'The story of one of the greatest adventures of twentieth-century science, told by the central figure. It is a great read for both scientist and layperson.' Richard Muller, author of 'Nemesis: The Death Star.' Sixty-five million years ago, a comet or asteroid larger than Mt. Everest slammed into the Earth, causing an explosion equivalent to the detonation of a hundred m 'The story of one of the greatest adventures of twentieth-century science, told by the central figure. It is a great read for both scientist and layperson.'

Richard Muller, author of 'Nemesis: The Death Star.' Sixty-five million years ago, a comet or asteroid larger than Mt. Everest slammed into the Earth, causing an explosion equivalent to the detonation of a hundred million hydrogen bombs. Vaporized impactor and debris from the impact site were blasted out through the atmosphere, falling back to Earth all around the globe. Terrible environmental disasters ensued, including a giant tsunami, continent-scale wildfires, darkness, and cold, followed by sweltering greenhouse heat. When conditions returned to normal, half the genera of plants and animals on Earth had perished. This horrific story is now widely accepted as the solution to a great scientific murder mystery what caused the extinction of the dinosaurs?

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Rex and the Crater of Doom,' the story of the scientific detective work that went into solving the mystery is told by geologist Walter Alvarez, one of the four Berkeley scientists who discovered the first evidence for the giant impact. It is a saga of high adventure in remote parts of the world, of patient data collection, of lonely intellectual struggle, of long periods of frustration ended by sudden breakthroughs, of intense public debate, of friendships made or lost, of the exhilaration of discovery, and of delight as a fascinating story unfolded. Controversial and widely attacked during the 1980s, the impact theory received confirmation from the discovery of the giant impact crater it predicted, buried deep beneath younger strata at the north coast of the YucatanPeninsula.

The Chicxulub Crater was found by Mexican geologists in 1950 but remained almost unknown to scientists elsewhere until 1991, when it was recognized as the largest impact crater on this planet, dating precisely from the time of the great extinction sixty-five million years ago. Geology and paleontology, sciences that long held that all changes in Earth history have been calm and gradual, have now been forced to recognize the critical role played by rare but devastating catastrophes like the impact that killed the dinosaurs. I love the cover to this book. I didn't love the material inside the book nearly as much, but it was still pretty interesting. A bunch of years ago the dinosaurs had a really bad day when a meteor or comet the size of Los Angeles crashed into Mexico and killed them all off, except for the ones that were on Noah's Ark, and the still existing dinosaurs that live in Loch Ness and Lake Champlain, called Nessy and Champy respectively. Those facts aren't in this book. But you learn a lot about rocks a I love the cover to this book.

I didn't love the material inside the book nearly as much, but it was still pretty interesting. A bunch of years ago the dinosaurs had a really bad day when a meteor or comet the size of Los Angeles crashed into Mexico and killed them all off, except for the ones that were on Noah's Ark, and the still existing dinosaurs that live in Loch Ness and Lake Champlain, called Nessy and Champy respectively.

Those facts aren't in this book. But you learn a lot about rocks and things about geology and dating material, which would be cool, if it wasn't all just the devil manipulating us with his illusions to make us all believe in things like dinosaurs living on the Earth as a dominant life form for about 150 million years, which is millions of times longer than the bible says we have been here, and who are you going to believe, scientists with their numbers, and their research (and besides look at the scientists in this book, they are nerds, they look like nerds, like, hello i'm poindexter, I like math. Would you believe them or say the star of Invasion USA! Chuck Norris, or former teen heart throb Kirk Cameron?

As if it's a competition.). All bullshit aside, this book is a fun quick read. It's short (146 pages if you ignore the footnotes that are all just references to science papers), and it has a cool cover, and it's about fucking dinosaurs, which are always cool. Ok, ok, so I understand that if you bought this book based on this cover art (e.g. The giant Tyrannosaurus rex) you might be a little pissed off.

Whoever was in charge of marketing this volume at Princeton University Press clearly knew that a whole book about the science of geology and specifically the proving of the impact theory to explain the unusually high amounts of iridium in the banded layer of rock known as the 'K-T boundary' that separates older Cretaceous period stone from newer Tertia Ok, ok, so I understand that if you bought this book based on this cover art (e.g. The giant Tyrannosaurus rex) you might be a little pissed off. Whoever was in charge of marketing this volume at Princeton University Press clearly knew that a whole book about the science of geology and specifically the proving of the impact theory to explain the unusually high amounts of iridium in the banded layer of rock known as the 'K-T boundary' that separates older Cretaceous period stone from newer Tertiary sediments would not sell a lot of product. However, put a T.

Rex on the cover and you are in business. Notwithstanding the apparent bait and switch, I truly enjoyed this book. If you have any doubt that an asteroid or comet hit the Earth 66 million years ago Walter Alvarez will provide you a front-row seat on how he developed and later proved to the scientific community that the mass extinction event that ended the reign of the dinosaurs was caused by a gigantic extraterrestrial object, about the size of Mt. Everest, striking our planet. Rex, we never knew you. For those readers still jonesing to read about Tyrannosaurus rex let me highly recommend David Hone's. :*( It was a great little book.

I listened to the audio version which was pretty short for the page length. I think I must have missed some great illustrations, so I'll be picking up the text version at some point to get the whole picture. What I enjoyed most about this book is that it was written by one of the individuals that actually figured the cause, location, and beginning of the story that caused the K-T extinction. I've read, watched documentaries, and sat through many lectures about mass:*( It was a great little book. I listened to the audio version which was pretty short for the page length. I think I must have missed some great illustrations, so I'll be picking up the text version at some point to get the whole picture.

What I enjoyed most about this book is that it was written by one of the individuals that actually figured the cause, location, and beginning of the story that caused the K-T extinction. I've read, watched documentaries, and sat through many lectures about mass extinctions and this one in focus, but hearing about it from the actual scientist was splendid. Meteors don't give a ***k. You get a real sense of how a scientist comes up with a hypothesis, works through the science to come up with a working theory, and then goes on to try to prove it and get the consensus of their fellow scientists.

It's not only a great book about one particular event in the earth's history, but also a wonderful learning tool if you want to help someone learn more about how science actually works. Highly recommend reading to everyone, but especially this dude. Walter Alvarez's purpose in writing T. Rex and the Crater of Doom was to inform. He states his and his colleagues' theories, failed or otherwise, in an attempt to show their thought processes. It is written in an entertaining fashion to be more interesting, but its main purpose is to inform. Alvarez is telling his story of the dinosaurs' extinction.

The theme of this book is simply the theory it is trying to prove. A giant meteor struck the Yucatan Peninsula around 150 million years ago, causing Walter Alvarez's purpose in writing T. Rex and the Crater of Doom was to inform. He states his and his colleagues' theories, failed or otherwise, in an attempt to show their thought processes. It is written in an entertaining fashion to be more interesting, but its main purpose is to inform. Alvarez is telling his story of the dinosaurs' extinction.

The theme of this book is simply the theory it is trying to prove. A giant meteor struck the Yucatan Peninsula around 150 million years ago, causing dramatic climate changes that eventually killed off the large unadaptive dinosaur species. Install Phoenix Miner Windows Phone. Geologic and fossil evidence is referenced often. Other scientists' theories are also stated throughout. All of them are used to help prove the theory. The book is in first person view of the author, Walter Alvarez, as he and his colleagues test hypotheses. It was partially a description and partially a narrative.

He described the events of the meteor's impact as well as his brainstorming periods. He narrated the actions of he and his colleagues. The book was somewhat more entertaining than I expected, even though the title hinted at a more exciting writing style.

It was a bit more than a synopsis. It wasn't completely boring like other scientific books. I would say this book was like the other nonfiction book I read, Life on Earth. They both had a compelling writing style for a science book. Despite its rather sensationalistic title, ‘T.

Rex and the Crater of Doom’ provides a very nice overview of the asteroid impact which caused the extinction of the dinosaurs (and other species) 65 million years ago. It also describes the scientific investigation which led up to the theory’s development and the subsequent search for the impact crater.

The book is written by Walter Alvarez, who along with his father (Nobel prize winning physicist Luis Alvarez) and 2 colleagues, came up with the ast Despite its rather sensationalistic title, ‘T. Rex and the Crater of Doom’ provides a very nice overview of the asteroid impact which caused the extinction of the dinosaurs (and other species) 65 million years ago. It also describes the scientific investigation which led up to the theory’s development and the subsequent search for the impact crater. The book is written by Walter Alvarez, who along with his father (Nobel prize winning physicist Luis Alvarez) and 2 colleagues, came up with the asteroid impact theory to explain a clay layer containing high than normal levels of iridium which occurs right at the Cretaceous-Tertiary (K-T) boundary. Since iridium is common in asteroids, but very uncommon on the Earth, they postulated that an asteroid had been the cause of the extinction.

The book is written for a general audience, and is both well written and interesting. Db Downloads. Usually a book like this would be painful to read like most science related books are. I mean I'm a geology/paleo major but lets face it most science related books are not a fun read. But this book I'm glad to say is very well written, and full of fun factual goodies. It goes through the whole 10 year discovery of the reasons for the K/T extinction. If you are interested in the extinction of the dinosaurs or any of earths extinctions I highly recomend reading this book. It gave me a whole new in Usually a book like this would be painful to read like most science related books are.

I mean I'm a geology/paleo major but lets face it most science related books are not a fun read. But this book I'm glad to say is very well written, and full of fun factual goodies. It goes through the whole 10 year discovery of the reasons for the K/T extinction. If you are interested in the extinction of the dinosaurs or any of earths extinctions I highly recomend reading this book. It gave me a whole new interest in the K/T extinction. And to read a book actually writen by one of the men who discovered all of it is amazing.

It's like you're getting the real facts and not some fact sthat someone got from studying the subject. Walter Alvarez was there and did all this stuff first hand.

A amazingly fantastic book! Fascinating and not too technical account of how Alvarez and a large cast of other scientists came to suspect and then to prove that the extinction of the dinosaurs was caused by the impact of a gigantic meteor onto the Yucatan Peninsula. Fun watching the sausages get made: the wrong hypotheses and experimental mistakes, the collaborations and feuds, accidental discoveries and dogged searches, and how very important relationships between scientists are to sparking that Aha Moment. He is almost c Fascinating and not too technical account of how Alvarez and a large cast of other scientists came to suspect and then to prove that the extinction of the dinosaurs was caused by the impact of a gigantic meteor onto the Yucatan Peninsula. Fun watching the sausages get made: the wrong hypotheses and experimental mistakes, the collaborations and feuds, accidental discoveries and dogged searches, and how very important relationships between scientists are to sparking that Aha Moment.

He is almost convincing that geology is an exciting adventure, but I used to date a fossil hunter and in my experience scrabbling over muddy cliffs in the rain leaves something to be desired in the excitement department. Walter Alvarez's book is a great discovery story!

Well-written for the lay audience, it captures one's attention and takes readers through the many dead ends and ultimately, discoveries, that make up science and the process that scientists go through formulating and testing their ideas. Highly recommended for all science lovers, dinosaur buffs (if you haven't read it already!), everyone wanting to find out more about the world around us, and of course, anyone who's ever wondered what really happe Walter Alvarez's book is a great discovery story! Well-written for the lay audience, it captures one's attention and takes readers through the many dead ends and ultimately, discoveries, that make up science and the process that scientists go through formulating and testing their ideas. Highly recommended for all science lovers, dinosaur buffs (if you haven't read it already!), everyone wanting to find out more about the world around us, and of course, anyone who's ever wondered what really happened to the dinosaurs. I chose this to read because the author is in Margie's department at Cal and I wondered if a laywoman could understand it (or get past the first page).

It turned out to be a convincing record of the research done to explain the sudden extinction of dinosaurs globally. Alvarez names EVERY scientist who contributed or was consulted and seemed thrilled by the collegiality that followed. He was also impressed by the cooperation of say, physicists and geologists.

I felt that Alvarez really wanted me I chose this to read because the author is in Margie's department at Cal and I wondered if a laywoman could understand it (or get past the first page). It turned out to be a convincing record of the research done to explain the sudden extinction of dinosaurs globally. Alvarez names EVERY scientist who contributed or was consulted and seemed thrilled by the collegiality that followed.

He was also impressed by the cooperation of say, physicists and geologists. I felt that Alvarez really wanted me 'the laywoman' to understand the processes and theories as they came up. Walter Alvarez and his dad came up with the theory and then worked to find the evidence of the impact theory for the K-T mass exinction This book provides a step-by-step through that mystery - from dating fossils and layers, to the excess of iridium, to the discovery and confirmation of the Chicxulub impact site. In case you want to know what it was like for T. Rex, the first chapter provides a blow-by-blow of the object slamming into the earth, melting bedrock and changing the climate in one pu Walter Alvarez and his dad came up with the theory and then worked to find the evidence of the impact theory for the K-T mass exinction This book provides a step-by-step through that mystery - from dating fossils and layers, to the excess of iridium, to the discovery and confirmation of the Chicxulub impact site.

In case you want to know what it was like for T. Rex, the first chapter provides a blow-by-blow of the object slamming into the earth, melting bedrock and changing the climate in one punch. Accessible to non-scientists, this history is a tad dry, but definitely recommended.

T.Rex and the Crater of Doom is a nonfiction book about the search for the cause of the dinosaur extinction. It is more about how scientist found out about the event rather than what the event actually was. It started when the main character and his friend were looking for the lining up of magnetic material in rock. On the side of this the main character had learned that in rock around the age of the dinosaur extinction there was a major extinction of foram (microscopic organisms that leave an ab T.Rex and the Crater of Doom is a nonfiction book about the search for the cause of the dinosaur extinction. It is more about how scientist found out about the event rather than what the event actually was.

It started when the main character and his friend were looking for the lining up of magnetic material in rock. On the side of this the main character had learned that in rock around the age of the dinosaur extinction there was a major extinction of foram (microscopic organisms that leave an abundance of fossils) species. This was well known but most geologist and paleontologist had assumed this to be a coincidence. The main character thought that if he could figure out how quickly the KT boundary (a layer of clay around the age of the dinosaur extinction) formed he could determine whether the extinction was gradual or, in contrast to other geologists’ purely gradualistic view, a quick extinction of both dinosaurs and forams.

The main character’s father, a physicist, theorised that they could find the speed which the KT boundary formed by the concentration of iridium. The results were shocking, the iridium concentration was much higher than any of their estimates. This caused geologist to search for an explanation of the iridium phenomena. The main character went searching for the crater of doom.

This is an interesting book as it’s like the characters are solving a mystery. There are many clues and dead ends as they try solve the mystery of the dinosaur extinction. It’s one of the better books I’ve read.