The report that follows presents a first statement of the results of a study sponsored by the European Economic Community and the Department of Trade and Industry as communicated to a meeting of the Institution of Mining and Metallurgy Midlands Section at which the President (Dr A. J. Robinson) and the Section Chairman (Professor N. A. Warner) were present. It was my privilege to attend and to make some concluding remarks; these form the basis of this preface. The Geological Survey, now in its 154th year, has as one of its principal objects the provision of geological maps based on surveying in maximum detail at a scale of 1:10 000. In areas where extractive or other engineering industry is important, the surveys have been revised more than once as new subsurface data became available.

In contrast to the recognized man/machine system of industry, the production process of mineral resources brings about a man/machine/nature system. The dynamic evolution of this system is characterized by a steady increase in the level of human labour. This also means that labour becomes increasingly complex and complicated due to the interaction with increased automation and mechanization.

The results of experimental and theoretical studies of isotopic composition of natural waters of the Earth’s hydrosphere are analyzed and summarized in this book. These studies represent a modern direction of science of the natural waters actively developed in hydrology, hydrogeology, oceanography, and climatology starting from the middle of last century. The book is a further development and improvement of the earlier published author’s works: Cosmogenic Isotopes of the Hydrosphere, Nauka, Moscow, 1984; Isotopy of the Hydrosphere, Nauka, Moscow, 1983; Environmental Isotopes in the Hydrosphere, Nedra, Moscow, 1975 and Environmental Isotopes in the Hydrosphere, Wiley, Chichester–New York, 1982.

This work investigates the permissibility and viability of property rights on the celestial bodies, particularly the extraterrestrial aspects of land and mineral resources ownership. In lay terms, it aims to find an answer to the question “Who owns the Moon?”

The current approach to the study of the origin of life and to the search for life elsewhere is based on two assumptions. First, life is a purely physical phenomenon closely linked to specific environmental conditions. From this, we hypothesise that when these environmental conditions are met, life will arise and evolve. If these assumptions are valid, the search for life elsewhere should be a matter of mapping what we know about the range of environments in which life can exist, and then simply trying to find these environments elsewhere. Second, life can be clearly distinguished from the non-living world.

The natural resources on the earth seem to be randomly distributed but their variations over space and time are not all random. They exhibit a spatial correlation. This spatial correlation can be captured by geostatistics. Geostatistics deals with the analysis and modelling of geo-referenced data. The point observations are analyzed and interpolated to create spatial maps. For geostatistical interpolation, first the spatial correlation structures of the parameter of interest are quantified and then spatial interpolation is done using the quantified spatial correlation and optimal predictions at unobserved locations to create a map.

Explosive volcanic eruptions eject large volumes of high surface area, metal-rich dust and ash into the atmosphere. In areas near major volcanic eruptions, humans often interact with these materials and may bioaccumulate heavy and toxic metals. To evaluate these interactions, we examine bronchoalveolar lavage samples (BAL) collected from people exposed to the paroxysmal 2001 Etna eruption.

Minerals, both metallic and nonmetallic, and building stones have played key role in shaping human civilization since ancient times. Demand for and production of these earth resources increased manifold during the Industrial Revolution and both have seen an exponential growth during the last century, keeping pace with growing national and global economies. Ever-widening base of mineral use has made minerals an integral part of our everyday life.

Пространство, структура и случайность. Вклад в честь Джорджа Матерона в области геостатистики, случайных множеств и математической морфологии

Personal Reminiscences of Georges Matheron Dietrich Stoyan
A few words about Georges Matheron (1930-2000) Jean Serra
Introduction From the editors
Part I Geostatistics

Geomagnetism is the study of the earth's magnetic field: its measurement, variation in time and space, origins, and its use in helping us to understand more about our Earth. Paleomagnetism is the study of the record left in the rocks; it has contributed much to our understanding of the geomagnetic field's past behavior and many other aspects of geology and earth history.