The Seashell on the Mountaintop; How Nicolaus Steno Solved an Ancient Mystery and Created a Science of the Earth.

CUTLER, Alan. The seashell on the mountaintop; how Nicolaus Steno solved an ancient mystery and created a science of the earth. Penguin, Plume. 228p. illus. bibliog, index, c2003. 0-452-28546-1. $14.00. A

Nicolaus Steno is often called the founder of geology for his pioneering work with fossils and the strata of the earth. Steno was a 17th-century Danish anatomist and former medical student who discovered the paratoid gland. He also expanded his interests to fossils and went beyond the history presented in the Bible. By looking directly at the evidence at hand, he solved the problem of the seashell fossils found on mountaintops. Ironically, he later left his scientific studies to become an ascetic priest and bishop in the Catholic Church. A man of great depth and capable of an even greater perspective on things material and spiritual, he was beatified a saint in 1988. The Seashell on the Mountaintop is Nicolaus Steno's remarkable story and it is told remarkably well.

Alan Cutler has a Ph.D. in geology and is affiliated with the Smithsonian Institution. He is an outstanding scientific writer and this title is highly recommended for all public and academic libraries. He has presented a potentially complex subject in a most readable format. Katherine Gillen, Libn., Luke AFB Lib., AZ