The Chronologers' Quest: The Search for the Age of the Earth - Softcover

Jackson, Patrick Wyse

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1108462537 ISBN 13: 9781108462532

Publisher: Cambridge University Press, 2018

Synopsis

The debate over the age of the Earth has been ongoing for over two thousand years, and has pitted physicists and astronomers against biologists, and religious philosophers against geologists. The Chronologers' Quest tells the fascinating story of our attempts to determine the age of the Earth. This book investigates the many novel methods used in the search for the Earth's age, from James Ussher and John Lightfoot examining biblical chronologies, and from Comte de Buffon and Lord Kelvin determining the length of time for the cooling of the Earth, to the more recent investigations of Arthur Holmes and Clair Patterson into radioactive dating of rocks and meteorites. The Chronologers' Quest is a readable account of the measurement of geological time. It will be of great interest to a wide range of readers, from those with little scientific background to students and scientists in a wide range of the Earth sciences.

About this title

Review:

"...interesting and accessible to a general audience ... Jackson lays out the information clearly and chronologically, making it an excellent resource for researchers."
Sky & Telescope

Book Description:

This book investigates the methods used to determine the Earth's age, from James Ussher and John Lightfoot examining biblical chronologies, to Arthur Holmes and Clair Patterson investigating radioactive dating of rocks. It will be of interest to those with little scientific background, and students and scientists in the Earth sciences.

About this edition

• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• Publication date: 2018
• ISBN 10: 1108462537
• ISBN 13: 9781108462532
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 309