Following the discovery of the giant Olympic Dam ore deposit in 1975, a realisation developed that there was an important class of mineral deposits not previously appreciated. It became apparent that this class, the Iron Oxide Copper-Gold deposits, included not only Olympic Dam, but also a number of other known deposits. It also became apparent that this was a class that could produce large, high grade prizes, of the order of 0.25 to 1 billion tonnes of around +1% Cu and 0.5 g/t Au. As a consequence this class has been one of the major targets of the exploration industry over the last decade, resulting in the discovery of further giant orebodies in Australia such as Ernest Henry, and Candelaria, Salobo, Sossego and others in South America.

Since publication of the previous volume in the "Hydrothermal Iron Oxide Copper-Gold and Related Deposits: A Global Perspective" series in 2002, there have been significant advances in the understanding of iron oxide copper-gold (IOCG) deposits, as well as a number of new discoveries. This two volume set includes 26 new papers, with over 100 colour plans and individual images, reporting, reviewing and discussing the current appreciation of the occurrence of this style of mineralisation, what constitutes IOCG-type ores, and new insights into established deposits and their geological setting.

The fi rst three parts of the section address the development of soil mechanics and geotechnical engineering as a distinct discipline over the past 80 years or so. Chapter 2 Foundations and other geotechnical elements in context - their role explains the importance of foundations and structures built in or of the ground within civil engineering and construction, and the need for a formal and holistic geotechnical engineering design process. Chapter 3 A brief history of the development of geotechnical engineering gives a history of the development of geotechnical engineering at the borderline between science and art, with the latter defi ned by Terzaghi in 1957 as a ‘mental processes leading to satisfactory results without the assistance of step-for-step logical reasoning’. This is refl ected in the ‘geotechnical triangle’, described in Chapter 4 The geotechnical triangle, which emphasises the essential elements of successful geotechnical engineering as understanding the ground, material properties and relevant precedence (well-winnowed experience), connected by an appropriate model for analysis. <...>

Igneous and metamorphic petrology in the last decades of the twentieth century exploded into a broad, multifaceted, increasingly quantitative science. Advances in physical and field petrology and geochemistry have forever changed our thinking about the origin and evolution of magmas, their dynamic behavior, and the way in which they are intruded and explosively extruded. Developments in geochronology, quantitative evaluation of the role of heat and fluid transfer in crustal rocks, and new field discoveries have impacted our understanding of the evolution of metamorphic systems and their dynamic interaction with tectonic processes. Geophysics and mineral physics have provided new insights into the nature of the convecting mantle and its role as a giant heat engine driving magmatic and metamorphic processes. New tools of all kinds allow new ways of gathering petrologic data, while phenomenal developments in computers and computer software permit data to be stored, processed, and modeled in ways unimaginable as recently as a couple of decades ago.