This is the first encyclopedia of Caves and Karst Science and provides a unique, comprehensive, and authoritative reference source that can be used both by subjectspecialists who wish to obtain information from outside of their immediate area of knowledge and by non-specialists who wish to gain an understanding of the diverse and multi-disciplinary nature of caves and karst science. It will also be useful to cavers who wish to learn more about the environments in which they undertake their sport and to conservationists, engineers, planners, and others who are charged with developing and managing in a sustainable manner complex karst environments. The 351 entries were selected by a multi-disciplinary Advisory Board of leading scholars, all of whom are cavers.

Unprecedented advances in geophysics during the 1970s and 1980s have revolutionized our concepts about the Earth. This scientific revolution is largely a consequence of the discovery of seafloor spreading and the subsequent formulation of the theory of plate tectonics. In addition, however, the exploration of the Moon and planets has had a profound impact upon geophysics, as has the development of innovative space technologies, where orbiting satellites have yielded a wealth of new and truly global geophysical data. A vital catalyst for these great advancements in knowledge has been the astonishing growth of computer technology, with the attendant development of powerful new digital techniques for collecting, processing, and analyzing massive quantities of digital data. The overall effect has been to alter foreover not only our understanding of the Earth but also the fundamental way in which we do geophysical research.

It is now 10 years since the Encyclopedic Dictionary of Exploration Geophysics was published. In this edition new terms have been added and definitions revised in order to keep up with the technological advances of this decade. 
The first edition appeared when exploration geophysicists were starting to cope with data processing and help was needed with the processing vocabulary.

All information about the Earth’s interior comes from field observations and measurements made within the top few kilometers of the surface, from laboratory experiments and from the powers of human deduction, relying on complex numerical modeling. Solid Earth Geophysics encompasses all these endeavors and aspires to define and quantify the internal structure and processes of the Earth in terms of the principles of physics, corresponding mathematical formulations and computational procedures.

Few subjects have caught the attention of the entire world as much as those dealing with natural hazards. The first decade of this new millennium provides a litany of tragic examples of various hazards that turned into disasters affecting millions of individuals around the globe. The human losses (some 225,000 people) associated with the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, the economic costs (approximately 200 billion USD) of the 2011 Tohoku Japan earthquake, tsunami, and reactor event, and the collective social impacts of human tragedies experienced during Hurricane Katrina in 2005 all provide repetitive reminders that we humans are temporary guests occupying a very active, angry, and ancient planet.

The first edition of this encyclopedia was published a decade ago, and some remarkable changes have occurred in the gemstone marketplace during this interval. Although diamond still retains its place as the most popular and esteemed of all gemstones, the extremely wide gap in this leadership position versus colored stones has nar- rowed. There is a large and growing demand for all kinds of gemstones, especially brightly colored stones that can be worn as fashion accessories. Beaded jewelry has become an item of immense popularity; pearls have seen a huge revival.

The Encyclopedia ofSedimentology is a comprehensive, alphabetical treatment of the discipline of sedimentology. It is intended to be a reference book for sedimentologists, geologists, and others who come in contact with sediments. In the broadest sense, this group includes most of the world’s population because over 75 percent of the earth’s surface is covered with sediments and sedimentary rocks. The book should be particularly useful, however, to petroleum and coal geologists, soil scientists, hydrologists, archaeologists, and other professionals in related fields.

I have been a lifelong dinosaur enthusiast. At the age of four, I created what my mother has dubbed my “first research paper”: a stack of illustrations of every different species I could find throughout the pages of my many dinosaur books.

I have been a lifelong dinosaur enthusiast. At the age of four, I created what my mother has dubbed my “first research paper”: a stack of illustrations of every different species I could find throughout the pages of my many dinosaur books. I’ve collected dinosaur books throughout my life, and recently I embarked on a search for a very specific sort of tome: a truly comprehensive, informative, encyclopedic collection of all known dinosaurs.

I have been a lifelong dinosaur enthusiast. At the age of four, I created what my mother has dubbed my “first research paper”: a stack of illustrations of every different species I could find throughout the pages of my many dinosaur books. I’ve collected dinosaur books throughout my life, and recently I embarked on a search for a very specific sort of tome: a truly comprehensive, informative, encyclopedic collection of all known dinosaurs. Needless to say, a wide variety of dinosaur-themed texts have been available throughout the years, but try as I might, I couldn’t locate any volume that really fit the bill.