as working
closely with government and industry, alternative groups are more
confrontational,
and the issues they tackle are often ones in which gender, race, and
class play
significant roles--e.g., exposure to hazardous substances in the
workplace, with
its
disproportionately greater impact on blue-collar workers. The picture
that
emerges
is one in which mainstream environmentalism has lost its way, with new
direction
coming from the alternative groups, the true descendants of
19th-century
champions
of social justice. By recognizing its social-reform roots and by
redefining
itself
in broad terms, Gottlieb asserts that environmentalism can transform
itself into
a
more democratic movement, one concerned with the total human
environment.
Impressive
research and a clear message--if somewhat tedious in the telling. -
Synopsis : After considering the historical roots of environmentalism
from the
1890s
through the 1960s, Gottlieb discusses the rise and consolidation of
environmental
groups in the years between Earth Day 1970 and Earth Day 1990. A
comprehensive
analysis of the origins of the environmental movement within the
American
experience.
Booknews, Inc. , May 1, 1994 : Placing the American environmental
movement
within
the larger context of American social history, Gottlieb challenges the
conventional
focus on the conservation organizations that grew out of Gifford
Pinchot's and
John
Muir's activities, to offer a broader interpretation that takes into
account the
wide range of 20th-century social movements that developed in response
to the
urban
and industrial forces of the past hundred years. Annotation copyright
Book News,
Inc. Portland, Or. --This text refers to the hardcover edition of this
title

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Nature's Economy : A History of Ecological Ideas (Studies in
Environment and
History)
by Donald Worster Our Price: $17.95 Availability: Usually ships
within 24
hours.
Paperback - 505 pages 2nd edition (July 1994) Cambridge Univ Pr (Pap
Txt);
ISBN:
0521468345 ; Dimensions (in inches): 1.38 x 9.17 x 6.09
Reviews : Book Description : Including portraits of Linnaeus, Gilbert
White,
Darwin
and Thoreau as well as key twentieth-century ecologists, this
wide-ranging
investigation of the field of ecology's past shows how it in turn has
shaped the
modern perception of our place in nature.

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The Wealth of Nature : Environmental History and the Ecological
Imagination
by Donald Worster List Price: $13.95 Our Price: $11.16 You Save:
$2.79 (20%)
Availability: Usually ships within 24 hours. Paperback Reprint
edition (October
1994) Oxford Univ Pr (Trade); ISBN: 0195092643 ; Dimensions (in
inches): 0.78 x
9.18 x 6.12
Reviews: From Kirkus Reviews , April 1, 1993 Sixteen thoughtful
essays that
examine
the present and future implications of America's past relationship to
the
land--and
that draw, as Worster (American History/University of Kansas; Rivers
of Empire,
1986, etc.) puts it, a ``picture of the human past that is radically
unlike
anything
you will find in the standard undergraduate history textbooks.'' In
these pieces
(some of which appeared originally in academic journals and books),
Worster
speaks
with awe of the ``search to discover a less reductive, less
ecologically and
spiritually nihilistic, less grasping kind of materialism.'' In this
spirit,
reminiscent of Thoreau and Joseph Wood Krutch (one of the author's
early
inspirations), Worster sounds deeply skeptical over the prospect that
a market
economy can ever be compatible with responsible stewardship of this
country's
natural resources: His own preference is for an environmentalism
``that talks
about
ethics and aesthetics rather than about resources and economics.'' Not
surprisingly,
given these views, Worster throws a wet rag over the concept of
``sustained
development''; hails an American conservation revolution that views
the land as
an
interdependent ecosystem; and calls for an end to all federal
subsidies of
western
irrigation projects. As an alternative to federal and state management
of
resources,
he speaks eloquently about individual responsibility for the
environment. And
when
he's not warning about our current encroachments on nature, Worster
can be
especially illuminating about how the environment has affected our
past-
-pointing,
for example, to the Midwest's overemphasis on wheat- growing as a
cause of the
Dust
Bowl crisis of the 1930's; discussing the 1935 Soil Erosion Act, the
first
comprehensive legislation to preserve the lifeblood of American
agriculture; and
carefully tracing the evangelical fervor of America's greatest
environmentalists
to
the dissident and missionary spirit of Protestantism. Probably too
pessimistic
on
reconciling conservation with a market economy, but informed and lucid
about how
we've lost ground in the fight to save our natural resources. -
Lawrence F. London, Jr. Venaura Farm
intergarden.com InterGarden
metalab.unc.edu/intergarden InterGarden
metalab.unc.edu/permaculture PermaSphere
metalab.unc.edu/intergarden/orgfarm AGINFO
lflondon AT mindspring.com london AT metalab.unc.edu



  • Agriculture bibliography Part 24, Lawrence F. London, Jr., 03/04/2000

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