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Earth's Pre-Pleistocene Glacial Record
82
Geomorphology has aspired during the last 25 years to the status of a scientific discipline. This volume gives an insight into the basis of this aspiration. The balance of the volume shows where the focus of development has been. Of four main parts, on form, material properties, process, and evolution, the largest is on process. This is right in terms of the recent history of geomorphology, and because the processes shaping the earth's surface are uniquely the province of geomorphology. The techniques described in this part measure the behaviour of the various geomorphological agents, and record either the redistribution of the products of geomorphological processes, or the morphological changes wrought by them. That the treatment of form is relatively shorter arises partly because geomorphologists have given less attention to this other essential element of geomorphology, but also because morphological techniques appear in other sections, e.g. on dunes in the section on aeolian processes. In the treatments of Form and of Process, authors are often dealing with techniques dev e l o p e d by g e o m o r p h o l o g i s t s and expounded in the geomorphological literature. Generally therefore these techniques are either fully explained or are authoritatively referenced. In the investigation of materials and landform evolution, geomorphologists are usually borrowing from other fields. This fact is recognised both by authors and editors, and the treatment of the techniques in question tends accordingly to be introductory. In the study of materials, the techniques of sedimentology and civil engineering are extensively employed; in the study of landform evolution, geochronological and biostratigraphical techniques are prominent. Surprisingly, there is no section on sub-surface investigation, either direct methods, using drills and augers, or indirect methods such as resistivity. Hundreds of techniques are identified here. In many cases they are described in sufficient detail to allow the reader to use them, although in a few cases additional references to previous applications of a technique would be welcome. This is not, however, an instruction manual, or even an encyclopaedia; it is more in the nature of a review of the technical revolution that has
transformed geomorphology in recent years. The editors have not marshalled the material into a highly structured plan. Indeed, they have allowed a considerable overlap between individual contributions in terms both of general concepts, such as experimental design, and specific techniques, such as ~4C dating. Such overlap occurs chiefly where sections are not essentially technical in theme, e.g. Raised Shorelines, but also between such sections as Chemical Properties, and Solutes. The editors have also allowed the individual approach of authors to their topics to vary quite widely. This is not a problem except where, in a small number of cases, personal preference obtrudes. The list of references is large (over 1750 items) and is consolidated alphabetically at the end of the work. This is an impressive compilation which geomorphologists will find invaluable, but from which, in addition, scientists in other fields can identify the particular role of geomorphologists in the earth sciences. Ch.P. Green, London
STRATIGRAPHY M.J. Hambrey and W.B. Harland (Editors), 1981. Earth's Pre-Pleistocene Glacial Record. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, x v + 1004 pp., £98.00 (cloth). This monumental volume, containing 217 original papers by 165 authors, attempts, in 1019 A4-sized pages, to provide a concise summary of the information available on prePleistocene tillite and tillite-like rocks throughout the world. It is the fulfillment of the objectives of the Pre-Pleistocene Tillite Project of the International Geological Correlation Programme, providing a record of the earth's known glacial history from Archaean until the beginning of Quaternary time. A 31 -page introduction outlines the organisation and history of the project, presents the adopted stratigraphic time-scale and a guide to identifying glacigenic deposits, and discusses some of the problems of terminology and classification. It concludes with a brief glossary highlighting the nomenclatural problems invariably encountered in such specialist topics.
83
There follow 212 regional papers ordered by continent and time, each following a standard format, and dealing with tillite or tillite-like rocks of a specific age and region. The text concludes with a series of summaries o r d e r e d by time and continent, with maps and time-charts of the worldwide distribution of diamictites of different ages. A most valuable inclusion is a standardised summary of the radiometric data, and there is a surprisingly b r i e f s u m m a r y of the p r i n c i p a l palaeomagnetic data. The daunting task of compiling a comprehensive index has been simplified by referring only to the paper or papers in which the various rock unit and locality names appear, leaving the reader with the usually not too o n e r o u s task of searching a few pages for the specific items of interest. It was the project intention to provide descriptive information for a data base. Contributors were instructed to separate their own interpretations from their objective descriptions, and the concluding summaries deliberately rely on contributor's interpretations alone, without introducing those of the editors. The editors have done their job well, with the result that this milestone in the study of the earth's glacial record cries out for comprehensive interpretation by persons able to synthesise a unity out of a thousand pages of sometimes contradictory text. The editors and publishers are to be congratulated for the successful completion to such high standard of this mamnwth undertaking. The work will be a lasting, invaluable reference to specialists with interests in this field, not just as a data base of descriptive information, but as an introduction to some of those most o b s c u r e references so often associated with regional geologies. M.J. McSaveney, Christchurch
A. Hallam, 1981. Facies Interpretation and the Stratigraphic Record. W.H. Freeman and Co., Oxford, xii + 219 pp., £st9.10.95 (hardcover). This refreshingly modern book, both with respect to style as well as to contents, should find a wide audience ranging from students to professional palaeontologists, but also to the more general geologists who want to up-
date their concepts of historical geology. The title is modest, because the author also discusses the influence and origin of major geological and meteorological processes. Consequently, in a b o o k of this size many subjects are treated in a concise way, occasionally almost reaching an annotated reference style. On the other hand, in this fashion the writer has managed to create a readable b o o k in which one does not lose track in a labyrinth of detail. The book is written in a critical style, with criticism mellowed by humour and common sense. He typically quotes the Vogt-Holden effect: 'New data, regardless of reliable source or high quality, have scarcely ever ruled out any past theory, but have fuelled the promulgation of newer and even more outlandish proposals.' In nearly all chapters of the b o o k it becomes clear that integration and cooperation of the various scientific disciplines involved, are the keys to the further developments in stratigraphy which Hallam calls 'the c o r e discipline of geology'. For example, he describes a meteorological model based on an astronomical theory, and made plausible by a statistical study of coral and bivalve growth. The writer himself contributed much comment on the various theories and cases of conflicting evidence, and he often suggests which further investigations might be carried out. Naturally his own specialities such as Jurassic stratigraphy, carbonate sedimentology and shallow epicontinental seas are given a somewhat enhanced attention. The author d o e s not follow the recent trend of disaster theories, and other rather extreme views. He concentrates on the more reliable large scale variations in sea-level and temperature. It is remarkable how much of the evidence dates from post 1976. The b o o k consists of an introduction which really includes the first three chapters on principles of facies analysis and examples of modern and comparable ancient sediments, followed by chapters on seven major topics: sedimentation and tectonics; ancient epicontinental seas; eustatic changes of sealevel; Phanerozoic climates; Mesozoic and C e n o z o i c oceans; Precambrian environments; Facies and Phanerozoic fossil record. The book is well edited and printed, and it is illustrated with 116 clear maps, diagrams and graphs.
Geomorphology has aspired during the last 25 years to the status of a scientific discipline. This volume gives an insight into the basis of this aspiration. The balance of the volume shows where the focus of development has been. Of four main parts, on form, material properties, process, and evolution, the largest is on process. This is right in terms of the recent history of geomorphology, and because the processes shaping the earth's surface are uniquely the province of geomorphology. The techniques described in this part measure the behaviour of the various geomorphological agents, and record either the redistribution of the products of geomorphological processes, or the morphological changes wrought by them. That the treatment of form is relatively shorter arises partly because geomorphologists have given less attention to this other essential element of geomorphology, but also because morphological techniques appear in other sections, e.g. on dunes in the section on aeolian processes. In the treatments of Form and of Process, authors are often dealing with techniques dev e l o p e d by g e o m o r p h o l o g i s t s and expounded in the geomorphological literature. Generally therefore these techniques are either fully explained or are authoritatively referenced. In the investigation of materials and landform evolution, geomorphologists are usually borrowing from other fields. This fact is recognised both by authors and editors, and the treatment of the techniques in question tends accordingly to be introductory. In the study of materials, the techniques of sedimentology and civil engineering are extensively employed; in the study of landform evolution, geochronological and biostratigraphical techniques are prominent. Surprisingly, there is no section on sub-surface investigation, either direct methods, using drills and augers, or indirect methods such as resistivity. Hundreds of techniques are identified here. In many cases they are described in sufficient detail to allow the reader to use them, although in a few cases additional references to previous applications of a technique would be welcome. This is not, however, an instruction manual, or even an encyclopaedia; it is more in the nature of a review of the technical revolution that has
transformed geomorphology in recent years. The editors have not marshalled the material into a highly structured plan. Indeed, they have allowed a considerable overlap between individual contributions in terms both of general concepts, such as experimental design, and specific techniques, such as ~4C dating. Such overlap occurs chiefly where sections are not essentially technical in theme, e.g. Raised Shorelines, but also between such sections as Chemical Properties, and Solutes. The editors have also allowed the individual approach of authors to their topics to vary quite widely. This is not a problem except where, in a small number of cases, personal preference obtrudes. The list of references is large (over 1750 items) and is consolidated alphabetically at the end of the work. This is an impressive compilation which geomorphologists will find invaluable, but from which, in addition, scientists in other fields can identify the particular role of geomorphologists in the earth sciences. Ch.P. Green, London
STRATIGRAPHY M.J. Hambrey and W.B. Harland (Editors), 1981. Earth's Pre-Pleistocene Glacial Record. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, x v + 1004 pp., £98.00 (cloth). This monumental volume, containing 217 original papers by 165 authors, attempts, in 1019 A4-sized pages, to provide a concise summary of the information available on prePleistocene tillite and tillite-like rocks throughout the world. It is the fulfillment of the objectives of the Pre-Pleistocene Tillite Project of the International Geological Correlation Programme, providing a record of the earth's known glacial history from Archaean until the beginning of Quaternary time. A 31 -page introduction outlines the organisation and history of the project, presents the adopted stratigraphic time-scale and a guide to identifying glacigenic deposits, and discusses some of the problems of terminology and classification. It concludes with a brief glossary highlighting the nomenclatural problems invariably encountered in such specialist topics.
83
There follow 212 regional papers ordered by continent and time, each following a standard format, and dealing with tillite or tillite-like rocks of a specific age and region. The text concludes with a series of summaries o r d e r e d by time and continent, with maps and time-charts of the worldwide distribution of diamictites of different ages. A most valuable inclusion is a standardised summary of the radiometric data, and there is a surprisingly b r i e f s u m m a r y of the p r i n c i p a l palaeomagnetic data. The daunting task of compiling a comprehensive index has been simplified by referring only to the paper or papers in which the various rock unit and locality names appear, leaving the reader with the usually not too o n e r o u s task of searching a few pages for the specific items of interest. It was the project intention to provide descriptive information for a data base. Contributors were instructed to separate their own interpretations from their objective descriptions, and the concluding summaries deliberately rely on contributor's interpretations alone, without introducing those of the editors. The editors have done their job well, with the result that this milestone in the study of the earth's glacial record cries out for comprehensive interpretation by persons able to synthesise a unity out of a thousand pages of sometimes contradictory text. The editors and publishers are to be congratulated for the successful completion to such high standard of this mamnwth undertaking. The work will be a lasting, invaluable reference to specialists with interests in this field, not just as a data base of descriptive information, but as an introduction to some of those most o b s c u r e references so often associated with regional geologies. M.J. McSaveney, Christchurch
A. Hallam, 1981. Facies Interpretation and the Stratigraphic Record. W.H. Freeman and Co., Oxford, xii + 219 pp., £st9.10.95 (hardcover). This refreshingly modern book, both with respect to style as well as to contents, should find a wide audience ranging from students to professional palaeontologists, but also to the more general geologists who want to up-
date their concepts of historical geology. The title is modest, because the author also discusses the influence and origin of major geological and meteorological processes. Consequently, in a b o o k of this size many subjects are treated in a concise way, occasionally almost reaching an annotated reference style. On the other hand, in this fashion the writer has managed to create a readable b o o k in which one does not lose track in a labyrinth of detail. The book is written in a critical style, with criticism mellowed by humour and common sense. He typically quotes the Vogt-Holden effect: 'New data, regardless of reliable source or high quality, have scarcely ever ruled out any past theory, but have fuelled the promulgation of newer and even more outlandish proposals.' In nearly all chapters of the b o o k it becomes clear that integration and cooperation of the various scientific disciplines involved, are the keys to the further developments in stratigraphy which Hallam calls 'the c o r e discipline of geology'. For example, he describes a meteorological model based on an astronomical theory, and made plausible by a statistical study of coral and bivalve growth. The writer himself contributed much comment on the various theories and cases of conflicting evidence, and he often suggests which further investigations might be carried out. Naturally his own specialities such as Jurassic stratigraphy, carbonate sedimentology and shallow epicontinental seas are given a somewhat enhanced attention. The author d o e s not follow the recent trend of disaster theories, and other rather extreme views. He concentrates on the more reliable large scale variations in sea-level and temperature. It is remarkable how much of the evidence dates from post 1976. The b o o k consists of an introduction which really includes the first three chapters on principles of facies analysis and examples of modern and comparable ancient sediments, followed by chapters on seven major topics: sedimentation and tectonics; ancient epicontinental seas; eustatic changes of sealevel; Phanerozoic climates; Mesozoic and C e n o z o i c oceans; Precambrian environments; Facies and Phanerozoic fossil record. The book is well edited and printed, and it is illustrated with 116 clear maps, diagrams and graphs.