Essentials of Geology

by Frederick K. Lutgens, Edward J. Tarbuck, Dennis G. Tasa (Illustrator)

For introductory physical geology courses. Using dynamic media to bring geology to life From the renowned Lutgens/Tarbuck/Tasa team, the 13th Edition of Essentials of Geology continues to elevate the text's readability, illustrations, and focus on basic principles. This revision incorporates a structured learning path and reliable, consistent framework for mastering the chapter concepts. With a fully integrated mobile media program that includes new Mobile Field Trip and Project Condor quadcopter videos as well as new animations and videos, this edition provides a unique, interactive, and engaging learning experience for readers. Also available with Mastering Geology Mastering(TM) Geology is an online homework, tutorial, and assessment program designed to work with this text to engage students and improve results. Interactive, self-paced tutorials provide individualized coaching to help students stay on track. With a wide range of activities available, students can actively learn, understand, and retain even the most difficult concepts.
Note: You are purchasing a standalone product; Mastering does not come packaged with this content. Students, if interested in purchasing this title with Mastering, ask your instructor for the correct package ISBN and Course ID. Instructors, contact your Pearson representative for more information.
If you would like to purchase both the physical text and Mastering, search for:
0134663772 / 9780134663777 Essentials of Geology Plus Mastering Geology with eText -- Access Card Package Package consists of: 0134446623 / 9780134446622 Essentials of Geology 0134609042 / 9780134609041 Mastering Geology with Pearson eText -- Standalone Access Card -- for Essentials of Geology

Genres: Science, Geology, Nonfiction, Textbooks, Reference, School, Earth Sciences

554 pages, Paperback

First published June 12, 2008

Reviews

[The Inquisitive Biologist · Rating 5 out of 5]

Can a biologist change his mind later in life? Essentials of Geology provides an excellent entry point into geology with lots of bonus material. See my full review at https://inquisitivebiologist.com/2019...

[Foxtower · Rating 4 out of 5]

Looking back I KNOW I read this thing... I know that everything in it has become part of my understanding and appreciation of the world. It's very comprehensive, easily understandable... and it's even got my notes in it. That I cant remember reading it must mean that you must beware, for after thirty years you too might lose your mind!

[Mohammed Al-milly · Rating 5 out of 5]

i think that i need this book to do my exam

[Maya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome introduction to the subject for the beginner who knows nothing about Geology.

[Sheldritch Horror · Rating 4 out of 5]

If I have to read this from cover to cover, I’m putting it on my goodreads, dammit.

[Paula Stiles · Rating 5 out of 5]

I gave this one 5 stars because it's so comprehensive. I was looking for something that took me beyond the layperson's level of geology into a grounding for more intensive study. This book accomplishes that.

I was, however, tempted to take off a star for the last 2 chapters, which are below the standard of the previous 18. Now I understand why our teacher in GEO 111 didn't bother assigning those two chapters. Chapter 19 would be fine if it were more coherent (what is the actual current status of the Hadean eon, for example? And why no mention of the Late Heavy Bombardment?) and had been updated sometime in the past 20 years. For an example--no, all the dinosaurs did not die out when the Chicxulub meteor hit. It has been mainstream theory for a while now that dinosaurs evolved away from other reptiles and that birds are taxonomically close enough to dinosaurs that they are essentially living theropod dinosaurs. Do some scientists still disagree? Sure, but it's quite mainstream enough a theory that Lutgens should have mentioned it.

Chapter 20 is even worse. It starts out well enough with a rundown of the main components of atmosphere and climate (yay) and how to measure them. But when it gets to climate change, Lutgens starts confusing natural and anthropogenic climate change without making it clear to the reader that natural climate change, quite extreme climate change, has been occurring since the Earth first formed an atmosphere, with anthropogenic change being only a recent addition. He talks around it, but he never comes out and *says* it, so a reader could easily believe that climate change, per se, didn't exist until humans came along.

There is also no discussion in the chapter about regional climate change, or how far-reaching and devastating its effects can be (frankly, I got more on that from my geography textbook), just global climate change. As with his simply ignoring avian dinosaur theory in the previous chapter, Lutgens doesn't mention thermohaline circulation in the chapter at all, let alone how its potential collapse in the Atlantic could trigger an ice age in the Northern Hemisphere. In fact, he's quite dismissive of natural self-corrective processes in climate for global warming, even though we know for a fact they exist and are quite powerful because our world used to be much warmer than today and...well...we're not Venus.

These lapses made me wonder if there were similar lapses in other chapters, though I don't think so. I've read enough geology over the years to be aware of all the big stuff (like what I described above). I just didn't know about all the technical stuff like what you call the parts of a glacier or how dunes form or mass wasting, which is not likely to be as controversial as dinosaurs or climate change. So, I'm going to give this book a general thumbs-up for the first 18 chapters.

[David Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent introduction to geology for the non-specialist. My education and training have nothing to do with geology, and so most of the information in this book was new to me. It introduces concepts slowly and methodically, building upon what was previously presented, although there are occasional bits of unevenness, where the authors go into too much or too little detail, or discuss a topic seemingly out of sequence. There is an incredible amount of photographs and illustrations to help the reader grasp the concepts quickly. The book covers an large range of topics, including not just geology proper, but others including the history of life on earth. Because of this, the book may seem a little too broad and shallow. Also, the writing level is rather basic, presumably so that it can be taught in even low-level college courses. Still, if you're new to this subject, this is an excellent read.

[Robert Muller · Rating 5 out of 5]

A beautifully written book that provides a well-thought-out, high-level introduction to the basics of geology. The pictures, charts, and associated videos are well chosen to aid in the student's understanding of the textual materials. The exercises, while basic, do focus the student on what's important in each section and chapter. Some of the earth science materials are a bit oversimplified, and students should be aware that there are many details left out, so following up on specific topics is necessary to get a full understanding.

[Dahlene · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got this as a digital book. It was really neat because every once in a while there was a video to watch. A lot of them were field trips. I thoroughly enjoyed this class. Though I'm sure most people won't read this book for leisure, I want a record of what I read this year.

[Nikki Montgomery · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the lot of nice pictures. Good information. I read it with my Intro to Geology Class.

[Wanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Essentials of Geology is a very thought provoking book about the basics of geology. After reading sections I always had more questions to discuss in class. Science should always keep you wanting to know more. The book is engaging and it helps the reader to understand general geology concepts with good explanations, plenty of picture examples, and graphs. I enjoyed this book very much.

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quick read, short and interesting chapters filled with tons of pictures. This is really more of a picture book than a textbook, but it didn't skimp on the details. Completely qualitative, almost no numbers whatsoever, which is a nice introduction to an interesting subject.

[Suzanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite a helpful book.

[Masonwabe G]

ok

[Linda Hayashi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Greatly prefer the Stephen Marshak text book from W.W. Norton with more detailed explanations and graphics. This Pearson textbook could be easier or better for readers with less interest in details.

[Lahela Goldschmitz · Rating 3 out of 5]

For a textbook it's pretty interesting. If you're into Geology then this is a pretty good textbook for ya.