Socialtechnological Man.

Cover -- Half Title -- Series Page -- Title -- Copyright -- About the Book -- Contents -- List of Figures -- List of Tables -- Foreword -- About the Editor and Authors -- Introduction -- 1 An Empirical Approach to Prehistoric Agrarian Collapse: The Case of the Moche Valley, Peru -- The Desert -- Environmental Change -- Canal Strategy -- Complementary Strategies -- Social Setting -- The Moche Valley Agricultural System -- Early Agricultuve -- Later Prehistory -- Agrarian Collapse -- Conclusions -- Acknowledgements -- Notes -- References -- 2 Farmers and Technical Experts: Information Flow in Irrigated Agriculture -- Introduation -- Case I: The Rusty Tractor Syndrome -- Case II: The Virgin Canals Syndrome -- Case III: The "My Superiors Have Not Yet Answered My Letter" Syndrome -- Israeli Observations -- Case I: The Telephone Factor -- Case II: The Muddy Feet Factor -- Analysis -- Conclusions -- Notes -- 3 Human Use of the Pre-Saharan Ecosystem and Its Impact on Desertization -- Introduction -- The Energy Flow Approach to the Study of Human Ecology -- The Value of Energy Flow Studies for Planners of Economic Policy in Developing Arid Regions -- Economic Production in Southern Tunisia -- Annual Differences in Soil Disturbance from Human Economic Activity -- Land Use Strategies in Southern Tunisia -- Prospects for Developing Land Use Alternatives -- References -- 4 Utilization of Surface Water by Northern Arabian Bedouins -- 5 Agroecosystem Diversity: A Model from the Sonoran Desert -- Ephemerals -- Root Perennials -- Columnar Cacti -- Desert Trees and Shrubs -- Seagrasses -- Saltgrass -- Summary -- Acknowledgments -- References -- 6 A Rational-Choice Model of Agricultural Resource Utilization and Conservation -- Introduction -- Rational-Choice Models and Agricultural Decisions -- The Model -- Agrarian Development -- End Notes -- References.

7 Drought versus Desertification: The Case of the Sahel -- 8 Some Observations on Adaptation to Semi-arid Environments.

This volume presents studies of societies ranging from ancient Peru to contemporary Israel that are concerned with human activity in arid environments. It discusses the rise and fall of water management system and reviews its broader physical, social, and technological setting.

Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.

Electronic reproduction. Ann Arbor, Michigan : ProQuest Ebook Central, 2024. Available via World Wide Web. Access may be limited to ProQuest Ebook Central affiliated libraries.