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Introduction
about Ecology
Ecology is the science that studies the relationships between organisms and
the environment. It was created as an extension of biology but it is also
based on chemistry and physics, and it uses mathematics and information
sciences to a significant degree. The concept of ecology has expanded in
the last several decades, acquiring social and political dimensions due to
the serious environmental problems of the modern world, their direct or
indirect relation with the process of economic development, and the increasing relative social sensitization.
The main volume of research activities in the field of scientific ecology is
still developing around the axis of environmental biology, seeking to answer
basic questions about the distribution and abundance of organisms on the
planet. These questions attract a keen scientific interest from the research
community, but they are only partly related to issues of perturbation and
degradation, damage caused by human activities, and environmental protection or restoration. However, the science of ecology can help us approach
these issues not only through the study of the organisms’ role but even more
through the examination of environmental processes from other viewpoints,
such as the role of energy flow and circulation of chemical elements in the
ecosystems’ structure, function, and stability. Systems ecology bypasses the
details and focuses on basic phenomena, with the exploration of nature’s
general function as its primary goal. Its expectation is that the analysis of
basic processes will offer the possibility for more sound environmental management and for coping with the related problems. At the same time, the
achievement of a better understanding of basic processes contributes to raise
the awareness of the agencies that intervene in the environ ment, promoting
the development of the necessary ecological conscience.
The object of systems ecology is the study of ecosystems. The concept of ecosystem is primary in this consideration and promotes theoretical and applied
research as well as global understanding of environmental problems by the
lay people. Barry Commoner’s four laws of popularized ecology—“Nature
Introduction
about Ecology
Ecology is the science that studies the relationships between organisms and
the environment. It was created as an extension of biology but it is also
based on chemistry and physics, and it uses mathematics and information
sciences to a significant degree. The concept of ecology has expanded in
the last several decades, acquiring social and political dimensions due to
the serious environmental problems of the modern world, their direct or
indirect relation with the process of economic development, and the increasing relative social sensitization.
The main volume of research activities in the field of scientific ecology is
still developing around the axis of environmental biology, seeking to answer
basic questions about the distribution and abundance of organisms on the
planet. These questions attract a keen scientific interest from the research
community, but they are only partly related to issues of perturbation and
degradation, damage caused by human activities, and environmental protection or restoration. However, the science of ecology can help us approach
these issues not only through the study of the organisms’ role but even more
through the examination of environmental processes from other viewpoints,
such as the role of energy flow and circulation of chemical elements in the
ecosystems’ structure, function, and stability. Systems ecology bypasses the
details and focuses on basic phenomena, with the exploration of nature’s
general function as its primary goal. Its expectation is that the analysis of
basic processes will offer the possibility for more sound environmental management and for coping with the related problems. At the same time, the
achievement of a better understanding of basic processes contributes to raise
the awareness of the agencies that intervene in the environ ment, promoting
the development of the necessary ecological conscience.
The object of systems ecology is the study of ecosystems. The concept of ecosystem is primary in this consideration and promotes theoretical and applied
research as well as global understanding of environmental problems by the
lay people. Barry Commoner’s four laws of popularized ecology—“Nature