ALBERT

Description / Table of Contents: This issue is addressed to researchers dealing with seismic studies as the result of an interactive process as part of macroseismic approaches and an a-priori determination of the elements if the territory is involved in the seismic risk evaluation. The significant features which distinguish the work can be identified in the use of new methods for the evaluation of the damage scenarios of historical earthquakes (the local intensity virtual distribution); the adoption of a quick procedure of 2nd level seismic microzonation, depicted on a reduced number of parameters and in situ surveys; the characterization of an innovative seismic vulnerability evaluation procedure based on the analyses of the safety reducers and social priority levels of the elements of territory. The proposed studies, carried out in Sicily and Calabria (Italy), define an operative level of approaches aimed at engineering and civil protection applications.

Description / Table of Contents: Weather and climate are of concern to virtually all countries worldwide. For many countries the economy depends largely on agriculture, which is significantly affected by variations in weather and climate. This volume contains many original findings on weather and climate related to atmospheric and oceanic processes through mathematical modeling, numerical simulations, and field experiments and it will be useful as a reading material in graduate level courses dealing with weather, climate, boundary layer and air quality. The scientific community at large, especially younger scientists, will find this book a useful addition to their personal and institutional libraries.

Description / Table of Contents: Weather and climate are of concern to virtually all countries worldwide. For many countries the economy depends largely on agriculture, which is significantly affected by variations in weather and climate. This volume contains many original findings on weather and climate related to atmospheric and oceanic processes through mathematical modeling, numerical simulations, and field experiments and it will be useful as a reading material in graduate level courses dealing with weather, climate, boundary layer and air quality. The scientific community at large, especially younger scientists, will find this book a useful addition to their personal and institutional libraries.

Description / Table of Contents: Alluvial fans: geomorphology, sedimentology, dynamics — introduction. A review of alluvial-fan research / Adrian M. Harvey, Anne E. Mather and Martin Stokes / Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 251, 1-7, 1 January 2005, https://doi.org/10.1144/GSL.SP.2005.251.01.01 --- Flow events on a hyper-arid alluvial fan: Quebrada Tambores, Salar de Atacama, northern Chile / Anne E. Mather and Adrian Hartley / Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 251, 9-24, 1 January 2005, https://doi.org/10.1144/GSL.SP.2005.251.01.02 --- Fans with forests: contemporary hydrogeomorphic processes on fans with forests in west central British Columbia, Canada / D. J. Wilford, M. E. Sakals, J. L. Innes and R. C. Sidle / Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 251, 25-40, 1 January 2005, https://doi.org/10.1144/GSL.SP.2005.251.01.03 --- The fluvial megafan of Abarkoh Basin (Central Iran): an example of flash-flood sedimentation in arid lands / Nasser Arzani / Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 251, 41-59, 1 January 2005, https://doi.org/10.1144/GSL.SP.2005.251.01.04 --- Climate and tectonically controlled river style changes on the Sajó-Hernád alluvial fan (Hungary) / Gyula Gábris and Balázs Nagy / Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 251, 61-67, 1 January 2005, https://doi.org/10.1144/GSL.SP.2005.251.01.05 --- Quaternary telescopic-like alluvial fans, Andean Ranges, Argentina / F. Colombo / Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 251, 69-84, 1 January 2005, https://doi.org/10.1144/GSL.SP.2005.251.01.06 --- Morphometry and depositional style of Late Pleistocene alluvial fans: Wadi Al-Bih, northern UAE and Oman / Asma Al-Farraj and Adrian M. Harvey / Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 251, 85-94, 1 January 2005, https://doi.org/10.1144/GSL.SP.2005.251.01.07 --- Climatic controls on alluvial-fan activity, Coastal Cordillera, northern Chile / Adrian J. Hartley, Anne E. Mather, Elizabeth Jolley and Peter Turner / Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 251, 95-116, 1 January 2005, https://doi.org/10.1144/GSL.SP.2005.251.01.08 --- Differential effects of base-level, tectonic setting and climatic change on Quaternary alluvial fans in the northern Great Basin, Nevada, USA / Adrian M. Harvey / Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 251, 117-131, 1 January 2005, https://doi.org/10.1144/GSL.SP.2005.251.01.09 --- Reconciling the roles of climate and tectonics in Late Quaternary fan development on the Spartan piedmont, Greece / Richard J.J. Pope and Keith N. Wilkinson / Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 251, 133-152, 1 January 2005, https://doi.org/10.1144/GSL.SP.2005.251.01.10 --- Luminescence dating of alluvial fans in intramontane basins of NW Argentina / R. A. J. Robinson, J. Q. G. Spencer, M. R. Strecker, A. Richter and R. N. Alonso / Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 251, 153-168, 1 January 2005, https://doi.org/10.1144/GSL.SP.2005.251.01.11 --- Factors controlling sequence development on Quaternary fluvial fans, San Joaquin Basin, California, USA / G. S. Weissmann, G. L. Bennett and A. L. Lansdale / Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 251, 169-186, 1 January 2005, https://doi.org/10.1144/GSL.SP.2005.251.01.12 --- Tertiary alluvial fans at the northern margin of the Ebro Basin: a review / Gary Nichols / Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 251, 187-206, 1 January 2005, https://doi.org/10.1144/GSL.SP.2005.251.01.13 --- Source area and tectonic control on alluvial-fan development in the Miocene Fohnsdorf intramontane basin, Austria / Michael Wagreich and Philipp E. Strauss / Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 251, 207-216, 1 January 2005, https://doi.org/10.1144/GSL.SP.2005.251.01.14 --- Upper Cretaceous-Palaeocene basin-margin alluvial fans documenting interaction between tectonic and environmental processes (Provence, SE France) / S. Leleu, J.-F. Ghienne and G. Manatschal / Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 251, 217-239, 1 January 2005, https://doi.org/10.1144/GSL.SP.2005.251.01.15

Description / Table of Contents: The Australide orogen, the southern hemisphere Neoproterozoic to Mesozoic terrane accretionary orogen that forms the palaeo-Pacific margin of Gondwana, is one of the largest and longest-lived orogens on Earth. This book brings together a series of reviews and multidisciplinary research papers that comprehensively cover the Australides from the Tasman orogen of eastern Australia to the Neoproterozoic and Palaeozoic orogens of South America, taking in New Zealand and Antarctica along the way. It deals with the evolution of the southern Gondwana margin, as it grew during a series of terrane accretion episodes from the late Proterozoic through to final fragmentation in mid-Cretaceous times. global perspectives are given by comparison with the Palaeozoic northern Gondwana margin and documentation of world-wide terrane accretion episodes in the Late Triassic-Early Jurassic and mid-Cretaceous. The Tasmanides of eastern Australia, and the terrane histories of New Zealand and souther South America are given comprehensive up-to-date reviews.

Description / Table of Contents: This book consists of 18 papers on deformation mechanisms, theology and tectonics. The main approaches include experimental rock deformation, microstructural analysis, field structural studies, analogue and numerical modelling. New results on various topics are presented, ranging from brittle to ductile deformation and grain-scale to lithosphere-scale mechanisms. The volume will be of interest to academic and industrial researchers in the fields of structural geology, interactions between metamorphism, fluids and deformation, and large-scale tectonic processes.

Description / Table of Contents: Submarine slopes provide the critical link between shallow-water and deep-water sedimentary environments. They accumulate a sensitive record of sediment supply, accommodation creation/destruction, and tectonic processes during basin filling. There is a complex stratigraphic response to the interplay between parameters that control the evolution of submarine slope systems, e.g. slope gradient, topographic complexity, sediment flux and calibre, base-level change,tectonic setting, and post-depositional sediment remobilization processes. The increased understanding of submarine slope system has been driven partly by the discovery of large hydrocarbon fields in morphologically complex slope settings, such as the Gulf of Mexico and offshore West Africa, and has led to detailed case studies and improved generic models for their evolution. This volume brings together research papers from modern, outcrop and subsurface settings to highlight these recent advances in understanding of the stratigraphic evolution of submarine slope systems.

Description / Table of Contents: The Neuquén Basin of northern Patagonia provides an excellent case study in basin analysis and sequence stratigraphy. The basin is one of the largest petroleum provinces in South America and includes a dramatic record of relative sea-level changes as well as a unique and globally important palaeontological record. Understanding this region is also central to unravelling the history of the Andes. The latest developments in the study of the area have been combined in this volume to give an integrated series of case studies that document the structural, igneous, sedimentological and palaeontological history of the region from the Triassic to the Recent. This publication provides an introduction into this fascinating region as well as a resource that includes the most complete and up-to-date studies of the area.

Description / Table of Contents: The Early-Middle Pleistocene transition (around 1.2 to 0.5 Ma) marks a profound shift in Earth’s climate state. Low-amplitude 41 ka climate cycles, dominating the earlier part of the Pleistocene, gave way progressively to a 100 ka rhythm of increased amplitude that characterizes our present glacial—interglacial world. This volume assesses the biotic and physical response to this transition both on land and in the oceans: indeed it examines the very nature of Quaternary climate change. Milankovitch theory, palaeoceanography using isotopes and microfossils, marine organic geochemistry, tephrochronology, the record of loess and soil deposition, terrestrial vegetationa! change, and the migration and evolution of hominins as well as other large and small mammals, are all considered. These themes combine to explore the very origins of our present biota.

Description / Table of Contents: Statistical Seismology aims to bridge the gap between physics-based and statistics-based models. This volume provides a combination of reviews, methodological studies, and applications, which point to promising efforts in this field. The volume will be useful to students and professional researchers alike, who are interested in using stochastic modeling for probing the nature of earthquake phenomena, as well as an essential ingredient for earthquake forecasting.

Description / Table of Contents: Understanding how fluids flow through though rocks is very important in a number of fields. Almost all of the world's oil and gas are produced from underground reservoirs. Knowledge of how they got where they are, what keeps them there and how they migrate through the rock is very important in the search for new resources, as well as for maximising the extraction of as much of the contained oil/gas as possible. Similar understanding is important for managing groundwater resources and for predicting how hazardous or radioactive waste or carbon dioxide will behave if stored or disposed of underground. Unravelling the complex behaviour of fluids as they flow through rock is difficult, but important. We cannot see through rock, so we need to predict how and where fluids flow. Understanding the type of rock, its porosity, the character and pattern of fractures within it and how fluids flows through it are important. Some contributors to this volume have been trying to understand real rocks in real situations and others have been working on computer models and laboratory simulations. Put together, these approaches have yielded very useful results, many of which are discussed in this volume.

Description / Table of Contents: The sustainable development of minerals, whick are non-renewable resources, is a major challenge in today's world. In this regard the true definition of sustainability' is a debating point itself: can such a concept exist with respect to non-renewable resources? Perhaps the ideal sustainability model is one that minimizes negative environmental impact and maximizes benefits to society, the economy and regional/national development. Developed and near-developed economies rely for commodity supplies on developing countries where major mining operations are often a mainstay of the domestic economy. Limited environmental regulation and low wages lead to charges of exploitation. also, large numbers of people have no alternative to living ny informal, often dangerous, 'artisanal' mining. This Special Publication gives examples from developing countries at all scales of mineral extraction. The volume reviews environmental, economic, health and social problems and highlights the need to solve these before sustainability can be achieved. The better solutions require mutual understanding, through full involvement of all stakeholders, education, training and investment so that small-scale ansd artisinal mines can grow into well-managed operations. At larger scales, most major interantional mining companies have now inoproved their practices and are monitoring their [rogress, although there is no room for complacency in this rapidly changing are.

Description / Table of Contents: Mineral deposits are not only primary sources of wealth generation, but also act as windows through which to view the evolution and interrelationships of the Earth system. Deposits formed throughout the last 3.8 billion years of the Earth’s history preserve key evidence with which to test fundamental questions about the evolution of the Earth. These include: the nature of early magmatic and tectonic processes, supercontinent reconstructions, the state of the atmosphere and hydrosphere with time, and the emergence and development of life. The interlinking processes that form mineral deposits have always sat at the heart of the Earth system and the potential for using deposits as tools to understand that evolving system over geological time is increasingly recognized. This volume contains research aimed both at understanding the origins of mineral deposits and at using mineral deposits as tools to explore different long-term Earth processes.

Description / Table of Contents: Boreholes are commonly drilled into crystalline rocks to evaluate their suitability for various applications such as waste disposal (including nuclear waste), geothermal energy, hydrology, sequestration of greenhouse gases and for fault analysis. Crystalline rocks include igneous, metamorphic and even some sedimentary rocks. The quantification and understanding of individual rock masses requires extensive modelling and an analysis of various physical and chemical parameters. This volume covers the following aspects of the petrophysical properties of crystalline rocks: fracturing and deformation, oceanic basement studies, permeability and hydrology, and laboratorybased studies. With the growing demands for sustainable and environmentally effective development of the subsurface, the petrophysics of crystalline rocks is becoming an increasingly important field.

Description / Table of Contents: As geomicrobiologists, we seek to understand how some of nature's most complex systems work, yet the very complexity we seek to understand has placed many of the insights out of reach. Recent advances in cultivation methodologies, the development of ultrahigh throughput DNA sequencing capabilities, and new methods to assay gene expression and protein function open the way for rapid progress. In the eight years since the first Geomicrobiology volume (Geomicrobiology: Interactions between microbes and minerals; volume 35 in this series) we have transformed into scientists working hand in hand with biochemists, molecular biologists, genome scientists, analytical chemists, and even physicists to reveal the most fundamental molecular-scale underpinnings of biogeochemical systems. Through synthesis achieved by integration of diverse perspectives, skills, and interests, we have begun to learn how organisms mediate chemical transformations, the ways in which the environment determines the architecture of microbial communities, and the interplay between evolution and selection that shapes the biodiversity of the planet. This volume presents chapters written by leaders in the rapidly maturing field we refer to as molecular geomicrobiology. Most of them are relatively young researchers who share their approaches and insights and provide pointers to exciting areas ripe for new advances. This volume ties together themes common to environmental microbiology, earth science, and astrobiology. The resesarch presented here, the associated short course, and the volume production were supported by funding from many sources, notably the Mineralogical Society of America, the Geochemical Society, the US Department of Energy Chemical Sciences Program and the NASA Astrobiology Institute.

Description / Table of Contents: This collection of research and review papers addresses the question of structural evolution during deformation to high strains and the physical properties of rocks that have been affected by high-strain zones. The discussions range from natural examples at outcrop to microscopic studies. They include experiments and numerical models based on the active processes in high-strain zones as well as studies on the physical properties of highly strained rocks in the field and laboratory. Specific questions addressed include magnetotelturic imaging of faults, magnetic fabrics, fabric development, seismic properties of highly strained rocks, change of theology with strain, influence of melt on the localization of deformation, the relationship between deformation and metamorphism as well as new methods in the analysis of deformation. The book is aimed at an interdisciplinary group of readers interested in the effects of high strain in rocks.

Description / Table of Contents: The introduction of the term periglacial by Łoziński in 1909 to describe the cold-climate conditions in the zone adjacent to, but beyond, the Pleistocene glaciers encouraged the separate development of geocryological and glaciological research. Geological and geomorphological processes at the interface between glaciers and permafrost have, as a result, been given less attention than they warrant, and the influence of one on the other has in many respects been neglected. This book includes a collection of papers that emphasize glacier-permafrost interactions. Papers consider permafrost and its influence on glacitectonic processes, glacial meltwater systems and ground-ice development in proglacial and ice-marginal environments. In addition, recent research findings are reported on paraglacial processes, permafrost evolution, rock glaciers, the formation of ice-wedge casts and periglacial slope evolution. It is hoped that this book will stimulate interest in the interface between glacial and periglacial systems, and encourage further collaborative research involving glaciologists and glacial geologists on the one hand, and geocryologists and permafrost scientists on the other.

Description / Table of Contents: Often regarded as the ‘Cinderella’ of palaeontological studies, palaeobotany has a history that contains some fascinating insights into scientific endeavour, especially by palaeontologists who were perusing a personal interest rather than a career. The problems of maintaining research facilities in universities, especially in the modern era, are described and reveal a noticeable absence of a national UK strategy to preserve centres of excellence in an avowedly specialist area. Accounts of some of the pioneers demonstrate the importance of collaboration between taxonomists and illustrators. The importance of palaeobotany in the rise of geoconservation is outlined, as well as the significant and influential role of women in the discipline. Although this volume has a predominantly UK focus, two very interesting studies outline the history of palaeobotanical work in Argentina and China.

Description / Table of Contents: In Materials Science, investigations aiming to prepare new types of molecular sieves (porous materials) have opened a productive field of research inspired by the crystal structures of minerals. These new molecular sieves are distinct from zeolites in that they have different kinds of polyhedra that build up their structures. Of particular interest are the new molecular sieves characterized by a mixed "octahedral"-tetrahedral framework (heteropolyhedral frameworks), instead of a purely tetrahedral framework as in zeolites. Heteropolyhedral compounds have been extensively studied since the early 1990's, with particular attention having been focused on titanosilicates, such as ETS-4 (synthetic analog of the mineral zorite) and ETS-10. However, titanosilicates are not the only representatives of novel microporous mineral phases. The search for "octahedral"-tetrahedral silicates was extended to metals other than titanium, for instance, the zirconosilicates with the preparation of synthetic counterparts of the minerals gaidonnayite, petarasite and umbite. Many microporous heteropolyhedral compounds containing metals such as Nb, V, Sn, Ca and lanthanides, have been reported and a wide number of distinct structural types (e.g., rhodesite-delhayelite and tobermorite) have been synthesized and structurally characterized. Moreover, the potential applications of these novel materials have been evaluated, particularly in the areas of catalysis, separation of molecular species, ion exchange and optical and magnetic properties. A comprehensive review of the mineralogical, structural, chemical and crystal-chemical studies carried on natural phases may be extremely useful to inspire and favor investigations on analogs or related synthetic materials. A similar synergy between mineralogists and materials scientists already occurred in the "classical" case of zeolites, in which the wide and deep structural and crystal-chemical knowledge accumulated in the study of the natural phases was extraordinarily useful to the chemists who are active in the field of molecular sieves. In particular, the structural investigation of the natural phases may be extremely rewarding and helpful in orienting the work of synthesis and in understanding the nature of the synthetic products, for the following reasons: Whereas rarely the crystalline synthetic products are suitable for single-crystal structural investigations, the natural counterparts are often well crystallized. Crystallization in nature occurs from chemical systems characterized by a wide compositional range, thus producing compounds with a very rich and variable crystal chemistry, which may provide precious information, suggesting possible substituting elements and addressing the synthetic work in a very productive way. The present volume follows a meeting on "Micro- and mesoporous mineral phases" (Rome, December 6-7, 2004) that was jointly organized by the Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei (ANL) and the International Union of Crystallography (IUCr) via its Commission on Inorganic and Mineral Structures (CIMS). The meeting was convened by Fausto Calderazzo, Giovanni Ferraris, Stefano Merlino and Annibale Mottana and financially supported by several other organizations representing both Mineralogy (e.g., the International Mineralogical Association and the European Mineralogical Union) and Crystallography (e.g., the European Crystallographic Association and the Italian Association of Crystallography). To participants, ANL staff, organizations, and, in general, all involved persons, our sincere acknowledgments; in particular, we are grateful to Annibale Mottana who was able to convince the ANL Academicians to schedule and support the meeting. This volume of the RiMG series highlights the present knowledge on micro- and mesoporous mineral phases, with focus on their crystal-chemical aspects, occurrence and porous activity in nature and experiments. As zeolites are the matter of numerous ad hoc meetings and books - including two volumes in this series - they do not specifically appear in the present volume. The phases of the sodalite and cancrinite-davyne groups, which mineralogists consider distinct from zeolites, are instead considered (in the order, chapter 7 by W. Depmeier and part of chapter 8 by E. Bonaccorsi and S. Merlino, respectively). The first two chapters of the volume cover general aspects of porous materials. This includes the application of the IUPAC nomenclature developed for ordered porous materials to non-zeolite mineral phases (L.B. McCusker, chapter 1) and the extension to heteropolyhedral structures of a topological description by using nodes representing the coordination polyhedra (S.V. Krivovichev, chapter 2). Chapters from 3 to 7 are dedicated to various groups of heteropolyhedral porous structures for which the authors emphasize some of the more general aspects according to their research specialization. G. Ferraris and A. Gula (chapter 3) put the emphasis on the modular aspects of well-known porous phases (such as sepiolite, palygorskite and rhodesite-related structures) as well as on heterophyllosilicates that may be not strictly porous phases (according to the definition given in chapter 1) but could be the starting basis for pillared materials. The porous mineral phases typical of hyperalkaline rocks (such as eudialytes and labuntsovites) are discussed by N.V. Chukanov and I.V. Pekov under their crystal-chemical (chapter 4) and minerogenetic (chapter 5) aspects showing the role of ion exchange during the geological evolution from primary to later phases, with experimental cation exchange data also being reported. J. Rocha and Z. Lin (chapter 6) emphasize how research on the synthesis of octahedral-pentahedral-tetrahedral framework silicates has been inspired and motivated by the many examples of such materials provided by nature; synthesis, structure and possible technological applications of a wide number of these materials are also described. Following chapters 7 and 8 - which besides the cancrinite-davyne group, presents the crystallographic features of the minerals in the tobermorite and gyrolite groups - M. Pasero (chapter 9) illustrates the topological and polysomatic aspects of the "tunnel oxides," a historical name applied to porous oxides related to MnO2, and reviews their main technological applications. The next two chapters (10 and 11) draw attention to "unexpected" porous materials like apatite and sulfides. T.J. White and his team (chapter 10) convincingly show that the apatite structure type displays porous properties, some of which are already exploited. Chapter 10 also contains two appendices that report crystal and synthesis data for hundreds of synthetic apatites, a number that demonstrates how wide the interest is for this class of compounds. E. Makovicky (chapter 11) analyzes the structures of natural and synthetic sulfides and selenides showing that, even if experimental work proving porous activity is practically still missing, several structure types display promising channels. Chapter 12, by M. Mellini, is the only one dedicated to mesoporous mineral phases - which are crystalline compounds with pores wider than 2 nm. Examples discussed are carbon nanotubes, fullerenes - which occur also in nature - chrysotile, opal and, moving from channels to cages, clathrates.

Description / Table of Contents: The publication of this volume occurs at the one-hundredth anniversary of 1905, which has been called the annus mirabilus because it was the year of a number of enormous scientific advances. Among them are four papers by Albert Einstein explaining (among other things) Brownian motion, the photoelectric effect, the special theory of relativity, and the equation E = mc2. Also of significance in 1905 was the first application of another major advance in physics, which dramatically changed the fields of Earth and planetary science. In March of 1905 (and published the following year), Ernest Rutherford presented the following in the Silliman Lectures at Yale: "The helium observed in the radioactive minerals is almost certainly due to its production from the radium and other radioactive substances contained therein. If the rate of production of helium from known weights of the different radioelements were experimentally known, it should thus be possible to determine the interval required for the production of the amount of helium observed in radioactive minerals, or, in other words, to determine the age of the mineral." Rutherford E (1906) Radioactive Transformations. Charles Scriber's Sons, NY Thus radioisotopic geochronology was born, almost immediately shattering centuries of speculative conjectures and estimates and laying the foundation for establishment of the geologic timescale, the age of the Earth and meteorites, and a quantitative understanding of the rates of processes ranging from nebular condensation to Quaternary glaciations. There is an important subplot to the historical development of radioisotopic dating over the last hundred years, which, ironically, arises directly from the subsequent history of the U-He dating method Rutherford described in 1905. Almost as soon as radioisotopic dating was invented, it was recognized that the U-He [or later the (U-Th)/He method], provided ages that were often far younger than those allowed by stratigraphic correlations or other techniques such as U/Pb dating. Clearly, as R.J. Strutt noted in 1910, He ages only provided "minimum values, because helium leaks out from the mineral, to what extent it is impossible to say" (Strutt, 1910, Proc Roy Soc Lond, Ser A 84:379-388). For several decades most attention was diverted to U/Pb and other techniques better suited to measurement of crystallization ages and establishment of the geologic timescale. Gradually it became clear that other radioisotopic systems such as K/Ar and later fission-track also provided ages that were clearly younger than formation ages. In 1910 it may have been impossible to say the extent to which He (or most other elements) leaked out of minerals, but eventually a growing understanding of thermally-activated diffusion and annealing began to shed light on the significance of such ages. The recognition that some systems can provide cooling, rather than formation, ages, was gradual and diachronous across radioisotopic systems. Most of the heavy lifting in this regard was accomplished by researchers working on the interpretation of K/Ar and fission-track ages. Ironically, Rutherford¹s He-based radioisotopic system was one of the last to be quantitatively interpreted as a thermochronometer, and has been added to K/Ar (including 40Ar/39Ar) and fission-track methods as important for constraining the medium- to low-temperature thermal histories of rocks and minerals. Thermochronology has had a slow and sometimes fitful maturation from what were once troubling age discrepancies and poorly-understood open-system behaviors, into a powerful branch of geochronology applied by Earth scientists from diverse fields. Cooling ages, coupled with quantitative understanding of crystal-scale kinetic phenomena and crustal- or landscape-scale interpretational models now provide an enormous range of insights into tectonics, geomorphology, and subjects of other fields. At the same time, blossoming of lower temperature thermochronometric approaches has inspired new perspectives into the detailed behavior of higher temperature systems that previously may have been primarily used for establishing formation ages. Increased recognition of the importance of thermal histories, combined with improved analytical precision, has motivated progress in understanding the thermochronologic behavior of U/Pb, Sm/Nd, Lu/Hf, and other systems in a wide range of minerals, filling out the temperature range accessible by thermochronologic approaches. Thus the maturation of low- and medium-temperature thermochronology has led to a fuller understanding of the significance of radioisotopic ages in general, and to one degree or another has permeated most of geochronology. Except in rare cases, the goal of thermochronology is not thermal histories themselves, but rather the geologic processes responsible for them. Thermochronometers are now routinely used for quantifying exhumation histories (tectonic or erosional), magmatism, or landscape evolution. As thermochronology has matured, so have model and interpretational approaches used to convert thermal histories into these more useful geologic histories. Low-temperature thermochronology has been especially important in this regard, as knowledge of thermal processes in the uppermost few kilometers of the crust require consideration of coupled interactions of tectonic, geodynamic, and surface processes. Exciting new developments in these fields in turn drive improved thermochronologic methods and innovative sampling approaches.

Description / Table of Contents: More then 20 years of collaboration between European soil scientists has resulted in the publication by the European Commission of the first ever "Soil Atlas of Europe". Based on soil data and information collected within the European Soil Information System (EUSIS) developed by the Joint Research Centre, the atlas illustrates in 128 pages of maps, tables, figures and graphs, the richness of European soil resources and the need for their sustainable management. The Atlas compiles existing information on different soil types in easily understandable maps covering the entire European Union and bordering countries.

Description / Table of Contents: The 16th ICSMGE held at Osaka, Japan in 2005 responds to the needs of the engineering and construction community, promoting dialog and exchange between academia and practice in various aspects of soil mechanics and geotechnical engineering. This is reflected in the central theme of the conference "Geotechnology in Harmony with the Global Environment". The proceedings of the conference are of great interest for geo-engineers and researchers in soil mechanics and geotechnical engineering. Volume 1 contains 5 plenary session lectures, the Terzaghi Oration, Heritage Lecture, and 3 papers presented in the major project session. Volumes 2, 3, and 4 contain papers with the following topics: Soil mechanics in general; Infrastructure and mobility; Environmental issues of geotechnical engineering; Enhancing natural disaster reduction systems; Professional practice and education. Volume 5 contains the report of practitioner/academic forum, 20 general reports, a summary of the sessions and workshops held during the conference.