UOW scientist's book has lessons for tomorrow's world

Jun 22, 2006

A popular science book by University of Wollongong Research Fellow Dr Chris Turney examines some of the greatest mysteries of our world. UOW's UniShop hosted a local launch for Bones, Rocks and Stars -- The Science of When Things Happened today (June 22).

Dr Chris Turney is an optimistic, which is good news for future generations in the face of potentially dramatic climate change driven by global warming.

After all, Dr Turney has seen it all before -- dramatic shifts in the world's weather patterns, Ice Ages, extinctions of entire species and so on -- if not in person, at least through his research.

And it hasn't dented his confidence in the ability of the human race to overcome the obstacles that will surely face future generations as the world's climate heads for uncharted waters.

Dr Turney is a paleoecologist and international authority on the study and carbon dating of ancient plants and fossils. He is a Research Fellow at the GeoQuest Research Centre at the University of Wollongong's School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, where his research focuses on human evolution and migration, and how past peoples have coped with climate change.

Macmillan has just released his latest book world-wide. Bones, Rocks and Stars -- The Science of When Things Happened is a popular science book that examines many of the greatest mysteries of our world by explaining when and how they happened -- and how we know that.

"The central theme of my research is that we can learn a lot from the past about the future," Dr Turney said. "Climate change and extinctions are nothing new. They've happened before and they'll happen again. A great example is that by reconstructing past climate changes, we can see that when a certain threshold is passed then all hell breaks loose and we get a big shift in the world's climate.

"But I'm an optimist, and I think the human race can face the future with confidence..."

Dr Turney said the inspiration behind his latest book was to get science "out there" in a form that is easy for people to understand and relate to.

He was part of the UOW team that carried out the dating work on the discovery of the new species of tiny humans - Homo floresiensis, nicked the "Hobbits" on the Indonesian island of Flores.

"After the excitement of the "Hobbit" find, I wanted to explain how science works in these kind of discoveries," Dr Turney said.

Naturally, the Hobbit discovery is covered in the book, as are more timeless topics ranging from the separating the myths and reality of the legend of King Arthur to the Shroud of Turin. Dr Turney even demonstrates how scientists have worked exactly when Egypt's Pyramids were built.

"With questions like these, I show time is of the essence," Dr Turney said. "Understanding how we pinpoint the past is crucial to putting the present into perspective and planning for the future.

"I explain how written records, carbon, pollen, tree rings, constellations and DNA sequencing can help archeologists, paleontologists and geologists to 'tell the time'".

The book has already attracted rave reviews from fellow scientists.

South Australian Museum Director Professor Tim Flannery called it "a fabulously entertainingly written account of the amazing science behind calendars, dates and dating objects. Essential reading for anyone interested in prehistory."

Professor Tim White from the University of California in Berkeley said: "This delightful; introduction successfully fuses history, prehistory and earth science. It captures the imagination from its first page, and then takes the reader on a fun and fact-filled world tour through the past."

The science blog Pharyngula wrote: "What I like best about the book: it's a scientist clearly explaining what he does for a living, and why it's important, at a level any literate person can understand. Not an easy accomplishment."

More details can be found at www.christurney.com