Morton Ron, Gawboy Carl. Talking Rocks: Geology and 10,000 Years of Native American Tradition in the Lake Superior Region

University of Minnesota Press, 2003. — 224 p.Join the conversation as an earth scientist and a Native American elder - wise men from two cultures - explore the natural history of the Lake Superior region, examining both the science and the spirit of the land.As the geologist carefully presents a modern scientific perspective, the storyteller eloquently recounts a traditional Native American understanding, passed on through tales, myths, and symbols that illustrate how intimately his people have known and honored the earth and its history for over a hundred centuries.Talking Rocks is not only a story of geological history told from two perspectives, it is also a chronicle of two people from very different cultural and scientific heritages learning to understand and appreciate each other’s distinct yet complementary ways of viewing the land we share.Ron Morton is professor of geology at the University of Minnesota-Duluth, where he teaches economic geology, volcanology, and other earth science courses. An avid advocate of geology for lay people, Ron enjoys translating technical scientific concepts into everyday language and experience.
Ojibwe by heritage, Carl Gawboy is an accomplished artist and retired professor of American Indian studies at the College of St. Scholastica. Carl has a lifelong interest in exploring the connections between ancient pictographs and traditional Native American understandings of astronomy and the constellations.