A thought-provoking look at the unsettled science of global warming—from a former volcanologist, geophysicist, and US Geological Survey scientist.Thousands of scientists are convinced beyond any reasonable doubt that recent global warming is being caused by emissions of greenhouse gases and that we must act immediately to reduce these emissions or else we may render Earth unlivable for our children and grandchildren. Some even say "the science is settled."

"Takes readers on illuminating scientific adventure, beginning sixty-six million years ago, that connects dinosaurs, comets, DNA, and the future of the planet." — Huffington PostIn this brilliant exploration of our cosmic environment, the renowned particle physicist and New York Times–bestselling author of Warped Passages and Knocking on Heaven's Door uses her research into dark matter to illuminate the startling connections betwe...

Hailed by The New York Times for writing “with wonderful clarity about science . . . that effortlessly teaches as it zips along,” nationally bestselling author Robert M. Hazen offers a radical new approach to Earth history in this intertwined tale of the planet’s living and nonliving spheres.With an astrobiologist’s imagination, a historian’s perspective, and a naturalist’s eye, Hazen calls upon twenty-first-century discoveries that have revolutionized geo...

A classic introduction to the story of Earth's origin and evolution—revised and expanded for the twenty-first centurySince its first publication more than twenty-five years ago, How to Build a Habitable Planet has established a legendary reputation as an accessible yet scientifically impeccable introduction to the origin and evolution of Earth, from the Big Bang through the rise of human civilization. This classic account of how our habitable planet was as...

The Latest Scientific Discoveries Point to an Intentional CreatorMost of us remember the basics from science classes about how Earth came to be the only known planet that sustains complex life. But what most people don't know is that the more thoroughly researchers investigate the history of our planet, the more astonishing the story of our existence becomes. The number and complexity of the astronomical, geological, chemical, and biological features recognized as ...

A Short Introduction to Climate Change provides a clear, balanced and well documented account of one of the most important issues of our time. It covers developments in climate science over the past 250 years and shows that recent climate change is more than the result of natural variability. It explains the difference between weather and climate by examining changes in temperature, rainfall, Arctic ice and ocean currents. It also considers the consequences of our use of fossil fuels and d...

In a thought-provoking and entertaining exploration of The Five Biggest Ideas in Science, authors Charles Wynn and Arthur Wiggins provide a panoramic view of the questions scientists seek to answer about the natural world:* Do basic building blocks of matter exist, and if so, what do they look like?* BIG IDEA #1: Physics' Model of the Atom* What relationships, if any, exist among different kinds of atoms?* BIG IDEA #2: Chemistry's Periodic Law* Where did ...

Global warming and human-induced climate change are perhaps the most important scientific issues of our time. These issues continue to be debated in the scientific community and in the media without true consensus about the role of greenhouse gas emissions as a contributing factor. Evidence-Based Climate Science: Data opposing CO2 emissions as the primary source of global warming objectively gathers and analyzes scientific data concerning patterns of past climate changes, influences of cha...

Waves in Oceanic and Coastal Waters describes the observation, analysis and prediction of wind-generated waves in the open ocean, in shelf seas, and in coastal regions with islands, channels, tidal flats and inlets, estuaries, fjords and lagoons. Most of this richly illustrated book is devoted to the physical aspects of waves. After introducing observation techniques for waves, both at sea and from space, the book defines the parameters that characterise waves. Using basic statistical and ...

"Radioactivity is like a clock that never needs adjusting," writes Doug Macdougall. "It would be hard to design a more reliable timekeeper." In Nature's Clocks, Macdougall tells how scientists who were seeking to understand the past arrived at the ingenious techniques they now use to determine the age of objects and organisms. By examining radiocarbon (C-14) dating—the best known of these methods—and several other techniques that geologists use to decode the distant past, Macdouga...

The Earth's climate system depends entirely on the Sun for its energy. Solar radiation warms the atmosphere and is fundamental to atmospheric composition, while the distribution of solar heating across the planet produces global wind patterns and contributes to the formation of clouds, storms, and rainfall. The Sun’s Influence on Climate provides an unparalleled introduction to this vitally important relationship.This accessible primer covers the basic properties of the Ea...

Essential reading for any Earth scientist, this classic textbook has been providing advanced undergraduate and graduate students with the fundamentals needed to develop a quantitative understanding of the physical processes of the solid earth for over thirty years. This third edition has two completely new chapters covering numerical modelling and geophysical MATLAB® applications, and the text is now supported by a suite of online MATLAB® codes that will enable students to grasp the practi...