Book Description

What motivates a scientist? One key factor is the pressure from the competition to be the first to discover something new. The moral consequences of this are the subject of the play "Oxygen", dealing with the discovery of this all-important element. The focus of the play is on chemical and political revolutions, as well as the Nobel Prize, which will be awarded for the 100th time in 2001. The action takes place in 1777 and 2001; and the play is written for 3 actors and 3 actresses who play a total of 11 characters. The world premiere will take place in early 2001 in San Diego, and the German premiere in September.
The world-famous authors Carl Djerassi and Roald Hoffmann are a guarantee of excellence and suspense, both in their role as scientists -- Carl Djerassi is known as the "Father of the Pill" while Roald Hoffmann received the Nobel Prize for chemistry in 1982 - as well as in their role as authors -- Djerassi has written several successful novels, while Hoffmann is renowned for his poetry. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

A Breath of Fresh Air
Science is exploration, both systematic and creative, and as such, it is an activity innate to humans.

"Oxygen" offers an insider's glimpse into two facets of science often shrouded in mystery, but filled with expressions of human splendor--and folly: the struggle for recognition of ones scientific discoveries and the awarding of a Nobel Prize for discoveries deemed singularly important.

The playwrights, Carl Djerassi and Roald Hoffmann, have each contributed their own singular scientific discoveries and literary creations to the world. They use the occasion of the centenary of the Nobel Prizes to mirror fictional experiences involving the historical chemists Lavoisier, Priestley, and Scheele--and the women in their lives--with the arguments and self-reflections of a committee of modern-day Swedish scientists trying to award a retro-Nobel for the most important discovery in chemistry before 1901.

Both sets of characters, those of the 18th Century who discovered oxygen and those of the 21st who seek to honor that discovery, act out the passions that drive the men and women who pursue science--and do so in ways at home in either century. The play reveals to the reader, whether a student of science (of any age) or not, the issues and emotions that underlie a scientist's compulsion to question, and hopefully to understand, the workings of the natural world, all the while striving for primacy in discovery. The book offers a voyage of discovery worth taking.

2001- A Chemical Odyssey
The year is 1777- the American Revolution and the chemical revolution are both burning brightly. In a Stockholm sauna, Mary Priestley and Marie Anne Pierrette Paulze Lavoisier, the wives of Joseph Priestley and Antoine Lavoisier, and Sara Margaretha Pohl, the companion of Carl Wilhelm Scheele, open this imaginative play and set the stage for the scientific, emotional and ethical struggles that follow. It is a tempestuous period: the wealthy Lavoisier was guillotined during the Reign of Terror in 1794. Joseph Priestley, a founder of the Unitarian Church and also a friend of Franklin, was forced to flee England for America, as a mob burned his church to the ground.

The authors of this play comfortably inhabit both of C.P. Snow's "Two Cultures". Roald Hoffmann is a winner of the 1981 Nobel Prize in Chemistry and Carl Djerassi performed the first synthesis of a steroid oral contraceptive. Prior to "Oxygen", Hoffmann had published widely acclaimed poetry and other "cross cultural books" for scientists and non-scientists while Djerassi had published successful novels as well as a play and a book of poems.

Nobel Prizes are awarded to living practioners and the practice has been, where sharing is appropriate- usually in the sciences- no more than three co-awardees. But in 2001, the hundredth anniversary of the Nobel Prize, Astrid Rosenquist, the first female chair of a chemistry Nobel committee springs two surprises on her three male committee members. The first is that the Swedish Academy of Sciences will begin a new Retro-Nobel Prize for early discoveries. The second is the participation of a mysterious and alluring recorder or "amanuensis" named Ulla Zorn.

The play alternates scenes between the Court of King Carl Gustav the Third and the Stockholm of 2001. The discussion of candidates by the modern committee rapidly converges to the discovery of oxygen and the understanding of fire that transformed chemistry into a modern science. The problem is this-we now know that Scheele first discovered oxygen around 1771-2; Priestley discovered it totally independently in 1774, disclosed his discovery to Lavoisier during a visit to Paris in that year and published first. History proves that Scheele also disclosed his discovery in a letter addressed to Lavoisier two weeks before Priestley's visit. Lavoisier never responded to Scheele's letter. But Priestley and Scheele did not understand the significance of their discovery. They believed that the new "fire air" sucked an essence of fire (phlogiston) from burning matter. It was Lavoisier who understood that burning, rusting and respiration all involved addition of oxygen (oxidation) rather than loss of something to the air. One committee member, Bengt Hjalmarsson, is reasonably fluent in French and is assigned Lavoisier. Scheele is assigned to Sune Kallstenius, comfortable in the German language frequently employed by Scheele. Ulf Svanholm is assigned Priestley. Not surprisingly they each become advocates for their "charges". But other human frailties emerge. Bengt and Astrid have a history. Ulf harbors a grudge against Sune, who he is convinced, caused him to be "scooped" on his major discovery. The stage has been set to play off the issues of scientific priority, ambition and motivation, complicated by human passions, among powerful women and men of the eighteenth and twenty-first centuries. Indeed, it is the women who, according to Ms Zorn, are "...usually expected to clean up the dirt" and so they do by clarifying history and moving the modern committee to an acceptable concensus.

The issue of priority for the discovery of oxygen is to be settled in The Judgement of Stockholm. Did Lavoisier, Scheele and Priestley ever meet together? Probably not- but what an exciting thought. And in the best tradition of modern science, the critical experiments of one must be performed by another. There are thrilling scenes here: Lavoisier performing Scheele's generation of "fire-air" under the latter's supervision; Antoine confiding his intuition about Scheele to Marie ("I trust him"); Joseph to Mary about Scheele ("I trust him"); Carl Wilhelm to Fru Pohl on Lavoisier ("I do not trust him"). And there is an extra bonus. There is evidence that to celebrate their chemical revolution, Antoine and Marie performed a brief play or masque. Alas, the script, if one ever existed in writing, is unknown. But Djerassi and Hoffmann offer us a delight- Marie, as "oxygen" publicly humiliates and vanquishes Antoine, as "phlogiston", in a performance witnessed, with amusement, by King Carl Gustav and with increasing discomfort and then consternation by the Priestleys, Scheele and Fru Pohl.

The twists, surprises and the denouement will be left for the discovery of the reader. The authors have succeeded wonderfully in combining solid history, with the informed nuances and rich humor of two of the world's most accomplished scientists. Hoffmann and Djerassi do not recognize the boundaries of the "Two Cultures" and readers of this play will be the richer as a result. One last thought- the number of actors in this play is quite small and the settings simple. A reading of the play can be readily staged by high school or college chemistry classes. What a way to enliven chemical history and bridge the sciences, humanities and fine arts! ... Read more

Amazon.com

Edmund Blair Bolles is investigating a mystery: human creativity. Garbage in, garbage out is the rule for even the most intelligent machines; but with human minds, the rules change. Sometimes the rule is as true for us as for any computer, but every once in a while it's Ignorance in, insight out.

The example Bolles looks at is the Ice Age.Nowadays it's familiar to every schoolchild, but this familiarity has dulled our appreciation of just how wild an idea it once was.Earth-girdling floods seemed both reasonable and biblical, volcanoes unusual but not unknown. But a mile-thick sheet of ice covering much of the North Temperate Zone only 20,000 years ago was beyond anyone's experience or imagination.

The professor and the politician of Bolles's title are Louis Agassiz and Charles Lyell, two of the most famous geologists of the 19th century.The unusual character in Bolles's story is the poet: Elisha Kent Kane. To call Kane a poet is both over- and understatement: he was a celebrity, a romantic, a self-promoter, a mediocre explorer, and a particularly poor leader of men. He was also a dreamer who tried to find the lost Franklin expedition, and found the far north very different from his (or anyone else's) expectations: "dreams in, nightmares out."Yet it was Kane's bestselling book about his travels that brought the reality of great ice into the minds of laypeople and scientists alike: writes Bolles, "He is the one who made the Ice Age imaginable." --Mary Ellen Curtin ... Read more

Reviews (15)

Splendid Little Book On The Discovery Of The Ice Age
Edmund Blair Bolles' "The Ice Finders" is an insightful little book that gives a slight, yet penetrating, overview on the sociology of 19th Century science. Here Bolles is interested in the impact creativity has on science; or more simply put, how imagination coupled with facts can propel scientific research. Here he has interwoven the careers of the three who were most responsible for establishing the fact of an Ice Age Earth: the "politician" Charles Lyell who advocated a uniformitarian view of the Earth that was often at odds with "professor" Louis Agassiz's vision of a catastrophic Ice Age that had covered the globe, wiping out life, and finally the "poet" Elisha Kent Kane, who found evidence for the Ice Age in the massive continental glaciers of Greenland. Bolles is interested not only in the facts behind the development of an Ice Age scientific theory, but also in the motivations of all three men, which led them to accept parts of the geological and climatic evidence that they had observed. Although Agassiz was the first to recognize the possibility of continental glaciation, it was only after Kane's observations of the Greeenland ice sheet, that geologists and others recognized the possibility of an Ice Age. Bolles' narrative is told in a crisp, lucid style that occasionally sounds like a well-written mystery. Although this is not the definitive history of science tome on this subject, it is nonetheless a fascinating little book that should be of interest to anyone intrigued with 19th Century exploration as well as the history of 19th Century science.

Showing how science is made
Dava Sobel's Longitude seems to have established a new trend for science and technology writing. Instead of trying to produce broad histories, more books are coming out that focus on a specific area or development.

This one, for example, covers the development of the theory that there was once an "ice age," an era when glaciers covered much of the earth. This was heady stuff for the geologists of the 1830s, already reeling from evidence that the earth was millions or billions of years old, rather than the thousands indicated by the Bible. In fact, one of the tales of this book is the sometimes irrational resistance of established scientists to this radical but evident new concept, as Louis Agassiz turns himself from an establishment figure into a maverick by championing it and guardian of the orthodoxy Charles Lyell, author of the authoritative textbook of geology, first resists it and finally adopts it in a way that suggests he was right all along. The making of science is not always a pretty sight and is often rather different from the tidy displacement of an outdated theory by a more current, better supported one. It's frequently much more of a fight than that, and the theory of an ice age is an example of such.

But that's just one of the threads of this book. The other is the adventure of explorer-poet Elisha Kent Kane, who ostensibly seeks the remains of Franklin's polar expedition, gets stuck in the ice for two years (a harrowing experience related in painful detail), and finally returns with clear documentary evidence of the massive ice formations that Agassiz needs as the final justification for his theory.

The two threads are related in episodes, which gets a little confusing, particularly when one notes that the Kane expedition narrative covers a time period well after most of the Agassiz narrative. However, one quickly gets used to this and moves on.
All in all, it's a very interesting story that shows how science is made.

A good, fast read
This is a fun little book about the discovery and eventual acceptance of the theory that glaciers used to cover entire continents, creating interesting geologic formations that had been puzzling natural historians before the mid 1800s. The account rotates among the stories of three Europeans who contributed to the discovery.This is not academic, history of science writing, so don't expect precision. Go elsewhere for a well-referenced version of events.Instead, Bolles takes the liberty to interpret what the characters were feeling when they uncovered bits of information and how they reacted to arguments with their collegues ... and these are what makes it such a great read. The fact that one of them was trapped on an artic expedition for an excruciating amount of time also helped keep my attention.

Ice Finders has merit, with some reservations
The history of science and the origins of our contemporary biases are so rarely explored that it was a pleasure to discover Bolles' The Ice Finders.It is quite entertaining in its exposition of the lives of three individuals and their separate, but intertwined, paths to the "discovery" of the Ice Age theory.It is a highly readable, non-technical book, with enough information to nudge someone with a greater interest towards more detailed, sophisticated reading, much like a good magazine article might do. There is at least one startling factual error that should be addressed, however.In a brief passage, the author introduces a supporting figure, Charles-Lucien Bonaparte, patron of Louis Agassiz and a well-known naturalist in his own right.Bonaparte is erroneously identified as Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte's brother.Charles-Lucien was Napoleon's nephew.Although seemingly a minor point, Charles-Lucien is well-known enough that basic research and fact-checking should have caught the error (for further reference see Patricia T. Stroud's excellent and thorough The Emperor of Nature).It made me wonder whether any of the other facts Bolles musters, and with which I am not as familiar, are also wrong. With that in mind, I would still recommend the book for a novel perspective on how scientific minds work, and for a glimpse into the lives of three fascinating individuals.

Great reading.
A very good read but suffers - in my opinion - from a lack of more detailed maps. A few plates would have livened it up somewhat as well. It parallels the "discovery" of continental drift a hundred years later. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Useful and interesting
Benton manages to write a thorough text on various vertebrate groups and their evolutionary trends, mentioning specific important species and basic morphology without making the book as dry as a bone. As one can always state about books that are overviews, one could wish for more thorough coverage of personal groups of interest, but as an overview, this is a great book. The diagrams and phylogenetic charts are very helpful, and the case studies that are provided in offset boxes are very interesting.

One major complaint about the book is the number of typos and mislabeled diagrams...it can become rather confusing. I have taken a pen to the book and with careful reading, re-reading and cross referencing, have corrected the errors in my own copy to save me the brain strain...but on the whole, this book does what one would want from it. ... Read more

Book Description

This book focuses on the interaction between humans andtheir physical environment.Presents the environmentalproblems we face followed by coverage of Earth's raw materials (minerals androcks). Also contains coverage of soil, water, and air since these are theissues most central to human concerns.For Geology students andenthusiasts and environmentalists. ... Read more

Book Description

In the early 20th century, American earth scientists vociferously opposed the new--and highly radical--notion of continental drift. Yet 50 years later the same idea was heralded as a major scientific breakthrough, and today continental drift is accepted as a scientific fact. This insightful book, based on archival sources, looks at why American geologists initially rejected the idea so adamantly while their counterparts in Europe were relatively receptive. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Very, worthwhile reading!
I can highly recomend this book to anyone interested in the history and philosophy of the earth sciences. I have been looking for books on this subject for some time and this was certainly the "find" I was hoping for.

I am not, however, able to comment on the specifics of Oreskes' thesis, since the subject lies outside my field of expertise, but her more general comments about the status of science are certainly worth considering, and the evidence she marshalls is very impressive.

As a final point, I am putting my money where my mouth is and sending copies to various geologists and geophysicists that I know (perfect birthday gift for the earth scientist who already has her 4*4 and all the latest field gear) ... Read more

Book Description

This book presents current knowledge of the early vertebrates--mainly fish, but including some terrestrial creatures--which lived about 250 to 470 million years ago.The work focuses on anatomical and phylogenetic questions, but includes information on fossil discovery and preparation, as well as the analysis of the characteristics from which their relationships may be reconstructed.The author addresses both new and old problems in the evolution of certain anatomical details and deals briefly with the animals' way of life, extinction, and former distribution.The book is the first in its field to use a cladistic approach. For each major vertebrate group, the reader will find a diagram of relationships, or cladogram, with a selection of characters at each node, and a succinct phylogenetic classification. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

The first vertebrates
Although this reference is a very detailed treatise on early vertebrate fossils, it may prove useful to the general reader trying to make sense of early vertebrate evolution because it does not reproduce photographs of the early fossils, but instead takes artistic license to illustrate them in reconstructed forms. The earliest known fossil vertebrate is Sacabambaspis/Arandaspis found in Bolivia/Australia and 470 million years old - head armor, jawless, mouth containing bony parts for scraping the seabottom, lateral eyes, two pineal eyes, gill openings, and only a median and caudal fins. At the end of Ordovician there was a period of glaciation, and then afterwards in the early Silurian there is a large appearance of both jawless and jawed fossil vertebrates - heterostracans (cephalaspids), galeaspids, thelodonts, acanthodians, shark relatives (chondrichthyans), placoderms (jawed & armored), and possibly bony fishes (osteichthyans). In the mid-Silurian tectonic plate movement created mountain ranges that subsequently eroded what became a red sandstone in many areas that were favorable to vertebrate life. In the Devonian fossils are found showing fish evolving into groups that would survive to the present, as well as tetrapods. In the Carboniferous it is found that the cartilaginous fishes and the ray-finned fishes greatly diversify, as well ferns and club-mosses are found around bays and lakes. After the Permian ended, the 'modern' vertebrate world appears in the Triassic and Jurassic - sharks, teleosts, modern amphibians, modern reptiles, birds and mammals. Lampreys, hagfishes, chimaeras, some ray-finned fish, coelacanths and lungfishes survive relatively unchanged from the emergence of the vertebrates in the Late Palaeozoic. The early vertebrate fossils, along with comparisons of extant vertebrates, are considered in detail. Origins of the vertebrate head and the tetrapod limb are then considered, followed by broader topics in evolution. ... Read more

Book Description

This authoritative reference volume emphasizes the importance and interrelationships of geological processes to the health and diseases of humans and animals. Its accessible format fosters better communication between the health and geoscience communities by elucidating the geologic origins and flow of toxic elements in the environment that lead to human exposure through the consumption of food and water.

For example, problems of excess intake from drinking water have been encountered for several inorganic compounds, including fluoride in Africa and India; arsenic in certain areas of Argentina, Chile, and Taiwan; selenium in seleniferous areas in the U.S., Venezuela, and China; and nitrate in agricultural areas with heavy use of fertilizers.Environmental influences on vector borne diseases and stormflow water quality influences are also featured. Numerous examples of the environmental influences on human health from across the globe are also presented and discussed in this volume.

Comprehensive resource for learning about recent advances and for mapping out strategies for further research into areas where there is still a dearth of knowledge.
Addresses speciation, bioaccessibility and bioavailability of trace elements in soils, and subsurface rocks
Provides an excellent selection of topics with more than 80 chapters by internationally recognized experts.
Organizes information in a highly structured format for easy reference.
Overviews numerous key concepts and summarizes the hazardous properties of naturally occurring minerals & chemicals in the rock and soils.
Appendices of tables on natural elements in rocks and soils, international action levels, health effects of all elements, epidemiological features, etc. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

The bible, full of knowledge that will protect public health
There is nothing else that compares to this concise introduction to the subject. I have no doubt it will help to increase your awareness of the importance of the interaction of mammalian systems with our natural environment. Highly accessible and nicely illustrated -- it is evident that a team of dedicated medics and geoscientists invested long nights editing and minimizing jargon.For this the world should be thankful! This 800+ page full-color tome highlights some of the significant interfaces of medicine and earth science.Most of the topics are fascinating, such as Skinner's review of the 'Mineralogy of Bone'. If you forgot what geophagy is, look no further than Peter Abrahams chapter.So finally there is an accessible primer for medical schools, I might predict that several institutions will begin using Selinus for courses in medical geology. The book's organization has laid a nice foundation for this emerging transdisciplinary study. The seven editors and some 50 contributors should be congratulated for sharing a common vision to its fruition. At 12 cents a page, I love it!!!!

FYI - Lastly, you should be aware that there is another book published by L-severe that has the title 'Medical Geology' (by Komatina). It is not worth a nickel and should be recycled, as it was poorly translated and largely ambiguous and full of errors. The translator should be taken out to the back and shot.
... Read more

Book Description

Hardbound. Most of the coral reefs of the American continent: the Brazilian waters, the Caribbean Sea and the eastern Pacific Ocean are in Latin American countries, the subject of this book.For the first time, information on coral reefs of such a vast region is mined from reports, obscure journals, university thesis and scientific journals, summarized and presented in a way both accessible and informative for the interested reader as well as for the coral reef expert.The chapters of the book, divided by country and ocean, were written by either scientists from the countries or by those that know the area well.Reefs not documented in the past are described in detail here, including location maps.The natural and anthropogenic impacts affecting the reefs are presented, as well as sections on management, conservation and legislation in each country.Nineteen chapters, plus an introduction, present information of coral reefs from Brazil to Mexico, and ... Read more

Book Description

Sparkling yet practical, this Tiny Folio is a superb introduction to the museum's collection as well as a concise guide to minerals and gems.

One of the world's fabulous collections of minerals and gems resides at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City, and this jewel of a book includes more than 300 of the Museum's spectacular specimens. This book is also a guide to minerals and gems, explaining what they are and the qualities that make them outstanding or unique.

Other Details:Now in Hardcover!270 black-and-white illustrations. ... Read more

Book Description

The formation of ore deposits and the patterns of mineral alteration in rocks frequently involves the transport of large amounts of dissolved solids, sometimes transiently, but often over long periods of time.Knowing or suspecting this, we logically seek to resolve several questions:What are the large- and small-scale patterns of flow in geological materials? What is the direction and rate of flow in a given structure?What factors control the rates of chemical reaction within the rocks?What governs the dissolution of materials in some regions and their deposition in other areas that, over eons, leads to the distribution of minerals we see today?The search for answers to these issues involves a combination of approaches and subjects that includes geochemistry, structural geology, and fluid mechanics. In Flow and Reactions in Permeable Rocks, Dr. Owen Phillips provides the first book-length work that connects these different fields of study and applies them to the problem of flow and flow-controlled reaction in rocks. The author begins by specifying the general physical and chemical principles that govern fluid flow and chemical reactions in rocks.He then develops the theoretical underpinnings for a variety of different patterns of flow and for the three basic types of flow-controlled reaction: fronts, gradient reactions, and reactions in mixing zones. In the next chapter he explores some conditions for stability and instability in fluid flow, for instance the conditions under which one state of flow pattern spontaneously evolves into another. Finally, Dr. Phillips describes in detail the two great driving forces of large-scale fluid circulation in rocks:pressure differences and thermal convection. Typical geological examples are given and, wherever possible,compared to numerical results or field observations. The analytical developments require some familiarity with college-level mathematics, but derivations are easy to follow or may even be skipped by the trusting reader. ... Read more

Book Description

Expect the unexpected—Books built around the astonishing beauty of the American Southwest seem to be everywhere. But this one really is different, in ways that will appeal to travelers and residents alike. It's full of visual and factual surprises, made to be enjoyed on many levels. Each page-spread is self-contained for clarity and ease of use on the road. The text blends travel tips, Native American legends, prehistoric and historic vignettes, and—as a unifying theme—explanations of earthly processes and events that have shaped land, people, and wildlife. The writing is informative without being academic. Readers will discover musical dunes and racing rocks, vanishing lakes and dinosaur tracks...which volcanoes are potentially dangerous, what makes the Grand Canyon grand, how the Painted Desert got its colors, and much, much more. Over 300 color photographs, 33 drawings, and seven customized maps (including a traveler-friendly pull-out map of the Greater Southwest) support the text. The volcanoes map, for example, shows where to find the most interesting volcanic fields in the Southwest. And up-front are four pages of photographic tips ("Capturing the Beauty") prepared by professional photographer/author Thomas Wiewandt. The broad geographic scope of this book—the Greater Southwest—is defined more by natural features than by political boundaries. With it, readers can explore desert and canyon landscapes that stretch from southern California to western Texas and from northern Mexico to northern Nevada, Utah, and Colorado. The back-matter is packed with resources to help outdoor adventure-seekers plan their trips: websites, annotated listings for 61 books and 100 scenic attractions (including notable sites outside the parks), and an index. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Art and science come together....
Very few books offer the balance of stunning photography of our glorious land with creative layout and insights into the natural sciences, especially the Earth sciences. In the past few years, as a native of the east, I have used this book to help me explore the magnificent landscapes of my new home. Mr. Wiewandt and Ms. Wilks have captured the beauty of this region in a book that is truly unique. As a souvenir of the heart of the "desert" southwest and as a planning resource for the inquiring travel, this book excels.

Thomas McGuire
Earth Science Author & Educator
Cave Creek, AZ

"If we intend to live on this planet...
we truly need to understand how it works."

John Nemerovski MyMac.com Book Review
Tucked within the pages this unusual new book is a custom-made 15" x 20" multi-color map of America's "Greater Southwest." The map, like the book, focuses on desert and canyon country of southern California, Nevada, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, and portions of Colorado, Texas, and northern Mexico.

At the map's center is a spot called Four Corners, the point where New Mexico, Colorado, Arizona, and Utah meet. And at the top of the map, you'll see an enlarged view of southern Utah that features the many remarkable natural wonders located between St. George and Moab. This is Desert Solitaire country, as fans of author Edward Abbey know so well.

Over 300 miles from Four Corners, author/photographer/educator Tom Wiewandt lives in the Tucson Mountains, near Saguaro National Park in the Sonoran Desert. I met him at a pot luck dinner for the Arizona Native Plant Society, and was instantly impressed by his tales of dodging electrocution while taking photos of the area's powerful summer "monsoon" lightning storms.

Imagine my surprise two days later when a review copy of The Southwest Inside Out arrived, complete with award emblems for prizes this volume has already received. Five jaw-dropping minutes spent leafing through its pages convinced me that nature lovers worldwide need to know about the book.

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The Southwest Inside Out delves into the geological origins of stunning landscapes that abound in this part of the world, clearly written for those of us who are curious but have no formal training in the earth sciences. But this book is much wider in scope: it offers a holistic overview that integrates scenic wonders with pre-history, plant and animal ecology, Native American mythology, recent history, and travel tips.

The lively, informative text is fully indexed and cleanly organized with side-bars for easy reading. Each page has been designed for maximum impact by the talented Carol Haralson, who deserves special mention. Wiewandt's photos are sensational, and no lesser adjective will suffice.

Seven major subject areas bring this far-ranging section of the United States into sharp focus. My favorites are:

* DUNES, with their austere majesty, hosting rugged, idiosyncratic life forms;

* WHERE WATER COMES AND GOES, explaining how horrible floods and devastating droughts will always be beyond our control;

* STORIES IN STONE, including charts and photos that place such creatures as trilobites, dinosaurs, and saber-tooth cats throughout the region.

Within each of these chapters are gorgeous landscape and nature photos, well-researched information, plus numerous illustrations and original maps. Check out Wiewandt's splendid photo gallery for sample pictures like those in his book. You can download photos from the website, but remember to respect his copyright.

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Tom Wiewandt is a native to the American Southwest and has led photographic learning vacations throughout this region for 11 years, establishing a solid foundation for The Southwest Inside Out - An Illustrated Guide to the Land and Its History. His co-author, Maureen Wilks is a geologist and librarian for the New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources. I thought I knew the area well after living here for a dozen years, but I'm still a tenderfoot in comparison.

Two useful sections deserve special mention: "Where to Find Them" lists every worthwhile federal and state park and scenic area within this enormous geographic zone; and four pages of "Photo Tips" tell you what to do and how to do it for optimum results in such demanding light/rock/sky/desert environments.

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The Southwest Inside Out sits prominently on my living room table, and I could have sold a dozen copies already to people who happened to pick it up for a "quick" glance. This book is attractive, informative, well-written, and inspiring for all ages and interests. You don't need to leave it at home. It has been built and designed to carry with you on the road, to be read on the fly. I can't wait to travel to at least a dozen new places, ones I never knew to exist before visiting them through the eyes of Tom Wiewandt.

A comprehensive book, but-----
As one who finds the Southwest, particularly the Colorado Plateau, to be the most beautiful, thought-provoking, and inspiring place on Earth, I purchased this book with a grreat deal of anticipation. A cursory review at the Arches N.P bookstore revealed that the photography was excellent, even sublime. The collection of photographs avoids the trite, road tourist views in good measure, and presents the topics from a fresh, seldom-visualized viewpoint. The sections on slot canyons, hoodoos, and natural bridges were particularly entertaining.
The textual treatment was less impressive, dwelling in most part on fundamental things any roadie would glimpse. I would have preferred a more detailed discussion on the "why" of the formations and features. So far as gaining a deep understanding of what has made the Southwest the world's premier geological wonderland, other books may be more appropriate.
This being said, I was nonetheless enchanted by the book. I have visited every national park, most of the national monuments, and many of the out-of-the way marvels. So have the book's authors and I am impressed with their care of the subject. Especially for the first-time visitor to the Southwest, I would count the book an essential read. ... Read more

Book Description

Most nonscientists are usually aware of fossils, and it is commonly believed that they are extremely rare. In fact, fossils are exceptionally common in many sedimentary rocks and are used extensively in geology for age dating, interpretation of ancient environments, and the discovery of natural resources. However, there is another type of fossil deposit that is truly rare. These rare fossil deposits, called Lagerstätten, preserve the remains of the soft tissues or the articulated skeletal remains of ancient creatures in truly astonishing fine detail. Some of these deposits are world-famous, such as the Burgess Shale, or Solnhofen but there are others dating from many different geological eras from the Paleozoic, up to the Eocene. Recently, a concerted effort has been made to understand the overall significance of these rare fossil deposits. Whereas in the past these deposits were considered novelties, modern researchers are trying to understand what they can tell us about ancient life and environments. New sophisticated techniques (including image and geochemical analyses) are providing enormous new contributions to our knowledge of Lagerstätten sites and to paleobiology in general.

This volume describes many of the most famous Lagerstätten locations worldwide and is complete with over 70 superb halftones showing some of these exotic fossils in all their glory. Paleontologists are beginning to understand why such deposits occur, how they have varied since the advent of marine metazoan life, and how their presence impacts our understanding of the evolution of life in the Earth's oceans. In this way, the study of Lagerstätten continues to move towards the mainstream of paleobiological, biological, and geological research, and away from its former status as the examination of mere curiosities.

All those interested in these beautiful and sometimes enigmatic deposits will want to own this book. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A classic tool of the field geologist's trade
This classic is the best single volume reference for the identification of fossil invertebrates. It was a staple for working field geologists for decades. This is because the identification of "index fossils" was, and is, the handiest way to date strata in the field.

The book is organised by phylla: Protozoa, Porifera, Coelenterata, Echinoderma, Annelida, Conodonts, Bryozoa, Brachiopoda, Mollusca, and Arthropoda. There are also sections on fossil plants and miscellaneous objects of probable organic origin. Everything is illustrated by crisp, sharp, photographic plates, clearly indexed to the corresponding text.

By today's micropaleontological standards, the Protozoa section is pretty thin, but otherwise this is still a very useful volume. ... Read more

Book Description

America's leading wind energy expert presents a complete reference on the business and technology of generating electricity with wind. Covers the technology, economics and politics that have influenced the development of the wind energy industry in the U.S. and Europe. Describes advances made in improving reliability and performance and provides suggestions on how the industry can treat its imperfections. Includes several new important topics such as aesthetics and public acceptance of windmills. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Wonderful Reference
Gipe has put together a wonderful wind energy reference. I'm currently doing an independent study on wind energy and this book has greatly helped my research to date. Highly recommended!! If you're in to renewable energy in general, I also recommend "Renewable Energy: Power for a Sustainable Future" edited by Godfrey Boyle I believe. I've never found a better resource for renewable energy!

Millions of people worldwide need Renewable Energy Products
Wind Energy Products are available for : lighting, water pumping, refrigerating, communication... This book is a necessary reading for all persons wishing to give the alternative energies a chance. Complete with many addresses and inside knowledge. A must for the alternative energy enthusiast... ... Read more