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Review of James Maxlow On the Origin of Continents and Oceans : A Paradigm Shift in Understanding
| Content Provider | Semantic Scholar |
|---|---|
| Author | Hurrell, Stephen W. |
| Copyright Year | 2015 |
| Abstract | The science of geology has always dealt with big ideas. When James Hutton became interested in geology in the eighteenth century many people believed the world was only about 6,000 years old, yet the science of geology told Hutton that the Earth was “immensely old”. Virtually no one seemed to believe him when he first read a paper presenting his reasoning to the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 1785. His new idea seemed to mainly result in “intemperate responses” (as Hutton described them). Even his friend John Playfair admitted that his own mind “seemed to grow giddy by looking so far into the abyss of time.” The age of the Earth was a big idea that rumbled on throughout the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries engaging well-known scientists like Playfair, Lyle, Darwin, Kelvin and Holmes in the debate. Finally, the science of radiometric dating indicated that the Earth was “immensely old” at over 4.5 billion years – a truly staggering age that could indeed make the mind go giddy. Today Hutton is known as the Father of Modern Geology for his insights and just how startling his ideas were at the time can be easily forgotten. |
| File Format | PDF HTM / HTML |
| Alternate Webpage(s) | https://www.dinox.org/publications/Hurrell2015a.pdf |
| Language | English |
| Access Restriction | Open |
| Content Type | Text |
| Resource Type | Article |
