This volume of the Encyclopedia of Complexity and Systems Science, Second Edition is an authoritative single source for understanding and applying the basic tenets of complexity and systems theory, as well as the tools and measures for analyzing complex systems, to the prediction, monitoring, and evaluation of earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanoes. Early warning, damage, and the immediate response of human populations to these extreme environmental events are also covered from the point of view of complexity and nonlinear systems. In authoritative, state-of-the art articles, world experts in each field apply such complexity tools and concepts as fractals, cellular automata, solitons game theory, network theory, and statistical physics to an understanding of these complex geophysical phenomena.
About the Author: After receiving his PhD in geology from Yale University, Robert I. Tilling worked for the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) for 42 years, mostly on studies of volcanic eruptions and their associated hazards in the U.S. and abroad. Although "officially" retired since 2004, he remains actively involved in volcano-hazards studies as a Scientist Emeritus with the USGS Volcano Science Center in Menlo Park, California. During his career, he has authored or co-authored more than 350 geoscience papers and abstracts, including co-editing the Springer volume Monitoring and Mitigation of Volcano Hazards. In addition to strictly technical works, he has also produced a number of so-called "general-interest" publications (GIPs), specifically intended for educational purposes and public outreach. For example, he was the principal co-compiler of three editions (1989, 1994, 2006) of the a^ 80,000 copies sold): This Dynamic Planet: World Map of Volcanoes, Earthquakes, Impact Craters, and Plate Tectonics, and was the co-author of an accompanying GIP booklet This Dynamic Earth: The Story of Plate Tectonics. In between research assignments, he served several USGS managerial positions, as well as being an invited consultant to some foreign countries (e.g., Colombia, Ecuador, Indonesia, Mexico, and Peru) in connection with volcano-hazards studies.
