Visualizing Geology is a geology textbook that combines the geological expertise of co-authors Brian Skinner (Yale University) and Barbara Murck (University of Toronto) with my writing talents. This is part of Wiley’s Visualizing series of textbooks, which targets visual learners with image-rich exposition. This book was produced in collaboration with the National Geographic Society, and I can attest that a special treat in putting it together was the chance to browse through the National Geographic‘s vast archive of gorgeous images from around the world. Students will appreciate the fact that this is not standard textbook fare; some of the images are works of art. Other special features found in each chapter of Visualizing Geology are:
- Amazing Places, a mini-tour that takes the students to a unique location that exemplifies the themes of the chapter;
- What’s Happening in this Picture?, a puzzle that encourages students to combine their deductive skills with their geologic knowledge;
- Process Diagrams, which lead the students step by step through a geological process;
- Visualizing, multi-part diagrams that bring together several related processes;
- What a Geologist Sees, which shows how even common phenomena such as tilted strata, gemstones, or tides take on new meaning when you look at them through a geologist’s eyes.
Visualizing Geology: Barbara Murck, Brian Skinner, Dana Mackenzie (John Wiley & Sons). First edition: 2007; Second edition, 2009. Note that there is a third edition, but I was not involved in its production.
