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The field of physical geology continues to evolve--new tools, new ideas, new approaches. And Understanding Earth--always the leader in innovation--continues to evolve, too. Working closely with Frank Press and Ray Siever, the new co-authors, John Grotzinger and Tom Jordan, have introduced a wealth of recent data and applications to keep the science in the text on the cutting edge.
Yet, the Fourth Edition effectively fulfills the book’s enduring goal: to help students understand what physical geology teaches us about the world and what it brings to our lives. More than any other introductory physical geology textbook, Understanding Earth is designed to bring the worldview of the working geologist to an audience not only new to this specific field, but in many cases to science in general. Students aren’t merely presented with concepts and processes--they come to learn how we know what we know, and how that knowledge impacts their lives as citizens and consumers.
Table of Contents
- Front Matter
- CHAPTER 1 Building a Planet
- CHAPTER 2 Plate Tectonics: The Unifying Theory
- CHAPTER 3 Minerals: Building Blocks of Rocks
- CHAPTER 4 Rocks: Records of Geologic Processes
- CHAPTER 5 Igneous Rocks: Solids from Melts
- CHAPTER 6 Volcanism
- CHAPTER 7 Weathering and Erosion
- CHAPTER 8 Sediments and Sedimentary Rocks
- CHAPTER 9 Metamorphic Rocks
- CHAPTER 10 The Rock Record and the Geologic Time Scale
- CHAPTER 11 Folds, Faults, and Other Records of Rock Deformation
- CHAPTER 12 Mass Wasting
- CHAPTER 13 The Hydrologic Cycle and Groundwater
- CHAPTER 14 Streams: Transport to the Oceans
- CHAPTER 15 Winds and Deserts
- CHAPTER 16 Glaciers: The Work of Ice
- CHAPTER 17 Earth Beneath the Oceans
- CHAPTER 18 Landscapes: Tectonic and Climate Interaction
- CHAPTER 19 Earthquakes
- CHAPTER 20 Evolution of the Continents
- CHAPTER 21 Exploring Earth's Interior
- CHAPTER 22 Energy and Material Resources from the Earth
- CHAPTER 23 Earth's Environment, Global Change, and Human Impacts
- Back Matter
