Charles Lyell Biography - Scottish Geologist Considered The Father of Geology
Charles Lyell (Kinnordy, Forfarshire, November 14, 1797-London, February 22, 1875), was a British geologist, one of the founders of modern geology. Lyell was one of the most prominent representatives of geological uniformism and gradualism.
Principles of Geology, published between 1830 and 1833 in several volumes, is his most outstanding work. According to the uniformitarian thesis, already formulated by James Hutton, the father of modern geology, the Earth would have formed slowly over long periods of time and from the same physical forces that today govern geological phenomena (uniformism): erosion , earthquakes, volcanoes, floods, etc. This idea is opposed to catastrophism, the thesis according to which the Earth would have been shaped by a series of great catastrophes in a relatively short time.
The work has three dimensions:
Actualism: explanation of past phenomena based on the same causes that operate today.
Uniformity: past geological phenomena are uniform, excluding any catastrophic phenomenon.
Dynamic Balance - Earth's history is governed by a constant cycle of creation and destruction.
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