ABSTRACT
Professor Pierre Gourou rewards his readers with some profound reflections on the influence of civilization on landscape: density of population is good basis for the study of human geography. Research is focused on man and his environment with an eye to learning how the high biological productivity of the tropical environment might be better utilized. The works of archeologists, anthropologists, historians, political scientists, medical doctors, nutritionists, soils scientists, biologists, climatologists, ecologists, botanists, and entomologists — all are relevant to the geographer's task of regional analyses and interpretation. Soil analyses are shedding light on the relationship of productivity and chemical composition of young second growth on different soil types. This chapter refers to the great number of disciplines that have been enlisted to investigate the diverse physical and cultural facets of this geographic region to make it clear that, in order to understand a modern cultural landscape, the reconstruction of former cultural landscapes is indicated.
