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Environmental isotopes in the hydrosphere
Book Reviews
1541
erroneously concluded that the regression is not significant because all coefficients could be zero. In reality, a multiple regression can be significant even if all its coefficients have large variances because the covariances should also be considered. This often happens when there are approximate linear relationships between the variables. Overall, the book is well written, and highly recom-
mended reading for petrologists. Because of its high price, it will probably not become a best-seller.
Environmental Isotopes in the Hydrosphere, by V. 1. Ferronsky and V. A. Polyakov (translated by S. V. Ferronsky), Wiley-lnterscience, 1982, 466 p., f3 1.00.
defect is that only a few pages are given to the other cosmogenic nuclides and that which is included is largely outof-date. Chapter four discusses the U-series nuclides and focuses on the geochemical behavior of the actinide elements and their fractionation in the aqueous environment. Major drawbacks are the retention of old uranium-series nomenclature (e.g., MsTh II for 228A~or AcX for 223Ra), and the unnecessary and distracting diversions into the dating of Quatemary sediments and fission-track geothermometry, at the expense of a more complete discussion of the use of the U-series nuclides as hydrologic tracers. The final chapter on the origin of the hydrosphere is an interesting, but unnecessary, conclusion to the book. The chapter is a “hodge-podge” of information and thoughts about nucleosynthesis, a discussion of the C and S isotopic composition of different extraterrestrial and terrestrial reservoirs, and a detailed description of the application of Jacobi’s virial equation to the formation of celestial bodies. All ofthese matters, which would be appropriate to a general isotope geochemistry or planetary text, are totally inappropriate to a book whose subject is the isotope chemistry of the hydrosphere. In summary, the book is a readable and informative reference volume. It is written in a clear and reasonably concise manner, is well illustrated, and is thoroughly referenced. Although some parts are not as up-to-date as one would generally expect of such a review volume, one of the more valuable contributions of the book is to present the western reader with a wealth of information about isotopic research in the Soviet Union over the past thirty or so years which is unavailable from any other source. For this reason alone the book should be of considerable value to academics, researchers, and students with an interest in the application of isotopic techniques to solving problems in the environmental sciences.
THIS BOOKis a revised and supplemented edition bearing the same title as a previous volume which appeared in Russian in 1975. The stated purpose of the book is to present a discussion of the distribution and geochemistry of the stable isotopes of H and 0, the cosmogenic isotopes of H and C, and the U-series nuclides in atmospheric, surface, and ground waters as well as the oceans. Coverage is more comprehensive and current in some areas than in others, but there are important omissions: e.g., little attention is given to snow and ice which play an important role in the hydrologic cycle of the stable isotopes; there is only minor description of such cosmogenic nuclides as “%e, “Na, and 39Ar as artificial nuclear tracers; solute isotopes such as 13C in dissolved carbonate, 34Sin dissolved sulfate, and “N are not discussed. Despite these deficiencies, the authors have succeeded in producing a worthwhile reference volume of broad scope and interest. Chapter one discusses the isotopic geochemistry of natural waters. A brief description of the physical properties of water and natural solutions and thorough review of the theory and mechanisms of isotope fractionation is followed by a discussion of the isotopic composition of the oceans and atmospheric precipitation. The chapter concludes with a detailed discussion of the isotopic mass balance within surface reservoirs of the hydrosphere, which stresses quantitative modelling, and a brief review of mechanisms of isotopic fractionation in ground waters. Chapter two presents a comprehensive review of the H and 0 isotope geochemistry of natural waters. Stress is placed upon the dynamics of stable isotopes as natural tracers. Chapter three reviews cosmogenic radioactive isotopes as natural tracers in the hydrosphere. Tritium and radiocarbon in atmospheric precipitation, terrestrial surface waters, ground waters, and the oceans are thoroughly described and their use as nuclear tracers discussed in detail. The major
Atlas of Igneous
Rocks and Their Textures, W. S. MacKenzie, C. H. Donaldson and C. Guilford, Halsted Press, 1982, 148 pp., U.S. $27.95. BOOK is intended as a laboratory handbook for students of igneous petrology, one that will enable them to verify their own observations. In a way, it is a companion piece to the earlier Atlas of Rock-Forming Minerals in Thin Section* by MacKenzie and Guilford (Wiley, 1980), and it assumes that students are already familiar with the optical properties of the common rock-forming minerals. The current volume is divided into two parts: Part 1 describes the textures of igneous rocks, and Part II contains illustrations of varieties of igneous rocks. Part I begins with a brief definition of the term “textures,”
THIS
* Reviewed by R. T. Dodd, in April 1982 issue of Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 46, 704.
Geological Survey of Canada Ottawa, Ontario, KlA OE8 CANADA
Department of Geological Sciences Southern Methodist University Dallas, Texas 75275 U.S.A.
F. P. Agterberg
Russell S. Harmon
and includes examples of rocks showing different crystallinity, granularity, crystal shapes and mutual relations of crystals. Part II contains illustrations of both the more common (ultrabasic, basic, intermediate to acid) and the more rare (especially alkali-rich) types of igneous rocks. In naming and defining the rocks the authors have relied on several classic textbooks as well as their own experience. Unavoidably, all users will have disagreements with some of the definitions. The examples are particularly well-chosen. The authors have selected them because they are typical, rather than for their perfection. They are generally shown in both plane and cross-polarized light, and some at different magnifications to show detail. Both the photography and color-reproduction are excellent. I have some minor reservations about the book. One is the inclusion of so many unusual rock types (e.g., meymechite, blairmorite, malignite). These rocks are so rarely encountered that the space might have been better utilized by giving more examples of common rock types (e.g.. hornblende gabbro, ferrogabbro). On the other hand, because
1541
erroneously concluded that the regression is not significant because all coefficients could be zero. In reality, a multiple regression can be significant even if all its coefficients have large variances because the covariances should also be considered. This often happens when there are approximate linear relationships between the variables. Overall, the book is well written, and highly recom-
mended reading for petrologists. Because of its high price, it will probably not become a best-seller.
Environmental Isotopes in the Hydrosphere, by V. 1. Ferronsky and V. A. Polyakov (translated by S. V. Ferronsky), Wiley-lnterscience, 1982, 466 p., f3 1.00.
defect is that only a few pages are given to the other cosmogenic nuclides and that which is included is largely outof-date. Chapter four discusses the U-series nuclides and focuses on the geochemical behavior of the actinide elements and their fractionation in the aqueous environment. Major drawbacks are the retention of old uranium-series nomenclature (e.g., MsTh II for 228A~or AcX for 223Ra), and the unnecessary and distracting diversions into the dating of Quatemary sediments and fission-track geothermometry, at the expense of a more complete discussion of the use of the U-series nuclides as hydrologic tracers. The final chapter on the origin of the hydrosphere is an interesting, but unnecessary, conclusion to the book. The chapter is a “hodge-podge” of information and thoughts about nucleosynthesis, a discussion of the C and S isotopic composition of different extraterrestrial and terrestrial reservoirs, and a detailed description of the application of Jacobi’s virial equation to the formation of celestial bodies. All ofthese matters, which would be appropriate to a general isotope geochemistry or planetary text, are totally inappropriate to a book whose subject is the isotope chemistry of the hydrosphere. In summary, the book is a readable and informative reference volume. It is written in a clear and reasonably concise manner, is well illustrated, and is thoroughly referenced. Although some parts are not as up-to-date as one would generally expect of such a review volume, one of the more valuable contributions of the book is to present the western reader with a wealth of information about isotopic research in the Soviet Union over the past thirty or so years which is unavailable from any other source. For this reason alone the book should be of considerable value to academics, researchers, and students with an interest in the application of isotopic techniques to solving problems in the environmental sciences.
THIS BOOKis a revised and supplemented edition bearing the same title as a previous volume which appeared in Russian in 1975. The stated purpose of the book is to present a discussion of the distribution and geochemistry of the stable isotopes of H and 0, the cosmogenic isotopes of H and C, and the U-series nuclides in atmospheric, surface, and ground waters as well as the oceans. Coverage is more comprehensive and current in some areas than in others, but there are important omissions: e.g., little attention is given to snow and ice which play an important role in the hydrologic cycle of the stable isotopes; there is only minor description of such cosmogenic nuclides as “%e, “Na, and 39Ar as artificial nuclear tracers; solute isotopes such as 13C in dissolved carbonate, 34Sin dissolved sulfate, and “N are not discussed. Despite these deficiencies, the authors have succeeded in producing a worthwhile reference volume of broad scope and interest. Chapter one discusses the isotopic geochemistry of natural waters. A brief description of the physical properties of water and natural solutions and thorough review of the theory and mechanisms of isotope fractionation is followed by a discussion of the isotopic composition of the oceans and atmospheric precipitation. The chapter concludes with a detailed discussion of the isotopic mass balance within surface reservoirs of the hydrosphere, which stresses quantitative modelling, and a brief review of mechanisms of isotopic fractionation in ground waters. Chapter two presents a comprehensive review of the H and 0 isotope geochemistry of natural waters. Stress is placed upon the dynamics of stable isotopes as natural tracers. Chapter three reviews cosmogenic radioactive isotopes as natural tracers in the hydrosphere. Tritium and radiocarbon in atmospheric precipitation, terrestrial surface waters, ground waters, and the oceans are thoroughly described and their use as nuclear tracers discussed in detail. The major
Atlas of Igneous
Rocks and Their Textures, W. S. MacKenzie, C. H. Donaldson and C. Guilford, Halsted Press, 1982, 148 pp., U.S. $27.95. BOOK is intended as a laboratory handbook for students of igneous petrology, one that will enable them to verify their own observations. In a way, it is a companion piece to the earlier Atlas of Rock-Forming Minerals in Thin Section* by MacKenzie and Guilford (Wiley, 1980), and it assumes that students are already familiar with the optical properties of the common rock-forming minerals. The current volume is divided into two parts: Part 1 describes the textures of igneous rocks, and Part II contains illustrations of varieties of igneous rocks. Part I begins with a brief definition of the term “textures,”
THIS
* Reviewed by R. T. Dodd, in April 1982 issue of Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 46, 704.
Geological Survey of Canada Ottawa, Ontario, KlA OE8 CANADA
Department of Geological Sciences Southern Methodist University Dallas, Texas 75275 U.S.A.
F. P. Agterberg
Russell S. Harmon
and includes examples of rocks showing different crystallinity, granularity, crystal shapes and mutual relations of crystals. Part II contains illustrations of both the more common (ultrabasic, basic, intermediate to acid) and the more rare (especially alkali-rich) types of igneous rocks. In naming and defining the rocks the authors have relied on several classic textbooks as well as their own experience. Unavoidably, all users will have disagreements with some of the definitions. The examples are particularly well-chosen. The authors have selected them because they are typical, rather than for their perfection. They are generally shown in both plane and cross-polarized light, and some at different magnifications to show detail. Both the photography and color-reproduction are excellent. I have some minor reservations about the book. One is the inclusion of so many unusual rock types (e.g., meymechite, blairmorite, malignite). These rocks are so rarely encountered that the space might have been better utilized by giving more examples of common rock types (e.g.. hornblende gabbro, ferrogabbro). On the other hand, because