New Springer book on the prehistory of Easter Island

Posted on 27 June, 2020 by valrull — Leave a comment

Springer has approved the publication of a new book entitled The Prehistory of Easter Island (Rapa Nui): Towards a Multidisciplinary Integrative Framework, edited by Valentí Rull and Christopher M. Stevenson.

The book is aimed at presenting representative papers from a range of research fields (anthropology, archaeology, ethnobotany, ethnography, history, linguistics, paleoecology, phylogenetics, phylogeography), in order to provide a thorough interdisciplinary assessment of Easter Island’s prehistory. The main idea is to offer as many different approaches and points of view as possible for the reader to have a fairly complete vision of the state of the art in Easter Island research and the possible future developments.

The book will have 40 chapters written by 90 researchers including many of the most recognized experts on Easter Island research. These chapters are organized into six thematic sections:

Transpacific voyaging and settlement
The ancient Rapanui culture
Climatic and environmental change
Deforestation and extinctions
Collapse or resilience?
European contact

A final chapter will provide a multidisciplinary synthesis considering all aspects and approaches discussed in the book. For more information, download the preliminary table of contents. The book is projected to be issued by fall 2021.

Reminder!

Don’t forget the Elsevier book about the paleoecology of Easter Island, to be published in September this year. Reference: Rull, V. 2020. Paleoecological Research on Easter Island: Insights on Settlement, Climatic Changes, Deforestation and Cultural Change. Elsevier, Amsterdam. ISBN 9780128227275.

Tagged with: archaeology, biodiversity, biogeography, Chile, climate change, collapse, colonization, cultural change, cultural collapse, deforestation, DNA, Easter Island, ecology, environmental degradation, extinction, fire, human disturbance, moai, natural resources, nature overexploitation, oceanic islands, paleoclimatology, paleoecology, palynology, pollen, Polynesia, Quaternary, Rapa Nui, resource exhaustion, socio-ecology, South America, vegetation change, vegetation dynamics
Posted in Books, My publications, Sin categoría

A lesson for global change?

Posted on 2 May, 2020 by valrull — Leave a comment

We live in a society that is incapable of controlling itself in the face of an epidemic disease that directly threatens our own individual lives. How can we expect that the same society becomes worried about the possible consequences of global change for Earth and for future human generations? Our future seems clearer than ever.

Tagged with: anthropocene, climate change, environmental degradation, global change, natural resources
Posted in anthropocene, Society, Unvelievable!

Neotropical Diversification: Patterns and Processes – Just Published!

Posted on 2 April, 2020 by valrull — Leave a comment

Editorial summary: This newly published book provides a comprehensive overview of the patterns of biodiversity in a wide of Neotropical biomes and ecosystems, as well as a discussion on their historical biogeographies and underlying diversification processes. All chapters have been written by prominent researchers in the fields of tropical biology, molecular ecology, paleoclimatology, paleoecology, and biogeography, producing an outstanding collection of essays, synthetic analyses, and novel investigations that describe and improve our understanding of the biodiversity of this unique region. With chapters on the Amazon and Caribbean forests, the Atlantic rainforests, the Andes, the Cerrado savannahs, the Caatinga drylands, the Chaco, and Mesoamerica – along with broad taxonomic coverage – this book summarizes a wide range of hypotheses, views, and methods concerning the processes and mechanisms of Neotropical diversification. The range of perspectives presented makes the book a truly comprehensive, state-of-the-art publication on the topic, which will fascinate both scientists and general readers alike.

For more information, you can freely download the front matter with the table of contents and the introduction.

Reference

Rull, V. & Carnaval, A.C. (eds.). 2020. Neotropical Diversification: Patterns and Processes. Springer, Berlin. ISBN 978-3-030-31167-4.

Tagged with: biodiversity, biogeography, climate change, conservation, diversification, DNA, ecology, evolution, extinction, Neogene, Neotropics, paleoclimatology, paleoecology, phylogeography, Quaternary, South America, speciation
Posted in Books, My publications

Quaternary Ecology, Evolution and Biogeography

Posted on 20 March, 2020 by valrull — Leave a comment

This is the title of a new book published by Elsevier-Academic Press some days ago. Here I reproduce the cover and attach the front matter (freely accessible), with the table of contents and the introduction. The book can be bought at the Elsevier site and the usual book providers (Amazon, etc.).

Reference

Rull, V. 2020. Quaternary Ecology, Evolution and Biogeography. Elsevier-Academic Press, London, ISBN 9780128204733.

Tagged with: anthropocene, biogeography, climate change, ecology, evolution, global change, human disturbance, human evolution, paleoclimatology, paleoecology, palynology, phylogeography, Quaternary, vegetation change, vegetation dynamics
Posted in Books, My publications

The 2020 glaciation

Posted on 1 January, 2020 by valrull — Leave a comment

My wish for 2020 is that an imaginary glaciation erodes all evil so we can start again from scratch. I know it is silly but it is nothing more than a wish, although a very intense one

See you (or not) in the postglacial…

Tagged with: 2020, evil, Glaciation, Happy New Year, hope, Interglacial, postglacial
Posted in Society

Biodiversity of the Lost World

Posted on 20 December, 2019 by valrull — Leave a comment

The book “Biodiversity of Pantepui, the Pristine Lost World of the Neotropical Guiana Highlands”, edited by V. Rull, T. Vegas-Vilarrúbia, O. Huber and C Señaris, is already published in Paperback and eBook formats. See the Elsevier website.

This book provides the most updated and comprehensive knowledge on the biota, origin, and evolution of the Pantepui biogeographical province. It synthesizes historical information and recent discoveries, covering the main biogeographic patterns, evolutionary trends, and conservational efforts. The book also explores what makes Pantepui a unique natural laboratory to study the origin and evolution of Neotropical biodiversity under the influence of only natural drivers. It discusses the organisms living in Pantepui, including algae, plants, several groups of invertebrates, birds, amphibians, reptiles, and mammals. The latter portion of the book delves into the effects of human activity and global warming on Pantepui, and current conservational efforts to combat these threats. The book is an important resource for researchers in ecology, biogeography, evolution, and conservation, who want to understand the biodiversity and natural history of this region, and how to help conserve and protect the Guiana Highlands from environmental and human damages.

Reference: Rull, V., Vegas-Vilarrúbia, T., Huber, O. & Señaris, C. (eds.). 2019. Biodiversity of Pantepui, the Pristine Lost World of the Neotropical Guiana Highlands. Elsevier/Academic Press, London. ISBN 9780128155912 (Paperback) and 9780128155929 (eBook).

Tagged with: algae, amphibians, animals, aquatic insects, biodiversity, biogeography, birds, Brasil, butterflies, climate, climate change, conservation, ecology, evolution, global warming, Guayana, Guiana, Guiana Highlands, Guyana, Lost World, mammals, Neotropics, paleoclimate, paleoecology, Pantepui, plants, reptiles, scorpions, snails, Venezuela
Posted in Books, My publications

Quaternary Ecology, Evolution and Biogeography

Posted on 20 December, 2019 by valrull — Leave a comment

The book “Quaternary Ecology, Evolution and Biogeography” by V. Rull, which will be issued in March 2020, can already be pre-ordered at the Elsevier website.

This book is an introduction to the study of the ecological and evolutionary processes that have shaped our present biosphere under the influence of glacial-interglacial cycles. The book reviews the climactic changes that have occurred during the last million years, along with the responses of organisms and ecosystems, and offers an understanding of the evolutionary origin of extant biodiversity, its biogeographical patterns and the composition of modern ecological communities. In addition, it explores human evolution and the influence of our activities on the biosphere, especially in the last millennia, and offers the latest information on how studying the past can contribute to our understanding of present climate issues for a better future. The book is intended for a wide audience, including researchers and students in natural sciences.

Contents:

Climate: Continuous variability and impact on the earth system
Organisms: Adaption, extinction and biogeographical reorganizations
Biodiversity: Diversification or impoverishment?
Communities: Adjustments, innovations and revolutions
Humans: Settlement and humanization of the planet
The future: Natural cycles and human interference

Reference: Rull, V. 2020. Quaternary Ecology, Evolution and Biogeography. Elsevier/Academic Press, London. ISBN 9780128204733.

Tagged with: anthropocene, biogeography, biosphere, climate change, diversification, ecological communities, ecology, ecosystems, evolution, extinction, glaciations, global change, Holocene, hominids, hominins, human evolution, human origins, industrial revolution, interglacials, Las Millennium, Neolithic revolution, organisms, paleoclimatology, paleoecology, Pleistocene, Quaternary, speciation
Posted in Books, My publications

Neotropical Diversification: Patterns and Processes

Posted on 20 December, 2019 by valrull — Leave a comment

The book “Neotropical Diversification: Patterns and Processes”, edited by V. Rull and A. C. Carnaval, which will be issued in March 2020, can already be pre-ordered at the Springer website in Hardcover and eBook versions.

This book provides a comprehensive overview of the patterns of biodiversity in various Neotropical ecosystems, as well as a discussion on their historical biogeographies and underlying diversification processes. All chapters were written by prominent researchers in the fields of tropical biology, molecular ecology, climatology, paleoecology, and geography, producing an outstanding collection of essays, synthetic analyses, and novel investigations that describe and improve our understanding of the biodiversity of this unique region. With chapters on the Amazon and Caribbean forests, the Atlantic rainforests, the Andes, the Cerrado savannas, the Caatinga drylands, the Chaco, and Mesoamerica – along with broad taxonomic coverage – this book summarizes a wide range of hypotheses, views, and methods concerning the processes and mechanisms of neotropical diversification. The range of perspectives presented makes the book a truly comprehensive, state-of-the-art publication on the topic.

Reference: Rull, V. & Carnaval, A.C. (eds.). 2020. Neotropical Diversification: Patterns and Processes. Springer, Berlin. ISBN 978-3-030-31166-7 (Hardcover) and 978-3-030-31167-4 (eBook).

Tagged with: biodiversity, biogeography, diversification, evolution, latitudinal diversity gradients, Miocene, molecular phylogenetics, Neogene, Neotropics, phylofeography, Pliocene, Quaternary, tropics
Posted in Books, My publications

The Earth is flat for climate modelers

Posted on 27 September, 2019 by valrull — Leave a comment

Did you know that? Modelers don’t stop surprising us!!!

If you find this hard to believe, read the paper by Michael J. Prather and Juno C. Hsu, from the University of California, which has recently been published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science USA.

See the reference and the significance statement below the flat Earth

flat_earth

Reference

Prather, M.J. & Hsu, J.C. 2019. A round earth for climate models. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 116: 19330-19335.

Significance

Early climate and weather models, constrained by computing resources, made numerical approximations on modeling the real world. One process, the radiative transfer of sunlight through the atmosphere, has always been a costly component. As computational ability expanded, these models added resolution, processes, and numerical methods to reduce errors and become the Earth system models that we use today. While many of the original approximations have since been improved, one—that the Earth’s surface and atmosphere are locally flat—remains in current models. Correcting from flat to spherical atmospheres leads to regionally differential solar heating at rates comparable to the climate forcing by greenhouse. gases and aerosols. In addition, spherical atmospheres change how we evaluate the aerosol direct radiative forcing.

Tagged with: Believe it or not, climate, climate change, climatic models, flat Earth, modelers, models, round Earth
Posted in Believe it or not, Research papers, Unvelievable!

Lost World’s biodiversity uncovered

Posted on 15 June, 2019 by valrull — Leave a comment

The book about the biodiversity of the Conan Doyle’s Lost World will be issued in a couple of weeks. The title is “Biodiversity of Pantepui, the Pristine Lost World of the Neotropical Guiana Highlands” and is published by Elsevier-Academic Press.

Pantepui is a remote archipelago of sky islands with unique biodiversity and endemism patterns that constitutes one of the few pristine regions remaining in the planet. The biodiversity and ecosystems of this lost world have been generated by purely natural ecological and evolutionary processes, which turns Pantepui into a natural laboratory to study the origin and evolution of Neotropical biomes. The following video provides an outlook of the Pantepui landscape.

The book is subdivided into four parts, namely (i) general aspects, (ii) the photosynthetic world, (iii) animal diversity and (iv) biodiversity conservation, and the following chapters:

Definition and characterization of the Pantepui biogeographical province
Climatic and ecological history of Pantepui and surrounding areas
Pantepui as a dynamic biogeographical concept
Origin and evolution on the Pantepui biota
Algae
Vascular plants and bryophytes
Plant communities
Aquatic insects
Butterflies
Scorpions
Land snails
Amphibians and reptiles
Birds
Mammals
Vertebrate parasites
Conservation of Pantepui: between complex emergency and climate change
Pantepui and global warming

The front matter can be freely downloaded and the book can be purchased here.

Reference

Rull, V., Vegas-Vilarrúbia, T., Huber, O. & Señaris, C. (eds.). 2019. Biodiversity of Pantepui, the Pristine “Lost World” of the Neotropical Guiana Highlands. Elsevier-Academic Press, London. ISBN 978-0-12815-591-2.

Tagged with: algae, amphibians, aquatic insects, biodiversity, biogeography, birds, bryophytes, butterflies, climate change, conservation, continental islands, ecology, evolution, extinction, global change, global warming, Guiana Highlands, habitat loss, land snails, Lost World, mammals, Neotropics, paleoclimatology, paleoecology, palynology, Pantepui, phylogeography, plant communities, pollen, reptiles, scorpions, South America, vascular plants, vegetation dynamics, vertebrate parasites
Posted in Books, My publications