The Sedimentary Record

This chapter introduces the use of materials found in sediments for reconstructing the past. After summarizing methods for collecting, processing and dating sediment, it presents a variety of organisms, minerals and other chemicals useful for interpreting the history of both the surroundings of a sedimentary basin and of the basin itself. A critical part of this analysis is understanding the processes by which materials get to the basin and the sediment and are changed after sedimentation. The relationship between the evidence, for example, pollen, and the organisms or landscapes that produce the evidence is illustrated by examples taken from different types of landscapes. The chapter discusses multidisciplinary studies and models that integrate independent indicators of climate and vegetation to arrive at a composite picture of landscape change and allows interpretation of causes of changes seen in the sediment.