Summary

Environmental science emerged from the fields of natural history and medicine during the Enlightenment. Today, it provides an integrated, quantitative, and interdisciplinary approach to the study of environmental systems. Environmental studies are incorporating more of the social sciences in order to understand human relationships, perceptions and policies towards the environment. This entry collection features information about design and technology for improving environmental quality in every aspect.

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Topic Review
Beneficial Microorganisms in Soil Quality and Plant Health
The practice of agriculture has always been a source of food production. The increase in the global population leads to improvements in agriculture, increasing crop quality and yield. Plant growth results from the interaction between roots and their environment, which is the soil or planting medium that provides structural support as well as water and nutrients to the plant. Therefore, good soil management is necessary to prevent problems that will directly affect plant health. Integrated crop management is a pragmatic approach to crop production, which includes integrated pest management focusing on crop protection. Currently, there is an extended idea that many microorganisms, such as fungi or bacteria, are useful in agriculture since they are attractive eco-friendly alternatives to mineral fertilizers and chemical pesticides. The microbes that interact with the plants supply nutrients to crops, control phytopathogens and stimulate plant growth. These actions have beneficial implications in agriculture.
  • 1.4K
  • 23 May 2022
Topic Review
Early Childhood Resilience and Later School Outcomes
The longitudinal associations between early childhood resilience profiles (low emotional and behavioral resilience, low cognitive resilience, multi-domain resilience) and school outcomes (academic achievement; emotional and behavioral school engagement) among children involved with the U.S. child welfare system are examined. Overall, the lasting effects of early resilience into the later childhood years are indicated, demonstrating the virtuous cycles of resilience. At the three-year follow-up assessment, children with low emotional and behavioral resilience profiles and children with the multi-domain resilience profile at baseline (aged 3-5 years) had significantly higher basic reading skills, reading comprehension, and math reasoning compared to children with low scores on the cognitive resilience profile. Researchers results suggest the need for early identification of and intervention for children with low cognitive or emotional/behavioral resilience during the preschool years to promote academic success and school engagement during the school-age years.
  • 599
  • 23 May 2022
Topic Review
Green Product Development Performance
Climate change and environmental crises are currently affecting the living environment of both people and the planet in general. This necessitates businesses to have a prompt and effective response to minimize or improve the harmful effects that lead to environmental imbalance and fulfill corporate social responsibility through focusing on transitioning to a model of sustainable economic development and encouraging the development and production of green products. 
  • 682
  • 27 May 2022
Topic Review
Small Public Urban Green Spaces for Mental Restoration
Small public urban green space (SPUGS) was defined as urban public spaces which did not exceeding 5,000 m2 in size with vegetation and their own entrance. Exposure to SPUGS has been demonstrated to have mental benefits for older adults. However, studies on identifying the objective environmental features of SPUGS and their effects on mental restoration for older adults remain limited. The research results showed that: (1) Both the green view index, and the boundary enclosure had a strong impact on the mental restoration of older adults; (2) The colorfulness index showed the strongest relationship with the vitalizing effect. (3) Sky view factor and, number of seats only influenced the ROS score, while the results of revitalization suggest that large areas of water should be avoided. (4) Physiological Equivalent Temperature (PET) was also confirmed to have negative effects on the psychological health of seniors in autumn. 
  • 471
  • 20 May 2022
Topic Review
Environmentally Responsible Behavior in National Forest Trails
Tourism has been developing rapidly and causing various effects on ecological environment around the world. The impact of forest hiking trails is of particular importance, as they pass through natural areas with greater ecosystem diversity, such as mountains and forests. Therefore, enhancing tourists’ environmentally responsible behavior (ERB) on forest trails has become an important issue to be addressed. Scholars have applied different theories to study ERB, including the theory of planned behavior (TPB), attitude behavior context theory, the norm activation model (NAM), and value belief norm theory (VBN). The extant literature on ERB can be categorized into two primary perspectives, namely, rationality- and morality-based approaches.
  • 536
  • 20 May 2022
Topic Review
Properties and Principles of Cool Pavements Usage
With growing urban populations, methods of reducing the urban heat island effect have become increasingly important. Cool pavements altering the heat storage of materials used in pavements can lead to lower surface temperatures and reduce the thermal radiation emitted to the atmosphere. Cool pavement technologies utilize various strategies to reduce the temperature of new and existing pavements, including increased albedo, evaporative cooling, and reduced heat conduction. This process of negative radiation forces helps offset the impacts of increasing atmospheric temperatures.
  • 1.1K
  • 20 May 2022
Topic Review
Urban Growth Boundary
With the rapid and unregulated nature of urban expansion occurring in Chattogram, Bangladesh, the adoption of urban growth restriction mechanisms such as the urban growth boundary (UGB) can provide a robust framework necessary to direct the development of built-up areas in a way that curtails the growth in environmentally sensitive areas of the city. UGBs, in simple terms, can be defined as land regulations that have been put into place, in most cases, by the local government to prohibit urban growth and development beyond a defined boundary. The UGBs are designed to protect non-urban land outside the boundary and to promote compact, contiguous, and sustainable urban development. The UGB, as an urban growth policy tool, has been implemented in a wide variety of cities in both the developed and the developing world.
  • 966
  • 20 May 2022
Topic Review
Abundance of Mycoplankton and Its Ecological Role
Mycoplankton are saprophytic organisms in plankton communities in marine and freshwater ecosystems. They consist of filamentous free-living fungi and yeasts associated with planktonic particles or phytoplankton. Similar to planktonic bacteria, these aquatic fungi play important roles in heterotrophic mineralization and nutrient cycling. Planktonic bacteria can be up to 20 mm in diameter and over 50 mm in length
  • 750
  • 23 May 2022
Topic Review
Potential and Field Measurements of Soil Carbon Sequestration
Soil carbon sequestration (SCS) is a key priority in the Australian government’s Long-Term Emissions Reduction Plan. Under the government’s Emission Reduction Fund (ERF), farmers are encouraged to change to a management practice that will increase their soil carbon (C) stock and earn Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs).
  • 771
  • 19 May 2022
Topic Review
The Occurrence of Microorganisms in Grassland Soils
Soil microorganisms are responsible for the mineralization of organic compounds and the course of various biogeochemical cycles. They have an influence on the biodiversity of entire ecosystems, including the plant cover. They are responsible for the productivity of soil and its structure, and they also affect the circulation of elements in nature. The count and species composition of soil microorganisms depend mainly on the physicochemical properties of the pedon, the amount of nutrients, the type of soil, and the species composition of the plant community. Plants significantly influence the species composition of soil microbial communities through the release or loss of compounds from plant roots to the surrounding soil environment and decomposition of litter and roots.
  • 1.8K
  • 19 May 2022
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