This book is a geological history of Britain from over 2,000 million years ago to the present day and describes the enormous variety of rocks, minerals and fossils that form this fascinating island. An introductory chapter covers the fundamental principles of geology. Further chapters describe the rocks, minerals and fossils of the recognised periods of geological time, and the areas where they are found today. This book is written for the lay person interested in the great variety of Britain's rocks and landscapes but also includes a wealth of information for students at all levels.

Forensic geology is the application of geology to aid the investigation of crime. A Guide to Forensic Geology was written by the International Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS), Initiative on Forensic Geology (IFG), which was established to promote and develop forensic geology around the world. This book presents the first practical guide for forensic geologists in search and geological trace evidence analysis. Guidance is provided on using geological methods during search operations. This developed following international case work experiences and research over the last 25 years for homicide graves, burials associated with serious and organised crime and counter terrorism. With expertise gained in over 300 serious crime investigations, the guidance also considers geological trace evidence, including the examination of crime scenes, geological evidence recovery and analysis from exhibits and the reporting of results. The book also considers the judicial system, reporting and requirements for presenting evidence in court. Included are emerging applications of geology to police and law enforcement: illegal and illicit mining, conflict minerals, substitution, adulteration, fraud and fakery.

From the White Cliffs of Dover to The Old Man of Hoy, from the Giant's Causeway to the peaks of Snowdonia, some of the world's most striking and varied landforms are found in Britain and Ireland. Award winning landscape photographer Fran Halsall has chosen one hundred places which tell the story of how these Isles were made. Arranged in order of their formation, from the three billion year old summits of Scotland's far north west, to Chesil Beach's shingle shore, astounding images and accessible text tell of volcanic eruptions, the collision of continents and aeons of deposits, erosions and upheavals, as well as the ways in which the landscapes of the British Isles have defined and been defined by countless generations.

It is not as widely known as it should be that Britain has the most varied geology of any country in the world. This book is a celebration in words and pictures of what its mountains are made of, and how they got there. This in turn determines what they're like to climb, scramble on, or walk over. Why is Skiddaw slate so slippery? How do tors form? Why is gritstone so difficult? Why is Lakeland so picturesque, and the granite lands so grim and forbidding? Geology is destiny, whether it's the rubbishy nature of gullies and screes, the sculpting of valleys by ice or the landslip weirdness of Quiraing on the Isle of Skye. British mountains contain many interesting and different ingredients: gneiss and granite and gabbro; limestone and sandstone; schist and slate; the product and the debris of tectonic shifts, volcanoes, earthquakes and glaciers over many millennia. This book explains all this to the layman, from an expert but personal perspective, and will add immeasurably to the fun and satisfaction to be gained from any day in the hills.