The topics chosen for this edition range from the key role of microbes in the evolution of all life forms, to the microbial nature of the biosphere, and the microbial component of all human activities
This branch of the Earth sciences links ancient prehistory to modern environments. Quaternary terrestrial sediments contain the fossil remains of existing species of flora and fauna, and their immediate predecessors.
Quaternary science plays an integral part in such important issues for modern society as groundwater resources and contamination, sea level change, geologic hazards (earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, tsunamis), and soil erosion
