C. Troise, G. de Natale and C.R.J. Kilburn (editors) 2006. Mechanisms of Activity and Unrest at Large Calderas. Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 269. 327 pp. ISBN 10: 1-86239-211- 0, ISBN 13: 978-1-86239-211-3 (hardback) price £75.00/US$135.00.

Against the background of heightened awareness of the devastating effects of tsunamis and the potential environmental effects of global warming, this compilation of papers provides a timely reminder of the significance of major volcanic events in a densely populated planet. Sociopolitical culture still operates within short timeframes (‘a week is a long time in politics’) so events that recur at intervals of tens of thousands of years or more impinge barely, or not at all, on the national policies of planners and governments. This makes it all the more important that Earth Science research should include a significant focus on understanding the mechanisms associated with major active caldera-related volcanism. Of the eleven chapters four are set in the Italian region (Campi Flegrei and Ischia Island), two are concerned with Long Valley caldera in California, and one in the central Andes. Of the remainder, three take on a more theoretical approach by discussing models for caldera collapse and emplacement of magmas including the role …