When Life Nearly Died: The Greatest Mass Extinction of All Time - Softcover

Benton, Michael

Softcover

ISBN 10: 050028573X ISBN 13: 9780500285732

Publisher: Thames & Hudson, 2005

Synopsis

"The focus is the most severe mass extinction known in earth's history....The science on which the book is based is up-to-date, thorough, and balanced. Highly recommended."—Choice

Today it is common knowledge that the dinosaurs were wiped out by a meteorite impact 65 million years ago that killed half of all species then living. Far less known is a much greater catastrophe that took place at the end of the Permian period 251 million years ago: ninety percent of life was destroyed, including saber-toothed reptiles and their rhinoceros-sized prey on land, as well as vast numbers of fish and other species in the sea.

This book documents not only what happened during this gigantic mass extinction but also the recent rekindling of the idea of catastrophism. Was the end-Permian event caused by the impact of a huge meteorite or comet, or by prolonged volcanic eruption in Siberia? The evidence has been accumulating through the 1990s and into the new millennium, and Michael Benton gives his verdict at the end of the volume.

From field camps in Greenland and Russia to the laboratory bench, When Life Nearly Died involves geologists, paleontologists, environmental modelers, geochemists, astronomers, and experts on biodiversity and conservation. Their working methods are vividly described and explained, and the current disputes are revealed. The implications of our understanding of crises in the past for the current biodiversity crisis are also presented in detail. 46 illustrations.

About this title

About the Author:

Michael Benton is Professor of Vertebrate Paleontology and Head of the Department of Earth Sciences at the University of Bristol. He has written over forty books, many of them standard technical works and textbooks, as well as popular books about dinosaurs and the history of life.

Review:

Covers a lot of information, but he connects it all in a readable and interesting way...a balanced and open-ended viewpoint. -- Library Journal

Paints a vivid picture of science as a quintessentially human endeavor—an ongoing search for better understanding. -- Niles Eldredge, American Museum of Natural History

About this edition

• Publisher: Thames & Hudson
• Publication date: 2005
• ISBN 10: 050028573X
• ISBN 13: 9780500285732
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 336