What is the importance of Mt. Everest in the nonfiction book, Your Inner Fish?

It is Shubin’s contention that every rock on earth tells a story. The rocks provide the history of the surrounding area and climates that are quite diverse from current-day conditions. He uses the example of Mt. Everest which has an altitude of over five miles at the apex. Rocks found on the North Face of the mountain rocks and sea shells from an ancient sea floor are plentiful. This is attributed to the undisputable fact that mountains fall and rise and climates go from cold to hot as continents move.