The Earth System 3rd Edition by Lee R Kump, James F Kasting, Robert G Crane ISBN 0321597796 9780321597793

The first textbook of its kind that addresses the issues of global change from a true Earth systems perspective, The Earth System offers a solid emphasis on lessons from Earth’s history that may guide decision-making in the future. It is more rigorous and quantitative than traditional Earth science books, while remaining appropriate for non-science majors.

• The systems theory approach looks holistically at all that happens on Earth and the interactions of all that is here—such as the effect of weather on land, the effect of erosion on the ocean, the chemical changes that occur—and emphasizes that these processes do not happen in a vacuum.

• An emphasis on global change addresses such modern issues as global warming, ozone depletion, and biodiversity loss.

• A thorough treatment of Earth history provides a framework for developing a deep understanding of global problems while it explores analogous situations in Earth history.

• Extensive pedagogy in each chapter includes thought questions, a summary of important points, a list of important terms, and recommended general and advanced readings.

• Instructor’s Resource Guide and Instructor’s Resource CD-ROM are now standard instructor supplements with the text.