Minerals and metals are essential components for the growth of human society. The need to survive taught prehistoric Paleolithic men the use of stones as tools as early as 20,000 years ago. The discovery of minerals, their exploitation, and use became many-fold with the advent of civilization and is continuing today. A mineral deposit is too small in size compared to the vast Earth’s crust. Near-surface deposits have been discovered over the centuries, ores have been mined, and metals extracted. The future search for concealed types, rarely showing surface signatures, will be opportunities and challenges. New discoveries will require state-of-the-art exploration techniques, trained labor, scientific knowledge, adequate experience, high-end data processing systems, and interpretation skills <...>

The reader probably is acquainted with some books of the series: Physics for Everybody, Chemistry for Everybody, Mechanics for Everybody, Algebra for Everybody, Geometry for Everybody and Arithmetic for Everybody. In the form of short stories, these books write of the interesting processes and phenomena that take place in nature, and describe unique mechanisms;

The construction, design, remediation and maintenance of slopes have always formed an important area of geotechnical engineering, which is often termed as ‘slope engineering’. A wide variety of applications of slope engineering include excavations, hill roads, railway lines, embankments, earth dams, reservoirs, open-cut mines, urban development of hilly areas, protection of river banks and coastal slope stability.

Te process of assessing a rock slope for stability involves the application of many branches of engineering and natural science. Te determination of rock or soil strength parameters requires a working knowledge of rock mechanics and/or soil mechanics. Knowledge of basic hydrological concepts is essential for interpreting the efects of water on a rock slope. An understanding of geology—especially structural geology, mineralogy, petrology, and the geological processes—is extremely important for the rock slope engineer. Tese areas of knowledge—geology, rock and soil mechanics, and hydrology—along with other basic areas such as statics, engineering mechanics, statistics, and structural engineering are all important elements of rock slope engineering and design. <...>

From ancient times to the present day, gold has been valued by humans. Egypt was the principal gold-producing country in ancient times. Coptos, the present Quft on the eastern side of the River Nile, was the chief town of the Nomos of Harawi and was once politically important. In the eleventh dynasty (2133e1991 BC) it was overshadowed by Thebes, 50 km to the south, which became the capital of the Middle Kingdom (2133 BC) of ancient Egypt, the present-day Luxor (Figure 1.1).

Volcanoes have the power to rock our world, from the spectacular and the beautiful to the violent and the deadly. Introducing Volcanology: A Guide to Hot Rocks is a detailed but accessible introduction to volcanoes and their plumbing systems. Aimed at those with an inquisitive interest in volcanoes as well as the more advanced reader, the ten chapters document different aspects of volcanology. All are illustrated with a wide array of photographs and diagrams to accompany the text, and an A–Z of volcanology is included as a glossary. Since the first edition of this book was published in 2011, a lot has happened in the world of volcanoes and in the world of DougalEARTH. I have been lucky to continue travelling globally to see many of the world’s modern and ancient volcanic rocks (the ‘HOT Rocks’ that form the basis of this guide). Since appearing as ‘Dr Volcano’ on BBC television, I have continued to work with various media projects including CBBC series Fierce Earth, a trip down the Grand Canyon in a wooden boat (BBC/Discovery) and a journey to the very edge of China (Discovery Asia), always looking out for the next Earth Science adventure <...>

My adventures as a palaeontologist have taken me to many exciting places at home, in the UK, and abroad, and led to the discovery of new  species. Working with teams of colleagues, I named the new dinosaurs Eotyrannus, Xenoposeidon, Mirischia, and Vectaerovenator, and the pterosaurs Vectidraco and Eurazhdarcho. One of the things that interests me most about dinosaurs, giant sea reptiles, and other ancient animals, is that every one of them has a unique history, just as animals do today. <...>

Carthaginian, Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Arab, Ottoman, Italian, and Allied military control after the Second World War. There was little organised scientific activity before the annexation of Libya by Italy in 1911, although a number of expeditions, some with scientific interests, passed through Libya in the 19th century. The main objective of these expeditions, mostly organised by the London-based African Association, was to explore the region southwards from Murzuq to Timbuktu, determine the course of the Niger River and assess the commercial potential of the area. The earliest of these expeditions was undertaken by Friedrich Hornemann who travelled with a camel caravan from Egypt into Libya passing through the oases of Siwa and Awjilah, and then across the Haruj al Aswad to Murzuq, and subsequently to Tripoli.