Time Machines: Scientific Explorations in Deep Time [Hardcover]

Peter D. Ward (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 22, 1998 | ISBN-10: 038798416X | ISBN-13: 978-0387984162 | Edition: 1

What is the past? It is a time as well as a place. Acclaimed author Peter D. Ward describes the tools that contemporary scientists use to uncover facts about the past - terrain, climate, and the life forms that once inhabited this planet. Time Machines presents fascinating profiles of the deep past and the scientists who are making it come alive.
"...for the general reader, Time Machines may be the most interesting book yet by the University of Washington prof..." -SEATTLE WEEKLY
"For anyone interested in how and why as well as the what of paleontology, Time Machines is a must read."-AMERICAN SCIENTIST

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This fascinating, unique book examines aspects of geology in a different way than most of the standard scientific books in geology, or paleontology in particular. It is a suspenseful, story-telling book, but still clearly conveys the scientific facts. It examines many new aspects of geology in a simple, clear, appealing, and amusing way...Any graduate or undergraduate student in geology would enjoy reading this book because it evolves through the many explanations of a segment of the life history of our planet. The author has written his book in an interesting, entertaining, and educational way that provides the reader with accurate scientific conclusions while re-engineering the standard presentation of standard geology or paleontology books. Teachers and professors who teach an introductory geology course will greatly enjoy and benefit from this well-written book." -- Fouad Michael-AAPG Bulletin, V.83, No. 11 (November 1999)

"for the general reader, Time Machines may be the most interesting book yet by the University of Washington prof" -- Seattle Weekly

For anyone interested in how and why as well as the what of paleontology, Time Machines is a must read. -- American Scientist

This is William Blake's world in a grain of sand, and Ward shows how science both feeds, and is fed by, the human imagination. The effect is exhilarating. -- New Scientist, Ted Nield

About the Author

Peter D. Ward is Professor of Geological Sciences and Professor of Zoology at the University of Washington in Seattle. He is the author of The Call of Distant Mammoths, The End of Evolution, On Methuselah's Trail, and, with Donald Brownlee, Rare Earth.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 260 pages
• Publisher: Springer; 1 edition (September 22, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 038798416X
• ISBN-13: 978-0387984162
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.4 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,081,416 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another great book from Peter Ward, February 8, 2000

By 

Frank Deis (Highland Park, NJ USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Time Machines: Scientific Explorations in Deep Time (Hardcover)

I thoroughly enjoyed reading "Time Machines." The title is Ward's way of describing the tools that paleontologists use to learn about "deep time" -- things like isotopic ratios, paleomagnetism, sedimentology, cladistics, etc. You might think that a description of these would read like a dry textbook, but of course Ward mixes in stories of adventure in the field, and interesting controversies among scientists, and reconstructions of ancient ecosystems so it comes across as a very stimulating and satisfying mix. If you enjoyed "On Methuselah's Trail" I'm sure you will enjoy "Time Machines." The two books dovetail interestingly -- for example in "On Methuselah's Trail" Ward describes an encounter with an angry Basque who points to holes drilled in the rocks near Zumaya in northern Spain. We don't learn why he drilled the holes in "Methuselah" but in "Time Machines" we learn that he was trying to study paleomagnetism, and why. The fact that it didn't work in this instance just becomes part of Ward's compelling story. It's hard to praise Ward enough -- so many books about paleontology are boring or wordy or overly self-serving. Ward's books are full of information, but downright tasty!