Physical geology / Общая геология

This sixth edition of Physical Geology is a straightforward, easy-to-read introduction to geology for both geology majors and nonmajors. The organization of the book is traditional and matches the organization of most lab manuals. Each chapter has been written to be as self-contained as possible so that the instructor can reorganize the chapter sequence if desired. 

Major revisions have been made in the text of the introductory chapter and in the chapters on igneous rocks, plate tectonics, and mountains. Chapter 1 has been shortened. The plate-tectonic origin of volcanic and plutonic rocks has been clarified and combined in chapter 4. The plate tectonics chapter contains new sections on plate boundaries and their movement, backarc spreading, and the causes of plate motion. The mountains chapter has been shortened and carefully coordinated with the plates chapter. New sections discuss mineral zoning, volcanoes and climate, pyroclastic flows, intraplate igneous activity, flood basalts and mantle plumes, weathering and climate, stress and strain, hydrothermal activity at ridge crests, confined aquifers, fold/thrust belts, earthquake origins, moment magnitude, the coremantle boundary, direct measurement of plate motion, and extension tectonics. We also discuss new information on global warming, crustal and upper-mantle structure, the origin of desert pavement, the 1992 Landers earthquake, the KT impact crater in Yucatan, San Andreas earthquake probabilities, and estimated reserves of geologic resources. We have written new boxes on the Pinatubo eruption, the Channeled Scablands, structures associated with salt domes, index minerals in metamorphic rocks, and the calculation of radiometric ages of rocks. Many other boxes have been clarified and shortened. 

New photos are used throughout the book; they should be particularly evident in the chapters on sedimentary rocks, rivers, deserts, and beaches. Line drawings have been revised or replaced in every chapter, most extensively in the chapters on plutonic rocks, earthquakes, plate tectonics, and mountains. The sea-floor map by Marie Tharp has been expanded to fill two pages.  <...>