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Titles to Look Out For:
[in alphabetical order, dated to earliest edition. Each listing includes later editions and printings]
1972. Geography Three: Man Organises [The Developing World Series]
1986. Physical Geography: Its Nature and Methods by Roy Haines-Young and James Petch
1972. The Study of Urban Geography by Harold Carter

• Physical Geography: Its Nature and Methods [top]
  Written by Roy Haines-Young and James Petch
  First published in 1986 in Great Britain by Paul Chapman Publishing in paperback, 230pp, ISBN 1853961450

About this book: "Why did almost nobody believe in the theory of continental drift before 1960, but why did almost everybody do so after 1970? How can we explain the presence of dry water courses in arid areas? Why is Darwin's theory of evolution more widely accepted than any other?" The answer to these questions rests upon an appreciation of scientific method. Arising from the authors' belief that physical geography, as currently taught and practiced, lacks the scientific rigour of related disciplines, 'Physical Geography: Its Nature and Methods' deals with the philosophical context of the subject. It is the first book for many years to examine the discipline critically, and analyses a wide range of neglected issues dealing with the relations between philosophy, methodology and practice.

It has been written for students of physical geography who have done some science but little philosophy and attempts to provide what the authors consider to be a much needed framework for the understanding of scientific method and its application in physical geography. It is not intended to present a review of the discipline or a history, but examples are used from a wide range of problems in order to establish that the implications apply comprehensively

The ideas expressed in this book are taken from the writings of many scientists and philosophers; it is intended that readers examine them critically and consider what is written and take and apply what is learnt. The chapters follow a sequence, but they are mostly self-contained and therefore some of the important points are repeated.

The first part of the book covers modern ideas on the philosophy of science and highlights principal issues for scientific practice; the second deals with the critical rationalist tradition in relation to various aspects of practice, using case studies at each stage to explain and illustrate the issues. The authors conclude that there must be a conscious attempt to inject a critical tradition and to improve the methods used by physical geographers, and that this study of method is intensely pratical, involving as it does the acquisition and improvement of the skills of thinking and doing

Contents:
Part 1. Frameworks: Logic and judgement in science
1. Logic and Judgement in Science
2. The Classical View
3. The Critical Rationalist View
4. The Kuhnian View
5. Lakatos and the Nature of Research Programmes
6. Feyerabend on Method
7. The World of Ideas

PART II: Practice:
8. Theorizing
9. Modelling
10. Naming and Classifying
11. Measurement
12. Experimental Design
13. Physical Geography and the Critical Tradition
Exercises
References
Index
Index of Names
Index of Subjects

• The Study of Urban Geography [top]
  Written by Professor Harold Carter
  First published in 1972 in Great Britain by Edward Arnold in hardback with dustjacket, 346pp, ISBN 0713155957
  Original UK retail price: £4.20 net

About the Author: At the time of publication, Professor Carter was Gregynog Professor of Human Geography at the University College of Wales, Aberystwyth

About the Book: The author, Professor Carter, wrote this book specifically for the university student and the view this book propounds is formed from experience of teaching in Aberystwyth University and from contact and exchanges with fellow urban geographers in Britain and America.

It is intended to provide an outline of urban geography for those undergraduates at universities or students in further education who wish to specialize in urban geography to an extent greater than is usually provided by general courses on human geography.

He covers all aspects of urban geography to degree level, paying special attention to processes of urbanization, the relation between form and function, town plan, central place theory and urban land-use theories. Great emphasis is placed throughout on methodology and theory, thus giving a firm basis for more detailed reading in research monographs, articles and reports to which the student is at every stage referred. The author takes full account of the most recent advances in this field of study, but in doing so does not neglect to trace their genesis in previous work. He gives a balanced view of diverging approaches and theories and indicates where research trends are leading. In describing the kind and significance of the great mass of primary material available for study, Professor Carter hopes to have shown the opportunities for original research available to the student.

2. The Process of Urbanization
1. Definition
a. The settlement continuum
b. The changing concept of urban character
c. The inadequacy of official designation
2. Measurement and Process
a. The measurement of urbanization
(i). The use of detailed rules for the definition of areas
(ii). The use of population densities
b. The process of urbanization
Notes on further reading

3. The Process of Urbanization: The Growth of The City System
Notes on further reading

4. Urban Functions and the Functional Classification of Towns
1. Systems of Classification
a. General description
b. Statistical description
c. Statistical analysis
d. Urban economic base studies
e. Multivariate analysis
2. Summary
Notes on further reading

5. Central Place Functions and Central Place Theory
Notes on further reading

6. The Ranking of Towns and The Delimitation of Spheres of Influence
1. Definition of Towns
a. The aspect of the town as central place being studied
b. The unit of study adopted
c. The level of generalization at which the study is being made
2. Methods of ranking towns
a. The inclusion of all city facilities rather than an arbitrary selection
b. More rigorous procedures in the identification of ranks
Notes on further reading

7. Some Problems Associated with Central Place Theory and The Distribution of Towns
Notes on further reading

8. The Analysis of Town Plan
Notes on Further Reading

9. Urban Land-Use: General Problems
1. Human ecology and urban land-use
a. Rejection of the Burgess model
(i). Gradients as against zonal boundaries
(ii). Internal heterogeneity of zones
(iii). The scheme is anachronistic
(iv). The scheme lacks universality
b. Extension of the Burgess Model
(i). The introduction of building height
(ii). The emphasis of sectors
(iii). The emphasis of multiple nuclei
(iv). The introduction of a size variable
c. The presentation of the Burgess model in the form of a deductive theory
(i). Sentiment and symbolism as ecological variables
(ii). The place of social power in the determination of land use
2. Land Economics and urban land-use
3. Activity systems and urban land-use
Notes on further reading

10. The Central Business District
1. Criteria for areal definition
(i). Appraised or assessed land values
(ii). Rent
(iii). Rateable values
2. Methods of areal definition
(i). Definition of uses to be accepted as characteristic of the CBC
(ii). Measurement of floor space devoted to the various uses
(iii). Calculation of ratios
(iv). Application of ratios and indices
(v). Remaining Problems

11. The Residential Areas of the City
1. Structure: The Analysis of house types
2. Social characteristics of residential areas
Notes on further reading

12. The Rural-Urban Fringe
1. The rural-urban fringe as a region of the city
(i). Segregation
(ii). Selective immigration
(iii). Commuting
(iv) The collapse of geographical and social hierarchies
2. The rural-urban fringe and the rural-urban continuum
Notes on further reading

13. The Location of Industry in the City
Notes on further reading

14. The Relation Between Function and Form in Urban Geography
Notes on Further Reading

15. Conclusion
Index of subjects
Index of personal names
Index of places

Urbanization

Urban Functions