Our Earth Author:Arthur Beiser "Today the earth, its properties, and its strange and violent history find themselves under the inquisitive gaze of the scientist to an unprecedented degree," says the author of this fascinating book. The 1957-1958 International Geophysical Year program was set up in an effort to learn more about the earth, from its very center to the outer reac... more »hes of its atmosphere, and it is therefore apprpriate that Dr. Beiser has written a book which tells of man's search for the facts about the planet on which he lives. He gives the latest information as to the size of our earth, its position in the solar system, its composition and surface, the effects of the atmosphere and the tides and terrestrial magnetism. In a final chapter he gives the most recent conclusions as to the origin of the earth and the solar system, tells why scientists believe the earth's age is 4.5 billion years, and how in a few more billion years the sun will probably swell to the size of the orbit of Venus and life on earth will perish.
The story of the evolution of the earth itself is a dramatic one; and there is equal drama in the story here told of the growth of man's knowledge about the earth. In reading Our Earth there is an exciting feeling of being on the frontier of knowledge.« less