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Pearson Earth Science
2017 Pearson Earth Science (Hardcover)(11.15"x8.5"x1.4") by Edward J. Tarbuck & Frederick K. Lutgens / Illustrated by Dennis Tasa *** 9781323205877 ***807 Pages
807 pages, Hardcover
Published January 1, 2017
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December 7, 2020
Discloser: This book was hard to find on Goodreads. That is because Pearson, the publisher, selects content from this book and publishes it under different titles. I read the 14th edition of Earth Science, published in 2015, skipping the final unit on astronomy.
This book is quite good: I learned a lot from reading it. Admittedly, my background in earth science was not strong prior to reading it, but I do think a background in chemistry or physics helps, even if the intended audience is undergraduates who do not plan to study science any further.
Some things I learned:
1. Basaltic (or mafic) lavas are more dense, but also less viscous, than granitic (or felsic) lavas. This is because the latter is enriched with silicon, which weighs less than other earth materials and tends to form long chains with oxygen. For this reason, basalt is normally associated with dense oceanic crust while granite is associated with lighter, continental crust.
2. In seismology, longitudinal P waves travel faster than transverse S waves. The difference is due to the Lamé parameters of the bedrock. (Or, stated another way, the elastic modulus is greater than the shear modulus of, basically, all rocks.)
3. Despite the abundance of sunlight in the tropics, deep oceans in the low latitudes are not hospitable to abundant wildlife, due to a permanent thermocline (temperature gradient) that prevents nutrient mixing from the seafloor. For similar reasons, the warm currents associated with El Niño phenomena normally result in enormous reductions in the fish population.
4. The temperature gradient of a cold front is much steeper, and less stabilizing, than that of a warm front, which is why cold fronts are to blame for inclement weather.
5. The upper mantle is mostly solid, only melting when pressure is reduced or water vapor from plate subduction lowers the melting point. The melting basalt is buoyed upward, where it will melt granite if it encounters continental crust. Cooled deposits of melted granite (plutons) are responsible for the majestic batholiths of the Sierra Nevada, Yosemite National Park, etc.
... and plenty more. Many of the things I learned initially struck me as counterintuitive, or at least not immediately obvious. I enjoyed working through the concepts on my own.
My only criticism is that the unit on geologic history is relatively weak, or at least too oriented around the recent Phanerozoic Era. The bulk of our evolution took place earlier, in a less hospitable climate. I think it would serve students well to focus on early microbiology, ancient chemical pathways, etc.
This book is quite good: I learned a lot from reading it. Admittedly, my background in earth science was not strong prior to reading it, but I do think a background in chemistry or physics helps, even if the intended audience is undergraduates who do not plan to study science any further.
Some things I learned:
1. Basaltic (or mafic) lavas are more dense, but also less viscous, than granitic (or felsic) lavas. This is because the latter is enriched with silicon, which weighs less than other earth materials and tends to form long chains with oxygen. For this reason, basalt is normally associated with dense oceanic crust while granite is associated with lighter, continental crust.
2. In seismology, longitudinal P waves travel faster than transverse S waves. The difference is due to the Lamé parameters of the bedrock. (Or, stated another way, the elastic modulus is greater than the shear modulus of, basically, all rocks.)
3. Despite the abundance of sunlight in the tropics, deep oceans in the low latitudes are not hospitable to abundant wildlife, due to a permanent thermocline (temperature gradient) that prevents nutrient mixing from the seafloor. For similar reasons, the warm currents associated with El Niño phenomena normally result in enormous reductions in the fish population.
4. The temperature gradient of a cold front is much steeper, and less stabilizing, than that of a warm front, which is why cold fronts are to blame for inclement weather.
5. The upper mantle is mostly solid, only melting when pressure is reduced or water vapor from plate subduction lowers the melting point. The melting basalt is buoyed upward, where it will melt granite if it encounters continental crust. Cooled deposits of melted granite (plutons) are responsible for the majestic batholiths of the Sierra Nevada, Yosemite National Park, etc.
... and plenty more. Many of the things I learned initially struck me as counterintuitive, or at least not immediately obvious. I enjoyed working through the concepts on my own.
My only criticism is that the unit on geologic history is relatively weak, or at least too oriented around the recent Phanerozoic Era. The bulk of our evolution took place earlier, in a less hospitable climate. I think it would serve students well to focus on early microbiology, ancient chemical pathways, etc.
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