Published by the Soil Science Society of America, the book is based on a classic out-of-print text from 1985, "Handbook for Soil Thin Section Description." One of the editors of that text, Dr. Georges Stoops, University of Ghent, has rewritten and updated the book by reinvigorating the earlier text's approach by refining its categories, adding new ones, and including background sections to describe historical developments in thin section analysis and how we have come to the present-day approach.
"The author, Dr. Stoops, is one of the premier practitioners of the technique and a recognized authority on interpretation of thin sections," says Mike Vepraskas, editor.
This 184-page book provides a system of analysis and description of soil and regolith materials as seen in thin sections and will be useful to scientists and students from a wide array of disciplines, from archaeology to pedology. The chapters cover major categories of thin section features and within each chapter breaks them down, almost in outline format, into distinct categories with concise definitions, including text boxes with definitions of key concepts.
The purpose of the book is to standardize descriptions of features found in thin section analysis, so communication among scientists using micromorphology will be facilitated. All ten chapters introduce definitions and review the history of the techniques through to the detailed keys, contained in the eleven appendixes. Definitions and examples are illustrated with drawings and an accompanying CD with hundreds of thin section images.
"Everyone from the 'new recruit' to seasoned veteran of thin section interpretation will find this book to be informative and useful," adds Mike Singer, president, SSSA.
According to the editor, this is not a "soils" text, per se. It is an ideal textbook for any student who may use thin section analysis – for geologists, archaeologists or anthropologists because the author often mentions applications in detection of human presence, such as plaster and cook fires. Because of the breadth of approach and its accessible format, it could be used for both undergraduate and post-grad level study.
Guidelines for Analysis and Description of Soil and Regolith Thin Sections
Hardcover: $40/SSSA member, $50/non-member
ISBN:089118-842-X
Item number: B60907
To order, visit www.soils.org and click on the Shopping Cart icon, call 608-273-8090 ext. 309, or e-mail books@soils.org.
The American Society of Agronomy (ASA) www.agronomy.org, the Crop Science Society of America (CSSA) www.crops.org and the Soil Science Society of America (SSSA) www.soils.org are educational organizations helping members advance the disciplines and practices of agronomy, crop and soil sciences by supporting professional growth and science policy initiatives, and by providing quality, research-based publications and a variety of member services.