Plant Physics

Plant Physics
Author: Karl J. Niklas
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Total Pages: 447
Release: 2012-02-06
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0226586340

From Galileo, who used the hollow stalks of grass to demonstrate the idea that peripherally located construction materials provide most of the resistance to bending forces, to Leonardo da Vinci, whose illustrations of the parachute are alleged to be based on his study of the dandelion’s pappus and the maple tree’s samara, many of our greatest physicists, mathematicians, and engineers have learned much from studying plants. A symbiotic relationship between botany and the fields of physics, mathematics, engineering, and chemistry continues today, as is revealed in Plant Physics. The result of a long-term collaboration between plant evolutionary biologist Karl J. Niklas and physicist Hanns-Christof Spatz, Plant Physics presents a detailed account of the principles of classical physics, evolutionary theory, and plant biology in order to explain the complex interrelationships among plant form, function, environment, and evolutionary history. Covering a wide range of topics—from the development and evolution of the basic plant body and the ecology of aquatic unicellular plants to mathematical treatments of light attenuation through tree canopies and the movement of water through plants’ roots, stems, and leaves—Plant Physics is destined to inspire students and professionals alike to traverse disciplinary membranes.

Plant Physics

Plant Physics
Author: Karl Joseph Niklas
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Total Pages: 447
Release: 2012-03-15
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0226586324

From Galileo, who used the hollow stalks of grass to demonstrate the idea that peripherally located construction materials provide most of the resistance to bending forces, to Leonardo da Vinci, whose illustrations of the parachute are alleged to be based on his study of the dandelion’s pappus and the maple tree’s samara, many of our greatest physicists, mathematicians, and engineers have learned much from studying plants. A symbiotic relationship between botany and the fields of physics, mathematics, engineering, and chemistry continues today, as is revealed in Plant Physics. The result of a long-term collaboration between plant evolutionary biologist Karl J. Niklas and physicist Hanns-Christof Spatz, Plant Physics presents a detailed account of the principles of classical physics, evolutionary theory, and plant biology in order to explain the complex interrelationships among plant form, function, environment, and evolutionary history. Covering a wide range of topics—from the development and evolution of the basic plant body and the ecology of aquatic unicellular plants to mathematical treatments of light attenuation through tree canopies and the movement of water through plants’ roots, stems, and leaves—Plant Physics is destined to inspire students and professionals alike to traverse disciplinary membranes.

Soil Physics with BASIC

Soil Physics with BASIC
Author: G.S. Campbell
Publisher: Elsevier
Total Pages: 167
Release: 1985-11-01
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0080869823

This book covers material taught in a graduate-level soil physics course at Washington State University. While most soil physics courses dwell mainly on deriving rather than solving the differential equations for transport, the author's approach is to focus on solutions. Graduate students in agricultural and biological sciences usually have a good working knowledge of algebra and calculus, but not of differential equations. In order to teach methods for solving very difficult differential equations with difficult boundary conditions using fairly simple mathematical tools, the author uses numerical procedures on microcomputers to solve the differential equations. Numerical methods convert differential equations into algebraic equations which can be solved using conventional methods of linear algebra.This book reflects the philosophy used in the course. Each chapter introduces soil physics concepts, generally in the conventional way. Most chapters then go on to develop simple computer programs to solve the equations and illustrate the points made in the discussion. Problems at the end of each chapter help the reader practice using the concepts introduced in the chapter. The problems and computer programs are an integral part of the presentation, and readers are strongly encouraged to experiment with each model until both the working of the model and the concepts it teaches are familiar. Although the programs are generally short and relatively simple, they are suitable for use as submodels in large, general-purpose models of the soil-plant-atmosphere system, and have been used in this way by the author and by several of his students.Teachers and students alike will welcome this new textbook. It will enable graduate students to understand and solve transport problems which exist in field situations, and will provide them with a good working knowledge of soil physics - fundamental to so many other areas in soil, plant and engineering sciences.

Principles of Environmental Physics

Principles of Environmental Physics
Author: John Monteith
Publisher: Butterworth-Heinemann
Total Pages: 308
Release: 1990-02-15
Genre: Nature
ISBN: 9780713129311

Thoroughly revised and up-dated edition of a highly successful textbook.

Plant Factory

Plant Factory
Author: Toyoki Kozai
Publisher: Academic Press
Total Pages: 518
Release: 2019-11-03
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 0128166924

Plant Factory: An Indoor Vertical Farming System for Efficient Quality Food Production, Second Edition presents a comprehensive look at the implementation of plant factory (PF) practices to yield food crops for both improved food security and environmental sustainability. Edited and authored by leading experts in PF and controlled environment agriculture (CEA), the book is divided into five sections, including an Overview and the Concept of Closed Plant Production Systems (CPPS), the Basics of Physics and Physiology – Environments and Their Effects, System Design, Construction, Cultivation and Management and Plant Factories in Operation. In addition to new coverage on the rapid advancement of LED technology and its application in indoor vertical farming, other revisions to the new edition include updated information on the status of business R&D and selected commercial PFALs (plant factory with artificial lighting). Additional updates include those focused on micro and mini-PFALs for improving the quality of life in urban areas, the physics and physiology of light, the impact of PFAL on the medicinal components of plants, and the system design, construction, cultivation and management issues related to transplant production within closed systems, photoautotrophic micro-propagation and education, training and intensive business forums on PFs. - Includes coverage of LED technology - Presents case-studies for real-world insights and application - Addresses PF from economics and planning, to operation and lifecycle assessment

Soil Physics with Python

Soil Physics with Python
Author: Marco Bittelli
Publisher:
Total Pages: 461
Release: 2015
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0199683093

This innovative study presents concepts and problems in soil physics, and provides solutions using original computer programs. It provides a close examination of physical environments of soil, including an analysis of the movement of heat, water and gases. The authors employ the programminglanguage Python, which is now widely used for numerical problem solving in the sciences. In contrast to the majority of the literature on soil physics, this text focuses on solving, not deriving, differential equations for transport. Using numerical procedures to solve differential equations allowsthe solution of quite difficult problems with fairly simple mathematical tools. Numerical methods convert differential into algebraic equations, which can be solved using conventional methods of linear algebra. Each chapter introduces a soil physics concept, and proceeds to develop computer programsto solve the equations and illustrate the points made in the discussion.Problems at the end of each chapter help the reader practise using the concepts introduced. The text is suitable for advanced undergraduates, graduates and researchers of soil physics. It employs an open source philosophy where computer code is presented, explained and discussed, and provides thereader with a full understanding of the solutions. Once mastered, the code can be adapted and expanded for the user's own models, fostering further developments. The Python tools provide a simple syntax, Object Oriented Programming techniques, powerful mathematical and numerical tools, and a userfriendly environment.

Physicochemical and Environmental Plant Physiology

Physicochemical and Environmental Plant Physiology
Author: Park S. Nobel
Publisher: Academic Press
Total Pages: 589
Release: 2005-01-24
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0125200269

"Physiology," which is the study of the function of cells, organs, and organisms, derives from the Latin physiologia, which in turn comes from the Greek physi- or physio-, a prefix meaning natural, and logos, meaning reason or thought. Thus physiology suggests natural science and is now a branch of biology dealing with processes and activities that are characteristic of living things. "Physicochemical" relates to physical and chemical properties, and "Environmental" refers to topics such as solar irradiation and wind. "Plant" indicates the main focus of this book, but the approach, equations developed, and appendices apply equalIy welI to animaIs and other organisms. We wilI specificalIy consider water relations, solute transport, photosynthesis, transpiration, respiration, and environmental interactions. A physiologist endeavors to understand such topics in physical and chemical terms; accurate models can then be constructed and responses to the internal and the external environment can be predicted. Elementary chemistry, physics, and mathematics are used to develop concepts that are key to under-standing biology -the intent is to provide a rigorous development, not a compendium of facts. References provide further details, although in some cases the enunciated principIes carry the reader to the forefront of current research. Calculations are used to indicate the physiological consequences of the various equations, and problems at the end of chapters provide further such exercises. Solutions to alI of the problems are provided, and the appendixes have a large tist of values for constants and conversion factors at various temperatures.

Lessons from Plants

Lessons from Plants
Author: Beronda L. Montgomery
Publisher: Harvard University Press
Total Pages: 241
Release: 2021-04-06
Genre: Nature
ISBN: 0674259394

An exploration of how plant behavior and adaptation offer valuable insights for human thriving. We know that plants are important. They maintain the atmosphere by absorbing carbon dioxide and producing oxygen. They nourish other living organisms and supply psychological benefits to humans as well, improving our moods and beautifying the landscape around us. But plants don’t just passively provide. They also take action. Beronda L. Montgomery explores the vigorous, creative lives of organisms often treated as static and predictable. In fact, plants are masters of adaptation. They “know” what and who they are, and they use this knowledge to make a way in the world. Plants experience a kind of sensation that does not require eyes or ears. They distinguish kin, friend, and foe, and they are able to respond to ecological competition despite lacking the capacity of fight-or-flight. Plants are even capable of transformative behaviors that allow them to maximize their chances of survival in a dynamic and sometimes unfriendly environment. Lessons from Plants enters into the depth of botanic experience and shows how we might improve human society by better appreciating not just what plants give us but also how they achieve their own purposes. What would it mean to learn from these organisms, to become more aware of our environments and to adapt to our own worlds by calling on perception and awareness? Montgomery’s meditative study puts before us a question with the power to reframe the way we live: What would a plant do?

Principles of Soil and Plant Water Relations

Principles of Soil and Plant Water Relations
Author: M.B. Kirkham
Publisher: Academic Press
Total Pages: 599
Release: 2014-04-21
Genre: Science
ISBN: 0124200788

Principles of Soil and Plant Water Relations, 2e describes the principles of water relations within soils, followed by the uptake of water and its subsequent movement throughout and from the plant body. This is presented as a progressive series of physical and biological interrelations, even though each topic is treated in detail on its own. The book also describes equipment used to measure water in the soil-plant-atmosphere system. At the end of each chapter is a biography of a scientist whose principles are discussed in the chapter. In addition to new information on the concept of celestial time, this new edition also includes new chapters on methods to determine sap flow in plants dual-probe heat-pulse technique to monitor water in the root zone. - Provides the necessary understanding to address advancing problems in water availability for meeting ecological requirements at local, regional and global scales - Covers plant anatomy: an essential component to understanding soil and plant water relations

Applied Soil Physics

Applied Soil Physics
Author: R.J. Hanks
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 164
Release: 2013-06-29
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 146840184X