And just what is geology -- Cosmology and the birth of the earth -- Journey to the center of the earth -- Drifting continents and spreading seas -- the way the earth works : plate tectonics -- Patterns in nature : minerals -- Introducing rocks -- Up from the inferno : magma and igneous rocks -- A surface veneer : sediments and soils -- Pages of the earth's past : sedimentary rocks -- Metamorphism : a process of change -- The rock cycle in the earth system -- The wrath of Vulcan : volcanic eruptions -- A violent pulse : earthquakes -- The earth's interior, refisited : seismic layering, gravity, and the magnetic field -- Crags, cracks and crumples : geologic structures and mountain guilding -- Memories of past life : fossils and evolution -- Deep time : how old is old" -- A biography of the earth -- Squeezing power from a stond : energy resources -- Riches in rock : mineral resources -- Ever-changing landscapes and the hydrologic cycle -- Unsafe ground : landslides and other mass wasting -- Streams and floods : the geology of running water -- Restless realm : oceans and coasts -- A hidden reserve : groundwater -- An envelope of gas : the earth's atmosphere and climate -- Dry regions : the geology of deserts -- Amazing ice : glaciers and ice ages -- Global change in the earth system.