Landscape Evolution: Landforms, Ecosystems and Soils asks us to think holistically, to look for the interactions between the Earth’s component surface systems, to consider how universal laws and historical and geographical contingency work together, and to ponder the implications of nonlinear dynamics in landscapes, ecosystems, and soils. Development, evolution, landforms, topography, soils, ecosystems, and hydrological systems are inextricably intertwined. While empirical studies increasingly incorporate these interactions, theories and conceptual frameworks addressing landforms, soils, and ecosystems are pursued largely independently. This is partly due to different academic disciplines, traditions, and lexicons involved, and partly due to the disparate time scales sometimes encountered. Landscape Evolution explicitly synthesizes and integrates these theories and threads of inquiry, arguing that all are guided by a general principle of efficiency selection. A key theme is that evolutionary trends are probabilistic, emergent outcomes of efficiency selection rather than purported goal functions. This interdisciplinary reference will be useful for academic and research scientists across the Earth sciences.
1. Landscape Evolution - p. Page i 2. Cover - p. Page i 3. Front Matter - p. Page ii 4. Table of Contents - p. Page iii 5. Copyright - p. Page iv 6. Preface - p. Page iv 7. List of Illustrations - p. Page x 8. List of Tables - p. Page xi 9. 1 : An integrated approach to landscape evolution - p. Page xi 10. 2 : Earth surface systems as supraorganisms - p. Page 28 11. 3 : Observing landscape evolution - p. Page 61 12. 4 : It depends on the scale: scale contingency in landscape evolution - p. Page 90 13. 5 : Historical contingency in landscape evolution - p. Page 113 14. 6 : Attractors and goal functions in landscape evolution - p. Page 149 15. 7 : Thresholds, tipping points, and instability - p. Page 193 16. 8 : Selection and landscape evolution - p. Page 222 17. 9 : The perfect landscape - p. Page 261 18. 10 : Landscape evolution and environmental change - p. Page 295 19. Index - p. Page 335
Landscape Evolution: Landforms, Ecosystems and Soils asks us to think holistically, to look for the interactions between the Earth’s component surface systems, to consider how universal laws and historical and geographical contingency work together, and to ponder the implications of nonlinear dynamics in landscapes, ecosystems, and soils. Development, evolution, landforms, topography, soils, ecosystems, and hydrological systems are inextricably intertwined. While empirical studies increasingly incorporate these interactions, theories and conceptual frameworks addressing landforms, soils, and ecosystems are pursued largely independently. This is partly due to different academic disciplines, traditions, and lexicons involved, and partly due to the disparate time scales sometimes encountered. Landscape Evolution explicitly synthesizes and integrates these theories and threads of inquiry, arguing that all are guided by a general principle of efficiency selection. A key theme is that evolutionary trends are probabilistic, emergent outcomes of efficiency selection rather than purported goal functions. This interdisciplinary reference will be useful for academic and research scientists across the Earth sciences.
1. Landscape Evolution - p. Page i 2. Cover - p. Page i 3. Front Matter - p. Page ii 4. Table of Contents - p. Page iii 5. Copyright - p. Page iv 6. Preface - p. Page iv 7. List of Illustrations - p. Page x 8. List of Tables - p. Page xi 9. 1 : An integrated approach to landscape evolution - p. Page xi 10. 2 : Earth surface systems as supraorganisms - p. Page 28 11. 3 : Observing landscape evolution - p. Page 61 12. 4 : It depends on the scale: scale contingency in landscape evolution - p. Page 90 13. 5 : Historical contingency in landscape evolution - p. Page 113 14. 6 : Attractors and goal functions in landscape evolution - p. Page 149 15. 7 : Thresholds, tipping points, and instability - p. Page 193 16. 8 : Selection and landscape evolution - p. Page 222 17. 9 : The perfect landscape - p. Page 261 18. 10 : Landscape evolution and environmental change - p. Page 295 19. Index - p. Page 335
