Caldenius. C. C : r o n . IY24: Ragunda\jiiiia stratigr;ili och gco- krontrlogi. I n Ahlniann. t i . W:\on, Caldenius. C. C:zon & Sandcgrcn. K . : Kii,qundii.s]dri. I-Y I. S w r . Gm/. Uiidcv-.5. C'ir I?

Cato. I . I Y X S : The dctinitive connection of the Swedish gco- chronological time scale with the present. and the new date o1 the Lcro year in Dovikcn, northern Sweden. Boreit.\ 14. 117-122.

De Gccr. C. IY40: Gcochrono1ogi;i Succic;i Principles. Si.etr.

V(~Ir~riskirp.sukirt/. Iiiinrl/. 3: /8 (6). 367 pp. Fromni. E. 1070: An estimation of crroi-\ in the Swcdi\h v ~ i r \ c

chronology Irr Olsbon. I U. (cd.): Hirdioc.ctr/~ori Viir/iumri.\ crriri' A h d u t e C71rorro/ogx. Nohd S ~ i n j x ~ \ i i m 12, 162-172. Almqvist Kc Wikscll. Stockholm.

' BOREAS BOOK REVIEWS b , -1 Borem VOI 1 1 pp 125-126 Oslo 1985060l

Unravelling the evidence of climatic change

SI1EII.A IIIC'KS

Morncr. N-A. Kc Karltn. W . (cd\ . ) 1Y)X.l: C'/ii?tcrrrc C'/icrrrgr.s otr rr Y<,nr/y ui M i / / m i i r i i / Hu.\rc. 667 pp. D . Kcidel I'uhlishing ('ornpany ISBN 00-277-177')-6. t'iicc N1.G 210 -.

Thi\ \ulumc i \ tlic piocccding\ 01 the Sccond 3ordic SJnipo- \iuiii o n cliiniitic changes and rclated pr~ihlcms ah ich w a s held in Stockholm in May 1983. Thc editors arc to he congratulated that the collcctcd contrihutions ha\e appeared in print 50 soon atter the event. Thi\ i \ particularly wclcoiiic since much c r t the data i, quite n e ~ and of wide interest. Eighty-nine contributor\ I r o m 15 different couiitric\ have heen iti\olved. the nurnher of paper\ totalling i5 together with an introduction and epilogue hy one of the cditorr (Morncr). The large \,;iriety of topics covered h) the \)mpo,iuiii ranging from varvcs, pollen and molluscs. through "C dating. dendrochroiiolog!. lake I c \c l variation\ and historical records of stori i is o r crop lailurc\ to gcomagnctic activity. solar flares and planetary pcriodicitics nicani that the book certainly contains something for every- one. From one point of view this highly interdisciplinary nature 01 thc contents is its most attractive feature. while from an- other the unrclatcdness of many of the articles to each other is dissatisfying. even ihough the epilogue attcinpis to d r w main rhenics together and iirriw at somc gcncrril conclusions. Al- though few pcoplc bci oui to read a collection of this type from cover to cover a little more care in arranging the individual order of the articles would hcttcr hove achieved the editors' aim of building up a comprehensive picture of events and the mechanisms controlling them.

To provide B framework the contrihutions are grouped into four main sections. The first three of these form a chronological sequence - I the deglaciation period, 11 the Holocene, and 111 the last 1.500 years - while thc fourth, models and mccha-

nianis. is 11 \ection quite (111 i t s o w n cohering ;I r;ithci d i t t c ~ c i i t aspect. Ah the title indicate\. t h e im;iloi t h c ~ i i c i ) t t l i c \!iiipo-

sium W B S clim;itic ih.ingc\ o \ c r qtlitc \ l l , l i t pi'll"cl\ (11

iiinc. In addition. d t c n t i o n \\:I\ tir be tocu\ccl on p i~>cc \ \~ ' , mtl data typical for thc Nordic ci)untric\ iuid the pl.icing ( i t ihi\ 111

its correct glohal pcr\pccti\c. 1 he extent t i ) ~ h i c l i t l i c w I \ \ , I

goals are ohtained ditters grcatl! i n c:icli \cctiiiii vi1L.c ih i \ I \

largely dcpcndcnt upon tlie range of article\ \uhni i t tct l I t \hould hc mentioned thii i t l i e coiitrihution\ i i i c \er! \ ; i i ~ ~ i h I c In length some ;ire sc;ii-ccl> more ih:in ii m w III- 'iii , ih\ t i i ic t ( I - 2 pages) while others arc long .ind dct.iiled (tip 1 0 .?-I p Some present original re\e;ircli ;inti \ m i c iiii o \ c i \ icn OI p i c - viously puhlished material. whik and possihlc interactions. A feu autlior\ (Moi iicr. F.iiihi idg~,. Lamh. Holmgrcn et ( I / . , Barry. Flohn) prc\tnt m o i c t h m oi ic article. either on related oi- quite dilfcrcnt iopic\

The section on the dcplaciation I\ iihoiit cqii.ill! di\ i d ~ ~ t 1 between southern Scandinavia and i t \ 'glob;il pcr\pccti\c'. th i \ latter heing provided by record\ f r o m Fi-;uicc. S\\ i tzct 1;iiid. Mexico. South Ainericti a i d Africa. 0 1 cc i i t ra l i i i i ~ ~ t c \ t i n climatic terms IS the Bolling-Older D r ~ ~ i ~ ~ - A l l c r o c l - ~ ~ i t i i ~ ~ c i Dryis lluctuation. The Scandina\,i;in ini;iteri:il r h o \ \ \ t11;it t l i c

Older Dryas cool period is n o t strongly I-cpi-esentcd hut i i i t l ic i- there is one period of more favourahlc conditions c~immciiciny around 12.500 B.P. and terminating in an abrupt cl i i i i i i t ic reversal at the beginning of the Younger Dry;ia. much i i h ha\ heen demonbtratcd f o r the Lake District i n Hritain. The French and Swiss rcsults show the same trend wsith the nnrming \t,irt- ing a little earlier and with the cooling hcing Ie\s pronounccd This fluctuation is not recorded at i i l l in Mexico, neither iirc any fluctuations present in the South Aniericirn rewlts s!nchro- nous with those in Scandinavia. Bjiirck & Digcrfeldt'\ illu\tr:i-

126 Stieilln Hicks Boreas 14 ( 1985)

t i , )n uf the \tcp h! step dcglaciation of the Mt. Billingen area during the Younger Dryas and Kinghcrg's wnrk nn cyclic lami- nations in v a m s from which he is ahlc to calculnte the numhcr oi days in the summer wason during the BiVling chrnnozonc hoth give an indication of the degree nl prccihinn ohtainahlc hy mndcrn investigation tcchniqucs.

Thc liolcrcnc section. in contrast. presents information pre- dominantly Irom thc rest of the world with only a minor emphasis o n Scandinavia. The topics covcrcd arc diverse and citten highly kical and no dominant climatic feature atands nut. lest it he thc cyclic nature of changes during this pcriod or thc contrast hetwccn the hypsithcrmal and the prcscnt day. Frcds- k i l t s reconstruction of palacowinds and the general climatic bituation in western Grccnliind on the haais of long-distance tr:tnspnrccd pollen ;cg;iin pn)vi<cs ;in c\ccllcnt cw-nple [if thc type of conclusions which can he dr;wn if the hs ic rcearch tcchniqucs arc suificicntly precise.

In scction 111 the emphasis again returns to Scandinavia with only a icw articles prnviding the wirld Gettine and thew rcprc- wiring northwstcrn Europc and Yorth Aincrica. Since only the last I .51n y c m itrc considered. climatic fluctuatinns can he fi)lknved on a y;ir to year hisis and hoth dcndrixhronolqy :ind actui~l mctcorolngical or athcr ~ r i t t c n historical records t m n thc hasis of man) of the articles. .Attentinn is frequently tiruscd nn marginal m i l \ ;I\ hcing the mo\t scn*iti\c in rccord- ing shim-term changes. l h c report, ot the Swedish Lappland dcndrochr~)n~ilogical scqucncc 1 Biirtholin I and its applications in correlating with glacier tluctuations tKar1i.n) or as indicating Jtii? tcmpcraturc ~Aniol & Eckstcin) \how that thh area has <.*citing prttcntial. whilc no readcr ciin hi1 tn cnjo) L;unh'> p;tpc.r on the grcat stornis of the 1.ittIc Ice Age nf recent ccnturics inctirpomting vhscrvational niatcriitl net cr prcviousl! 5uhmittcd to scientific analy\is.

I'hc final -models iuid nicchanims' section. which deals n i d y \\ith datu frnm the bast I ( W I ?cai\ hut alw co\crs the tloloccnc ;ind tarlicr. contains I I papcra many of vhich have hccn givcn considcrahl\ more s p e c than those in the preceding

scctions. Detailed informition is presented hy Bucha in relat- ing geomagnetic activity to atmospheric circulation so as to demonstrate that increased geomagnetic activity results in a pronounced increase in temperature in Europe and North America and vice versa. and hy Newcll & Hsiung in rclating sca-surface temperature to frcc air temperature and to atmo- spheric C02 through upwelling in low-latitude oceans. to citc just two examples. The popular topic of possiblc COL induced warming cffects as a result of hurning fossil fuels is also dealt with at length hy Barry. In its far-rcaching suggestions this section providcs the reader with much food for thought.

When a hook of this size and range is produced with speed something often has to suffer and in this case it is the format. Rarely arc two consecutive articles typed in the same typc and the awkward pnitioning of tcxt and figures on thc page has, in places. resulted in surprising hlank gaps and in others in the muddling of thc figurc. text with the general tcxt. Some articles arc furnished with un abstract and others arc not and, in a few instances. the text of non-English speaking participants could have hcen morc carefully chccked. Howcvcr. the printing is clear. the quality of the many diagrams is generally good and thc hinding is of high standard sn that anynnc interested in thc suhjcct will happily forgive the few technical slips. Each article has its own comprehensive hihliography and an overall index f. e~c~l~tates ' I

among this large hod! of diverse information. As a whole the volume has much to offer hnth for those who

are concerned with the cffccts of climatic changcs in the past and for thow who wish to predict changes in thc future. I t prnvidcs a usciul coIlwticm of material suitahle as background reference for Quaternary research and for supplementing Icc- ture ct)urses and \vould he a valuuhlc addition to any university lihrary.

the locating of places. thcories. mpia and tcchniqucs