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Getting On-Line in Emergencies: A Guide and Directory to the Internet for Agencies Involved in Relief and Rehabilitation. Relief and Rehabilitation Network Paper. Luke Aris, Peter Gee and Mark Perkins, 1996. ISBN 0-85003-271-7. £5.00. Order from Overseas Development Institute, Portland House, Stag Place, London SW1E 5DP, UK. Tel.: +44(0)20-7393-1600, Fax: +44(0)20-7393-1699, E-mail:publications@odi.org.uk, On-line: www.odi.org.uk/hpn/pubs/papers.html

This paper offers a short and accessible introduction for humanitarian organizations to the potential uses of the Internet, especially the World Wide Web. It includes notes and tips on different mechanisms and costs of accessing information in terms of hardware and software, and a list of more than 300 Internet sites relating to natural disasters and complex emergencies. Due to the rapid and continued expansion and updating of information posted in the Web, sites may be changed or updated, but visitors to the World Wide Web using the addresses in this booklet will usually be redirected to the new or improved sites.

Networking for Development. Paul Starkey, 1998. ISBN 1-85339-430-0, (IFRTD), 96 pp., £9.95. Order from Intermediate Technology Publications Ltd., 103-105 Southampton Row, London WC1B 4HH, UK. Tel.: +44-020-7436-9761, Fax: +44-020-7436-2013, E-mail: orders@itpubs.org.uk, On-line: www.itpubs.org.uk

Networking for Development discusses the benefits and problems of networks in general, and sets out guidelines for successful networking, with several short case studies, including Sri Lanka. It also contains a useful list of contacts and resource materials.

Viet Nam at the Crossroads - The Role of Science and Technology. Keith Bezanson et al., 1999. ISBN 0-88936-873-2, International Development Research Centre, 160 pp., $30.00 in Canada. Order from IDRC Distributor: Select Books Pte. Ltd. 03-15 Tanglin Shopping Centre, 19 Tanglin Rd., Singapore 247909. Tel.: +65-732-1515, Fax: +65-736-0855, E-mail:selectbk@cyberway.com.sg; or Oxford Book & Stationery Co., Scindia House, New Delhi 110-001, India. Tel.: +91-11-331-5896, Fax: +91-11-332-2639, E-mail:oxford.publ@axcess.net.in

This book assesses the impact of current Vietnamese science and technology policies on the economic and social development of the country, compares the Vietnamese experience with those of other countries in East and Southeast Asia, and makes recommendations on the formulation of a long-term science and technology strategy for Viet Nam.

Natural Hazard Mitigation: Recasting Disaster Policy and Planning. David R. Godschalk et al., 1999. ISBN 1559636025, Island Press, 450 pp. (paperback), US$ 45.00. Order on-line at www.amazon.com

This book describes and analyzes the way that hazard mitigation has been carried out in the United States under the national disaster law, the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act. The book provides an informative examination for planners, policy-makers, students of planning and geography, and professionals working for government agencies that deal with natural hazards.

Chamoli Earthquake Repair and Reconstruction Plan, by the TARU Research and Information Network, for the Building Materials and Technology Promotion Council (BMTPC), Ministry of Urban Affairs and Employment, Government of India, May 1999. Order from TARU Research and Information Network, U-12 SF Green Park Extension, New Delhi 110016, India.

This plan was drawn up for the effective administration of post-disaster repair and reconstruction in the Garhwal region of India following the Chamoli earthquake in March 1999. It proposes an appropriate damage identification scale and method specially tailored to the region, and presents technical options and specifications for the repair of earthquake damaged buildings in both rural and urban areas. Potential short- and medium-term intervention measures are also identified, as the focus of Indian efforts shifts from post-disaster response to preparedness, seismic strengthening, and mitigation.

Chamoli Earthquake Repair and Reconstruction Manual, by the TARU Research and Information Network, for the Building Materials and Technology Promotion Council (BMTPC), Ministry of Urban Affairs and Employment, Government of India, June 1999. Order from TARU Research and Information Network, U-12 SF Green Park Extension, New Delhi 110016, India.

This manual was prepared as a follow-up activity of the Chamoli Earthquake Repair and Reconstruction Plan. Types of damages are identified, and repair and seismic strengthening procedures are detailed correspondingly. Earthquake resistant techniques in traditional house construction are also presented.

Manual for Estimating the Socio-Economic Effects of Natural Disasters. Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, May 1999. Order from UN-IDNDR Secretariat, Palais des Nations, 1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland. Tel.: (41-22) 798-6894, Fax: (41-22) 733-8695, E-mail: idndr@dha.unicc.org

This Manual describes a methodology for evaluating the socio-economic effects of disasters. It draws on actual experience of natural disasters that have occurred in the Latin American and Caribbean region in the past two decades. The emphasis of the Manual is on the conceptual and methodological aspects of estimating damage caused by a disaster, both to capital stocks and to goods and services production flows, as well as temporary effects on the behavior of the principal macroeconomic aggregates. It is hoped that the Manual will prove to be a useful tool for formulating short- and medium-term rehabilitation and reconstruction plans and programs to be implemented once a disasterÕs emergency phase is over.

Beyond El Nino: Decadal and Interdecadal Climate Variability. Edited by Antonio Navarra, 1999. ISBN 3-540-63662-5, xx+374 pp. US$ 119. This book can be ordered from any leading bookstore or online from www.amazon.com or www.springer.de. This book provides a consistent treatment of climate variability at time scales longer than interannual. The first part describes what we know of the observed decadal variabilite, identifying the major phenomena that are involved. The second part contains contributions describing the present level of understanding of decadal variability. This is useful reference for researchers, students and scientists equally.