| DC Field | Value | Language |
|---|
| dc.contributor.author | Parsons, Anthony J. | - |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2021-04-19T07:11:00Z | - |
| dc.date.available | 2021-04-19T07:11:00Z | - |
| dc.date.issued | 2009 | - |
| dc.identifier.isbn | 978-1-4020-5719-9 | - |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://localhost:8080/xmlui/handle/123456789/74 | - |
| dc.description | When we were approached by Springer to consider a second edition of Geomor-
phology of Desert Environments, our initial inclination was to say no. Before doing
so, however, we contacted the authors who contributed chapters to the first edition
and asked them if they would be prepared to update their chapters. To our consider-
able surprise, their response was overwhelmingly positive. With very few exceptions,
those still active in the field expressed enthusiasm for the idea. The appearance of this
volume is, therefore, more a credit to the contributors to the first edition than it is to
the editors! We are grateful to them for their support of this new edition, and to those
new contributors, some of whom have filled in the gaps, but the majority of whom
have provided chapters additional to those in the first edition. It may be invidious to
single out a single contributor, but we should specifically acknowledge Dorothy Sack
who not only revised her own chapter from the first edition but offered to take on the
revision of the two chapters that the late Don Currey had contributed.
In the decade and a half since the preparation of the first edition, progress in the
multitude of subjects that comprise the field of desert geomorphology has varied
greatly, and this variation has had a profound effect on the character of the field.
Some subjects (for example, dust) have burgeoned over the period to merit a chapter
in their own right. Others have seen significant changes, particularly those in which
the advances in dating techniques have had an impact. Yet other areas of research
have seen relatively little progress and appear to have fallen from fashion. In the
course of revising Geomorphology of Desert Environments, we therefore made an
effort to adjust the coverage of the various subjects to reflect the changes that have
occurred in these subjects since the printing of the first edition. Thus the raison
d’être for the second edition is to provide a balanced and up-to-date synthesis of the
geomorphic processes that operate in desert environments and the landforms they
produce. | en_US |
| dc.description.abstract | About one-third of the Earth’s land surface experiences a hyperarid, arid, or semi-arid
climate, and this area supports approximately 15% of the planet’s population. This
percentage continues to grow and with this growth comes the need to learn more about
the desert environment. Geomorphology is only one aspect of this environment, but
an important one, as geomorphic phenomena such as salt weathering, debris flows,
flash flooding, and dune encroachment pose major problems to desert settlement and
transportation.
The geomorphology of deserts has been the subject of scientific enquiry for more
than a century, but desert geomorphology did not emerge as an identifiable sub-
discipline in geomorphology until the 1970s when the first textbooks on the sub-
ject appeared, namely Geomorphology in deserts in 1973 and Desert landforms in
1977. Also, in 1977 the Eighth Annual (Binghamton) Geomorphology Symposium
was devoted to the theme ‘Geomorphology in Arid Lands’ and the proceedings of
the symposium were published in the same year. The 1980s have seen the appear-
ance of titles dealing with particular topics within desert geomorphology, the most
notable of these being Urban geomorphology in drylands and Dryland rivers. As we
enter the 1990s, a new generation of textbooks on desert geomorphology has reached
the bookstores. Arid zone geomorphology and Desert geomorphology incorporate the
advances in knowledge that have occurred during the past 20 years but are primar-
ily written for the college student. By contrast, the present volume assumes that the
reader already has some knowledge of desert geomorphology. It is pitched at a level
somewhat higher than the standard text and is intended to serve mainly as a reference
book. | en_US |
| dc.language.iso | en | en_US |
| dc.publisher | Springer | en_US |
| dc.subject | Geomorphology | en_US |
| dc.subject | Desert Environments | en_US |
| dc.title | Geomorphology of Desert Environments | en_US |
| dc.type | Book | en_US |
| Appears in Collections: | ARTS & SCIENCE
|
