Robert Harding

This specially curated collection features six reviews of current and key research on genetic modification of crops. The first chapter reviews key challenges facing banana production, primarily the risk of species decimation by diseases such as Fusarium wilt, and considers how genetic modification may be a solution to this. The second chapter discusses the development and establishment of ‘Golden Rice’ - a biofortified variety designed as a health intervention to help alleviate the problem of vitamin A deficiency. The third chapter details recent advances in the genetic modification of important agronomic traits of soybean crops, such as herbicide tolerance and insect resistance. The fourth chapter addresses progress in and prospects for transgenic interventions in the improvement of grain legumes, concentrating on chickpea, pigeonpea, cowpea and more. The fifth chapter reviews recent research efforts in the production of genetically modified (GM) oil palm plants and looks towards establishing stable lines of commercially viable GM varieties. The final chapter describes recent progress relating to transgenic modification of cassava and how future research can strengthen food security and commercialization of the crop.

This collection of essays explore the beautiful city of Fuzhou and its history and literature. Based on several journeys to the southern Chinese city, the authors discuss literature and culture, religion and nature. Issues that are touched upon in these essays include the literature of its most famous son, Tang Xianzu and compare his work with that of William Shakespeare. Tang and Shakespeare both died in the same year, 1616, and the two playwrights serve as representatives of East and West, as well as the possibilities of bridging the gaps across the continents. Elsewhere, these essays describe visits to the Caoshan Temple, the cradle of the Caodong school of Zen Buddhism. Our travellers meet Master Yangli, the first female master of the temple, and hear her profound ideas about integrating with nature and the status of Buddhism in the modern world. These essays offer stimulating impressions on cultural exchange, tradition in the 21st century, and humanities place in a changing landscape, all with the backdrop of the historic city of Fuzhou.

This extensive collection represents current work and new theoretical approaches in South Asian landscape archaeology. This book has a number of aims; one is to constitute landscape archaeology as a discrete area of study within South Asian studies, another is to encourage the use of and development of theoretical approaches in South Asia and hopefully garner more archaeological interest in the area, instead of the current circumstances in which it is resolutely ignored. Given the importance of landscape issues to disciplines other than archaeology, and, the way landscape archaeology has borrowed from these disciplines, contributions from heritage studies, architecture, ethnography and the history of cartography are found amongst papers on rock art studies, hunter-gatherer ecology and ritual space.

This extensive collection represents current work and new theoretical approaches in South Asian landscape archaeology. This book has a number of aims; one is to constitute landscape archaeology as a discrete area of study within South Asian studies, another is to encourage the use of and development of theoretical approaches in South Asia and hopefully garner more archaeological interest in the area, instead of the current circumstances in which it is resolutely ignored. Given the importance of landscape issues to disciplines other than archaeology, and, the way landscape archaeology has borrowed from these disciplines, contributions from heritage studies, architecture, ethnography and the history of cartography are found amongst papers on rock art studies, hunter-gatherer ecology and ritual space.

This book analyses the rationale and history of space programs in countries of the developing world. Space was at one time the sole domain of the wealthiest developed countries. However, the last couple of decades of the twentieth century and the first decade of the twenty-first century have witnessed the number of countries with state-supported space programs blossom. Today, no less than twenty-five developing states, including the rapidly emerging economic powers of Brazil (seventh-largest), China (second-largest), and India (fourth-largest), possess active national space programs with already proven independent launch capability or concrete plans to achieve it soon. This work places these programs within the context of international relations theory and foreign policy analysis. The author categorizes each space program into tiers of development based not only on the level of technology utilised, but on how each fits within the country’s overall national security and/or development policies. The text also places these programs into an historical context, which enables the author to demonstrate the logical thread of continuity in the political rationale for space capabilities generally. This book will be of much interest to students of space power and politics, development studies, strategic studies and international relations in general.

This book analyses the rationale and history of space programs in countries of the developing world. Space was at one time the sole domain of the wealthiest developed countries. However, the last couple of decades of the twentieth century and the first decade of the twenty-first century have witnessed the number of countries with state-supported space programs blossom. Today, no less than twenty-five developing states, including the rapidly emerging economic powers of Brazil (seventh-largest), China (second-largest), and India (fourth-largest), possess active national space programs with already proven independent launch capability or concrete plans to achieve it soon. This work places these programs within the context of international relations theory and foreign policy analysis. The author categorizes each space program into tiers of development based not only on the level of technology utilised, but on how each fits within the country’s overall national security and/or development policies. The text also places these programs into an historical context, which enables the author to demonstrate the logical thread of continuity in the political rationale for space capabilities generally. This book will be of much interest to students of space power and politics, development studies, strategic studies and international relations in general.