Using a series of case studies, the book demonstrates the power of dynamic analysis as applied to the fossil record. Written in an engaging and informative style, Dynamic Paleontology outlines the best application of quantitative and other tools to critical problems in the paleontological sciences including such topics as analysis of the Cambrian Explosion and the question regarding the presence of life on Mars. The book considers how we think about certain types questions and shows how we can refine our approach to analysis right from the beginning of any particular research effort. The analytical tools presented here will have wide application to other fields of knowledge; as such the book represents a major contribution to our deployment of modern scientific method.

Using a series of case studies, the book demonstrates the power of dynamic analysis as applied to the fossil record. The book considers how we think about certain types of paleontological questions and shows how to answer them. The analytical tools presented here will have wide application to other fields of knowledge; as such the book represents a major contribution to the deployment of modern scientific method as it builds on author's previous book, Dynamic Paleontology. Students and seasoned professionals alike will find this book to be of great utility for refining their approach to their ongoing and future research projects.

Using a series of case studies, the book demonstrates the power of dynamic analysis as applied to the fossil record. The book considers how we think about certain types of paleontological questions and shows how to answer them. The analytical tools presented here will have wide application to other fields of knowledge; as such the book represents a major contribution to the deployment of modern scientific method as it builds on author's previous book, Dynamic Paleontology. Students and seasoned professionals alike will find this book to be of great utility for refining their approach to their ongoing and future research projects.

Updated with the material that instructors want, Dinosaurs continues to make science exciting and understandable to non-science majors through its narrative of scientific concepts rather than endless facts. It now contains new material on pterosaurs, an expanded section on the evolution of the dinosaurs and new photographs to help students engage with geology, natural history and evolution. The authors ground the text in the language of modern evolutionary biology, phylogenetic systematics, and teach students to examine the paleontology of dinosaurs exactly as the professionals in the field do using these methods to reconstruct dinosaur relationships. Beautifully illustrated, lively and engaging, this edition continues to encourage students to ask questions and assess data critically, enabling them to think like a scientist.

Encyclopedia of Geology, Second Edition presents in six volumes state-of-the-art reviews on the various aspects of geologic research, all of which have moved on considerably since the writing of the first edition. New areas of discussion include extinctions, origins of life, plate tectonics and its influence on faunal provinces, new types of mineral and hydrocarbon deposits, new methods of dating rocks, and geological processes. Users will find this to be a fundamental resource for teachers and students of geology, as well as researchers and non-geology professionals seeking up-to-date reviews of geologic research. Provides a comprehensive and accessible one-stop shop for information on the subject of geology, explaining methodologies and technical jargon used in the field Highlights connections between geology and other physical and biological sciences, tackling research problems that span multiple fields Fills a critical gap of information in a field that has seen significant progress in past years Presents an ideal reference for a wide range of scientists in earth and environmental areas of study

Dragon Bones is a picture book biography of fossil-hunter Mary Anning, who discovered a dinosaur skeleton that changed the landscape of paleontology. At home in her seaside town in England, little Mary Anning stared out her window. Unlike other children, Mary couldn't wait for a rainy day. Because when it rained... the bones were revealed. With her father and brother, Mary would go out searching the damp soil after a storm, with the hopes of finding something nobody had seen before: a dinosaur. After her father dies, Mary must continue her search, picking up his tools and venturing out alone. In her life, she discovered several creatures, but was never given credit...until recently. This eye-opening biography of the legendary Mary Anning, illustrated by Maris Wicks, shatters expectations and brings together two creators who are as passionate about their subject as they are about their art. Inspiring, this true adventure begs for re-reads.

This book is an attempt to put into practice these precepts of Popper and Koestler as far as they can be applied to the Earth sciences at an elementary level. It is felt that the time is ripe for such a presentation, for the revolution that has taken place over the past 20 years within the Earth sciences has made more people directly aware of the way science works and of the necessity of knowing its history to achieve a full understanding of the problems involved. Emerging from the revolution has been the immensely unifying and extremely fruitful concept of plate tectonics, and developments leading to its establishment form the core of the book (Chs 4, 5 & 6). However, to see plate tectonics in context, it is necessary to look at what happened before, and this is done in the first three chapters. Chapter 1 is concerned with the development of ideas about the shape, size and mass of the Earth, which led to broad concepts about the Earth's structure and finally to a model of a cooling, contracting Earth, capable of explaining geological history and the major topographic features of the Earth. Chapter 2 goes on to show how even though the acceptance of this idea gradually broke down in the first half of the 20th century, possible alternatives, which are now at the core of plate tectonics, were also rejected.