How do we know the age of the Earth?
In the December issue of Focus, a science and technology magazine published by the BBC, Cherry Lewis answers the question of how we know the age of the Earth. Based on her book The Dating Game, she summarises the history of how we came to know the age of the Earth through the progressive development […]
The Evolution of Creationism
In a recent issue of GSAToday Dave Montgomery of Seattle has written an excellent short account of the history of Creationism. Following all recent scholars like Ron Numbers he traces the roots of Young Earth Creationists (YEC) to about 1900 in the Seventh Day Adventist church, rather than presenting the view that it is a […]
William Boyd Dawkins, geologist & cave hunter
As part of Manchester’s Science Festival, HOGG Secretary, Leucha Veneer, will be giving a talk on the curator and cave hunter, William Boyd Dawkins (1837-1929). Boyd Dawkins found and recorded tools from Neolithic and Bronze Age man in the caves of Cresswell Crags, a limestone gorge honeycombed with caves. Using his knowledge of geology from […]
Hugh Torrens wins IUGS Tikhomirov award
Emeritus Professor Hugh Torrens has been awarded the inaugural V. V. Tikhomirov Award for the History of Geology. The Award is one of the new IUGS Scientific Awards of Excellence which have recently been established to reward outstanding original contributions or achievements that mark a major advance or contribution to the Earth Sciences. Each IUGS […]
Save Siccar Point
An issue of huge importance to the history of geology is the recent proposal to build an outfall pipe for agricultural waste adjacent to Siccar Point where James Hutton’s famous ‘Unconformity’ is so well exposed in the sea cliff. An avalanche of objections to the planning application has landed on the Scottish Borders Council from […]
Celebrating John Milne ‘The Father of Modern Seismology'
The hundredth anniversary of the death of Professor John Milne ‘The Father of Modern Seismology’ will be commemorated on the 31 July 2013. As part of the celebrations, the Isle of Wight Society has compiled information on its website which details related events around the world. ‘Earthquake’ Milne’ was the nickname given to Professor John […]
Strata: The Remarkable Life Story of William Smith, the Father of English Geology – John L Morton
William Smith was the first man to realise that rock strata extended right across the country – that fossils found in Dorset were the same as those in Yorkshire because the rocks were of the same age. In 1797, he drew up a list of twenty-eight rock strata beneath the town of Bath from the […]
King of Siluria: How Roderick Murchison Changed the Face of Geology – John L Morton
From joining The Geological Society in 1825, Roderick Impey Murchison became its President only seven years later! He went about his investigation of older rocks in Wales and Eastern Europe with boundless energy and was the first to differentiate and name the Silurian, Devonian and Permian periods of geological time. After extensive research, John L. […]
Cherry Lewis awarded Sue Tyler Friedman medal
The Geological Society of London’s Sue Tyler Friedman medal has been awarded this year to Cherry Lewis for her distinguished contributions to the recording of the history of geology. The medal is awarded annually, or at such intervals as Council may determine, on a world-wide basis without regard to nationality. This Geological Society award was […]
Strata: The Remarkable Life Story of William Smith, the Father of English Geology – John L Morton
William Smith was the first man to realise that rock strata extended right across the country – that fossils found in Dorset were the same as those in Yorkshire because the rocks were of the same age. In 1797, he drew up a list of twenty-eight rock strata beneath the town of Bath from the […]