Milestones in Geosciences

Since the early decades of the last century, some eminent European scientists have contributed to the creation of a new perspective of our planet Earth. Some outstanding scientific articles were published in the journal Geologische Rundschau (now International Journal of Earth Sciences), mostly in German. These milestones of geoscientific research are available in English for the first time and are presented in this volume. Famous authors include for example Alfred Wegener, a pioneer of modern geology, Gustav Steinmann, Alexander Du Toit, Wolfgang Schott, Hans Cloos and Carl W. Correns. The reader will find a wealth of information about how new insights in specific fields have influenced the development of geoscientific research.

From the reviews:

 "Milestones in Geosciences"

Selected Benchmark Papers published in the journal ‘Geologische Rundschau’

Wolfgang Dullo, Geologische Vereinigung (ed), Springer 2003, 145 pg

Established in 1910, the ‘Geologische Rundschau’ was the premier journal of German geology published by the ‘Geologische Vereinigung’. In 1999 it continued as the ‘International Journal of Earth Sciences’.

"Milestones in Geosciences" contains the first full translations of twelve papers published between 1910 and 1958. The German texts were selected because of their continuing significance for today’s geosciences. They capture breakthroughs in research and innovative thinking, often in conflict with the established theories of the time.

Some of the ‘classics’ of German geology to be found include: Alfred Wegener’s ‘The origin of continents’ which presented arguments for continental drift in 1912; H. Cloos’ paper ‘On experimental tectonics’ a description of faulting and fault geometries using scaled clay models (1931); Palaeogeography and sedimentation of salt basins are unravelled by Arrhenius and Lachmann (1913); G. Steinmann investigates the significance of ancient deep sea deposits as early as 1926, drawing on observations in the Alps and Apennines. A. L. du Toit (1941), supporting the theory of Wegener, presents further evidence for rifting and the ‘Mid – Atlantic Rise’. ‘Fluid inclusions with gas bubbles as geothermometers’ was written in 1952 by W. Correns; Two articles (E. Wiechert 1928, Gutenberg 1929) outline the status of seismic technology and understanding of the earth’s crust; Other topics covered are ‘metamorphosis’ of coals (M. & R. Teichmüller, 1953), geochronology using varves (G. de Geer, 1910) and stratigraphy of deep sea sediments (W. Schott, 1939)

Each paper provides a snapshot of the geologic discussion of the time, and the book allows the reader to follow the development of ideas and concepts over a fifty year timeframe. It succeeds in preserving some of the geological heritage of interest to the international science community.

Following each translation, the original papers are reprinted. In particular the early German texts reflect a time when authors were determined not only to produce scientific papers but works of literature! The translators have to be commended for their great efforts to preserve the original content and yet create a readable modern text. One slightly irritating feature is the quoting of the ‘translation received’ date for each article, but the omission of the much more relevant date of original publication.

In summary, anybody interested in the recent history of geoscience, the inception and gradual maturation of relevant ideas and concepts, will find this volume a real gem. The price of GBP 20 helps to make the reading an affordable pleasure.

Frank Jahn

Perth, October 2003

"Milestones in Geosciences contains the first full translations of 12 papers between 1910 and 1958. The papers were selected because of their continuing significance to today’s geosciences. They capture breakthroughs in research and innovative thinking ... . Each paper provides a snapshot of the geologic discussion of the time, and the book allows the reader to follow the development of ideas and concepts over a 50-year timeframe. ... Anybody interested in the recent history of geoscience ... will find this volume a real gem." (Frank Jahn, Geoscientist, Vol. 13 (11), 2003)

"The author made a selection of benchmarking contributions in diverging fields of the geological sciences. He focused on pioneering efforts to a deeper understanding of the evolution of the earth. ... ‘Milestones in Geosciences’ is a valuable contribution, especially to people, who are interested in the history of geological observation, data collecting and geological modelling." (Raoul Ottenburgs, Geologica Belgica, Vol. 6 (3-4), 2003)