Principles and Dynamics of the Critical Zone

Principles and Dynamics of the Critical Zone is an invaluable resource for undergraduate and graduate courses and an essential tool for researchers developing cutting-edge proposals. It provides a process-based description of the Critical Zone, a place that The National Research Council (2001) defines as the "heterogeneous, near surface environment in which complex interactions involving rock, soil, water, air, and living organisms regulate the natural habitat and determine the availability of life-sustaining resources." This text provides a summary of Critical Zone research and outcomes from the NSF funded Critical Zone Observatories, providing a process-based description of the Critical Zone in a wide range of environments with a specific focus on the important linkages that exist amongst the processes in each zone. This book will be useful to all scientists and students conducting research on the Critical Zone within and outside the Critical Zone Observatory Network, as well as scientists and students in the geosciences – atmosphere, geomorphology, geology and pedology.

• The first text to address the principles and concepts of the Critical Zone
• A comprehensive approach to the processes responsible for the development and structure of the Critical Zone in a number of environments
• An essential tool for undergraduate and graduate students, and researchers developing cutting-edge proposals

Dr. John R. (Rick) Giardino is a process geomorphologist whose research is focused on mass movement and fluvial activity in periglacial environments. He studies rock glaciers, landslides and mountain streams from a system perspective focusing on the transport of mass and energy through these landform systems. Dr. Giardino is Professor in the Geology and Geophysics Department and the Water Management and Hydrological Sciences Graduate Program. He is currently Head of Geology and Geophysics, and he was the former Dean of Graduate Studies at Texas A&M University.

Dr. Chris Houser is a process geomorphologist with a focus on coastal and aeolian environments and an interest in the response and recovery of barrier islands to relative sea level rise and changes in the frequency and magnitude of storm events. An important component of his research is the exchange of sediment amongst the nearshore, beach and dune in the development of coastal dunes, which ultimately controls the development of the critical zone in coastal barrier environments. Dr. Houser is also the Director for the Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) Site: Ecohydrology of a Tropical Montane Cloud Forest (http://costaricareu.tamu.edu/), which allows undergraduate students to characterize the hydrology of a small tropical watershed using a systems approach. Dr. Houser is currently an Associate Professor in the Departments of Geography and Geology & Geophysics at Texas A&M University and serves as the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Faculty Development.