Geology - MT2 - Part 2 Flashcards
What did fossil skeptics think about fossils? (3)
- That they were not remains of organisms
- They tell us nothing about the life of the past
- Didnt think extinction was a real phenomenon
What was the problem with extinction?
The concept of extinction is a variance with the idea that all species were created by a wise, all powerful god for a specific purpose
What did genesis paleontologists think fossils were?
Remains of organisms and tried to fit them into a biblical framework
What problem did Nicholar Steno wrestle with?
Solid within solids problem
- asked how do solids get inside other solids
- eg) shark teeth incased in solid rock in solid biological products
What was Robert Hooke?
He was a genesis skeptic
What did Hooke believe? (3)
- Sedimentary rocks are not remains of the flood
- Earths movement reform the earths surface, exposing marine layers
- Extinction is real
What did neptunism help establish?
Deep time
Neptunism
Was an attempt to understand geological formations (especially mountains) as a consequence of recession of the oceans and the precipitation of minerals form the receding oceans
What did most neptunists do?
Made no reference to the Bible of the great flood
What did the neptunists establish?
The stratigraphical principle of super position which had its origins with Nicholas Steno
Super position
Younger layers of rocks on top of older layers
- older layers get pushed down to the bottom and new layers form on top
What does plutonism emphasize?
Internal heat as an agent of geological change
Who founded plutonism?
James Hutton
What 2 important principles did Hutton argue?
- Uniformitarianism
2. Geological cycles and a steady state earth
Uniformitarianism
The causes of geological change are slow and constant with the same rate at all times
