Summary: For the past 4 billion years, the chemistry of the
Earth's surface, where all life exists, has changed remarkably.
Historically, these changes have occurred slowly enough to allow
life to adapt and evolve. In more recent times, the chemistry of
the Earth is being altered at a staggering rate, fueled by
industrialization and an ever-growing human population. Human
activities, from the rapid consumption of resources to the
destruction of the rainforests and the expansi ...show moreon of
smog-covered cities, are all leading to rapid changes in the
basic chemistry of the Earth. The Second Edition of
Biogeochemistry considers the effects of life on the Earth's
chemistry on a global level. This expansive text employs current
technology to help students extrapolate small-scale examples to
the global level, and also discusses the instrumentation being
used by NASA and its role in studies of global change. With the
Earth's changing chemistry as the focus, this text pulls
together the many disparate fields tha