Colliding Continents

Explains how these mountain ranges were formed and describes the expeditions through which the author, a geologist and mountaineer, gained the evidence he needed to support his theories about the process of their formation.

The crash of the Indian plate into Asia is the biggest known collision in geological history, and it continues today. The result is the Himalaya and Karakoram - one of the largest mountain ranges on Earth. The Karakoram has half of the world's highest mountains and a reputation as being one of the most remote and savage ranges of all. In this beautifully illustrated book, Mike Searle, a geologist at the University of Oxford and one of the most experienced field geologists of our time, presents a rich account of the geological forces that were involved in creating these mountain ranges. Using his personal accounts of extreme mountaineering and research in the region, he pieces together the geological processes that formed such impressive peaks.

Continental Drift: Colliding Continents, Converging Cultures is as much an account of the impressions Western culture made on Constantin Roman as a young researcher from behind the Iron Curtain as a personal history of the developing new science of plate tectonics. The book elucidates the author's struggles against a web of bureaucracy to secure his rights in the free world while exploring historical events. A refined observer of the contrast of cultures between East and West, Roman's personal story relates his encounters with eminent scientists, artists, and embassy officials. Constantin Roman defied communist restrictions by coming to England in 1968 on a NATO travel grant. After being encouraged by Keith Runcorn at the University of Newcastle to stay in Britain for a higher degree, he received a Ph.D. scholarship at the University of Cambridge. This is where he studied under Sir Edward Bullard when plate tectonics was in its infancy, when the concepts of continental drift and sea floor spreading were galvanizing geology. As a continental student adrift on English shores, Roman soon staked his claim on the plate tectonics map with his work on the deep earthquakes of the Carpathians. But the stakes became higher with a race against the clock to be the first to publish a plate tectonics solution to the Himalayan earthquakes. Continental Drift delves into all of this and more. It will delight earth scientists, physicists, and general readers as well as historians of science, who will find a wealth of personal recollections of key figures in the continental drift story.

"The book provides an excellent historical summary of the debates over continental drift theory in this century." —Contemporary Sociology "This is a useful discussion of the way that science works. The book will be of value to philosophers of science . . . " —Choice " . . . will find an important place in university and department libraries, and will interest afficionados of the factual and intellectual history of the earth sciences." —Terra Nova " . . . an excellent core analysis . . . " —The Times Higher Education Supplement " . . . an ambitious and important contribution to the new sociology of science." —American Journal of Sociology " . . . Stewart's book is a noble effort, an interesting and readable discussion, and another higher notch on the scoreboard of critical scholarship that deserves wide examination and close attention." —Geophysics This fascinating book describes the rise and fall and rebirth of continental drift theory in this century. It uses the recent revolution in geoscientinsts' beliefs about the earth to examine questions such as, How does scientific knowledge develop and change? The book also explores how well different perspectives help us to understand revolutionary change in science.

Physical Geology: The Science of Earth Canadian Edition takes a unique approach to teaching students physical geology. The primary goal of this text is to give students a more meaningful understanding of the concepts of geology and science, as well as emphasizing the importance of becoming an earth citizen. The result is a text that engages students and builds an enduring understanding of geologic principles and their interconnection with sustainability and global/environmental issues.

From the moment when the continents split to the present quest to save Europe from ecological disaster, this book traces the formation, development and continual change of Europe and European civilization.