The ensemble of manuscripts presented in this special volume captures the stimulating cross-disciplinary dialogue from the International Symposium on Deep Structure, Composition, and Evolution of Continents, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 15-17 October 1997. It will provide an update on recent research developments and serve as a starting point for research of the many outstanding issues. After its formation at mid-oceanic spreading centers, oceanic lithosphere cools, thickens, and subsides, until it subducts into the deep mantle beneath convergent margins. As a result of this continuous recycling process oceanic lithosphere is typically less than 200 million years old (the global average is about 80 Myr). A comprehensive, multi-disciplinary study of continents involves a wide range of length scales: tiny rock samples and diamond inclusions may yield isotope and trace element signatures diagnostic for the formation age and evolution of (parts of) cratons, while geophysical techniques (e.g., seismic and electromagnetic imaging) constrain variations of elastic and conductive properties over length scales ranging from several to many thousand kilometers. Integrating and reconciling this information is far from trivial and, as several papers in this volume document, the relationships between, for instance, formation age and tectonic behavior on the one hand and the seismic signature, heat flow, and petrology on the other may not be uniform but may vary both within as well as between cratons. These observations complicate attempts to determine the variations of one particular observable (e.g., heat flow, lithosphere thickness) as a function of another (e.g., crustal age) on the basis of global data compilations and tectonic regionalizations. Important conclusions of the work presented here are that (1) continental deformation, for instance shortening, is not restricted to the crust but also involves the lithospheric mantle; (2) the high wavespeed part of continental lithospheric mantle is probably thinner than inferred previously from vertically travelling body waves or form global surface-wave models; and (3) the seismic signature of ancient continents is more complex than expected from a uniform relationship with crustal age.

This open access book presents a new structural model of “multi-arc-basin-terrane system” based on the in-depth research of the Nujiang-Lancangjiang-Jinshajiang region, especially several Paleo-Tethys ophiolitic mélange belts and sets of arc-basin systems, and a new orogenic model of “The Hengduan shan Mountains” based on penetrated research on spatial-temporal framework and orogenic models of different orogenic belts under large-scale strike-slip-shear-nappe structures evolution. The authors paid special attention on the coupling relation between orogeny and metallogenesis. The metallogenesis and dynamic process are probed under the crust–mantle interaction and material-energy exchange-transmission background and the tectonic units evolution. The ore genesis and distribution of deposits have been thoroughly analyzed, and the metallogenic theories of "multi-arc-basin-terrane" and "intracontinental tectonic transformation" in the Nujiang-Lancangjiang-Jinshajiang region have been carried out. This book also illustrates how to explore metallic deposits in the Nujiang-Lancangjiang-Jinshajiang region by using the metallogenic regulations. Meanwhile, this book has high reference value for researchers working in the fields of basic geology, environmental geology, and energy geology.

Investigating the complex interplay between tectonics and sedimentation is a key endeavor in modern earth science. Many of the world's leading researchers in this field have been brought together in this volume to provide concise overviews of the current state of the subject. The plate tectonic revolution of the 1960's provided the framework for detailed models on the structure of orogens and basins, summarized in a 1995 textbook edited by Busby and Ingersoll. Tectonics of Sedimentary Basins: Recent Advances focuses on key topics or areas where the greatest strides forward have been made, while also providing on-line access to the comprehensive 1995 book. Breakthroughs in new techniques are described in Section 1, including detrital zircon geochronology, cosmogenic nuclide dating, magnetostratigraphy, 3-D seismic, and basin modelling. Section 2 presents the new models for rift, post-rift, transtensional and strike slip basin settings. Section 3 addresses the latest ideas in convergent margin tectonics, including the sedimentary record of subduction intiation and subduction, flat-slab subduction, and arc-continent collision; it then moves inboard to forearc basins and intra-arc basins, and ends with a series of papers formed under compessional strain regimes, as well as post-orogenic intramontane basins. Section 4 examines the origin of plate interior basins, and the sedimentary record of supercontinent formation. This book is required reading for any advanced student or professional interested in sedimentology, plate tectonics, or petroleum geoscience. Additional resources for this book can be found at: www.wiley.com/go/busby/sedimentarybasins.

This book covers a multitude of Alpine-type working areas and processes active in collisional mountain building in the form of 16 selected very up-to-date review and research articles covering the Alps, Carpathians and Dinarides. These data were presented at the 8th workshop on Alpine Geological Studies in Davos held in October 2007. The compilations and new data are of interest to earth scientists interested in mountain building in general and those interested in processes of continental collision in particular. The book is virtually indispensable for advanced students and scientists involved in Alpine studies.