eBooks are accessible online, and many are available for download or 2 week check out.
Climate Change in the Great Lakes Region by
People living in the Great Lakes region are already feeling the effects of a changing climate. Shifts in seasonal temperatures and precipitation patterns could have dramatic impacts on the economy, ecology, and quality of life. In this illuminating and thorough volume, leading scholars address the challenge of preparing for climate change in the region, where decision makers from various sectors, government, agriculture, recreation, and tourism must increasingly be aware of the need to incorporate climate change into their short- and long-term planning. The chapters in this revealing book, written by some of the foremost climate change scholars in North America, outline the major trends in the climate of the Great Lakes region, how humans might cope with the uncertainty of climate change impacts, and examples of on-the-ground projects that have addressed these issues.
The Geoarchaeology of Lake Michigan Coastal Dunes by
Complex sets of environmental factors have interacted over the past 5,000 years to affect how changes in climate, temperature, relative precipitation, and the levels of Lake Michigan influence the preservation of archaeological sites in coastal sand dunes along Lake Michigan. As a collaboration between earth scientists, archaeologists, and geoarchaeologists, this study draws on a wealth of research and multidisciplinary insights to explore the conditions necessary to safeguard ancient human settlements in these landscapes. A variety of contemporary and innovative techniques, including numerous dating methods and approaches, were employed to determine when and for how long sand dunes were active and when and for how long archaeological sites were occupied. Knowledge of dune processes and settlement patterns not only affects archaeological interpretations, but it is also consummately important to land planners responsible for managing heritage archaeological sites in the Lake Michigan coastal zone.
Geology and Landscape of Michigan's Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore and Vicinity by
Michigan's Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore was established in 1966 to preserve one of the most exquisite freshwater coastal landscapes in North America. Located between Munising and Grand Marais on Lake Superior, the rugged coastline is anchored by the Pictured Rocks cliffs--soaring sandstone fortresses awash with natural pink, green, and brown pigments. While the Pictured Rocks' geologic history is generally well understood by scientists, much of this information is scattered among different sources and not easily accessible to general readers. In Geology and Landscape of Michigan's Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore and Vicinity, William L. Blewett synthesizes published and unpublished information on the park's geologic history and combines it with vivid color photographs, detailed maps, and diagrams of the area. Blewett examines the history and geology of the very ancient Precambrian, Cambrian, and Ordovician components of the Pictured Rocks dating back hundreds of millions of years, as well as the much younger unconsolidated Pleistocene (ice age) and Holocene (warm period since the ice age, including the modern landscape) sediments mantling the bedrock, most of which are no older than 12,000 years. He also details the history of the Lake Superior basin, tracing the events that shaped the modern shoreline from ancient times. For visitors to Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, Blewett has provided a detailed mileage-referenced road log to guide readers to the best and most accessible field sites, and, for the more adventurous, includes a day hike keyed to the geology. A comprehensive bibliography and index are also included at the end of the book for further research. While it assumes an understanding of basic geologic principles, the volume is very readable and suitable for students, interested park visitors, and geologists, physical geographers, and those working in closely related fields such as archaeology, biology, ecology, and environmental science.
The Great Lakes Water Wars by
A charming treatise on slow gardening and the importance of slowing down and enjoying life Encouraging readers to stop and enjoy life through slow gardening, this book also has an environmental message regarding living ethically and sustainably. The author seamlessly blends personal anecdote with musings and facts, drawing on her gardening background and her wide-ranging interests in philosophy, music, art, nature, and the environment. This book will appeal to gardeners and dreamers alike anyone who yearns for a more environmentally-attune life.
The Once and Future Great Lakes Country : An Ecological History by
North America's Great Lakes country has experienced centuries of upheaval. Its landscapes are utterly changed from what they were five hundred years ago. The region's superabundant fish and wildlife and its magnificent forests and prairies astonished European newcomers who called it an earthly paradise but then ushered in an era of disease, warfare, resource depletion, and land development that transformed it forever. The Once and Future Great Lakes Country is a history of environmental change in the Great Lakes region, looking as far back as the last ice age, and also reflecting on modern trajectories of change, many of them positive. John Riley chronicles how the region serves as a continental crossroads, one that experienced massive declines in its wildlife and native plants in the centuries after European contact, and has begun to see increased nature protection and re-wilding in recent decades. Yet climate change, globalization, invasive species, and urban sprawl are today exerting new pressures on the region's ecology. Covering a vast geography encompassing two Canadian provinces and nine American states, The Once and Future Great Lakes Country provides both a detailed ecological history and a broad panorama of this vast region. It blends the voices of early visitors with the hopes of citizens now.
On the Brink: The Great Lakes in the 21st Century by
As one of the world's great natural treasures, the Great Lakes have also served in recent decades as an early warning system for many emerging environmental problems. In the early twenty-first century, as the Lakes face unprecedented challenges, we need to revisit both the wonder of the Lakes and the perils plaguing them, and to take action to protect this majestic ecosystem. Dave Dempsey weaves the natural character and phenomena of the Great Lakes and stories of the schemes, calamities, and unusual human residents of the Basin with the history of their environmental exploitation and recovery. Contrasting the incomparable beauty and complexity of the Lakes, and the poetry, folklore, and citizen action they have inspired, with the disasters that short-sighted human folly has inflicted on the ecosystem, Dempsey makes this history both engaging and relevant to today's debates and decisions. Underlying the neglectful treatment of the Lakes are two irreconcilable and faulty human assumptions: that the Lakes are a system so big that human beings cannot do great harm to it, and that the Lakes are a resource that can be bent to the will of humankind. Dempsey finds evidence that, despite great changes in the laws governing the Lakes and public attitudes toward them in the last fifty years, government policy and institutions are still dominated by these dangerous attitudes. A central theme of On the Brink is that citizens, who have displayed an increasing sense of commitment to the Lakes and a growing sense of place, must challenge their leaders to reform Great Lakes institutions. While everything from large-scale water exports to global climate change looms in the future of the Lakes, single-purpose solutions do not suffice--no more than a Band- aid would on a gaping wound. Dempsey shows that it is necessary to create a governing system that reflects the realities of life "on the ground" in communities and that taps into the passion and determination of citizens to protect these treasures.
West to Far Michigan: Settling the Lower Peninsula, 1815-1860 by
"West to Far Michigan "is a study of the lower peninsula's occupation by agriculturalists, whose presence forever transformed the land and helped to create the modern state of Michigan. This is not simply a history of Michigan, but rather a work that focuses on why the state developed as it did. Although Michigan is seen today as an industrial state whose history is couched in terms of the fur trade and the international rivalry for the Great Lakes, agricultural settlement shaped its expansion. Using a model of agricultural colonization derived from comparative studies, Lewis examines the settlement process in Michigan between 1815 and 1860. This period marked the opening of Michigan to immigrants, saw the rise of commercial agriculture, and witnessed Michigan's integration into the larger national economy. Employing numerous primary sources, "West to Far Michigan "traces changes and patterns of settlement crucial to documenting the large-scale development of southern Michigan as a region. Diaries, letters, memoirs, gazetteers, and legal documents serve to transform the more abstract elements of economic and social change into more human terms. Through the experiences of the early Agriculturists process, we can gain insight into how their triumphs played out in communities within the region to produce small-scale elements that comprise the fabric of the larger cultural landscape."
Circulating books may be checked out in 3 week intervals.
The Changing Environment of Northern Michigan by
Northern Michigan is undergoing unprecedented changes in land use, climate, resource extraction, and species distributions. For the last hundred years, the University of Michigan Biological Station has monitored these environmental transformations. Stretching 10,000 acres along Burt and Douglas Lakes in the northern Lower Peninsula and 3,200 acres on Sugar Island near Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, the station has played host to nearly 10,000 students and a steady stream of top scientists in the fields of biology, ecology, geology, archeology, and climatology. The Changing Environment of Northern Michigan collects essays by some of these scientists, who lead readers on virtual field trips exploring the history of people and science at the station itself, the relations of indigenous people to the land, the geophysical history of the region, characteristics of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, key groups of organisms and their relations to local habitats, and perspectives on critical environmental challenges of today and their effects on the region. Accompanying the chapters are color illustrations and photographs that bring the station's pristine setting to life. Like the station itself, the book provides a solid background for better appreciating the relationships among living and nonliving parts of northern Michigan, for anyone interested in exploring the region's forests, fields, and wetlands; wading or paddling down its rivers; or swimming or floating across its lakes. Knute J. Nadelhoffer is Director of the University of Michigan Biological Station and Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Michigan. Alan J. Hogg, Jr., teaches science writing at the University of Michigan as a faculty member of the Sweetland Writing Center. His Ph.D. research explored the effects of ozone and nitrogen oxides on University of Michigan Biological Station forests. Brian A. Hazlett is Professor Emeritus of Zoology at the University of Michigan.
The Future City on the Inland Sea: A History of Imaginative Geographies of Lake Superior by
The Future City on the Inland Sea describes the attempts of explorers under government, commercial, or scientific sponsorship to project their imaginative visions on the Lake Superior region where the future did not happen as planned. More than a regional geography, The Future City on the Inland Sea is an appraisal of these early efforts to meld geographies of physical nature with those of human ideals, a demonstration of how thoroughly and paradoxically those two realms are entangled.
Prairies and Savannas in Michigan: Rediscovering Our Natural Heritage by
Prairies and savannas are a rare and unique part of Michigan's natural heritage. Once occupying a significant portion of Lower Michigan's landscape, these dynamic and varied communities have nearly vanished, along with numerous species that rely on the habitats they provide. Now less than 1 percent of the original prairie and savanna acreage remains in Michigan, and the little that remains is threatened by habitat destruction, invasive species, and rapidly closing canopies. "Prairies and Savannas in Michigan "gives a complete understanding of these dynamic systems, the plants and animals they support, the ecological processes that sustain them, and current efforts to restore these valuable pieces of Michigan's natural heritage. Intended for general readers, "Prairies and Savannas in Michigan "clearly describes the variety of natural habitats and itemizes noteworthy species found in each. The book fills a unique niche for practicing and armchair ecologists alike, and it provides a much needed educational overview for citizens living in a state with such unique and diverse though rapidly disappearing habitats. This is the only work in print that focuses on prairie and savanna communities."
So Cold a Sky: Upper Michigan Weather Stories by
Weather History of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Beginning in 1600's to Present. A Survey of Modern Weather events in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan with Oral interviews of eyewitnesses of many weather events.
Sustaining Michigan: Metropolitan Policies and Strategies by
Creating sustainable metropolitan communities in the twenty-first century will pose great challenges for Michigan and other states in the region. Sustaining Michigan links critical, cutting-edge scholarship to pressing issues facing Michigan's metropolitan communities and increases understanding of the key economic, environmental, social, and political reasons for why change is underway, the challenges to the current system, and the difficulty for Michigan in making substantive changes.
The Climatic Atlas of Michigan by
Great Lakes
In this program, geologists delve deep into an underground salt mine, investigate a fossilized coral reef, climb an Alpine glacier, and dive to the bottom of Lake Superior—all to understand the evolution of the Great Lakes
Requiem for Detroit?
Major topics include industrialization, the birth of suburbs and consumerism, black migration and white flight, race relations, unionization, economic decline, and community renewal—all set to a soundtrack by famous Detroit musicians.
