{"product_id":"harvesting-the-biosphere-vaclav-smil-9780262528276","title":"Harvesting the Biosphere: What We Have Taken from Nature","description":"\u003cb\u003eAn interdisciplinary and quantitative account of human claims on the biosphere's stores of living matter, from prehistoric hunting to modern energy production.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe biosphere--the Earth's thin layer of life--dates from nearly four billion years ago, when the first simple organisms appeared. Many species have exerted enormous influence on the biosphere's character and productivity, but none has transformed the Earth in so many ways and on such a scale as \u003ci\u003eHomo sapiens\u003c\/i\u003e. In \u003ci\u003eHarvesting the Biosphere\u003c\/i\u003e, Vaclav Smil offers an interdisciplinary and quantitative account of human claims on the biosphere's stores of living matter, from prehistory to the present day. Smil examines all harvests--from prehistoric man's hunting of megafauna to modern crop production--and all uses of harvested biomass, including energy, food, and raw materials. Without harvesting of the biomass, Smil points out, there would be no story of human evolution and advancing civilization; but at the same time, the increasing extent and intensity of present-day biomass harvests are changing the very foundations of civilization's well-being.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn his detailed and comprehensive account, Smil presents the best possible quantifications of past and current global losses in order to assess the evolution and extent of biomass harvests. Drawing on the latest work in disciplines ranging from anthropology to environmental science, Smil offers a valuable long-term, planet-wide perspective on human-caused environmental change. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Vaclav Smil\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 0262528274\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780262528276\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e MIT Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 08\/21\/2015\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 320\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.05lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.60h x 6.60w x 0.70d","brand":"Vaclav Smil","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":48135956037887,"sku":"9780262528276","price":35.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_13f5412c-977a-4765-bb63-326cbfd48d6a.jpg?v=1770159557","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/harvesting-the-biosphere-vaclav-smil-9780262528276","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}