358 JOURNAL OF QUATERNARY SCIENCE
lichenometry, manage to extend the time-scale from contem-
porary processes over a longer time period. This is a useful
approach because it reveals the discrepancy between
present-day process rates and those of the Holocene. The
combined effect of these limitations results in a rather broken
picture of the Quaternary evolution of steepland environ-
ments. However, such criticism may be premature given
that interest in steepland sediment systems is increasing. This
is particularly true of studies that attempt to use geomor-
phology as a basis for hazard evaluation. The lack of such
studies in this volume is somewhat surprising.
Overall the quality of the book is what you would expect
from a ‘Wiley’ production. The book has many useful and
clear illustrations, although cartographic style and quality do
vary from contribution to contribution. There are no major
errors in the text and there is a useful 4. page index. Most
references are pre-1993, which means the book is somewhat
dated and some parts of the contributions are now published
elsewhere. At £80.00 ‘Steepland Geomorphology’ is beyond
the budget of most individuals, however, given the wide
scope and varied content of the book it will nevertheless
be a useful addition to many libraries.
JEFF WARBURTON
Department of Geography
University of Durham
Durham
England
Dangerous Earth: an
introduction to geological
hazards
BARBARA W. MURCK, BRIAN J. SKINNER and
STEPHEN C. PORTER
Publisher John Wiley & Sons Inc., New York, 1997
(300 pp) US$65.25 ISBN 0-471-13565-8
When I first picked up my review copy of Dangerous Earth
I was immediately struck by a sense of dejavu. Yes, I had
seen the beautifully produced figures and text somewhere
before. It was a year earlier, in the textbook Environmental
Geology by Murck, Skinner and Porter. In both Dangerous
Earth and Environmental Geology, Parts I and II (pages 11
to 273) are identical in every way. The authors do not hide
the fact that Dangerous Earth is a result of their earlier text.
They state in their acknowledgements that it is built on the
foundations of their environment geology textbook. This is
somewhat misleading as the publishers have simply repro-
duced the first half of Environmental Geology, omitting Parts
III and IV, and have added a new introduction (seven pages
long), a short preface and a very useful section on world-
wide web links (two pages long). I am sure the motive
behind this new book was to produce a much needed
textbook for courses on geological hazards without bur-
dening the students with extra knowledge of environmental
geology that is presented in the first textbook. In the future,
 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
particularly with the aid of the superhighway, I predict that
publishers will allow instructors to select chapters from good
textbooks to produce tailor-made textbooks for their specific
courses. Dynamic Earth is probably an early attempt at such
a textbook. Given the above, I hope that students, academ-
ics, and libraries with limited resources who have already
purchased Environmental Geology will not make the mistake
of buying Dangerous Earth with the hope of learning more
and building on the first textbook.
A list of reviewers on page six of Dangerous Earth shows
that the publishers inquired within the academic community
about the idea of producing a hazard text from Environmen-
tal Geology. I am sure that they must have received a
positive response, but I am also sure that any reviewer
would have pointed out small sections of the text that need
clarification. For example, the definition of a reverse fault
on page 71 needs clarification and the comparison of Richter
Magnitude and Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale in Table 3.1
needs much more explanation and justification. It is, there-
fore, a shame that the authors were not given, or did not
take the opportunity to, rewrite some sections of the old
textbook to make this new book even better than the original
Parts I and II of Environmental Geology.
If Dangerous Earth is evaluated without the knowledge
that it was originally published in Environmental Geology,
there is no doubt that this textbook is an excellent basic
introduction to geological hazards. I am sure that any student
using this textbook will be enthused and stimulated by the
exciting descriptions and illustrations of the dynamic and
dangerous nature of our planet. This book is clearly an
introductory text for lower level students in the USA, but it
will also provide a useful introduction to geology for students
embarking on earth science degrees in the UK. Instructors
will also find Dangerous Earth particularly useful because
Environmental Geology is accompanied by a set of slides
and transparencies, as well as CD-ROM, that will obviously
cover the contents of Dangerous Earth.
Part I of Dangerous Earth covers some of the fundamental
principles of geology that are required to understand the
geological hazards that are introduced in Part II. The hazard
chapters that comprise Part II include: earthquakes; volcanic
eruptions; tsunamis; landslides and mass wasting; subsid-
ence; floods; hazards of ocean and weather; and meteorite
impacts. The text is clearly written, with many subheadings,
and new terms are highlighted in bold. Boxed text provides
case studies showing the human perspective and specific
scientific aspects of the subject. Useful summaries, important
terms to remember, and useful questions and suggestions for
activities are provided at the end of each of the hazard
chapters.
Overall, Dangerous Earth is really pleasing to read and I
am convinced that this text will contribute to the growing
interest and the increasing numbers of students that are
studying the environmental aspects of earth science.
Reference
MURCK, B. W., SKINNER, B. J. and PORTER, S. C. 1996. Environ-
mental Geology. John Wiley & Sons Inc., New York.
LEWIS A. OWEN
Department of Earth Sciences
University of California
Riverside
California
USA
J. Quaternary Sci., Vol. 13(4) 357–360 (1998)