Prospecting and exploration of mineral deposits

200 lady with the prospect of mineral resources in the offing. None of the papers discussed mineral resources, but several questions in the ensuing discussions brought up the subject. With regard to editorial aspects of the book, an index map of Antarctica would have been helpful for general geographic orientation -- Adie's paper, particularly, needed a geologic map. Apparently his paper, and others, had vital figures shown during presentation at the meeting, as evidenced by references to them in the discussion, but were not included in the book. On the other hand, glossy black-and-white photos are a welcome inclusion in the book, pointing out details in Swithinbank's article and others. A few typos and mistakes in figures were noted, but not of a serious nature. On page 56, Figure 1 caption should read McMurdo Sound, not South. Baker et al. misspell Hallett twice, in Figure 1 and in the text on page 40 (line 3). They also misspelled Elliot in reference 11 on page 142. On page 186, Figure 1, V (for Vostok) is not identified in the caption. On pages 197 and 205, Mansergh is misspelled and on page 198 there are two mistakes in typesetting (lines 3 and 2 6 - 2 7 ) . Something was missed in reference format, also. Three papers cited references without titles of articles, unlike references from all other papers, and a commonly cited reference, Antarctic Geology and Geophysics, published by Universitetsforlaget in Oslo in 1972, was occasionally cited as 1971 and, in Sutton's references (page 205), the publisher is cited as Oslo University Press. In summary, the British are to be commended f o r their fine work in dealing with one of the harshest environments of Antarctica in terms of changeable weather, inhospitable coastlines, sea ice conditions, and the like. It was also enlightening to read of their ingenuity in using wind generator storage battery systems in the field. This book is a valuable addition to a polar library, as well as to biologists, geologists, and upper atmospheric physicists who have related research interests. John Splettstoesser, St. Paul, Minn.

EXPLORATION OF MINERAL DEPOSITS M. Ku~vart and M. B6hmer, 1978. Prospecting and Exploration of Mineral Deposits. Academia, Prague, and Elsevier, Amsterdam, 431 pp., U.S. $ 55.00. The current problems of ensuring necessary amounts of raw materials have a noticeable effect on those industrial branches where raw materials are processed as well as on the general economy and policy of individual countries. The mineral reserves raise the standard of living, affect the total technical progress and civilization of the society and the environment, thereby exerting a significant impact upon the complex development of the progress of mankind. The preparation of high-level specialists qualified to meet the rising demands in the field of economic geology necessitates reevaluation of the hitherto used methods of prospecting and exploration of mineral deposits, based on modern geotectonic theories and relationships between the formation of the earth's crust and the formation of the industrial deposits of ores and other materials. Simultaneously, modern knowledge distributed throughout an enormous number of papers, reviews and other publications which appeared in different languages should be summarized. These requirements are successfully met in the modern conception of the book by M. Ku~vart and M. B~hmer Prospecting and Exploration of

Mineral Deposits. Teachers at Charles University, Prague and at Comenius University, Bratislava (Czechoslovakia), the authors wrote this most topical and necessary book on the basis of their 25 years of experience gained in field work carried out in both industrial and developing countries. The book is intended primarily for students of mineral deposits but will also provide valuable guidelines to field geologists and modern prospectors. It is an excellent manual for post-graduate students, yet students in related fields and mining specialists in fuels, ores and industrial minerals as well as workers in hydrogeological and engineering-geological exploration, foreign experts and students acquainted with En-

201 glish terminology will find it most interesting as a reference book. Special chapters were elaborated in close cooperation with foremost Czechoslovak experts: geophysical methods were reviewed by Prof. J. Gruntor,~d, prospecting and exploration of oil and earth gas were covered by Prof. V. Homola in cooperation with S. Mare~, K. MLiller and J. Skopec and the chapters on hydrogeological and engineering--geological exploration were prepared by J. Mucha. Of high standard and comprehensively arranged, the book contains an enormous number of examples from various regions of the world and it consists of two parts: I. Prospecting for deposits of raw materials, I1. Exploration of deposits of raw materials. A special chapter on prospecting and exploration of deposits is preceded by an introductory part summarizing the economic outlook and raw-material policy with regard to expected population explosion and development of technique. A comprehensive review of key words on prospecting is followed by the classification schemes applied to deposits and the tabulated contents of useful components and harmful substances, as well as examples of deposits in the world as a whole. The prospecting is based on natural geological factors. Individual criteria used in prospecting have been described in detail: stratigraphic, lithological, structural, magmatogene, metamorphogene, geochemical, geomorphological, palaeogeographical, paleoclimatical and historical. In the chapter on prospecting, methods and indices characteristic of surface prospecting and the search for buried deposits based on detailed geological mapping and documentation and the economic evaluation of the results obtained are also given. The second part of the book deals with the actual exploration of mineral raw materials, the exploration systems and distribution principles and the use of exploration workings. Of special value are the chapters treating exploration methods, sampling, methods of processing of geological documentation and of the hydrogeological and engineering-geological exploration of mineral deposits and mining exploration. A separate chapter is devoted to the problem of prospecting and exploration

of alluvial deposits according to their genetic types. Economic evaluation of exploration of mineral deposits is dealt with in the concluding chapter. The book provides a detailed bibliography and a subject index for easier orientation. Rich in content, readable, with a handsome lay-out, the book is dedicated to Professor Jarom(r Koutek, an outstanding teacher and representative of the Czech school of Economic Geology, on the occasion of this 75th birthday. The book is highly recommended as a useful reference for all interested in the prospecting and exploration of mineral deposits. J. Pt~k, Prague

ESSENTIALS OF PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY R.E. Gabler, R.J. Sager, S. Brazier, and J. Pourciau, 1977. Essentials of Physical Geography. Holt-Saunders, Eastbourne, 511 pp. An earlier book by the same authors,

Introduction to Physical Geography, contains virtually the same material included in the present book but with expanded discussions: the first book has about BOO pages, the present one about 500. I see neither the rationale nor the justification for the present book; it is apparent that the earlier text material (with very little rewrite or significant modification), figures, and photographs were simply abstracted and republished. About the only new presentations included in the book are a series of one- and two-page essays scattered among the various chapters. Labelled 'Viewpoints' and written in a news magazine format, these essays clearly are intended to hold or attract the fleeting interest of a bored of hyperactive reader on such catchy subjects as "The Role of Climate in Our Lives', 'Have We Found Atlantis?', and 'How Do We Feel?' (the last referring to wind-chill factors, humidity, etc.). The subject organization of the book is: Chapter 1, The Earth and its Movements; Chapter 2, Solar Energy and Temperature; Chapter 3, Atmospheric Pressure and Winds; Chapter 4, Moisture, Condensation, and Pre-