An edition of The wet and the dry (1994)

The Wet and the Dry

Irrigation and Agricultural Intensification in Polynesia

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Last edited by Open Library Bot
April 24, 2010 | History
An edition of The wet and the dry (1994)

The Wet and the Dry

Irrigation and Agricultural Intensification in Polynesia

  • 1 Want to read

Scholars and researchers have long believed that the ability to irrigate is crucial to the development of civilizations. In this book, archaeologist Patrick Kirch challenges this "hydraulic hypothesis" and provides a more accurate and detailed account of the role of "wet" and "dry" cultivation systems in the development of complex sociopolitical structures.

Examining research on cultural adaptation and ecology in Western Polynesia and utilizing extensive data from a variety of important South Pacific sites, Kirch not only reveals how particular systems of production developed within the constraints imposed by environmental conditions, but also explores the tension that arises between contrasting productive systems with differential abilities to produce surplus.

He shows that the near total neglect of short-fallow dryland cultivation, as well as arboriculture, or tree-cropping, has seriously distorted the picture that archaeologists and anthropologists have of agricultural intensification and its relation to complex social structures. This work, bound to become a classic, will be central to all future discussions of the ecology and politics of agricultural intensification.

Publish Date
Language
English
Pages
408

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Previews available in: English

Edition Availability
Cover of: The Wet and the Dry
The Wet and the Dry: Irrigation and Agricultural Intensification in Polynesia
January 1, 1995, University Of Chicago Press
Hardcover in English
Cover of: The wet and the dry
The wet and the dry: irrigation and agricultural intensification in Polynesia
1994, University of Chicago Press
in English

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Book Details


First Sentence

"The Polynisian islands offer remarkable opportunities for comparative study of tropical agronomic systems, and of agricultural intensification among nonindustrialized societies."

The Physical Object

Format
Hardcover
Number of pages
408
Dimensions
9.3 x 5.9 x 1 inches
Weight
1.3 pounds

ID Numbers

Open Library
OL9551528M
ISBN 10
0226437493
ISBN 13
9780226437491
Goodreads
3609989

Excerpts

The Polynisian islands offer remarkable opportunities for comparative study of tropical agronomic systems, and of agricultural intensification among nonindustrialized societies.
added anonymously.

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History

Download catalog record: RDF / JSON / OPDS | Wikipedia citation
April 24, 2010 Edited by Open Library Bot Fixed duplicate goodreads IDs.
April 16, 2010 Edited by bgimpertBot Added goodreads ID.
April 14, 2010 Edited by Open Library Bot Linked existing covers to the edition.
December 15, 2009 Edited by WorkBot link works
April 30, 2008 Created by an anonymous user Imported from amazon.com record