EART 206 -Great Papers in the Earth Sciences
(please notify webdunce Rob Coe of any problems encountered with this page)
Professors: Robert Coe and Quentin Williams
Lecture: T,Th 2:00-3:45 E&MS Room D258
This course is designed to introduce students to a broad range of fundamental issues in
Earth Sciences by reading and discussing classic papers that may or may not have been
great, but certainly were key in the development of modern ideas in Earth Sciences. In
most instances the classic paper is paired with a more recent paper for modern
perspective. This class also provides a chance for students to practice their critical
thinking and hone their scientific presentation and discussion skills.
Introduction to Class
T1/4 Introduction and Logistics. Click on blue links for PDFs of articles. Unlinked
articles are in box in mailroom to be photocopied.
Darwin and Evolution
Th 1/6
1. Darwin, C., Chapt. 15, Origin of Species, pp. 353-374, 1859. (Patrick)
2. Gould, S.J., and Eldredge, N., Punctuated equilibrium comes of age. Nature, 366, 223227, 1993. (George)
Age of the Earth
T 1/11
1. Kelvin, L., On the secular cooling of the Earth, Trans. Royal Soc. Edinburgh, vol.
XXIII, 1862. (Robert)
2. Badash, L., The age-of-the-Earth debate, Sci. Am., Aug., 1989. (Kathryn)
3. Stacey, F.D., Kelvin’s age of the Earth paradox revisited, J. Geophys. Res., 105,
13155-13158, 2000. (Kathryn)
Th 1/13
1. C. Patterson, Age of meteorites and the earth, Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta, 10, 230
237, 1956. (Charles)
2. Wilde, S.A. et al., Evidence from detrital zircons for the existence of continental crust
and oceans on the Earth 4.4 Gyr ago, Nature, 409, 175-178, 2001. (Andy)
Structure and Composition of the Earth
T 1/18
1. Williamson, E.D. and Adams, L.H., Density distribution in the Earth, J. Washington
Academy of Sciences, vol. 13, 413-428, 1923. (Charles)
2. Washington, H., The chemical composition of the Earth, Am. Jour. Sci., vol. IX, 351378, 1925. (George)
Origin of the Moon
Th 1/20
1. Newsom, H. and S.R. Taylor, Geochemical implications of the formation of the Moon
by a single giant impact, Nature, 338, 29-34, 1989. (Brandon)
2. Benz, W., Slattery, W.L. and A.G. Cameron, Snapshots from a three-dimensional
modeling of a giant impact, in Origin of the Moon (Hartmann, Phillips and Taylor, eds.),
pp. 617-620, Lunar and Planetary Institute Press, Houston, 1986. (Brandon)
3. Canup, R. and E. A*****g, Origin of the moon in a giant impact near the end of the
Earth formation, Nature, 412, 708-712, 2001. (Brandon)
Differentiation of the Earth
T 1/25
1. Armstrong, R.L., A model for the evolution of strontium and lead isotopes in a
dynamic earth, Reviews of Geophysics, 6, 175-199,1968.
2. Allegre, C.J. and Turcotte, D.L., Implications of a two-component marblecake mantle,
Nature, 323, 123-127, 1986.
Seafloor Spreading, Reversals, Subduction and Global Tectonics
Th 1/27
1. Vine, F.J., Spreading of the ocean floor: New evidence, Science, 154, 1405-1415,
1966.
2. Cande et al., Cenozoic motion between East and West Antarctica, Nature, 404, 145150, 2000.
T 2/1
1. Benioff, H. Orogenesis and deep crustal structure: Additional evidence from
seismology, Geol. Soc. Am. Bull. 65, 385-400, 1954.
2. Isacks, B. and Molnar, P., Mantle earthquake mechanisms and the sinking of the
lithosphere, Nature, 223, 1121-1124, 1969.
Th 2/3
1. Atwater, T., Implications of plate tectonics for the Cenozoic tectonic evolution of
western North America, Geol. Soc. Am. Bull., 81, 3513-3536, 1970.
2. Argus, D.F., and Gordon, R.G., Present tectonic motion across the Coast Ranges and
San Andreas fault system in central California, Geol. Soc. Am. Bull., 113, 1580-1592,
2001.
Earth Hotspots
T 2/8
1. Wilson, J.T., Evidence from islands on the spreading of ocean floors, Nature, 197,
536-538, 1963.
2. Morgan, W.J., Convection plumes in the lower mantle, Nature 230, 42-43, 1971.
3. Courtillot et al., Three distinct types of hotspots in the Earth’s mantle, Earth Planet.
Sci. Lett., 205, 295-308, 2003.
Th 2/10
1. (a) Larson, R.L., Latest pulse of the Earth: Evidence for a mid-Cretaceous superplume,
Geology, 19, 547-550, 1991;
(b) Larson, R.L., Geological consequences of superplumes, Geology, 19, 963-966, 1991.
2. Hill, R.I., Campbell, I.H., Davies, G.F., Griffiths, R.W., Mantle plumes and continental
tectonics, Science, 256, 186-193, 1992.
*3. Tanton, L.E. and Hager, B.H., Melt intrusion as a trigger for lithospheric foundering
and the eruption of the Siberian Flood Basalts, Geophys. Res. Lett., 27, 3937-3940, 2000.
4. Xu, Y.G. et al., Geological, geochemical and geophysical consequences of plume
involvement in the Emeishan flood-basalt province, Geology, 32, 917-920, 2004.
Planetary Volcanism
T 2/15
1. Peale, S.J., Cassen, P., Reynolds, R.T., Melting of Io by tidal dissipation, Science, 203,
892-894, 1979.
2. Lopes-Gautier, R., et al., Active volcanism on Io: Global distribution and variations in
activity, Icarus 140, 243-264, 1999.
Influence of Crustal Fluids on Geological Processes
Th 2/17
1. Huppert, M.K., and W.W. Rubey, Role of fluid pressures in mechanics of overthrust
faulting: Part 1, Geol. Soc. Am. Bull., 70, abs and 119-139, 1959.
2. Sleep, N.J., and M.L. Blanpied, Creep, compaction and the weak rheology of major
faults, Nature, 359, 687-692, 1992.
Atmospheric Evolution
T 2/22
1. Sagan, C. and Mullen, G., Earth and Mars: Evolution of atmospheres and surface
temperatures, Science, 177, 52-56, 1972.
2. Brocks, J.J. et al., Archean molecular fossils and the early rise of eukaryotes, Science,
285, 1033-1036, 1999.
(see also link to commentary by Knoll:
http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/285/5430/1025).
3. Bekker, A., Holland, H.D., Wang, P.L., Rumble III, D., Stein, H.J., Hannah, J.L.,
Coetzee, L.L. and N.J. Beukes, Dating the rise of atmospheric oxygen, Nature, 427, 117120, 2004.
4. Farquhar, J., Bao, H. and Thiemens, M., Atmospheric influence of Earth’s earliest
sulfur cycle, Science, 289, 756-758, 2000.
Extinction of Life
Th 2/24
1. Alvarez, L.W. et al., Extraterrestrial cause of the Cretaceous/Tertiary extinction:
experimental results and theoretical implications. Science, 208, 1095-1108, 1980.
2. Renne, P.R., Zhang, Z., Richards, M.A., Black, M.T., Basu, A.R., Synchrony and
causal relations between Permian-Triassic Boundary Crises and Siberian flood volcanism,
Science, 269, 1413-1416, 1995.
Past Climates (WORK ON THIS ONE)
T 3/1
1. Arrhenius, S., On the influence of carbonic acid in the air upon the temperature on the
ground, Phil. Mag., 41, 237-276. (Also, facsimile reprinted in Rodhe, H. and Charlson, R.
(eds.), The Legacy of Svante Arrhenius Understanding the Greenhouse Effect, p. 173212, Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, MediaPrint, Uddevalla AB 1998.)
2. Crawford, E., Arrhenius’ 1896 model of the greenhouse effect in context, in Rodhe, H.
and Charlson, R. (eds.), The Legacy of Svante Arrhenius Understanding the Greenhouse
Effect, p. 21-32, Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, MediaPrint, Uddevalla AB 1998.
Th 3/3
1. Hays, J.D., Imbrie, J., and Shackleton, N.J., Variations in the earth's orbit. Pacemaker
of the ice ages. Science, 194, 1121-1132, 1976.
2. Jouzel, J. et al., Extending the Vostok ice-core record of palaeoclimate to the
penultimate glacial period, Nature, 364, 407-412, 1993.
Mountain Building and Climate
T 3/8
1. Molnar, P., and P. England, Late Cenozoic uplift of mountain ranges and global
climate change: chicken or egg?, Nature, 346, 29-34, 1990.
2. France-Lanord, C., and Derry, L.A., Organic carbon burial forcing of the carbon cycle from
Himalayan erosion, Nature 390, 65-67, 1997.
It’s a Tough Life
Th 3/10
1. Harland, W.B. and Rudwick, M.J.S., The great infra-Cambrian ice age, Sci. Am., 211,
28-36, 1964.
2. Kirschvink, J.L., Late Proterozoic low-latitude global glaciation: The snowball Earth,
in The Proterozoic Biosphere, J.W. Schopf and C. Klein, Eds., p. 51-52, Cambridge U.
Press, 1992.
3. Hoffman, P.F., Kaufman, A.J., Halverson, G.P., Schrag, D.P., A Neoproterozoic
snowball Earth, Science, 281, 1342-1346, 1998.