Geochemistry and the Biosphere : Essays

This new volume introduces the Russian-Ukrainian scientist Vladimir I. Vernadsky, largely known in Eastern Europe through his groundbreaking 1926 monograph, The Biosphere.

Vernadsky(1863-1945) is the highly venerated father of several geo-based disciplines, including geochemistry, biogeochemistry and radio geology. He wrote the first scientific theory about the "biosphere," the life zone of the Earth and in the process laid the groundwork for planetary thinking. A recognised catalyst, this premier scientific work addresses in detail humanity''s impact on the living systems of the planet. GEOCHEMISTRY AND THE BIOSPHERE contains his groundbreaking work on the biosphere and the no sphere, as well as his seminal work on geochemistry. Vernadsky maintains that the biosphere is a thin strata, a separate "geological envelope," inhabited by living matter, the force of which exerts changes in its physical, chemical and mechanical properties. Moreover, this envelope is permeated by cosmic energy, which works even greater changes. Thus the biosphere, the stage on which changes are played out, will evolve over time. According to Vernadsky, from the biosphere a noösphere - a biosphere influenced by the activity of the human mind - will ultimately emerge. Vernadsky writes, "Mankind''s power is connected not with its matter but with its brain, its thoughts and its works, guided by its mind. In the geological history of the biosphere, a great future is opened to Man if he realises it and does not direct his mind and work to self-destruction."