Preface. 1. An Introduction to Geology. The Science of Geology. Geologic Time. The Nature of Scientific Inquiry. A View of Earth. Earth as a System. The Rock Cycle: Part of the Earth System. The Face of Earth. Early Evolution of Earth. Earth's Internal Structure. Dynamic Earth. Box 1.1 Understanding Earth: Studying Earth from Space.
2. Matter and Minerals. Minerals: The Building Blocks of Rocks. The Composition of Minerals. The Structure of Minerals. Mineral Groups. Box 2.1 People and the Environment: Asbestos: What Are the Risks? Box 2.2 Understanding Earth: Gemstones.
3. Igneous Rocks. Magma: The Parent Material of Igneous Rock. Igneous Textures. Igneous Compositions. Naming Igneous Rocks. Origin of Magma. How Magmas Evolve. Box 3.1 Understanding Earth: Pegmatites. Box 3.2 Understanding Earth: Thin Sections and Rock Identification. Box 3.3 Understanding Earth: A Closer Look at Bowen's Reaction Series.
4. Volcanoes and Other Igneous Activity. The Nature of Volcanic Eruptions. Materials Extruded During an Eruption. Volcanic Structures and Eruptive Styles. Living in the Shadow of a Composite Cone. Other Volcanic Landforms. Intrusive Igneous Activity. Plate Tectonics and Igneous Activity. Can Volcanoes Change Earth's Climate? Box 4.1 Understanding Earth: Anatomy of an Eruption. Box 4.2 People and the Environment: Volcanic Crisis on Montserrat. Box 4.3 Earth as a System: A Possible Link Between Volcanism and Climate Change in the Geologic Past.
5. Weathering and Soil. Earth's External Processes. Weathering. Mechanical Weathering. Chemical Weathering. Rates of Weathering. Soil. Controls of Soil Formation. The Soil Profile. Soil Types. Box 5.1 Earth as a System: Acid Precipitation: A Human Impact on the Earth System. Box 5.2 People and the Environment: Laterites and the Clearing of the Rain Forest. Box 5.3 People and the Environment: Dust Bowl: Soil Erosion in the Great Plains.
6. Sedimentary Rocks. What Is a Sedimentary Rock? Turning Sediment into Sedimentary Rock: Diagenesis and Lithification. Types of Sedimentary Rocks. Detrital Sedimentary Rocks. Chemical Sedimentary Rocks. Classification of Sedimentary Rocks. Sedimentary Environments. Sedimentary Structures. Fossils: Evidence of Past Life. Box 6.1 Earth as a System: The Carbon Cycle and Sedimentary Rocks. Box 6.2 Earth as a System: Using Seafloor Sediments to Unravel Past Climates. Box 6.3 Understanding Earth: Types of Fossilization.
7. Metamorphism and Metamorphic Rocks. Metamorphism. Agents of Metamorphism. Metamorphic Textures. Common Metamorphic Rocks. Metamorphic Environments. Metamorphic Zones. Metamorphism and Plate Tectonics. Box 7.1 Understanding Earth: Impact Metamorphism and Tectites.
8. Geologic Time. Geology Needs a Time Scale. Relative Dating-Key Principles. Correlation of Rock Layers. Dating with Radioactivity. The Geologic Time Scale. Difficulties in Dating the Geologic Time Scale. Box 8.1 Understanding Earth Applying Relative Dating Principles to the Lunar Surface. Box 8.2 People and the Environment: Radon. Box 8.3 Understanding Earth: Using Tree Rings to Date and Study the Recent Past. Box 8.4 Earth as a System: Demise of the Dinosaurs.
9. Mass Wasting: The Work of Gravity. A Landslide Disaster in Peru. Mass Wasting and Landform Development. Controls and Triggers of Mass Wasting. Classification of Mass Wasting Processes. Slump. Rockslide. Debris Flow. Earthflow. Slow Movements. Submarine Landslides. Box 9.1 People and the Environment: The Vaiont Dam Disaster. Box 9.2 People and the Environment: Real-Time Monitoring of Active Landslides. Box 9.3 Understanding Earth: The Sensitive Permafrost Landscape.
10. Running Water. Earth as a System: The Hydrologic Cycle. Running Water. Streamflow. Changes from Upstream to Downstream. Base Level and Graded Streams. Stream Erosion. Transport of Sediment by Streams. Deposition of Sediment by Streams. Stream Valleys. Incised Meanders and Stream Terraces. Drainage Networks. Floods and Flood Control. Box 10.1 People and the Environment: The 1997 Red River Floods. Box 10.2 People and the Environment: Flash Floods.
11. Groundwater. Importance of Underground Water. Distribution of Underground Water. The Water Table. Factors Influencing the Storage and Movement of Groundwater. Movement of Groundwater. Springs. Hot Springs and Geysers. Wells. Artesian Wells. Problems Associated with Groundwater Withdrawal. Groundwater Contamination. The Geologic Work of Groundwater. Box 11.1 People and the Environment: The Ogallala Aquifer: How Long Will the Water Last? Box 11.2 People and the Environment: Land Subsidence in the San Joaquin Valley.
12. Glaciers and Glaciation. Glaciers: A Part of Two Basic Cycles. Types of Glaciers. Formation of Glacial Ice. Movement of a Glacier. Glacial Erosion. Landforms Created by Glacial Erosion. Glacial Deposits. Landforms Made of Till. Landforms Made of Stratified Drift. The Glacial Theory and the Ice Age. Some Indirect Effects of Ice-Age Glaciers. Causes of Glaciation. Box 12.1 Understanding Earth: Do Glaciers Move? An Application of the Scientific Method. Box 12.2 Understanding Earth: Surging Glaciers. Box 12.3 Understanding Earth: Rivers Before and After the Ice Age. Box 12.4 Understanding Earth: Climate Change Recorded in Glacial Ice.
13. Deserts and Winds. Distribution and Causes of Dry Lands. Geologic Processes in Arid Climates. Basin and Range: The Evolution of a Desert Landscape. Transportation of Sediment by Wind. Wind Erosion. Wind Deposits. Box 13.1 Understanding Earth: What Is Meant by 'Dry'?. Box 13.2 People and the Environment: The Shrinking Aral Sea. Box 13.3 Understanding Earth: Australia's Mount Uluru.
14. Shorelines. The Shoreline: A Dynamic Interface. Waves. Wave Erosion. Longshore Transport. Shoreline Features. Shoreline Erosion Problems. Emergent and Submergent Coasts. Tides. Box 14.1 People and the Environment: Louisiana's Vanishing Coastal Wetlands. Box 14.2 People and the Environment: Hurricanes: The Ultimate Coastal Hazard. Box 14.3 People and the Environment: Coastal Vulnerability to Sea-Level Rise.
15. Crustal Deformation. Structural Geology: A Study of Earth's Architecture. Deformation. Mapping Geologic Structures. Folds. Faults. Joints. Box 15.1 Understanding Earth: Naming Local Rock Units. Box 15.2 People and the Environment: The San Andreas Fault System.
16. Earthquakes. What Is an Earthquake? San Andreas Fault: An Active Earthquake Zone. Seismology. Locating the Source of an Earthquake. Measuring the Size of Earthquakes. Earthquake Destruction. Can Earthquakes Be Predicted? Box 16.1 People and the Environment: Earthquakes East of the Rockies. Box 16.2 Understanding Earth: Wave Amplification and Seismic Risks. Box 16.3 People and the Environment: Tsunami Warning System. Box 16.4 Understanding Earth: A Major Earthquake in Turkey.
17. Earth's Interior. Probing Earth's Interior. Seismic Waves and Earth's Structure. Discovering Earth's Major Boundaries. The Crust. The Mantle. The Core. Earth's Internal Heat Engine. Box 17.1 Understanding Earth: Inge Lehmann: A Pioneering Geophysicist. Box 17.2 Understanding Earth: Why Does Earth Have a Magnetic Field?. Box 17.3 Understanding Earth: Seismic Tomography of the Mantle.
18. The Ocean Floor. Mapping the Ocean Floor. Continental Margins. Submarine Canyons and Turbidity Currents. Features of the Deep-Ocean Basin. Coral Reefs and Atolls. Seafloor Sediments. Mid-Ocean Ridges. Box 18.1 Understanding Earth: Sampling the Ocean Floor. Box 18.2 Earth as a System: Hydrothermal Vent Communities. Box 18.3 Understanding Earth: Susan DeBari: A Career in Geology.
19. Plate Tectonics. Continental Drift: An Idea Before Its Time. The Great Debate. Continental Drift and Paleomagnetism. A Scientific Revolution Begins. Plate Tectonics: The New Paradigm. Divergent Plate Boundaries. Convergent Plate Boundaries. Transform Fault Boundaries. Testing the Plate Tectonics Model. Measuring Plate Motion. The Driving Mechanism. Importance of Plate Tectonics. Box 19.1 Understanding Earth: The Breakup of a Supercontinent. Box 19.2 Understanding Earth: Plate Tectonics into the Future.
20. Mountain Building and the Evolution of Continents. Mountain Belts. Mountain Building at Convergent Boundaries. Vertical Movements of the Crust. Mountain Building Away from Plate Margins. The Origin and Evolution of Continental Crust. Box 20.1 Understanding Earth: Do Mountains Have Roots?. Box 20.2 Understanding Earth: Fault Block Mountains. Box 20.3 Understanding Earth: The Rocky Mountains.
21. Energy and Mineral Resources. Renewable and Nonrenewable Resources. Energy Resources. Coal. Oil and Natural Gas. Some Environmental Effects of Burning Fossil Fuels. Tar Sands and Oil Shale-Petroleum for the Future? Alternate Energy Sources. Mineral Resources. Mineral Resources and Igneous Processes. Mineral Resources and Metamorphic Processes. Weathering and Ore Deposits. Placer Deposits. Nonmetallic Mineral Resources. Box 21.1 People and the Environment: Aerosols from the 'Human Volcano'. Box 21.2 Understanding Earth: Bingham Canyon Utah: The Largest Open-Pit Mine.
22. Planetary Geology. The Planets: An Overview. Origin and Evolution of the Planets. Earth's Moon. The Planets: A Brief Tour. Minor Members of the Solar System. Box 22.1 Understanding Earth: Pathfinder: The First Geologist on Mars. Box 22.2 Understanding Earth: Is Pluto Really a Planet? Box 22.3 Earth as a System: Comet Shoemaker-Levy Impacts Jupiter. Box 22.4 Earth as a System: Is Earth on a Collision Course?.
Appendix A. Metric and English Units Compared. Appendix B. Landforms of the Conterminous United States 647 Glossary. Index. 