10 ms·

One of the wildest parts of geology from a "meta" level is that plate tectonics as a theory wasn't fully accepted until the 1960s! "Plate tectonics came to be

One of the wildest parts of geology from a "meta" level is that plate tectonics as a theory wasn't fully accepted until the 1960s! "Plate tectonics came to be accepted by geoscientists after seafloor spreading was validated in the mid-to-late 1960s." (from the Plate Tectonics Wikipedia page) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plate_tectonics https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plate_tectonics

BitwiseFool 1y ago
Plate tectonics created a serious rift in the Geology community, with both supporters and detractors citing serious faults.
- griffzhowl 1y ago
  Yes, it was ground-breaking (too easy)
- EdwardDiego 1y ago
  Well that was anticline-matic.
- wpollock 1y ago
  Geology jokes are beneath me.
  - BitwiseFool 1y ago
    That's a strike against your character but I'll let it slip.
msisk6 1y ago
The idea that the surface of the earth consists of a bunch of rock "rafts" floating around on a hidden mantle, occasionally running into each other -- with some falling and others rising -- seems rather crazy. It took a lot of data to convince folks it was real.
- griffzhowl 1y ago
  Still, the 1960s feels very late for something that has become so foundational to our understanding of geology. One obvious analogy is the Copernican revolution where the crazy idea that the entire Earth is spinning on a daily basis was recognized centuries ago. With plate tectonics there was the major clue with how the outline of South America fits so neatly into Africa, and I assume that it was known that the rocks were similar on each side of the ocean. Nevertheless, if the idea remained speculative till the sea-floor spreading was observed then I suppose it had to wait till we had robust enough subs to get down there to see it.
  - Pet_Ant 1y ago
    > Still, the 1960s feels very late for something that has become so foundational to our understanding of geology. One obvious analogy is the Copernican revolution where the crazy idea that the entire Earth is spinning on a daily basis was recognized centuries ago. The Gregorian calendar is really the problem because it amplifies relative numbers. The agricultural evolution that started modern humans as a culture was 10,000 years ago. If we think of the current year as 12,025 ME and Copperncian revolution as 11,514 ME I think it puts in a proper scope as all relatively recent and contemporary event. Gregorian calendar is like standing too close to a Monet or pointillist painting, you lose the scope of the big picture.
aaroninsf 1y ago
John McPhee's wonderful and Pulitzer-winning non-fiction natural history The Annals of the Former World about geology—specifically North American geology as exposed in highway road cuts! This title which was collects a series of books originally published in series and only collected in a single volume subsequently, happened to have been written over the years during which plate tectonic theory was still being fiercely debated, indeed some of the characters contested it. By that happy accident the book is thus simultaneously several things: - a marvelous natural history of the United States revealed through characteristically engaging and evocative personal narratives - a look at North American geology which over the course of the books collected is increasingly revealed - a very effective communication of what geological _deep time_ really means, and - a fascinating look into the inner workings of scientific inquiry and discourse: messy, passionate, exquisite, invaluable Of particular local interest is the must-read Assembling California, the final book collected, which contains a duly famous second by second account of how the Loma Prieta earthquake went down. A nice introduction: https://californiacurated.com/2024/09/06/looking-back-john-mcphees-assembling-california-a-journey-through-geology-and-time/ https://californiacurated.com/2024/09/06/looking-back-john-m...
- alexpotato 1y ago
  Love John McPhee and have read a lot of his books so will have to check out your recommendation. His book The Survival of the Bark Canoe led directly to me learning about crooked knives and then starting https://crookedknives.com https://crookedknives.com All of his books are phenomenal.
booleandilemma 1y ago
And yet the continents look like a jigsaw puzzle to any schoolchild.

BitwiseFool 1y ago

Plate tectonics created a serious rift in the Geology community, with both supporters and detractors citing serious faults.

griffzhowl 1y ago
Yes, it was ground-breaking (too easy)
EdwardDiego 1y ago
Well that was anticline-matic.
wpollock 1y ago
Geology jokes are beneath me.
- BitwiseFool 1y ago
  That's a strike against your character but I'll let it slip.

msisk6 1y ago

The idea that the surface of the earth consists of a bunch of rock "rafts" floating around on a hidden mantle, occasionally running into each other -- with some falling and others rising -- seems rather crazy. It took a lot of data to convince folks it was real.

griffzhowl 1y ago
Still, the 1960s feels very late for something that has become so foundational to our understanding of geology. One obvious analogy is the Copernican revolution where the crazy idea that the entire Earth is spinning on a daily basis was recognized centuries ago. With plate tectonics there was the major clue with how the outline of South America fits so neatly into Africa, and I assume that it was known that the rocks were similar on each side of the ocean. Nevertheless, if the idea remained speculative till the sea-floor spreading was observed then I suppose it had to wait till we had robust enough subs to get down there to see it.
- Pet_Ant 1y ago
  > Still, the 1960s feels very late for something that has become so foundational to our understanding of geology. One obvious analogy is the Copernican revolution where the crazy idea that the entire Earth is spinning on a daily basis was recognized centuries ago. The Gregorian calendar is really the problem because it amplifies relative numbers. The agricultural evolution that started modern humans as a culture was 10,000 years ago. If we think of the current year as 12,025 ME and Copperncian revolution as 11,514 ME I think it puts in a proper scope as all relatively recent and contemporary event. Gregorian calendar is like standing too close to a Monet or pointillist painting, you lose the scope of the big picture.

aaroninsf 1y ago

John McPhee's wonderful and Pulitzer-winning non-fiction natural history The Annals of the Former World about geology—specifically North American geology as exposed in highway road cuts! This title which was collects a series of books originally published in series and only collected in a single volume subsequently, happened to have been written over the years during which plate tectonic theory was still being fiercely debated, indeed some of the characters contested it. By that happy accident the book is thus simultaneously several things: - a marvelous natural history of the United States revealed through characteristically engaging and evocative personal narratives - a look at North American geology which over the course of the books collected is increasingly revealed - a very effective communication of what geological _deep time_ really means, and - a fascinating look into the inner workings of scientific inquiry and discourse: messy, passionate, exquisite, invaluable Of particular local interest is the must-read Assembling California, the final book collected, which contains a duly famous second by second account of how the Loma Prieta earthquake went down. A nice introduction: https://californiacurated.com/2024/09/06/looking-back-john-mcphees-assembling-california-a-journey-through-geology-and-time/ https://californiacurated.com/2024/09/06/looking-back-john-m...

alexpotato 1y ago
Love John McPhee and have read a lot of his books so will have to check out your recommendation. His book The Survival of the Bark Canoe led directly to me learning about crooked knives and then starting https://crookedknives.com https://crookedknives.com All of his books are phenomenal.

booleandilemma 1y ago

And yet the continents look like a jigsaw puzzle to any schoolchild.