The Great Courses - Practical Geology Set 1 (2023) Part11 Reading Fossils Life in the Geologic Past

Taught by Professor James F. P. Cotter of the University of Minnesota, Morris, this course teaches you the fundamentals of field geology. You learn the basics of rocks, minerals, and landforms, and how to apply this knowledge to read an outcrop, find and prepare fossils, assess soil and groundwater, prospect for gems and ore, and much more. “Have you ever picked up a rock and admired its colors, crystals, and texture, and thought, “How did it get this way?” Or have you ever driven by an unusual landform and wondered, “Why is it like that?” These questions have surprisingly deep answers that can encompass a significant fraction of Earth's 4.6-billion-year history. Such revelations come from the science of geology, but you don't have to be a professional geologist to look at a rock or a landscape and read its amazing story. These and a multitude of other observations and insights are presented in fascinating detail in Practical Geology, 24 half-hour lectures that take you from your backyard to geologic sites around the world, through eons of time, and even to another planet. Geologist James F. P. Cotter of the University of Minnesota, Morris, is your instructor. A multi-award-winning teacher, James presents an enlightening guide to elementary geology, expertly conducting you through dozens of on-camera demonstrations, showing off scores of rock samples, and advising you where to go and what to take to make geology an exciting and integral part of your life.

Part 11 Reading Fossils Life in the Geologic Past

Fossils are an exciting component of field geology. The term covers not only preserved ancient life-forms, but also evidence of their activity, such as footprints. Look at different ways nature has of preserving fossils—by encasing in amber, freezing, pickling, chemical alteration, and other natural processes. Ask what life-forms are likely to be fossilized and in what environments.

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