Results by title
156 books match the query 'Geology' and 20 start with g
Gems and Gemstones
Timeless Natural Beauty of the Mineral WorldLance Grande and Allison Augustyn
University of Chicago Press, 2009
Gems are objects of wealth, icons of beauty, and emblems of the very best of everything. They are kept as signs of prestige or power. Given as tokens of love and affection, they also come in a kaleidoscopic array of hues and can be either mineral or organic. Gems can command a person’s gaze in the way they play with light and express rich color. And they can evoke feelings of passion, greed, mystery, and warmth.
For millennia, gems have played an important role in human culture: they have significant value, both financially and within folklore and mythology. But just what are gems, exactly? This lavishly illustrated volume—the most ambitious publication of its kind—provides a general introduction to gems and natural gemstones, conveying their timeless beauty and exploring similarities among different species and varieties. Gems and Gemstones features nearly 300 color images of the cut gems, precious and semiprecious stones, gem-quality mineral specimens, and fine jewelry to be unveiled in a new Grainger Hall of Gems at The Field Museum in Chicago this October. The book and exhibition’s overarching theme will be the relationship between finished gems and their natural origin: while beautiful as faceted and polished pieces of jewelry, gems are often just as lovely—or even more so—as gemstones in their natural state. For example, an aquamarine or emerald as originally found in a mine with its natural crystal faces can be as stunning as any cut and polished gem prepared for a ring, bracelet, or charm.
Thoughtful of both ancient and modern times, Gems and Gemstones also includes fun-filled facts and anecdotes that broaden the historical portrait of each specimen. When Harry Winston, for instance, donated the Hope Diamond to the Smithsonian in 1958, he sent it through the U.S. mail wrapped in plain brown paper. And for anyone who has ever marveled at the innovations of top jewelry designers, Gems and Gemstones features a dazzling array of polished stones, gold objects, and creations from around the world. Diamonds, sapphires, rubies, amethysts, pearls, topaz, amber—every major gem gets its due in what will be an invaluable source on the subject for years to come.
Gems and Gemstones is the basis for the iPad app, available in the Apple iTunes App Store, Gems and Jewels.
Gems and the New Science
Matter and Value in the Scientific RevolutionMichael Bycroft
University of Chicago Press, 2026
In Gems and the New Science, Michael Bycroft argues that gems were connected to major developments in the “new science” between the sixteenth and nineteenth centuries. As he explains, precious and semiprecious stones were at the center of dramatic shifts in natural knowledge in early modern Europe. They were used to investigate luminescence, electricity, combustion, chemical composition, and more. They were collected by naturalists; measured by mathematicians; and rubbed, burned, and dissolved by experimental philosophers. This led to the demise of the traditional way of classifying gems—which grouped them by transparency, color, and locality—and the turn to density, refraction, chemistry, and crystallography as more reliable guides for sorting these substances.
The science of gems shows that material evaluation was as important as material production in the history of science. It also shows the value of seeing science as the product of the interaction between different material worlds. The book begins by bringing these insights to bear on five themes of the Scientific Revolution. Each of the subsequent chapters deals with a major episode in early modern science, from the expansion of natural history in the sixteenth century to the emergence of applied science early in the nineteenth century. This important work is not only the first book-length history of the science of gems but also a fresh interpretation of the Scientific Revolution and an argument for using a new form of materialism to understand the evolution of science.
Geologic Life
Inhuman Intimacies and the Geophysics of RaceKathryn Yusoff
Duke University Press, 2024
Geological Evolution of the Colorado Plateau of Eastern Utah and Western Colorado
Robert Fillmore
University of Utah Press, 2010
Geological Sciences in the Antebellum South
Edited by James X. Corgan
University of Alabama Press, 1982
Tracing the roots of earth science before the Civil War.
Geological Sciences in the Antebellum South by James Corgan offers a rich and revealing examination of the origins and development of geological inquiry in the American South during the decades (1796-1850s) leading up to the Civil War. At a time when scientific disciplines in the United States were still taking shape, Southern scholars, educators, and naturalists played a critical—if often overlooked—role in advancing geological knowledge. Corgan brings this history to life through a careful exploration of the people, institutions, and ideas that defined early earth science in the region.
From the study of mineral resources and soil composition to the broader effort to understand the region’s unique landscapes, geology intersected with agriculture, industry, and economic development in powerful ways. Corgan demonstrates how these scientific endeavors were shaped by—and in turn helped shape—the cultural and intellectual environment of the South. This book also highlights the contributions of key figures and institutions that fostered scientific inquiry, including early universities, state surveys, and learned societies. These networks connected Southern researchers to national and international scientific communities, positioning the region as an active participant in the broader expansion of 19th-century science. At the same time, the book addresses the challenges and limitations faced by Southern scientists, offering a nuanced perspective on how regional identity, resources, and social structures influenced the trajectory of scientific progress.
By situating geology within the broader context of antebellum history, Corgan provides readers with a deeper understanding of how scientific thought developed alongside—and in dialogue with—the political, economic, and cultural forces of the period. The result is a compelling interdisciplinary study that bridges the history of science and Southern history, shedding new light on a formative era in American intellectual life. Geological Sciences in the Antebellum South will appeal to historians, geologists, and scholars of American studies. It is an essential resource for anyone interested in the foundations of scientific inquiry in the United States and the enduring impact of geology on the development of the American South.
Geology Of Parks, Monuments, and Wildlands of Southern Utah
Robert Fillmore
University of Utah Press, 2000
This detailed interpretive guide explains the forces that created Utah's unforgettable scenery, while providing road logs of highways and major backroads through the Grand Staircase of the Colorado Plateau.
Where in Utah can you find a fossilized ant hill that is at least fifty million years old? Do you know the location of an ancient beach that disappeared along with the dinosaurs that strolled it? Find out in The Geology of the Parks, Monuments, and Wildlands of Southern Utah.
This fascinating and authoritative guide belongs on the dashboard or in the backpack of every visitor to southern Utah or student of its natural history. More than sixty illustrations and nearly three dozen photographs accompany clear explanations of the spectacular geologic features of this landscape, including Capitol Reef, Bryce Canyon, and Zion National Parks, as well as the Grand Staircase-Escalante Monument.
Section I of the volume surveys chronologically the origins of the formations and structural features and the geologic processes that have shaped the Colorado Plateau. Section II provides road logs with mile-by-mile geologic descriptions of key sections of highway traversing this area.
This detailed interpretive guide turns any windshield into a window of opportunity for understanding the forces that created Utah’s unforgettable scenery—whether it be a breathtaking panorama or a dazzling array of fins and fractures, pillars and pedestals, or cliffs and chasms.
Geology and Politics in Frontier Texas, 1845–1909
By Walter Keene Ferguson
University of Texas Press, 1969
Conservation and development of natural resources are issues of critical importance throughout the world. These issues have been matters of public concern in Texas since legislators first adopted the state-sponsored geological survey as a means of extending government funds to private citizens who would help develop and advertise the mineral and agricultural wealth of Texas.
Walter Keene Ferguson examines the relation of politics to geological exploration during a critical period in Texas history—the first half-century of statehood. Although Texas shared its frontier experience with many other areas, it could not rely on federal aid in the form of land grants because the state government controlled the destiny of the public domain at all times. Acrimonious debate between farmers and urbanites of East Texas and pioneer ranchers of arid West Texas rendered the disposition of public lands even more difficult.
As tools for developing and advertising resources, the geological and agricultural surveys of 1858 and 1867 fulfilled the demands of expectant capitalism made by politicians, speculators, and railroad entrepreneurs. Reconnaissance geologists publicized the wealth of Texas.
Drought in 1886 and popular agitation against squandering of state land caused the emergence of a new concept of the geological survey as an instrument of land reform and public assistance. Lobbying by reformers and scientific organizations led to the formation of the Dumble Survey in 1888 and the University of Texas Mineral Survey in 1901. Stratigraphic analysis of the “individualities” of Texas geology helped the state realize its full economic potential and led to legislation to protect public mineral land from exploitation.
The youthful oil industry finally removed geological exploration from the political arena. As part of the University, a permanent Bureau of Economic Geology was established in 1909 to extend the benefits of scientific research to private citizens and state organizations on a nonpartisan basis.
Ferguson’s analysis of geological surveys in Texas contributes to an understanding not only of the geology and history of the state but of the urgent problem of evaluating the natural resources of underdeveloped regions.
Geology of Michigan
John A. Dorr, Jr. and Donald F. Eschman
University of Michigan Press, 1970
Geology of Southeast Alaska
Rock and Ice in MotionHarold Stowell
University of Alaska Press, 2006
Written by a geologist with over twenty-five years of experience in the north, Geology of Southeast Alaska will entertain and inform with abundant photographs and detailed drawings. Whether you want to understand the forces that shaped the state of Alaska, or you want to learn the basics of glacial movement, this compact, authoritative book is for you.
Geology of Utah's Rivers
William T Parry
University of Utah Press, 2008
Transcending the notion of a traditional geology text, Parry provides detailed commentary on historical exploration and the development of the local scenery. His ambitious scholarship offers a fresh look at Utah’s changing landscape throughout geologic time.
Geology of the Great Basin
Bill Fiero
University of Nevada Press, 2009
Geology of the Ice Age National Scenic Trail
David M. Mickelson
University of Wisconsin Press, 2011
The Ice Age National Scenic Trail meanders across the state of Wisconsin through scenic glacial terrain dotted with lakes, steep hills, and long, narrow ridges. David M. Mickelson, Louis J. Maher Jr., and Susan L. Simpson bring this landscape to life and help readers understand what Ice Age Wisconsin was like. An overview of Wisconsin’s geology and key geological concepts helps readers understand geological processes, materials, and landforms. The authors detail geological features along each segment of the Ice Age Trail and at each of the nine National Ice Age Scientific Reserve sites.
Readers can experience the Ice Age Trail through more than one hundred full-color photographs, scores of beautiful maps, and helpful diagrams. Science briefs explain glacial features such as eskers, drumlins, and moraines. Geology of the Ice Age National Scenic Trail also includes detailed trail descriptions that are cross referenced with the science briefs to make it easy to find the geological terms used in the trail descriptions. Whatever your level of experience with hiking or knowledge of glaciers, this book will provide lively, informative, and revealing descriptions for a new understanding of the shape of the land beneath our feet.
Geology of the Netherlands East Indies
Lectures Delivered as Exchange-Professor at the University of Michigan in 1921-1922H. Albert Brouwer
University of Michigan Press, 1925
Geology, Ecology, and Human History of the San Luis Valley
Jared Maxwell Beeton
University Press of Colorado, 2020
The first section, “The Geology and Ecology of the San Luis Valley,” surveys the geomorphology, hydrology, animal and plant life, conservation, management, and mining of the valley’s varied terrain. The second section, “Human History of the San Luis Valley,” recounts the valley’s human visitation and settlement, from early indigenous life to Spanish exploration to Hispanic and Japanese settlements. This section introduces readers to the region’s wide range of religious identities—Catholic, Latter-day Saint, Buddhist, Jehovah’s Witness, Amish, and Mennonite—and diverse linguistic traditions, including Spanish, English, Dutch, Danish, Japanese, and Mayan. The final section, “Travel Itineraries,” addresses recreation, specifically fly-fishing and rock climbing.
The book provides a comprehensive overview of the endemic flora and fauna, human history of indigenous lifeways, and diverse settlement patterns that have shaped the region. The Geology, Ecology, and Human History of the San Luis Valley will appeal to students and scholars of geology, ecology, environmental history, and cultural history, as well as residents and tourists seeking to know more about this fascinating and integral part of Colorado and New Mexico.
Contributors:
Benjamin Armstrong, Timothy Armstrong, Deacon Aspinwall, Robert Benson, Lorrie Crawford, Kristy Duran, Jeff Elison, Eric Harmon, Devin Jenkins, Bradley G. Johnson, Robert M. Kirkham, Bessie Konishi, Angie Krall, Richard D. Loosbrock, Richard Madole, A. W. Magee, Victoria Martinez, James McCalpin, Mark Mitchell, R. Nathan Pipitone, Andrew Valdez, Rio de la Vista, Damián Vergara Wilson
Georges Cuvier, Fossil Bones, and Geological Catastrophes
New Translations and Interpretations of the Primary TextsMartin J. S. Rudwick
University of Chicago Press, 1997
Geysers of Yellowstone, Fifth Edition
T. Scott Bryan
University Press of Colorado, 2018
Both a reference work and a fine introduction to the nature of geyser activity, this popular field guide includes a glossary of key terms, a comprehensive appendix that discusses other geyser areas of the world, detailed maps of each geyser basin, and tables for easy reference. The Geysers of Yellowstone will continue to serve geyser gazers as well as newcomers to geothermal phenomena for years to come.
Geysers of Yellowstone
Sixth EditionT. Scott Bryan
University Press of Colorado, 2024
Both a reference work and a fine introduction to the nature of geyser activity, this popular field guide includes detailed maps of each geyser basin, tables for easy reference, and a glossary of key terms. A comprehensive appendix discusses other geyser areas of the world, several of which are described here for the first time. The Geysers of Yellowstone will continue to serve geyser gazers as well as newcomers to geothermal phenomena for years to come.
Granite and Grace
Seeking the Heart of YosemiteMichael P. Cohen
University of Nevada Press, 2019
Drawing together the humanistic and scientific significance of the wild landscapes he traverses, Michael uncovers relationships between people and places and meaning and substance, rendering this text part memoir—but also considerably more. On-the-rock encounters by hand and foot open up a dialogue between the heart of a philosopher and the mind of a geologist. Michael adds a literary softness to this hard landscape, blending excursions with exposition and literature with science. It is through his graceful representations that the geological becomes metaphorical, while the science turns mythological.
This high country, where in 1889 John Muir and Robert Underwood Johnson planned what would become Yosemite National Park, is significant for cultural as well as natural reasons. Discoursing on everything from Camus’s “Myths of Sisyphus” to the poems of Gary Snyder, Michael adds depth to an already splendorous landscape. Premier early geologists, such as François Matthes, shaped the language of Yosemite’s landscape. Even though Yosemite has changed over half a century, the rock has not. As Michael explores the beauty and grace of his familiar towering vistas, he demonstrates why, of the many aspects of the world to which one might get attached, the most secure is granite.
Great Lakes Rocks
4 Billion Years of Geologic History in the Great Lakes RegionStephen E. Kesler
University of Michigan Press, 2019
Grove Karl Gilbert
A Great Engine of ResearchStephen J. Pyne
University of Iowa Press, 1980
Gilbert knew most of geology's grand figures--including John Wesley Powell, Clarence Dutton, and Clarence King--and Pyne's chronicle of the imperturbable, quietly unconventional Gilbert is couterpointed with sketches of these prominent scientists. The man who wrote that "happiness is sitting under a tent with walls uplifted, just after a brief shower,", created answers to the larger questions of the earth in ways that have become classics of his science.