Communities and Ecosystems

translation yields a style of presentation that is often stilted and awkward. A partially redeeming feature, and perhaps unique in this kind of publication , is a 60-question-and-answer chapter which gives a rapid and practical orientation to the physician prescribing these pills and the patient receiving them. Despite this pleasant surprise, the book in general does not add to what is already known and available in a variety of better written volumes. This book concerns the structure of natural communities, the function of ecosystems, and the problems of man's relations to the biosphere. It is a companion volume to The Ecology of Populations. The biosphere is defined as man's environment, which man is now altering in ways disadvantageous to himself; the study of living systems in relation to environment is the science of ecology. Major subjects of chapters deal with: community structure and composition; communities and environments; production (measurement, on land, marine); cycling and pollution; human ecology. Numerous figures and tables illustrate the text, and there are many valuable references. The auther points out that it may be only realism to judge that the difficult problems of human ecology are not now soluble without population control. There are rapidly intensifying, interlocking factors, with development of restraints on population and technological abuse to be considered in the solution of environmental problems: Such is one of the objectives of ecology. These objectives include knowledge of adaptation and population process, appreciation and understanding of natural communities and the evolution of organisms in them, comprehension of the function of ecosystems and the bio-sphere, and contribution to a wiser and more understanding, long-term management of natural communities and environment in relation to human needs. The authors have presented a synopsis of the present and potential difficulties confronting the health industry, rather than an in-depth study of the conflicts. The scope of material dealt with is broad, the analysis of the various topics cursory. As such, the book may best serve a general professional and lay readership wishing to gain some perspective on the area without being burdened with weighty detail. Several of the points are made repetitively in the essays that comprise this work; the essays themselves suffer from a lack of continuity. It was my hope when I chose to review this book written by the noted economist interested in manpower development that I would encounter a well-documented discussion of several of the economic …