ArticleLessons learned from the World Commission on DamsRyo Fujikura and Mikiyasu Nakayama

seful, simple graphic showing twenty years of trends in Gulf of Mexico oil production by water depth. In the figure, shallow is 0-999 ft, deepwater is 1,000-4,999 ft, and ultra-deepwater is anything over 5,000 ft. As I've been arguing, part of what we're seeing here is the inevitable "normal accidents" from changing technology as we transition from one extraction depth regime to another.

RAFFENSPERGER, In Defense of the Precautionary Principle

CARPENTER,, J. E et al Case Study in Benefits and Risks of Agricultural Biotechnology: Roundup Ready Soybeans

he Berne Symposium invited leading scientists of risk assessment research with transgenic crops on an international level in order to enhance the discussion regulators and members of the biotech industry. The goal was to determine the status quo and also to make progress in times of a first global spread of transgenes in agrosystems about risk assessment. The dialogue between scientists, regulators and industry representatives also revealed some lacunes of risk assessment research, which will have to be filled in the future: We still lack longterm experience, for which we will have to collect data with scientific precision. The symposium concluded asking for a risk-oriented longterm monitoring system based on critical science and hard data. This volume presents the discussion sessions as well as the scientific contributions and thus

The monitoring and surveillance of genetically modified higher plants (GMHP) is an area that is still lacking an established international monitoring program. This volume presents ideas and suggestions by focusing on procedures in composing such a program and methods for detection of transgene dispersal and of environmental effects when GM plants are cultivated. Objectives and procedures for monitoring and surveying present and new types of GM plants are described, including herbicide tolerance, insect resistance and changed agronomic performance. Other issues covered in this book include: detection of GM plant dispersal and hybridisation; agricultural use and large scale effects; habitat selection and community invasibility; baseline definition and the time perspective; effects on ecosystems, vegetation and organism groups; sampling designs; data analysis and relevant statistical methods. In a final chapter, conclusions and recommendations are presented..

BELT, Henk vand den,  Biotechnology, the US-EU dispute and the Precautionary Principle

Biotechnological innovations in the past 30 years have raised many questions about how we can reap the benefits of transformative science and technology through responsible and sustainable use. Biotechnology has the potential both for better or worse to enhance, undercut or change as much as 40% of the world's economy, to fundamentally alter our relationship with nature and to question our sense of self.

Scribd Launches Readcast, Integrates With Facebook® Social Plugins to Make Reading More Social SAN FRANCISCO, CA--(Marketwire - April 21, 2010) -   f8 Developer Conference -- Scribd, the world's largest social publishing and reading site, launches Scribd Readcast along with Facebook's new social plugins. Readcast is a set of features that enables people to automatically share what they're reading on Scribd with their friends on Facebook and other social sites. The Facebook Like button and Activity Feed are also now part of the Scribd social reading experience. "Scribd is the place where connections form around shared reading interests," said Trip Adler, CEO and co-founder Scribd. "Now, the universe of social reading suddenly opens up to include Twilight fan fiction, investigative reports about Goldman Sachs, Mary Meeker's Web 2.0 presentation, tips for using solar power. This reflects the breadth and depth of what people read on a daily basis, not just what they're reading on news sites." Readcast is a customizable feature that enables people to automatically share what they're reading on Scribd with friends on Facebook and contacts on other social media sites. People can also choose to share Scribd reading events such as scribbles, comments, ratings, downloads, and eventually mobile reading activity, printing and purchases. Visit http://blog.scribd.com for more information about Readcast. Faceboook social plugins integration enables Scribd users to "like" their favorite reading material and to see -- without leaving Scribd.com -- which Scribd books, research, presentations, illustrations and other written works their friends on Facebook friends "like," comment on, and share. "Scribd's integration with our new social plugins allows people to create social connections around written works," said Ethan Beard, director of Facebook Developer Network. "Now, it's easier to connect with friends on Facebook who are reading the same books, researching the same topics or s

Both funding agencies and scholars in science studies have become increasingly concerned with how to define and identify interdisciplinarity in research. The task is tricky, since the complexity of interdisciplinary research defies a single definition. Our study tackles this challenge by demonstrating a new typology and qualitative indicators for analyzing interdisciplinarity in research documents. The proposed conceptual framework attempts to fulfill the need for a robust and nuanced approach that is grounded in deeper knowledge of interdisciplinarity. As an example of using the framework, we discuss our empirical investigation of research proposals funded by a national funding agency in Finland. Article Outline 1. Introduction 2. Background 3. Typology and indicators 3.1. Scope of interdisciplinarity 3.2. Type of interdisciplinary interaction 3.2.1. Encyclopedic - contextualizing - composite multidisciplinarity 3.2.2. Empirical - methodological - theoretical interdisciplinarity* 3.3. Type of goals 4. Discussion and conclusions Acknowledgements References

ENVIRONMENTAL MOVIES, ENVIRONMENT FILMS, ENVIRONMENTAL DVDs, HOLLYWOOD ENVIRONMENTAL MOVIES, MOVIES ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES

The provision of food is undergoing radical transformations throughout the global community. Peter Oosterveer argues that, as a consequence, conventional national governmental regulations can no longer adequately respond to existing and emerging food risks and to environmental concerns. This book examines these challenges. Translating recent innovative thinking in the social sciences - as seen in the work of Manuel Castells and John Urry amongst others - to the world of food, this book reviews the challenges facing global food governance and the innovative regulatory arrangements that are being introduced by different governments, NGOs and private companies. The analysis includes case-studies on the European BSE crisis, GM-food regulation, salmon and shrimp farming and food labelling. The author highlights how contemporary governance arrangements also have to acknowledge increasing consumer demand for food produced with care for the environment, animal welfare and social justice. Developing and implementing adequate global food governance arrangements therefore demands the active involvement of private firms, consumers, and civil society organisations with national governments. Peter Oosterveer's book will appeal to scholars - postgraduate and above - involved in industrial organization, agricultural studies and environmental sciences as well as those with an interest in the globalisation and governance of this important and topical area.

"Genamics JournalSeek is the largest completely categorized database of freely available journal information available on the internet. The database presently contains 95831 titles . Journal information includes the description (aims and scope), journal abbreviation, journal homepage link, subject category and ISSN. Searching this information allows the rapid identification of potential journals to publish your research in, as well as allow you to find new journals of interest to your field."

In this paper we analyze the factors that should be considered when allocating a given policy function at a particular level of government and how these factors affect the growth and evolution of multi-level governments. After discussing the interplay of economies of scale, economies of scope, and heterogeneity of preferences in determining the optimal level of legal intervention, we show that the subsidiarity principle can have mixed effects as a firewall against progressive centralization. Our economic model of subsidiarity reveals that once some functions become centralized, further centralization becomes easier and often unavoidable. Contrary to its intended function, a piecemeal application of the subsidiarity principle can trigger a path-dependent avalanche of centralization, turning subsidiarity into a self-defeating statement of principle.

Ulrich Beck's best selling Risk Society established risk on the sociological agenda. It brought together a wide range of issues centering on environmental, health and personal risk, provided a rallying ground for researchers and activists in a variety of social movements and acted as a reference point for state and local policies in risk management. The Risk Society and Beyond charts the progress of Beck's ideas and traces their evolution. It demonstrates why the issues raised by Beck reverberate widely throughout social theory and covers the new risks that Beck did not foresee, associated with the emergence of new technologies, genetic and cybernetic. The book is unique because it offers both an introduction to the main arg

In contemporary culture risk is ubiquitous, filtering through a range of activities, practices and experiences. In line with rising public concerns about the management of current threats - such as crime, terrorism and global warming -interest in risk has gathered momentum in the social sciences, galvanized by Ulrich Beck's risk society thesis. Bringing together cutting edge academics and researchers, Beyond the Risk Society provides an understanding of the relevance and impact of the concept of risk in various subject areas. Contributions by domain experts critically evaluate the way in which theoretical risk perspectives have influenced their fields of interest, offering the opportunity to reflect upon the problems and possibilities for future work on risk. In assembling this collection, the editors propose a holistic and trans-disciplinary approach to understanding the nature and consequences of risk in everyday life.This text is key reading for social sciences students in a range of disciplines, including sociology, criminology, cultural studies, media studies, psychology and social policy. Contributors: Alison Anderson, Rob Flynn, Jane Franklin, Hazel Kemshall, Deborah Lupton, Phil Macnaghten, Jim McGuigan, Peter McMylor, Gabe Mythen, Pat O'Malley, Teela Sanders, Steve Tombs, Sandra Walklate, Dave Whyte, Iain Wilkinson

ArticlesOnline Exclusives Questioning World Risk Society: Three Challenges for Research on the Governance of Uncertainty By Fabrizio Cantelli, Naonori Kodate, Kristian Krieger The concept of the World Risk Society (Beck, 1998) is often associated with major disasters and accidents. And indeed, safety from the forces of nature can no longer be taken for granted even by the population of industrialised countries, as an increasing number of floods, hurricanes and winter storms over the last two decades demonstrates. Similarly, industrial accidents, such as Chernobyl, Sandoz and Bhopal, cause severe and lasting damages to human health and the environment (Perrow, 1999). In view of accelerating technological change and increased competitive pressures, as well as climate change, it is reasonable to expect that such disasters will continue to undermine the safety of the population and commentators will keep on referring to the idea of a 'risk society'. While the association of the concept of a risk society with disasters is not wrong, it is incomplete. Developed by the German sociologist Ulrich Beck in the mid-1980s (1991, 1995, 1996, 1998), the idea of an emergent risk society refers to a fundamental transformation or modernisation of industrial societies. More specifically, increasingly individualised and disembedded citizens question - partly in view of the devastating consequences of industrial production - the very foundations of the society, most notably the belief in economic growth, and political, technological and scientific control of production. This 'questioning' of the foundations results in 'reflexive modernisation'.