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Sedimentographica: A photographic atlas of sedimentary structures
ELSEVIER
Marine Geology 136 (1997) 317-321
Book Review Sedimentographica: A Photographic Atlas of Sedimentary Structures, by Franc0 Ricci Lucchi,
Columbia University Press, Chichester, 1995. $47.00. ISBN Hardcover, 255 pp. Price O-231-10018-3 Studies over the past 50 years have revolutionized the way in which we observe, record and interpret sedimentary structures. Although a few earlier workers recognized the potential of sedimentary structures for studies of process and depositional environment (e.g. Sorby, 185 1, 1908; Bailey, 1936), for most geologists (and others) sedimentary structures were features noted only in passing (if prominent) or as curiosities. Useful, to be sure, in complexly folded terrains where younging directions of sedimentary sequences have to be established outcrop by outcrop (Shrock, 1948), but otherwise largely neglected. Since then we have passed through stages of comprehensive compilation and documentation of sedimentary structures (Dmitrieva et al., 1962, 1969; Pettijohn and Potter, 1964); analysis and classification (Conybeare and Crook, 1968); in-depth studies of the origin of sedimentary structures (Allen, 1982), and the development of textbooks designed to present and interpret sedimentary structures to students and research workers (Ricci Lucchi, 1970; Collinson and Thompson, 1982). A Photographic Atlas of Sedimentographica: Sedimentary Structures, which is based on the
second Italian Edition of 1992, is now made available for the first time in English. It is the hrst technical treatment of sedimentary structures to go beyond the concerns that have dominated the past 50 years of work. Unlike the first edition
which, according to its author writing in the Preface, ‘was more technical than the present one and required some previous knowledge of sedimentology and geology’, this new work ‘has been written in a more accessible style and is addressed to students approaching sedimentology and sedimentary geology for the mst time. It should also pique the interests of amateur scientists and people who are curious about natural objects.’ In these objectives the book succeeds very well indeed. The format of the book is standard US letter (28 x 21.5 cm). It is hard-bound. The core of the book comprises 210 Plates, 32 of which are in color. Many of the plates are composites consisting of two or more photographs. Several incorporate explanatory line diagrams. Throughout, the quality of the photography and graphics is outstanding, with almost no exceptions. The plates mostly illustrate features at the outcrop or large hand specimen (mesoscopic) scale, but include several panoramas (both monochrome and in color) of features that require depiction on a macroscopic scale in order to be appreciated. Echo-sounder and sparker profiles are used to illustrate the geometric relationships of certain submarine sediment bodies. The examples chosen are outstanding, but they may be somewhat misleading to those who are unfamiliar with marine acoustic profiles. Although the vertical dimensions of key features are mentioned in the text, no horizontal scales are provided. Consequently, the true geometry of the features cannot readily be appreciated. Each plate is accompanied by explanatory text, typically less than half a page in length, that highlights key features and explains their origin. The 32 color plates have only brief explanatory captions. The monochrome plates are grouped into 8 chapters as follows:
318
Rook Review/Marble Geo1og.v136 ( 1997) 317-321
1. Geometry of bedding and sedimentary bodies (Plates l-22). 2. Tractive structures produced by currents and waves (Plates 23-53). 3. Structures produced by traction-plus-fallout (Plates 54-61). 4. Textural indicators of transport and deposition (Plates 62-69). 5. Erosional structures (Plates 70- 103 ). 6. Deformation stuctures (Plates 1044 139). 7. Biogenic structures (Plates 140- 161) . 8. Chemical and diagenetic structures (Plates 162-178). These chapters are preceded by a two-part Introduction which includes 13 figures (9 photographs and 4 line drawings), as well as 3 tables. The first part (pp. l-5) provides guidance on ‘How to Use the Atlas’. The second part (pp. 5-17) is entitled ‘Sedimentary Structures: Preliminary Remarks’. Teachers and students will find this part particulary valuable as a succinct general overview of the field. The accompanying short Iist of references to key books, monographs and papers published between 1948 and 1987 can be supplemented by a list of references published in the Italian journal Giornale di Geologia, vol. 52, 1991, which available from the author at: is also < [email protected] > or Dipartimento di Scienze Geologiche, Via Zamboni 67, 40127 Bologna, Italy. The work is completed by a Preface, a Glossary of Terms (pp. 239-250) and an extensive Index (4: pages, each of four columns). Columbia University Press is to be congratulated for making this work available in an English language edition. While it is not designed with research workers and advanced students in mind, they will benefit from the material it contains. University teachers, beginning students of sedimentary geology, and those interested in nature in general, will find the work invaluable. A copy should be found in every university library, and in the personal collection of every teacher of sedimentary geology. It is also very suitable for the science and natural history sections of libraries open to the general public. The book is certainly worth the price! Verifiable scientific truths are increasingly being challenged, on the one hand, by sociologists of
science who see them purely as social constructs (Mermin, 1996); and, on the other hand, by fundamentalists from diverse religious traditions, who see them as repugnant to a ‘truth’ based on infalible scriptures. Consequently there is a very great need for books such as this, which explain how scientific observations are made and interpreted. Paleontologists have long been adept at presenting summaries of their work to the general public as attractive, well-illustrated books which include explanatory texts designed for general readers. What has been lacking are comparable works that give the general reader insights into ways in which geoscientists reconstruct ancient environments and Earth history, and the evidence that they employ in the process. Sedimentographica contributes appreciably towards filling this gap.
References Allen, J.R.L., 1982. Sedimentary Structures: Their Character and Physical Basis. Elsevier, Amsterdam (2 ~01s). Baily, E.B., 1936. New light on sedimentation and tectonics. Geol. Mag., 67: 77-92. Collinson, J.D. and Thompson, D.B., 1982. Sedimentary Structures. Allen & Unwin, London. Conybeare, C.E.B. and Crook, K.A.W., 1968. Manual of Sedimentary Structures. Aust. Dep. Nat. Dev. Bur. Mines Res. Geol. Geophys. Bull., 102. Dmitrieva, E.V., Ershova, G.I. and Orechnikova, EL, 1962. Atlas of Structures and Textures of Sedimentary Rocks. I. Clastic and Argillaceous Rocks. Gosgeoltekhizdat, Moscow 578 pp. (In Russian.) Dmitrieva, E.V., Ershova, G.I., Librovich, V.E., Nekrasova, 0.1. and Orechnikova, E.I., 1969. Atlas of Structures and Textures of Sedimentary Rocks. 2. Carbonate Rocks. Nedra, Moscow, 707 pp. (In Russian.) Mermin, N.D., 1996. What’s wrong with this sustaining myth? Physics Today, 49(3): 11-13. Pettijohn, F.J. and Potter, P.E., 1964. Atlas and Glossary of Sedimentary Structures. Springer, New York. Ricci Lucchi, F., 1970. Sedimentografia: Atlante fotografico delle strutture primarie dei sedimenti. Zanichelli, Bologna; 1st ed. Shrock, R.R., 1948. Sequence in Layered Rocks. McGrawHill, New York. Sorby, H.C., 1851. On the oscillation of the currents drifting the sandstone beds of the south-east of Northumberland,
Book Review/Marine Geology 136 (1997) 317-321 and on their general direction in the coal field in the neighbourhood of Edinburgh. Proc. West Yorksh. Geol. Sot., 3, 232. Sorby, H.C., 1908. On the application of quantitative methods to the study of the structure and history of rocks. Q. J. Geol. Sot. London, 64: 171-233. K.A.W. CROOK (Honolulu, HI)
The Sea Floor: An Introduction to Marine Geology,
3rd edition by E. Seibold and W.H. Berger. 356 pp., ISBN 1996. Berlin, Springer, 3-540-60191-o. This is the 3rd edition of a book initially published in 1982 by E. Seibold and W.H. Berger. The construction of the book is still the same, but its content has been updated and has been increased by 68 pages. It takes into consideration all the aspects of marine geology. The authors describe the ocean and its sedimentation, but mostly illustrate the complexity of marine sediments, the connection between their composition and Earth surface processes (climate and circulation, marine life, . . . ) and the sensitivity of the sediment to changes of these processes. The authors also explain how marine sediments can be used, for reconstitution of Earth history, for understanding of Earth surface processes and for human activities. This book provides general information but also some case studies that illustrate scientific reasoning in marine geology, and shows the evolution of ideas during the past decades. The introduction is a brief chronological review of the major steps in the advancement of marine geology and the principal workers in the field with special emphasis on the two major advances that allowed the development of marine geology during the past 30 years, (plate tectonics and deep-sea drilling). The first part (chapters 1 and 2) is a description of the modern ocean. Geophysical studies are used for explaining crustal processes and their consequences for the morphology of modern basins and margins. General information on the diierent
319
types of margins, the main features of their sedimentation and major sedimentary processes is provided. The second part of the book (chapters 3-6) deals with marine sediments, and their relation to the oceanic environment. Description of the major types of sediment (including composition, origin of components, classification, conditions of formation and of equilibrium . . . ) is followed by information on the influence of the oceanic environment (waves, currents . . . ) and of its variation (sea-level change, productivity, bioturbation, . . . ) on the nature and composition of the sediment. The third part (chapters 7-9) mostly concerns the connection between global climate and marine deposits, and how the sediment can be used to reconstruct oceanic environments and climates of the past. Examples of climate indicators (associations of microfaunas, isotope composition of biogenie carbonates, . . . ) are shown, as well as the way to extract the climatic information (transfer and paleotemperature methods). The role of the global environment on the spatial and temporal variability of marine deposits, the interest of stratigraphy and correlation are outlined. This is followed by a review of major contributions of marine sediment studies to our understanding of climatic processes throughout earth history (climatic cycles, Cenozoic cooling, water masses fluctuations, . . .). The fourth and last part of the book (chapter 10) concerns the interaction between man and the ocean floor: how human activities can use the resources of the sea-floor, and the risk of pollution. An appendix provides basic, miscellaneous information on units, Earth surface characteristics, geologic time, major minerals and rocks, geochronology, and systematics of marine organisms. The Sea Floor is not an exhaustive review of the different aspects of marine geology, it rather shows its interest. The authors highlight the variability and sensitivity of marine deposits with respect to global environmental changes, the importance of marine sediment studies in understanding Earth processes and their variation through time, and stimulate the curiosity of the reader. C. ROBERT (Marseille)
Marine Geology 136 (1997) 317-321
Book Review Sedimentographica: A Photographic Atlas of Sedimentary Structures, by Franc0 Ricci Lucchi,
Columbia University Press, Chichester, 1995. $47.00. ISBN Hardcover, 255 pp. Price O-231-10018-3 Studies over the past 50 years have revolutionized the way in which we observe, record and interpret sedimentary structures. Although a few earlier workers recognized the potential of sedimentary structures for studies of process and depositional environment (e.g. Sorby, 185 1, 1908; Bailey, 1936), for most geologists (and others) sedimentary structures were features noted only in passing (if prominent) or as curiosities. Useful, to be sure, in complexly folded terrains where younging directions of sedimentary sequences have to be established outcrop by outcrop (Shrock, 1948), but otherwise largely neglected. Since then we have passed through stages of comprehensive compilation and documentation of sedimentary structures (Dmitrieva et al., 1962, 1969; Pettijohn and Potter, 1964); analysis and classification (Conybeare and Crook, 1968); in-depth studies of the origin of sedimentary structures (Allen, 1982), and the development of textbooks designed to present and interpret sedimentary structures to students and research workers (Ricci Lucchi, 1970; Collinson and Thompson, 1982). A Photographic Atlas of Sedimentographica: Sedimentary Structures, which is based on the
second Italian Edition of 1992, is now made available for the first time in English. It is the hrst technical treatment of sedimentary structures to go beyond the concerns that have dominated the past 50 years of work. Unlike the first edition
which, according to its author writing in the Preface, ‘was more technical than the present one and required some previous knowledge of sedimentology and geology’, this new work ‘has been written in a more accessible style and is addressed to students approaching sedimentology and sedimentary geology for the mst time. It should also pique the interests of amateur scientists and people who are curious about natural objects.’ In these objectives the book succeeds very well indeed. The format of the book is standard US letter (28 x 21.5 cm). It is hard-bound. The core of the book comprises 210 Plates, 32 of which are in color. Many of the plates are composites consisting of two or more photographs. Several incorporate explanatory line diagrams. Throughout, the quality of the photography and graphics is outstanding, with almost no exceptions. The plates mostly illustrate features at the outcrop or large hand specimen (mesoscopic) scale, but include several panoramas (both monochrome and in color) of features that require depiction on a macroscopic scale in order to be appreciated. Echo-sounder and sparker profiles are used to illustrate the geometric relationships of certain submarine sediment bodies. The examples chosen are outstanding, but they may be somewhat misleading to those who are unfamiliar with marine acoustic profiles. Although the vertical dimensions of key features are mentioned in the text, no horizontal scales are provided. Consequently, the true geometry of the features cannot readily be appreciated. Each plate is accompanied by explanatory text, typically less than half a page in length, that highlights key features and explains their origin. The 32 color plates have only brief explanatory captions. The monochrome plates are grouped into 8 chapters as follows:
318
Rook Review/Marble Geo1og.v136 ( 1997) 317-321
1. Geometry of bedding and sedimentary bodies (Plates l-22). 2. Tractive structures produced by currents and waves (Plates 23-53). 3. Structures produced by traction-plus-fallout (Plates 54-61). 4. Textural indicators of transport and deposition (Plates 62-69). 5. Erosional structures (Plates 70- 103 ). 6. Deformation stuctures (Plates 1044 139). 7. Biogenic structures (Plates 140- 161) . 8. Chemical and diagenetic structures (Plates 162-178). These chapters are preceded by a two-part Introduction which includes 13 figures (9 photographs and 4 line drawings), as well as 3 tables. The first part (pp. l-5) provides guidance on ‘How to Use the Atlas’. The second part (pp. 5-17) is entitled ‘Sedimentary Structures: Preliminary Remarks’. Teachers and students will find this part particulary valuable as a succinct general overview of the field. The accompanying short Iist of references to key books, monographs and papers published between 1948 and 1987 can be supplemented by a list of references published in the Italian journal Giornale di Geologia, vol. 52, 1991, which available from the author at: is also < [email protected] > or Dipartimento di Scienze Geologiche, Via Zamboni 67, 40127 Bologna, Italy. The work is completed by a Preface, a Glossary of Terms (pp. 239-250) and an extensive Index (4: pages, each of four columns). Columbia University Press is to be congratulated for making this work available in an English language edition. While it is not designed with research workers and advanced students in mind, they will benefit from the material it contains. University teachers, beginning students of sedimentary geology, and those interested in nature in general, will find the work invaluable. A copy should be found in every university library, and in the personal collection of every teacher of sedimentary geology. It is also very suitable for the science and natural history sections of libraries open to the general public. The book is certainly worth the price! Verifiable scientific truths are increasingly being challenged, on the one hand, by sociologists of
science who see them purely as social constructs (Mermin, 1996); and, on the other hand, by fundamentalists from diverse religious traditions, who see them as repugnant to a ‘truth’ based on infalible scriptures. Consequently there is a very great need for books such as this, which explain how scientific observations are made and interpreted. Paleontologists have long been adept at presenting summaries of their work to the general public as attractive, well-illustrated books which include explanatory texts designed for general readers. What has been lacking are comparable works that give the general reader insights into ways in which geoscientists reconstruct ancient environments and Earth history, and the evidence that they employ in the process. Sedimentographica contributes appreciably towards filling this gap.
References Allen, J.R.L., 1982. Sedimentary Structures: Their Character and Physical Basis. Elsevier, Amsterdam (2 ~01s). Baily, E.B., 1936. New light on sedimentation and tectonics. Geol. Mag., 67: 77-92. Collinson, J.D. and Thompson, D.B., 1982. Sedimentary Structures. Allen & Unwin, London. Conybeare, C.E.B. and Crook, K.A.W., 1968. Manual of Sedimentary Structures. Aust. Dep. Nat. Dev. Bur. Mines Res. Geol. Geophys. Bull., 102. Dmitrieva, E.V., Ershova, G.I. and Orechnikova, EL, 1962. Atlas of Structures and Textures of Sedimentary Rocks. I. Clastic and Argillaceous Rocks. Gosgeoltekhizdat, Moscow 578 pp. (In Russian.) Dmitrieva, E.V., Ershova, G.I., Librovich, V.E., Nekrasova, 0.1. and Orechnikova, E.I., 1969. Atlas of Structures and Textures of Sedimentary Rocks. 2. Carbonate Rocks. Nedra, Moscow, 707 pp. (In Russian.) Mermin, N.D., 1996. What’s wrong with this sustaining myth? Physics Today, 49(3): 11-13. Pettijohn, F.J. and Potter, P.E., 1964. Atlas and Glossary of Sedimentary Structures. Springer, New York. Ricci Lucchi, F., 1970. Sedimentografia: Atlante fotografico delle strutture primarie dei sedimenti. Zanichelli, Bologna; 1st ed. Shrock, R.R., 1948. Sequence in Layered Rocks. McGrawHill, New York. Sorby, H.C., 1851. On the oscillation of the currents drifting the sandstone beds of the south-east of Northumberland,
Book Review/Marine Geology 136 (1997) 317-321 and on their general direction in the coal field in the neighbourhood of Edinburgh. Proc. West Yorksh. Geol. Sot., 3, 232. Sorby, H.C., 1908. On the application of quantitative methods to the study of the structure and history of rocks. Q. J. Geol. Sot. London, 64: 171-233. K.A.W. CROOK (Honolulu, HI)
The Sea Floor: An Introduction to Marine Geology,
3rd edition by E. Seibold and W.H. Berger. 356 pp., ISBN 1996. Berlin, Springer, 3-540-60191-o. This is the 3rd edition of a book initially published in 1982 by E. Seibold and W.H. Berger. The construction of the book is still the same, but its content has been updated and has been increased by 68 pages. It takes into consideration all the aspects of marine geology. The authors describe the ocean and its sedimentation, but mostly illustrate the complexity of marine sediments, the connection between their composition and Earth surface processes (climate and circulation, marine life, . . . ) and the sensitivity of the sediment to changes of these processes. The authors also explain how marine sediments can be used, for reconstitution of Earth history, for understanding of Earth surface processes and for human activities. This book provides general information but also some case studies that illustrate scientific reasoning in marine geology, and shows the evolution of ideas during the past decades. The introduction is a brief chronological review of the major steps in the advancement of marine geology and the principal workers in the field with special emphasis on the two major advances that allowed the development of marine geology during the past 30 years, (plate tectonics and deep-sea drilling). The first part (chapters 1 and 2) is a description of the modern ocean. Geophysical studies are used for explaining crustal processes and their consequences for the morphology of modern basins and margins. General information on the diierent
319
types of margins, the main features of their sedimentation and major sedimentary processes is provided. The second part of the book (chapters 3-6) deals with marine sediments, and their relation to the oceanic environment. Description of the major types of sediment (including composition, origin of components, classification, conditions of formation and of equilibrium . . . ) is followed by information on the influence of the oceanic environment (waves, currents . . . ) and of its variation (sea-level change, productivity, bioturbation, . . . ) on the nature and composition of the sediment. The third part (chapters 7-9) mostly concerns the connection between global climate and marine deposits, and how the sediment can be used to reconstruct oceanic environments and climates of the past. Examples of climate indicators (associations of microfaunas, isotope composition of biogenie carbonates, . . . ) are shown, as well as the way to extract the climatic information (transfer and paleotemperature methods). The role of the global environment on the spatial and temporal variability of marine deposits, the interest of stratigraphy and correlation are outlined. This is followed by a review of major contributions of marine sediment studies to our understanding of climatic processes throughout earth history (climatic cycles, Cenozoic cooling, water masses fluctuations, . . .). The fourth and last part of the book (chapter 10) concerns the interaction between man and the ocean floor: how human activities can use the resources of the sea-floor, and the risk of pollution. An appendix provides basic, miscellaneous information on units, Earth surface characteristics, geologic time, major minerals and rocks, geochronology, and systematics of marine organisms. The Sea Floor is not an exhaustive review of the different aspects of marine geology, it rather shows its interest. The authors highlight the variability and sensitivity of marine deposits with respect to global environmental changes, the importance of marine sediment studies in understanding Earth processes and their variation through time, and stimulate the curiosity of the reader. C. ROBERT (Marseille)