Colin Pain – författare

The Origins of Mountains approaches mountains from facts about mountain landscapes rather than theory. The book illustrates that almost everywhere, mountains arose by vertical uplift of a former plain, and by a mixture of cracking and warping by earth movements, and erosion by rivers and glaciers, the present mountainous landscapes were created. It also gives evidence that this uplift only occured in the last few million years, a time scale which does not fit the plate tectonics theory.Another fascinating part of the evidence, shows that mountain uplift correlates very well with climatic change. Mountain building could have been responsible for the onset of the ice age. It certainly resulted in the creation of new environments. Fossil plants and animals are used in places to work out the time of mountain uplift, which in turn helps to explain biogeographical distributions.

The Origins of Mountains approaches mountains from facts about mountain landscapes rather than theory. The book illustrates that almost everywhere, mountains arose by vertical uplift of a former plain, and by a mixture of cracking and warping by earth movements, and erosion by rivers and glaciers, the present mountainous landscapes were created. It also gives evidence that this uplift only occured in the last few million years, a time scale which does not fit the plate tectonics theory.Another fascinating part of the evidence, shows that mountain uplift correlates very well with climatic change. Mountain building could have been responsible for the onset of the ice age. It certainly resulted in the creation of new environments. Fossil plants and animals are used in places to work out the time of mountain uplift, which in turn helps to explain biogeographical distributions.

Regolith is the layer of broken and unconsolidated rock and soil material that forms the surface of the land and covers the bedrock nearly everywhere. An understanding of its properties and structure is very important in topics such as groundwater supply, soil conservation and exploration efforts for economic materials. Regolith, Soils and Landforms is a manual for students, professionals and researchers concerned with the practical examination and analysis of earth surface materials in the field. The text describes many economic aspects of regolith studies, such as the formation of mineral deposits, the importance of weathering zones and how the chemistry of regolith affects human health. Presenting a new view of the geological history of the earth, it places emphasis on the formation and destruction of regolith materials and provides a challenge for established concepts in landscape evolution. It will be an essential text to a wide range of readership including students of Geology, Geomorphology, Geography, Agriculture and Engineering as well as professionals dealing with regolith in their own work.

This comprehensive reference on the fundamentals of regolith science describes how regolith is developed from parental rocks and emphasises the importance of chemical, physical, water and biological processes in regolith formation. It provides details for mapping regolith landforms, as well as objective information on applications in mineral exploration and natural resource management. Regolith Science also provides a concise history of weathering through time in Australia. It includes previously unpublished information on elemental abundances in regolith materials along with detailed information on soil degradation processes such as in acid sulfate soils.Written by experts in the field, Regolith Science summarises research carried out over a 13 year period within the Cooperative Research Council for Landscape Environments and Mineral Exploration. This book will be a valuable resource for scientists and graduate/postgraduate students in geology, geography and soil science, and for professionals in the exploration industry and natural resources management.