The following sections of this BookRags Literature Study Guide is offprint from Gale's For Students Series: Presenting Analysis, Context, and Criticism on Commonly Studied Works: Introduction, Author Biography, Plot Summary, Characters, Themes, Style, Historical Context, Critical Overview, Criticism and Critical Essays, Media Adaptations, Topics for Further Study, Compare & Contrast, What Do I Read Next?, For Further Study, and Sources.
(c)1998-2002; (c)2002 by Gale. Gale is an imprint of The Gale Group, Inc., a division of Thomson Learning, Inc. Gale and Design and Thomson Learning are trademarks used herein under license.
The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Encyclopedia of Popular Fiction: "Social Concerns", "Thematic Overview", "Techniques", "Literary Precedents", "Key Questions", "Related Titles", "Adaptations", "Related Web Sites". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Guide to Literature for Young Adults: "About the Author", "Overview", "Setting", "Literary Qualities", "Social Sensitivity", "Topics for Discussion", "Ideas for Reports and Papers". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
All other sections in this Literature Study Guide are owned and copyrighted by BookRags, Inc.
Six percent of the world's land surface is desert, a biome in which less than 10 in (25 cm) of precipitation occurs per year or any place where evaporation greatly exceeds precipitation, resulting in a lack of available moisture. Sometimes any area lacking the necessary conditions to support life is called a desert. Deserts occur around latitudes 30 degrees north and south where masses of dry circulating air descend to the earth's surface. There are three kinds of deserts—hot (such as Sahara), temperate (such as the Mojave), and cold (such as the Gobi). The area of global desert is increasing yearly, as marginal lands become degraded by human misuse resulting in desertification. Deserts are potential sites for the production of electricity using banks of solar cells or parabolic solar collectors. The lack of water and remoteness of some deserts may make them attractive places to store nuclear and other hazardous wastes.