In situ vitrification' and 'In place vitrification' is confusing. Ruth A. Eblen and William R. Eblen, eds. Houghton Mifflin Company, 1994. As one would expect from an institution which carries the name of Rene Dubos, this encyclopedia is directed to the goal of providing information for the general reader, not the specialist, although the specialist will also find much that is useful. The five tenets that guide the Rene Dubos Center for Human Environments programs and activity also guided the development of this encyclopedia.
Human life implies interventions into nature.
We now have the knowledge that makes it possible to take advantage of the resiliency of nature providing there is the social will to act. Any change implies risk. Changes inevitably have consequences that cannot be predicted and that differ in their effect on various social systems. The general public is increasingly involved in all important decisions concerning environmental problems and technological developments. Consequently the entries are educational, balanced in presentation, and not stridently judgmental.