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A Short History of Planet Earthby Ian PlimerEarth is completely different from any other planet in the Solar System. Earth has water. It is water that has supported life on Earth for 3,800 million years. It is water that has allowed the recycling of bits of planet Earth over the last 4.5 billion years to make the continent of Australia. This fascinating book is written for a non-scientific audience and shows how much we depend on the incredible range of evidence found in the study of rocks to piece the story together. University of Melbourne Professor of Geology Ian Plimer describes A Short History of Planet Earth as written for lay audiences and pitched at senior high school level. "It documents the big history of planet Earth," he says. "I paint a picture of the Earth on a big canvas in vivid colours. By reading the rocks I describe visitors from space such as comets and meteorites, the first life on Earth, evolution and extinction of life, mass genocide, sea level changes, climate changes and the principal driving forces for climate changes Ð such as solar flaring, sunspots, supernovae, meteorites, comets, mountain building, erosion, weathering, volcanoes, continental drift, impacts, ocean currents, tides, ice armadas, life and orbital wobbles. "On the basis of science, I challenge the popular notion that there is global warming and that post Industrial Revolution temperature changes are due to carbon dioxide emissions. I argue that we humans do not rule the world; it is bacteria who occupy the largest biomass on Earth and have been doing what bacteria do for nearly 4000 million years." A Short History of Planet Earth is available from ABC Books. order this book direct from ABC shop this page last updated 1 August 2001
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