Climate, History and the Modern World

Description

We live in a world that is increasingly vulnerable to climatic shocks - affecting agriculture and industry, government and international trade, not to mention human health and happiness. Serious anxieties have been aroused by respected scientists warning of dire perils that could result from upsets of the climatic regime. In this internationally acclaimed book, Emeritus Professor Hubert Lamb examines what we know about climate, how the past record of climate can be reconstructed, the causes of climatic variation, and its impact on human affairs now and in the historical and prehistoric past. This 2nd Edition includes a new Preface and Postscript reviewing the wealth of literature to emerge in recent years, and discusses implications for a deeper understanding of the problems of future climatic fluctuations and forecasting.

"From reviews of the first edition: . . . written in a popular style that allows the book to be effectively used by readers not formally trained in the atmospheric sciences. Geographers across the discipline will be comfortable with the technical level used throughout the book."-"Economic Geography "From reviews of the first edition: uL This fascinating book builds upon a lifetime of study of past climates. . . . The book is strongly recommended to all who need to assess the significance of climatic change."-"Australian Meteorological Magazine "From reviews of the first edition: Any book from the prolific pen of Professor Hubert Lamb is always welcome, as one knows that it will be entertaining, wide-ranging and full of good sense. The present work is no exception."-"International Journal of Environmental Studies "From reviews of the first edition: "Climate, History and the Modern World will join that list of very important books which achieve a wide readership, perhaps fuel a next stage of thinking about the subject . . .."-"Progress in Human Geography