Category Archives: The Book

The Mountain Mystery (Book Review)

Posted on June 7, 2016 by Ron Miksha

Originally posted on The Grumpy Geophysicist:
Many months ago, Ron Miksha was kind enough to send a copy of his book, The Mountain Mystery, to GG (Ron writes a blog under the book’s name).  Although the book was mostly read long…

Posted in Book Review, Plate Tectonics, Reblogs, The Book | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Harry Hess and the Sea’s Floor

Posted on May 24, 2015 by Ron Miksha

What does a commander of a World War II assault transport ship do in his spare time? If the captain is Harry Hammond Hess, he would be gathering geophysical data enroute to Iwo Jima. Later, he would use the data … Continue reading →

Posted in Biography, Exploration, Geology, History, How Geophysics Works, Oceans, Plate Tectonics, The Book | Tagged , , , , , | 12 Comments

Mount St. Helens Day

Posted on May 18, 2015 by Ron Miksha

Today is one of those trigger dates that remind me of how small I really am, a day that invokes memories of my life in younger years. Somewhat like September 11, 2001. (I was on Crowchild, heading towards work in … Continue reading →

Posted in Geology, History, The Book | Tagged , | Leave a comment

A Year of Mystery

Posted on May 9, 2015 by Ron Miksha

I began writing this blog – The Mountain Mystery – exactly one year ago. So, as far as blogs go, this is a young one. It is a loosely cohesive collection of stories about the Earth. The only real themes … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, Science Education, The Book | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

A Life Well-Lived

Posted on April 19, 2015 by Ron Miksha

Two years ago this week, one of our greatest scientists quietly passed away. Although among the world’s unheralded heroes, the life of Lawrence Morley deserves our attention. He helped prove plate tectonics, but in a fluke too common in science … Continue reading →

Posted in Biography, Geology, History, Plate Tectonics, Space, The Book | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Heresy without Redemption

Posted on February 17, 2015 by Ron Miksha

Today’s date, February 17, coincides with the day they killed Giordano Bruno. For years, he had been imprisoned for blasphemy, for practising magic, and for heresy.  Execution was recommended, though he could have had a less tortuous death had he … Continue reading →

Posted in Biography, Culture, Non-drift Theories, Philosophy, Religion, The Book | Tagged , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Charles Darwin, the Geologist

Posted on February 12, 2015 by Ron Miksha

It’s his birthday. It seems Charles Darwin’s legacy is experiencing a renaissance. Sure, some 60% of Americans vilify the man and hope he is roasting in hell. Or undergoing reincarnation as a toad, or is still awaiting release from purgatory. … Continue reading →

Posted in Biography, Culture, History, Philosophy, Religion, The Book | Tagged , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Riding the Moho

Posted on January 23, 2015 by Ron Miksha

  Today is the anniversary of the birth (January 23, 1857) of a brilliant geophysicist with an unpronounceable name (unless you are Croatian) – Andrija Mohorovičić. (You may say On-Dree-Ya Mow-Hoe-Row-Vitch-Itch. Or, like many a grad student, you could simply … Continue reading →

Posted in Biography, Geology, History, How Geophysics Works, Plate Tectonics, The Book | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Catastrophic Floods

Posted on December 23, 2014 by Ron Miksha

An interesting blog posting, Catastrophic History, produced on the website The Not So Solid Earth, makes the point that much of future archeology will be marine archeology. During the last ice age, a lot of sea water was captured in … Continue reading →

Posted in Climate, Culture, History, Oceans, The Book | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

The Billion Year Discovery

Posted on September 16, 2014 by Ron Miksha

About a century ago, a college student figured out that the Earth has rocks over a billion years old. Until Arthur Holmes’ experiments at Imperial College in London, geologists could only guess at the age of various rock formations. Geologist … Continue reading →

Posted in Biography, History, Religion, The Book | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment