Bøger i Encyclopedia of Sustainability serien

This volume on Infectious Diseases in an Encyclopedia of Sustainability Science and Technology (ESST) addresses the needs of health care providers and policy makers as well as scientists and engineers. Most of chapters in this volume deal with infectious diseases that directly affect humans, including the detailed characterization of specific pathogens, how they reproduce, how they are transmitted, and the means available to control, eliminate, or eradicate them. In this revised and updated second edition, the number of human infectious diseases covered has been significantly expanded. Other new chapters deal with current leading edge technologies for the diagnosis of pathogens; surveillance including environmental and syndromic surveillance for pathogens; requirements for quality assurance, quality control and the need for biological standards and controls to sustain high quality diagnosis and surveillance; the use of big data for personalized medicine; modeling infectious diseases; zoonotic and vector borne diseases; disease prevention with antibiotics, antivirals and vaccines; and factors that affect ecological balances leading to emergence of new diseases such as climate change and deforestation. Finally, infectious diseases that affect livestock and culture of plants for food, comfort and beauty are also addressed, since we must also consider them when discussing sustainability of humans in our ecosystem.

This comprehensive reference is a state-of-the-art survey of biomass as an energy carrier for the provision of heat, electricity, and transportation fuel, considering technical, economic, environmental, and social aspects. On a global scale, biomass contributes roughly 12 to 16 % of the energy needed to cover the overall primary energy consumption. Thus far, it is humanity's most important source of renewable energy, used on practically all continents and growing in importance even in industrialized nations. With detailed coverage of the production of solid, gaseous and liquid fuels, as well as a final energy provision, this volume serves as an introduction for readers just entering the field, but also offers new insights, up-to-date information, as well as latest findings for advanced researchers, industry experts, and decision makers.

The expected end of the "oil age" will lead to increasing focus and reliance on alternative energy conversion devices, among which fuel cells have the potential to play an important role. Not only can phosphoric acid and solid oxide fuel cells already efficiently convert today's fossil fuels, including methane, into electricity, but other types of fuel cells, such as polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells, have the potential to become the cornerstones of a possible future hydrogen economy. This handbook offers concise yet comprehensive coverage of the current state of fuel cell research and identifies key areas for future investigation. Internationally renowned specialists provide authoritative introductions to a wide variety of fuel cell types and hydrogen production technologies, and discuss materials and components for these systems. Sustainability and marketing considerations are also covered, including comparisons of fuel cells with alternative technologies.