million years. Understanding the 'tipping points that have lead to rapid changes in the Earths climate is vitally important with the realization that humans modify global climate. In an effort to better understand past and future climate change, general circulation models have become the forerunners of attempts to simulate future climate. Although extraordinarily sophisticated, they remain imperfect tools that require grounding in geological data. In this, the study of past major climate transitions like the Palaeozoic icehouse worlds and the extreme greenhouse of the Cretaceous are invaluable. Both the mechanisms that forced changes in the Earth's climate as well as the proxies that track these changes are discussed. The central message of the book is that general circulation models tested with geological data in an iterative 'ground truth' process provide the best estimates of the Earth's ancient climate.Also available: Recent Developments in Applied Biostratigraphy - ISBN 1862391874 The Palynology And Micropalaeontology of Boundaries - ISBN 1862391602 A Reassessment of the Southern Ocean Biochronology - ISBN 1862390274The Geological Society of LondonFounded in 1807, the Geological Society of London is the oldest geological society in the world, and one of the largest publishers in the Earth sciences.The Society publishes a wide range of high-quality peer-reviewed titles for academics and professionals working in the geosciences, and enjoys an enviable international reputation for the quality of its work.The many areas in which we publish in include:-Petroleum geology-Tectonics, structural geology and geodynamics-Stratigraphy, sedimentology and paleontology-Volcanology, magmatic studies and geochemistry-Remote sensing-History of geology-Regional geology guides

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