Williams opines that Exploring Geoscience Across the Globe by Chris King is a recently published online textbook (2019) that can be freely downloaded from the IGEO website at:
http://www.igeoscied.org/teaching-resources/geoscience-text-books/ .
The textbook, published with the approval of the International Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS) and the European Geosciences Union (EGU), is focused on the International Geoscience Syllabus which covers all that an able 16 to 17-year-old student should know and understand about Earth science on leaving an American high school. This syllabus is published at:
http://www.i2mconsultants.com/downloads/corp/International_Geoscience_Syllabus_Jan_2014.pdf and is also included as an appendix to the book.
Chris King, an internationally renowned geoscience educator, teaches geoscientific methods, knowledge and understanding with great enthusiasm. This book, a testament to Chris’ skills as a teacher and writer, is presented in an interesting, clear, easily understandable and engaging style. An effort has been made to make the book as jargon-free as possible. The publication includes a glossary of terms used and it is helpful that each of these terms is shown in bold near where it first appears and is defined in the text. The publication is greatly enhanced by the inclusion of a wide range of supporting photographs, diagrams, maps, graphs and tables.
The book stresses that geoscience is the scientific study of our whole planet and so it not only covers most branches of geology such as geochemistry, geophysics, paleontology, hydrogeology, petrology, plate tectonics and engineering geology but it also includes elements of meteorology, oceanography, environmental science, soil science and planetary geology. Exploring Geoscience Across the Globe was produced to support teachers across the world in teaching the International Geoscience Syllabus and in recognition of the fact that in many countries, geoscience textbooks available for teachers in schools are often inadequate, and in other countries are non-existent. It is pleasing to note that material additional to the syllabus is also included in the book. This material, presented in more than 60 ‘interest boxes’, provides interesting details and introduces various case studies.
The order of the seven chapters in the book directly reflects the International Geoscience Syllabus. There are seven chapters dealing with: Earth as a Changing System; Earth as a System within the Solar System (within the Universe); Earth as a System which has Changed Over Time; Earth’s System as Interacting Spheres; Earth’s System producing Resources; Human/Earth System Interactions; and Earth’s System Explored through Fieldwork and Practical Work.
Chapter I looks at the whole Earth system and deals with the water cycle, the rock cycle and the carbon cycle. This chapter makes clear the differences between processes and products and explains the meanings of terms like fluxes, stores and residence times. It also makes clear the energy sources involved and explains how sunlight, which provides the energy for photosynthesis, is the original source of most of the energy that drives the water cycle and the surface processes of the rock cycle.
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