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Bones, Rocks and Stars: The Science of When Things Happened | 
 enlarge | Author: Chris Turney
Publisher: Macmillan
Category: Book
List Price: $24.95
Buy New: $6.80
You Save: $18.15 (73%)
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Avg. Customer Rating:  6 reviews
Sales Rank: 315486
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 200
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.6
Dimensions (in): 7.9 x 5.3 x 0.7
ISBN: 1403985995
Dewey Decimal Number: 550
EAN: 9781403985996
ASIN: 1403985995
Publication Date: June 13, 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
Understanding how we pinpoint the past is crucial to putting the present in perspective and planning for the future. Now, for the first time, journalist and geologist Chris Turney explains to the non-specialist exactly how archaeologists, paleontologists, and geologists "tell the time". Each chapter explores one famous event or object from the past, walking readers step by step through the detective work used to determine when things happened. From the Ice Age to the pyramids, from human evolution to the Shroud of Turin, Turney reveals how written records, carbon, pollen, constellations, DNA sequencing, and more all play a part in solving the mystery of the true age of objects and events. As we struggle to manage current environmental threats and conservation troubles, we ignore or misunderstand these techniques and their results at our peril.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 1 more reviews...
 Very enjoyable July 21, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
After the first two chapters, this book get really interesting. The first two chapters are about how the different calendars used throughout history are synchronized and whether King Arthur actually existed. Not much science there.
But once we get into science (as opposed to history) things get interesting. For example, the chapter on the Shroud of Turin was great and the way tree rings can be used to date things is fascinating.
Unfortunately, there is very little science here. Instead, this book talks about the stories surrounding various scientific controversies.
I was much more interested in learning about the technical details of things like potassium argon dating, thermoluminesence, and electron spin resonance. But I wasn't gonna get that. Here's the disclaimer from the author when he starts talking about isotopes: "Unfortunately, to understand the [age of the Earth], it's going to be necessary to cross to the other side. I'll try and keep [references to isotopes] to the absolute minimum."
Unfortunately? "The Other Side"? Jimminy Cricket! I learned about isotopes in seventh grade, for crying out loud. I wish someone would write about science as if I actually made it through high school. I want to know about why these methods work, their limitations and when they should be used.
And I think I have the right to be disappointed. The book is subtitled: The Science of When Things Happened." Overall, though, it is quite interesting.
 Exciting Cases Illustrating How Science Works July 10, 2008
In eleven thrilling chapters, the author discusses various methods by which items and events from the (extremely distant to not-so-distant) past can be dated. The limitations and uncertainties associated with each method are also touched upon. Each chapter presents a different topic, all real-life cases and some of which the author has actively participated in. The author has been very successful in conveying to the reader the methods by which science works and the excitement involved in scientific discovery. The writing style is clear, friendly, authoritative and very accessible. In fact, as a physicist, I probably would have explained the physics of a few things a bit differently and given more details; but then, this may have been at a cost - a loss in momentum and excitement for the general reader. So, clearly, this is a book that can be enjoyed by anyone, especially those interested in the scientific method.
The mysteries of time revealed December 29, 2007
5 out of 5 found this review helpful
In this series of evocative essays, Turney explains how our continually changing concept and use of time affects how we view the world and ourselves. Using a sprightly prose style, he opens with a description of various calendar systems developed by the ancients. It was difficult for them to reconcile the irregularities of lunar month, solar year and constantly changing heavens. Egypt, Babylon and Rome all struggled to maintain some control over the calendar. Many forms of adjustment were implemented but precision was difficult, if not impossible. The device of the "Leap Year" to adjust for the lack of precision was the best humans could do until the invention of the atomic clock.
The atom, with many versions and intricacies, has proven an effective tool in time-keeping. From measuring split seconds to granting us some insight on circumstances billions of years ago, "atomic clocks" in their various forms have provided many solutions to long unresolved problems. Turney's chapter on the Shroud of Turin is but one example of a practical application. Its status as a forgery went undetected for centuries until radiometric measurements revealed its true age.
A grander sweep of time, yet one with significant implications for today's world are the chapters on the eruption of Santorini in the Mediterranean and what led to the Ice Ages. Thera has been described as the cause of the elimination of the Minoan Empire. Based on Crete four thousand years ago, the Minoans operated an intricate network of trade routes in the region and were a highly sophisticated and successful people. Yet, they disappeared almost instantly around thirty-five hundred years ago. The author examines the evidence that Santorini might have been responsible. Further back in time, he reviews another threat to society in the form of invasive glaciers. Atoms play a role even in ice as accumulations of oxygen isotopes tell the story of climate change events. Even though some of those shifts rely on Earth's orbit and tilt relative to the sun, their signature rests with those oxygen atoms.
Human societies have their own fluctuations, as Turney notes in other chapters. The dating of hominid fossils has contributed a great deal in deriving both the time and place of our origins. Rocks surrounding bones tell us when the fossils lived, and tiny grains of pollen indicate the type of environment they lived in. One of the enigmas of science is why there is but one species of upright-walking ape remaining - us. There have been competitors for living space, most notably the Neanderthals. But at least one other species co-habited the planet with us. The "Hobbit" fossil found on an Indonesian island resided there only 18 thousand years ago, as Turney's own dating research revealed. The possibility that there may be remnant populations yet to be found raises compelling questions.
Turney's book may seem light-hearted at first glance, but it rests on serious work by dedicated workers. Dating the rocks was a difficult science in the 18th and 19th Centuries, but technology has provided astonishing new insights on our world. There's much to be learned and the author's effective presentation makes this book a stimulating introduction to this field. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]
Excellent story "connecting the dots" of time January 9, 2007
Turney's book is a great easily read science book explaining how we know when historic and prehistoric events occurred. Each chapter stands alone on its own merits, describing how we know one particular fact, or how one particular measurement system works...but tie together to show how a multitude of different measures can describe events as recent as the 1300s and as distant as dinosaur extinctions 65 million years ago.
This book is great reading for the layman interested in how science works and how scientists can be confident about the chronology and timing of events deep in our past.
The only criticism is that it left me wanting more...I would have devoured a book twice as long!
An essential pick for college-level collections strong in scientific inquiry. November 7, 2006
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
How does dating affect authenticity in identifying relics and linking historical facts? Eleven chapters each focus on a famous dating controversy, examining the procedures of dating, common methods used to date everything from tree rings to astronomical bodies, and common problems which involve dating. Discrepancies in evidence, forgeries, and misinterpretations are all covered in BONES, ROCKS AND STARS: THE SCIENCE OF WHEN THINGS HAPPENED, an essential pick for college-level collections strong in scientific inquiry.
Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch
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