Chronicling one of the great scientific adventures of our time, the eminent geochemist Claude Allègre offers a fascinating glimpse into the sophisticated isotopic detective work that has established a geologic chronology of the earth and transformed our understanding of its genesis and history. From the fossil collecting methods of eighteenth--century geologists to the development of high resolution mass spectronomy, this book provides an engaging introduction to the history, methods, and theories of modern geology.

Claude Allègre is Professor of Earth Sciences, Universitè de Paris, and a 1986 recipient of the Crafoord Prize awarded by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.

Other HUP Books by Claude Allègre

• The Behavior of the Earth: Continental and Seafloor Mobility