Book Description

An abridged, student-oriented edition of Hillel's earlier published Environmental Soil Physics, this is a more succinct elucidation of the physical principles and processes governing the behavior of soil and the vital role it plays in both natural and managed ecosystems.The textbook is self-contained and self-explanatory, with numerous illustrations and sample problems.Based on sound fundamental theory, the textbook leads to a practical consideration of soil as a living system in nature and illustrates the influences of human activity upon soil structure and function.Students, as well as other readers, will better understand the importance of soils and the pivotal possition they occupy with respect to careful and knowledgeable conservation.

* Written in an engaging and clear style, posing and resolving issues relevant to the terrestrial environment.
* Explores the gamut of the interactions among the phases in the soil and the dynamic interconnection of the soil with the subterranean and atmospheric domains.
* Reveals the salient ideas, approaches, and methods of environmental soil physics.
* Includes numerous illustrative exercises, which are explicitly solved.
* Designed to serve for classroom and laboratory instruction, for self-study, and for reference.
* Oriented toward practical problems in ecology, field-scale hydrology, agronomy, and civil engineering.
* Differs from earlier texts in its wider scope and holistic environmental conception ... Read more

Book Description

This book contains the most recent information about the standard, including all its final modifications. The book outlines the scope and purpose of the standard and makes it accessible to everyone. The book leads the reader through the theory and implementation of an ISO14000-compliant environmental management system, including the consultant's and auditor's perspective, and give case studies from industries that have actually undergone the process.Finally there is input from training organisations and certification and accreditation bodies to help with trouble-shooting and assessment.


The book rounds off with an examination of the likely future, including the potential role of the European `sub-set' of ISO14000 - EMAS - and what chances it has of international adoption.

Author has years of practical experience with a world-renowned organisation
Real-life case-studies provide meat for readers wondering about relevance to their companies ... Read more

Book Description

In a landmark work of science two distinguished scientists offer a vivid narrative describing the second half of the life of our planet
Planet Earth is middle-aged. Science has worked hard to piece together the story of the evolution of our world up to this point, but only recently have we developed the understanding and the tools to describe the entire life cycle of a planet-of our planet.
Peter Ward and Don Brownlee, a geologist and an astronomer respectively, are in the vanguard of the new field of astrobiology. Combining their knowledge of how the critical sustaining systems of our planet evolve through time with their understanding of how stars and solar systems grow and change throughout their own life cycles, the authors tell the story of the second half of Earth's life. The process of planetary evolution will essentially reverse itself; life as we know it will subside until only the simplest forms remain.Eventually, they too will disappear. The oceans will evaporate, the atmosphere will degrade, and, as the sun slowly expands, Earth itself will eventually meet a fiery end.
In this masterful melding of groundbreaking research and captivating, eloquent science writing, Ward and Brownlee provide a comprehensive portrait of Earth's life cycle that allows us to understand and appreciate how the planet sustains itself today, and offers us a glimpse of our place in the cosmic order.
... Read more

Reviews (15)

Very Interesting!
I tend to judge non-fiction by what I learn. "The Life and Death of Planet Earth" tells the story about the un-glamorous end of our planet by analyzing the past. The book did this magnificently. In short, I learned a lot.

In some respects, the book is depressing. I wanted to imagine that we are part of the beginning. The book illustrates that perhaps we are closer to the end. I put myself in the next ice age, which could arrive any time, according to the authors, and in the inferno of the distant future. Of course, I won't be there, but the descriptions of these future times made them easy to visualize. By piecing together accepted scientific principles and knowledge, the story of the future of planet Earth is convincing. The only question is what impact we, humans, will have; probably small.

I have recommended this to all my friends. I find myself pulling little tidbits from the book and beginning conversations with "Did you know that....?" "The Life and Death of Planet Earth" is just packed with interesting science. For those that have not read "Rare Earth", this book stands by itself, so it is not necessary to read the predecessor first.

When things get bleak . . .
It takes a certain amount of fortitude to confront your own doom. Ward and Brownlee, having acutely described life's beginnings in "Rare Earth", here portray the mechanisms of its end. With the course of life's evolution revealed in the work of many researchers, depicting the finale has rarely been attempted. Recent studies of the past have given the authors the tools for forecasting the future. They use the history of the planet to suggest the "tape of life" will be rerun - backwards. Changing conditions will reduce the options life has to continue surviving. As a swelling sun and dehydrating Earth limit choices, life will revert to simpler, hardier forms. At some point, although far in the future, life's opportunities will end. A bleak barren world will likely be consumed by Sol's energetic transformation into a red giant star. A lifeless planet will either skirt the circumference of that swollen star or be consumed in its fires.

Although a fiery conclusion is the ultimate finale, there are many intermediate steps along the path. Ice, which has covered our planet many times in the past, is shown here as one of the major signs of the impending finish. Seas withdraw from coastlines and habitat zones shrink dramatically. Weather patterns undergo massive changes from what we experience. The authors use "time transport" techniques to enable you to envision the impact of these drastic variations. You visit future scenarios where plant life's extinction has taken herbivores with it. Grasses exist for a bit, but it's too desolate for complex grazers to enjoy them. Harsh winds scream across those savannahs, dehydrating the soil until the grasses, too, finally expire. These conditions, Ward and Brownlee contend, have likely already begun. The peak of plant diversity may already be behind us. Animal extinctions, accelerated by our presence, must surely follow.

What of humanity, then? Raised with the ideal that we are evolution's "purpose", we believe we can overcome nature's greatest challenges. It's clear that even our esteemed technology must fall short of coping with an overheating Sun. The authors, who have dealt with extinctions in the past, deal ambiguously with the logic of human continuation to a distant future. While most species survive for a few million years, they suggest we will still be present when vast changes begin. They weigh the issues of our possible escape from the doomed planet in terms of will, available resources, advanced technologies and likely havens. All come up somehow short. A bleak prospect indeed.

The authors' expressive style captures your attention throughout. Not an academic study, yet still a serious assessment, this book will keep your attention throughout. With the new science of astrobiology as their foundation, little of their narrative is idle speculation. They write with authority, yet present their theme as a drama. Actors come and go, struggle to maintain their roles, but succumb in tragic circumstances. Referring to this book as compelling reading is almost damning with faint praise. While the scenarios are projected billions of years in the future, we can initiate many of the processes through carelessness.

Incorporating many ideas and research information in a mere 200 pages is a major accomplishment. Ward and Brownlee, with their wide knowledge and almost florid style have produced a fine work. As a summary of geology, astrophysics, evolutionary biology and atmospheric sciences, this is a unique and admirable synthesis. If there is anything to fault, it is the strong reliance on the resources used in their previous collaboration - a minor flaw in such a comprehensive study. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]

Mind Numbing
While a potentially interesting topic, the authors bored me. The consistantly repeat themselves. I don't know how many times I was told we know the furture because our authors have studied the past! The science was burdened with pseudo-short stories of past and future Earths which often turned out to be directly related to our authors. I felt the actual scientific content here presented could have been presented in a quarter of the pages much more clearly. After reading it in two nights I am left with a feeling of a mind numbed through repeated mental bludgeoning.

Oversimplified to appeal to a Peg Bundy.
I was disappointed. They sometimes oversimplify to the point of being wrong. They butcher the C02 cycle to explain why plants will go extinct...I couldn't finish it. Save your money.
I donated my copy to the library and suggested they put it in the childrens section. You will get more out of renewing your Scientific American subscription.

Readable, enjoyable, made me think
Maybe enjoyable is a strange word to use when the book's subject is the end of all life and of our pretty blue planet but the book was easy to read as it charted its way to the hypothetical end. The author mixed information with description and I was drawn in as a spectator through the narrative as the earth was formed and became habitable.

Chapter by chapter the earth came to resemble the planet I know, then continued to change until I saw the final bleak lifeless landscape waiting to be vaporized by the Sun's final burnout.

The subject, coined astrobiology, is the study of a planet's life cycle, from birth to death, the conditions each stage offers and the kind of life it is likely to support. The duration of the phase of planetary life supportive of human-type life is a relatively short part of the whole, and may be already on the decline. But that is geologic time, our great grandchildren are unlikely to be affected.

The author's freely offer that this is a baby science and the theories are likely to be challenged and overturned as it becomes recognized. I found it a fast read that drew me into the story like a detective novel, I couldn't wait to find out what happened next.

Maybe not a great book but a good one I feel was worth the time. ... Read more

Amazon.com

What if U.S. history began in 1963, and everything that happened before that year was shrouded in mystery? There would be plenty of events to study, but we wouldn't have a complete picture of the country's past. This is the analogy that paleomicrobiologist J. William Schopf uses to describe the long-missing 85 percent of earth's early fossil record (the puzzle of the missing fossils was known as Darwin's Dilemma). Not until the 1960s did paleobiologists using pickaxes and microscopes find evidence that life began much earlier than previously theorized and that microorganisms were the planet's only inhabitants for most of its existence. And Schopf himself discovered the oldest Precambrian fossils known to science in 1993. Why did it take so long to find these critters?

Though the puzzle of the "missing" early fossil record lived on for more than a hundred years, its solution is now so obvious as to be mundane. The Precambrian world did indeed swarm with living creatures, but until near the close of this vast eon these were microbes and microalgal cells so tiny and fragile that they would never have been unearthed by conventional fossil hunting.

Reviews (13)

An informative, educational and entertaining read.
Two reviewers assert that Schopf says that 10 to the 47th power is roughly half of 10 to the 80th. This may be true of the hardcover edition: the paperback edition says (correctly) that 3 to 100th power is about 5 times 10 to the 47th power, a number "sizable compared to" the number of elementary particles in the Universe (10 to the 80th power). This is ambiguous, but not wrong.

While this book does require some effort, it is definitely readable by a non-specialist. I think it is aimed at beginning undergraduate or even advanced high-school students. The book defines all the terms used: the preliminary knowledge required is very elementary, at the level of a reasonable high-school education in chemistry and biology.

I have found the discussion of the conservativism in the evolution of the metabolic pathways very clear and a good rebuttal to the "Intelligent Design" types: Irreducible Complexity is not so irreducible, after all!

But the most interesting (to me) aspect of the book is the story of the discoveries of the fossils of life forms as old as 3.5 billion years. I also found the stories about the people involved fascinating: They are an entertaining diversion in an otherwise very dense book.

I also think that important (and less so) scientists are good role models for young people. Why should you be interested in the lives of rock stars and not in the lives of working scientists? Clearly, only if you are interested in emulating promiscuous, drug abusing and, often, suicidal morons!

The final chapter, on the Mars "life" fiasco is exactly on target: science by press release is bad science, even if it is often temporarily successful. Sound byte science is one of the worst problems in contemporary society (yes, it is THAT bad): Opposing it is a necessary and courageous act, especially if the opponent is a powerful (and inept) bureaucracy, like NASA.

Surpised about how much new information has been learned.
Wow. I am surprised at how much has been learned about the early phases of life's development since I last formally studied paleontology. One of my favorite areas of study was invertebrate and early life forms. At the time only a modest amount was known about stromatalites and cyanobacteria. The trace fossils of the soft bodied, multicellular, Ediacaran fauna were known but were considered "late" in geologic and biologic terms. The Burgess Shale community, made famous by Gould's "Wonderful Life" in the late '80s, was known, but the organisms were confusing and many have since been restudied and reclassified. Having been a leading actor in the field of microfossils and early bacterial life forms, Schopf puts everything into perspective in his book, making it virtually a history of research into the topic of life's beginnings.

Cradle of Life begins, as such books so often do, with a brief synopsis of Darwin and his theory of evolution, including most critically, its early problems. Thereafter Schopf begins a veritable "who's who" of early paleontology, giving short professional biographies of those who worked in the field as early as the 19th century. He points out where promising leads were suppressed by virtue of the lesser standing of the individual proposing them, and misleading theories given credence because they were proposed by someone of powerful academic credentials. Some of the tales are impressive object lessons in how things can go wrong for human reasons and why science ultimately "gets it right in the end."

One of the more interesting topics the author confronts is how our recent advances in the field of paleontology might help determine whether life exists or has ever existed elsewhere. The author provides an interesting perspective on the Mars meteorite "life forms" that shows how easily it is to be lead astray by high hopes, and how space research scientists can benefit by a familiarity with modern precepts applicable to early life studies on this planet.

The book goes into great detail about the discovery of early life, what forms evidence takes, how it can be mistaken, what information is derived from study of the remains, and what indirect evidence tells us about the early earth. It also discusses how life might have evolved from non-life, how it managed to get started so early, how the atmosphere changed and how that change affected the diversity of earth's biomass. For those who are only casually interested in the topic of fossils, this book might be a little too much information. I love this kind of stuff, but I could certainly see how others might find it incredibly boring. I doubt that those in junior high would find it rewarding, but those in senior high might have enough science background to understand and enjoy it. Certainly for anyone fascinated with science and by how paleontology works, this book will be right up your alley.

FOR THOSE WRITING PAPERS: in paleontology, biochemistry, biology, evolution, and history of science, this book would make an excellent bibliographic entry as well as a good source of topics. One might discuss how science works, how "authority figures" can derail even the best ideas, how science like other human endeavors are affected by culture, expectations, what is "known" already, etc., how progress in technology has allowed us to learn more about the distant past, how the tendency to specialize can delay progress, how a recent trend toward consilience (for which see Consilience: The Unity of Knowledge by E. O. Wilson) might lead to more rapid advances in science. One might compare the work by Nick Lane (see Oxygen: The Molecule that made the World) or by G. Cairns-Smith (Seven Clues to the Origin of Life) to this one to see how their perspectives are the same and how they differ. What do you believe is ultimately supported by the data?

Resolving Darwin's Dilemma
Schopf escorts us into the realm of deep time, introducing us to our earliest microbe ancestors found locked away in ancient rocks. The path is often vague and indistinct, but Schopf is a sure and eloquent guide. Not only has he traversed the route before, but he's helped select and clear the track. This fine book reflects Schop's lighthearted "trailside" manner. He fully enjoys scrutinising the rocks for early lifeforms, and the enjoyment is infectious. It's a pleasure to accompany him on this journey.

Of all the ideas of the origins of life, none proved more exciting than the experiments of Harold Urey and Stanley Miller. Their zapping of elemental chemicals to produce amino acids seemed the final answer to how it all began. Years of criticism of their work and assumptions led to the acclaim fading, but Schopf here attempts to resurrect its primacy. His argument relies on his findings of evidence of wide-ranging shallow seas - Darwin's famous "warm, shallow pond" as the place of life's origins. Schopf argues these seas were present at the same time simple life-forms emerged. In Darwin's time, the techniques for analysing the early rocks were limited. Today, as Schopf demonstrates, looking in the right place with the proper tools brings rich paleontological rewards.

After tracing the histories of several researchers in Pre-Cambrian fossils, Schopf goes on to illustrate the most recent finds and their significance. Some of the finds are beyond the realm of the rocks alone. His description of the process of polymer formation illustrates the beginning of complex chemistry leading from non-life to life. The distinction, as he notes, has become vague as research from many disciplines has been applied to evolutionary studies. As life progressed, it developed such talents as use of light energy, self-perpetuating activities, and the emergence of metabolism. He explains these processes in quite readable prose, but also depicts them with fine illustrations. It's a rare combination of multi-level presentation.

Schopf's tour takes us not only into deep time, but deep space. At the end of the book he examines the issues surrounding the "Martian meteorite" which was suspected to contain remnants of life on that planet. Schopf was the lone dissenter in NASA's presentation of the likely presence of micro-organism fossils. His disappointment in the presentation and the hype surrounding the proposal is keenly expressed. One of his proposals in this book is the universality of life's roots. Lifeforms of some level are almost inevitable on other worlds, given the necessary conditions. He argues the components are available throughout the cosmos, needing only the proper environment to start evolving. It would be exciting to detect evidence of past life on Mars, but meteorite ALH80001 didn't provide it.

Very Interesting
I don't really like biology. There is too much memorizing, and not enough math for my tastes. When I picked up this book, I figured I'd give it a try anyway. I had read Richard Fortey's book _Life_ (a good intro to the history of life) and wanted a little more depth. Boy did I get it.

This is a well written book. The first section is about the history of the quest to find these early fossils and the different theories. I found the stories interesting and fascinating, especially the encounter with Salvador Dali.

I don't want to give away any of the suprises. I found that he explained everything very well. I was able to follow the biological ideas and I have only had one class in college biology. I think if you have not had ANY biology knowledge you probably should get the basics down before reading this book.

But that shouldn't stop you from reading it. If you have any interest in how life started on Earth you have to read this book.

Good basic book on Precambrian life
I disagree with an earlier review that this is not for the lay person. I am a lay person who has read a few books on evolution, and I enjoyed the degree to which this was readable and understandable to the *intelligent* lay person. (say no more.)

Yes, Schopf occasionally writes some whoppers, such as 10 to the 47 being half of 10 to the 80. He also begins with the attitude that we do not actually know for sure that life developed in this path, but here is the evidence that it did. Then he switches to an attitude of: we do know how life developed, and here is the progression. It is an easy jump for an expert in the field to go from "we believe it most probably went this way" to "it did go this way." Galileo got into trouble for that.

Nevertheless, I like how in the middle, he shows that the various energy strategies are minor alterations of one another, showing that the Intelligent Design school critics such as Behe are overblown in their claim that these enzyme pathways are just too irreducibly complex to have evolved by natural selection.

A nice review of the history of this area, by a participant. A nice review of the science behind paleobiology. A nice read. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Establish a life-long enthusiasm for nature
Joseph Cornell is the author of Sharing Nature With Children (1883220734, $9.95) and Sharing Nature With Children II (1883220874, $9.95). This two volume set showcase nature studies and appreciation activities that any parent, teacher, or child care provider can readily engage in with children. Ann appreciation for the complex and interrelated life forms that comprise the exosphere of their environments is a solid basis to establish a life-long enthusiasm for nature and the out-of-doors, as well as a lasting commitment to environmental issues and concerns. Each volume is available independently, but school and community libraries are urged to acquire them both for the nature activities and environmental reference collections.

Good to Have Around
This is a good book to have around when looking for ideas on how to increase our enjoyment and appreciation of nature. While the title says the book is for Sharing Nature with _Children_, the ideas are fun for adults too.

I like how the author provides a four-part framework for the activities described in the book, classifying them as awakening enthusiasm, focusing attention, directing experience, or sharing inspiration.

I also like the stories the author tells about his experiences in environmental education. I could feel his enthusiasm coming through in the stories. Plus, the quotations that open various sections of the book added to my enjoyment.

I found the directions for each activity to be adequate, with a nice range of activities to suit different people and interests. The original Sharing Nature with Children provides more of the same, and the revised edition of the original book incorporates the four-part framework.

I hope you enjoy the book and will use it to not only spend more time enjoying nature but also will be inspired by it to spend more time protecting nature so that future generations can share in this enjoyment. ... Read more

Book Description

This guide contains vital information for anyone wishing to visit, explore, and photograph active volcanoes safely and enjoyably. Following an introduction that discusses eruption styles of different types of volcanoes andhow to prepare for an exploratory trip that avoids volcanic dangers, the book presents guidelines to visiting 42 different volcanoes around the world. It is filled with practical information that includes tour itineraries, maps, transportation details, and warnings of possible non-volcanic dangers. Three appendices direct the reader to a wealth of further volcano resources in a volume that will fascinate amateur enthusiasts and professional volcanologists alike. Rosaly Lopes is a planetary geology and volcanology specialist at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California.In addition to her curatorial and research work, she has lectured extensively in England and Brazil and written numerous popular science articles.She received a Latinas in Science Award from the Comision Feminil Mexicana Nacional in 1991 and since 1992, has been a co-organizer of the United Nations/European Space Agency/The Planetary Society yearly conferences on Basic Science for the Benefit of Developing Countries. ... Read more

Book Description

Could there exist, deep within the earth's crust, a second biosphere--composed of very primitive, thermophilic (heat-loving) bacteria, and containing more living matter than the entire surface of the planet? This radical idea, which initially met with skepticism when it was first proposed by the author in the early 1980s, is now supported by a growing body of evidence.

The implications are astonishing. The theory proposes answers to often-asked questions about life on other planets and the origins of surface life on earth. Is the deep biosphere where life originated? Can Mars and other seemingly barren planets contain deep biospheres? Is there yet another--deeper, hotter--biosphere within the earth, based on silicon instead of carbon?

In the first book on this very controversial and intriguing theory, pioneering physicist Thomas Gold explores the likelihood of a subterranean biosphere, one that exists in a gaseous atmosphere at very high temperature and pressure, and survives on chemical energy--hydrocarbons. This stunning book offers new insights into the origins of life, the origins of natural gas and petroleum, and the distribution of life in the universe. ... Read more

Reviews (19)

Bold Look At Earth Processes
I am very impressed with 'The Deep Hot Biosphere." Dr. Gold (an iconoclast, it seems) boldly rethinks some very basic assumptions about the formation, and role of, oil, coal, and natural gas. These are not, he says, (with the exception of some soft coals & peat) produced by decaying vegetable matter and dead sea creatures but are pre-existent in the earth and modified by such geological processes as heat, pressure, and chemical oxidation. Some vested interests will not like his conclusions.

His theory of earthquakes, too, flies in the face of conservative paradigms and is a useful adjunct to explain those earthquakes that traditional theories have difficulty with (such as the devestating New Madrid quakes of 1811-12.) The book looks at the very interesting evidence of bacteria happily living deep in the earth's crust, possibly larger in biomass than all above-ground life put together. Was this where life on earth began? And if it did, what's to stop similar organisms from living on other planets, even in our own solar system? Throughout, the book is, refreshingly, clearly written and not at all plodding or condescending.

the most important book on LIFE since Origin of the Species
The Deep Hot Biosphere When asked to rank the single most important books on LIFE on Earth this century, I would immediately name Vernadsky: The Biosphere / Schroedinger: What is Life / Monod: Chance and Neccessity / Gold: The Deep Hot Biosphere. What F. Capra has done for PHYSICS, Gold does for BIOLOGY ......... the Ying of Surface Life (which we all know about) has now been juxtaposed by the Yang ...... the Deep Hot Biosphere! Stew Kauffmann - move over! "Our place in the Universe" is far less mysterious that you have made us believe ........ Mandelbrodt and Pak only NOW (after Gold that is .......) really start to make sense. C.D's "warm little pond" has channelled all of our thinking into a direction where Urey & Miller were the "best thing going" ............ NOW we can free our minds and look towards a future where Big Oil is not going to frighten us and Big Government is not going to be able to "milk" us dry. BRAVO!!!! This book should primarily be a MUST for science teachers .........

Gold's Love Oil
Multinational oil companies use microbes that feed on oil to break up oil spills by digesting oil. Evidently the fossil fuel myth is just for public consumption. Gold tells us in this book that Vietnam's White Tiger oil field is producing oil from basement rock, and that hundreds of holes have been drilled down to oil and gas found in basement rock in Russia(Tatarstan), Canadian Shield, and Swedish Siljan Shield.

Even if it is at this time difficult to produce oil or gas from basement rock in most instances, due to the depth of wells, the discovery of oil welling up from below sedimentary rock frees us from the fossil fuel myth. Reserve calculations for oil and gas fields are based on the false assumption that those resources are fixed pockets of fossil fuel, rather than waystations for oil and gas welling up from below. We can stop cannibalizing each other for oil according to the fossil fuel propaganda, and we should not allow gasoline to be priced as if in blood.

Fascinating reading...microbes freeing oxygen from iron oxide(leaving magnetite, marking accessible oil for us) so they can oxidize petroleum as food, cells surviving at temperatures high enough to make steam because steam cannot form at such pressure.

A Classic
I cannot say enough good things about this book. It is not just a window into the Earth, but a window into the sources of organic compounds in carbonaceous meteorites, the early history of "Fox Holes" in the asteroid parent bodies, even the conditions on (and under) Mars - to say nothing of Europa, Ganymede, Enceladus, Titan, and beyond. Some of his ideas are downright creepy, but as every one of his colleagues will attest, during his lifetime Thomas Gold has been right about too many creepy things to ever be dismissed out of hand.

Hot Deep Biosphere
HDB is the most radical earth changing theory since Velikovsky brot 'cataclysmic evolution' out of the fringe, grounding it with vast scientific data, as Gold has done here. Do you recall the U$ energy crises in mid '70s when "Limits to Growth" predicted a run-out of gas/oil in 10-20 yrs. given the rates of consuming it then. Well we didn't run out, while using 'fossil fuels'up even faster, co-creating the 'overheating earth weather patterns now! So Gold is likely correct, the earth is making oil/gas still now! plus other strange subteranian patterns. Some cavers know this, but don't tell or bring up evidence, because its too strange to believe; like billion year old coins from deep in caves/mines. I love these weird earth energy activities. michealspun@yahoo.com ... Read more

Reviews (2)

It's pretty good
I don't own this book but my friend does, and it's wonderful to have all the practice regents. Usually the questions on past regents are very similar to the one you're going to take. The only thing about this book is that the past regents can also be found on the internet site [...]. So you have a lot of the same things on that site, for free. Though the worthwhile thing about the Barron's book is that it has the "answers explained" section. So I would probably recommend buying it. I'm taking the Earth Science Regents in four days and I'm pretty confident about it, thanks to my wonderful teacher and the practice I had taking past regents.

Good study guide!
I am one of like the 60% who failed the Earth Science Regents exam in New York City in June of 1998. While the test and my teacher were impossible, I do believe that the 53% of what I got right came from the power pack. And when I didn't follow a teacher's method of using the books and thoroughly studied them properly, it helped me pass the exam in January of 1999. The Earth Science regents has gone from one of the easiest to THE hardest of the NY Regents Exams and this pack has helped me and many of my friends pass the exam. The blue book particularly is very helpful. So pick this up if you're having trouble or want to improve your skills. ... Read more

Book Description

This book is the first of three volumes in which the recent knowledge of the extent and chronology of Quaternary glaciations has been compiled on a global scale. This information is seen as a fundamental requirement, not only for the glacial workers, but for the wider user-community of general Quaternary workers. In particular the need for accurate ice-front positions is a basic requirement for the rapidly growing field of palaeoclimate modelling. In order to provide the information for the widest-possible range of users in the most accessible form, a series of digital maps was prepared.

The glacial limits were mapped in ArcView, the Geographical Information System (GIS) used by the work group. Included with the publication is a CD with digital maps, showing glacial limits, end moraines, ice-dammed lakes, glacier-induced drainage diversions and the locations of key sections through which the glacial limits are defined and dated. For major parts of Europe also the extent of the maximum Eemian transgression has been indicated. The digital maps in this volume cover all of Europe and parts of northwestern Siberia.
Both overview maps and more detailed maps at a scale 1: 1,000,000 are provided.

Also available:
Part II:North America, ISBN 0-444-51592-5
Part III: South America, Asia, Africa, Australia, Antarctica, ISBN 0-444-51593-3 ... Read more

Book Description

Soils and Geomorphology, now in its third edition, remains popular among soil scientists, geomorphologists, geologists, geographers, and archaeologists.While retaining the useful "factors of soil formation format," it has been extensively revised, incorporating a considerable amount of new research and offering a greater number of topics and examples -- particularly in the chapters "Weathering and Soil Development with Time" and "Topography: Soil Relations with Time in Different Climatic Settings."Greater emphasis is placed on the role of dust in pedogenesis, and new data are included on tropical soil development, global soil-loess relations, neotectonics, and reduction processes. The text discusses field applications such as the use of soils in recognizing climate change, estimating the age of geological deposits, and dealing with environmental problems such as acid rain. New "how-to" appendices on soil descriptions and calculating the profile development index are also included. Soils and Geomorphology is an ideal text for advanced undergraduate and graduate students in courses on pedology, soil science, Quaternary geology, archeology, and sedimentary petrology. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

soil from earth
I read this book for one of my graduate courses. Totaly this is a good book for people who know about soil science, but the weakness of this book is using too much terms which are not explained in this book. So, if you do not have a very good back ground in geology, it will be difficult for you to understand some parts of this book and you need a geology dictionary to read this book. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Mexican opinion.
The book is so good to understand the earth's evolution and the origin of the features of the planet. If you live on the Nortamerican plate this book shows you the history or your place. If you are not in America, may be you will disgusting because the title describes to much of the evolution in norteamerica and avoids a little the other parts of the word. Although is still a very good textbook for Historical Geology, and you will enjoy to read it, it's like to read a novel, a novel full of imagens, a very good edition. Recommended for nongraduated estudents.

Este libro es muy bueno para entender la historia de la Tierra y los porigenes de las caracteristicas del planeta...el porque la Tierra es como es. Solo que hace mucho enfasis en el continente americano, sobre todo en la geologia del escudo canadiense y si tu no vives en America tal ves te desespere ver que trata mucho de esta parte del globo. Pero aun asi es un excelente libro para el curso de Geologia Historica..vivas donde vivas. Su lectura es muy amena, es como leer una novela y aparte esta lleno de imagenes, esta muy buen ilustrado, muy buena edicion. Recomendado para estudiantes universitarios. ... Read more

Book Description

Soils, invaluable indicators of the nature and history of the physical and human landscape, have strongly influenced the cultural record left to archaeologists.Not only are they primary reservoirs for artifacts, they often encase entire sites. And soil-forming processes in themselves are an important component of site formation, influencing which artifacts, features, and environmental indicators (floral, faunal, and geological) will be destroyed and to what extent and which will be preserved and how well.In this book, Holliday will address each of these issues in terms of fundamentals as well as in field case histories from all over the world. The focus will be on principles of soil geomorphology , soil stratigraphy, and soil chemistry and their applications in archaeological research. ... Read more

Book Description

This author's second volume introduces basic principles of interpreting infrared spectral data, teaching its readers to make sense of the data coming from an infrared spectrometer. Contents include spectra and diagnostic bands for the more common functional groups as well as chapters on polyester spectra and interpretation aids.Discussions include:oscience of infrared interpretationolight and molecular vibrationsohow and why molecules absorb infrared radiationopeak heights, intensities, and widthsohydrocarbons, carbonyl groups, and molecules with C-N bondsopolymers and inorganic moleculesothe use of atlases, library searching, spectral subtraction, and the Internet in augmenting interpretationEach chapter presents an introduction to the nomenclature and structure of a specific functional group and proceeds with the important diagnostic bands for each group.Infrared Spectral Interpretation serves both novices and experienced practitioners in this field. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

A Comment From the Author
I apologize for rating my own book, but it was the only way I could get a comment placed on the book's webpage.

I feel compelled to respond, point by point, to the poor rating the reviewer from NY, NY has given my book.

Reviewer: "The representation of spectra is of very poor quality and appears as images printed on a dot-matrix printer or a plotter."

Response: All spectra were printed on a modern, 600 DPI, laser printer. All spectra are plotted in landscape format (parallel to the book's binding) to maximize the size of the spectrum for easy viewing. Peak positions are clearly marked, and the assignment of relevant peaks is included in a table at the bottom of each spectrum. The chemical structure and formula for each compound is clearly marked. I have given much thought to the format and layout of the spectra in the book to supply the most information in an easy-to-read format.

Reviewer: "Nowhere does the author provide an example of how to use his systematic approach to interpret spectra or expound on why these steps are critical."

Response: There are 33 problem spectra in the book. The solution to these problems, including a complete chemical structure and table with correct peak assignments, is given in Appendix II of the book (pages 208 to 242). Each one of these problem solutions is an example of the systematic approach to interpretation I discuss in Chapter 1, and the importance of the steps is expounded upon in detail in these problem solutions as well. Any reader who works through the problems will discover this.

Reviewer: "The author takes a "no math" approach and in addition to limiting the rigor of the material he makes several misleading statements in his explanation of molecular vibrations and vibrational spectra."

Response: There is plenty of math in the book, there are 16 equations in Chapter 1 alone, which support the discussion of RELEVANT theory. There is no calculus or matrix algebra in the book...intentionally. One does not need to know how to design a transmission to drive a car. By analogy: One does not need a knowledge of advanced mathematics to be able to interpret infrared spectra. I have included as much rigor as I think is necessary for the intended audience to be able to interpret spectra. I gladly refer readers to more advanced books if they want more details on theory. As far as technical errors are concerned, the entire book has been reviewed by several people in this field, and is as free of technical errors as I can make it. If the reviewer believes there are technical errors in the book, I would be happy to discuss those with him. My e-mail address is printed in the front of the book.

In Conclusion... Thousands of students have used this book in the short courses I teach for a living. Their response to the book is overwhelmingly enthusiastic and positive...and I have the course evaluation forms to back this up. Seasoned academics may not care for my approach to the subject, but my experience with my students convinces me that for its intended audience, this book serves its purpose well.

In closing, another unsolicited third party review:

"This clearly written book...is a useful addition...Smith's approach is practical; a short theoretical introduction is followed by chapters on compounds...plus a good index and glossary. A generous assortment of illustrations of spectra and problems with solutions..." H. Goldwhite, Cal-State Los Angeles -Choice Magazine, June 1999

Not ready for prime time
This book is in its first edition and originated from a short course the author has taught for six years. This text is targeted at the laboratory technician or undergraduate that currently has little or no familiarity with infrared spectroscopy, but needs to interpret spectra. The author takes a "no math" approach and in addition to limiting the rigor of the material he makes several misleading statements in his explanation of molecular vibrations and vibrational spectra. Nowhere does the author provide an example of how to use his systematic approach to interpret spectra or expound on why these steps are critical. The representation of spectra is of very poor quality and appears as images printed on a dot-matrix printer or a plotter. While the author's short course may be mature, its representation in this text is not. The model he presents is sound in principle, but it should be reinforced throughout the material to illustrate the art of spectral interpretation. There are other more comprehensive texts on interpreting vibrational spectra currently available which remain a better resource for both novice and seasoned spectroscopists. ... Read more

Book Description

American Museum of Natural History John Wiley & Sons and the American Museum of Natural History have collaborated to develop a Web site linking this text to the Museum's permanent exhibition, the Gottesman Hall of Planet Earth, Rose Center for Earth and Space. The Web site features animations, images and other features from the Museum's extensive collection and Web site. This site will be updated and evolve to include new content. All links are keyed to the text of The Dynamic Earth, 4th Edition. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Interesting and Easy to understand
It was an interesting book that I am going to use also after graduation. Even if I don't speak fluently English, the book was easy to understand. I had the book as recommended litterature in a Geology course. And after reading it I did pretty well on the exam. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

An amazing experience
Being myself an oceanographer (PhD), this book surprisingly came to me by chance. I knew the author and his work as much as I have never heard of this amazing small book, and I left it lying about on my desk during acouple of weeks before thinking about its reading. I was initially notenthusiastic, expecting another "boring" theoretical textbook on the oceancirculation. But to my surprise, the book is a fun read. Written as adialogue it leads the reader to deal with concepts that otherwise couldhave been really difficult to apprehend for non specialists. Here noequations, mathematical terms or esoteric scientific thinking. On thecontrary, here science is fun, really fun, intuitive and reallyunderstandable for everybody. This book is really more than apopularization book, it does not even seem to deal with scientific things!It is just an informal discussion between two persons with two differentpassionate views of the sea, including some fun anecdotes undeceivingscientific work at sea, but nevertheless very strong scientific thinking onthe functioning of the ocean circulation and the amazing feeling of theauthor enthusiasm for his work. More specifically, some computer programsdevoted to the visualization of different ocean circulation patterns can befound in annex, and could still, almost 15 years after their initialwriting, be an excellent starting point for undergraduate and graduatestudents on ocean sciences. This book is a wonderful experience I highlyrecommend to anybody wants to have an easy, but complete "view on the sea". ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A stunning overview of a great mountain range
Research geologists rarely spend much energy synthesizing and making their work available to the general public, to both party's loss. But Lamb does that here, giving an accessible overview of the Central Andes that will be of interest to the traveller as well as the geologist. His writing is clear and filled with personal anecdotes that are well-integrated into his story. The combination of travelogue, the tale of a young man building a team and a career, and explanation of modern mountain-building concepts is an unusual way to present the material, but it provides spice and should motivate a wide range of readers to keep turning the pages. It is richly illustrated with detailed illustrations and maps of the highest quality, I can't thank the author and publisher enough for their care in this regard. I have a few quibbles, though. Lamb doesn't note the fact that lithosphere of increasingly young age has been subducted beneath S. America through the Cenozoic, making subduction increasingly difficult and converting an extensional 'Mariana-type' convergent margin into the present 'Andean-type' compressional margin. He doesn't mention the presence and role of 'flat-slab' segments of the S. American subduction zone (and their possible role in raising the Andes). He doesn't consider the importance of trade winds being blocked by Eastern Andes for producing the deserts and empty trenches of the central Andes. But these weaknesses are amply compensated for by the overall product, an ambitious, well-edited, and compelling overview of a great mountain range. ... Read more

Book Description

The prospect of producing clean, sustainable power in substantial quantities from renewable energy sources is arousing renewed interest world-wide.This book provides a comprehensive overview of the

_ principal renewable energy sources: solar thermal, biomass, tidal, _ wave, photovoltaic, hydro, wind, and geothermal. With the aid of 370 detailed illustrations and 50 tables of data, it explains the physical and technological principles underlying each source and examines its environmental impact and future prospects.

_

_ ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Good overview of renewable technologies with UK focus
This is the textbook for the Open University course on renewable energies. Well written, well illustrated, lots of detailed examples, data and references. ... Read more

Book Description

Reviews (1)

Review of the Abyss
As an armchair science lover, I found the Abyss of Time an eye opening book.It is not for the faint hearted to attempt because it does have a lot of fifty dollar words in it.But if you are looking for a really in depth look at how scientists through the ages developed the understanding and beliefs about the age of the earth and the processes that change it's surface this book is fascinating reading.I have read it again and again and still find it a good read. It is the history of the science of Geology basically. ... Read more