NEWS

Madingley Rise and Early Geophysics at Cambridge

16th November 2009

Highly regarded specialist international publisher, Third Millennium Publishing, is pleased to announce the launch of Madingley Rise and Early Geophysics at Cambridge. This is a fine illustrated hardback volume tracing the fascinating, and occasionally remarkable, story of geophysics at Madingley Rise and the ‘revolution in earth sciences’, which reached its climax during the late 1960s and 70s.

The author and geologist, Carol Williams, who herself spent a number of years at Madingley Rise, describes how a large Victorian house in Cambridge, privately-owned in the 1950s by the distinguished astronomer, Professor Hugh Newall, became one of the world’s most important centres for groundbreaking research into the theory of plate tectonics.

Despite its rapid success in the 1960s, plate tectonics had a long previous history. The central ideas, and the technology and measurements on which they were based, had been slowly put together over the previous 70 years by a small number of people working at a handful of laboratories around the world. One of the smallest of these was the Department of Geodesy and Geophysics at Cambridge. Williams tells the fascinating story of how this department came into existence, and of how a variety of forceful and brilliant scientists worked together (most of the time!) to carry out the research that lead to the new ideas, and produce an environment that was attractive and exciting to bright young graduates. At the centre of her story is Madingley Rise and the part played by a number of key individuals involved in such important pioneering research.

Third Millennium Managing Director, Dr Joel Burden, commented: “Over the last few years Third Millennium has published a number of titles in association with the University of Cambridge and I am delighted that we have the opportunity to collaborate with the Department of Earth Sciences on this project. For anyone working in this important field, Madingley Rise and Early Geophysics at Cambridge, provides a wonderful insight into what it’s like to be part of a top-class research laboratory and at the forefront of global discoveries, which have a major impact on our world today.”

In his preface, Dan McKenzie CH FRS, Professor of Geophysics at the University of Cambridge, says: “Even though I have worked at Madingley Rise for all my professional life, Carol has discovered many events in its fascinating history that were new to me. … I recommend this book to anyone, especially if they work in Earth sciences, who is curious about what it is like to work in a good research laboratory when it is at the centre of the development of important new ideas. I would also recommend it to any brave senior scientist who is thinking of becoming the head of a research laboratory, to make them aware of what has worked in the past.”

Copies of Madingley Rise and Early Geophysics at Cambridge can be ordered online for £40 + p&p - click HERE for details. Copies are also available from specialist bookshops.

Third Millennium has published books for a number of leading heritage, educational and military institutions. These include titles for Westminster Abbey, York Minster, Durham Cathedral and Lincoln’s Inn; the universities of Cambridge, Oxford, Durham, Manchester, Newcastle, Sheffield and SOAS; Harrow, Rugby School and Wellington College; the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, the Household Division, the Brigade of Gurkhas and the Royal Hospital Chelsea.

-ENDS-

NOTES TO EDITORS

Title: Madingley Rise and Early Geophysics at Cambridge

Imprint: Third Millennium Publishing, London

Author: Carol Williams, the author, gained a degree in geology at Leicester prior to coming to Cambridge to do her Ph.D on the interpretation of marine magnetic anomalies. Despite continuing to work predominantly at Madingley Rise she spent periods of time working at several other universities, institutes and observatories all over the world and can consequently add personal insight to many of the scientists mentioned in this book.

Publication: 16th November 2009

RRP: £40 / ISBN: 978-1-906507-18-3

Specification: Hardback, 208 pages, 245 x 190mm, c. 80,000 words, over 50 illustrations.

For further information contact Michael D Jackson, Marketing Manager, Third Millennium Information Ltd, 2-5 Benjamin St, EC1M 5QL. Tel: +44 (0)207 336 0144. Email: mj@tmiltd.com. Website: www.tmiltd.com