How did Charles Lyell's book change how scientists thought about Earth's history?

1 Answer
Nov 17, 2016

Charles Lyell's book supported a world view of slow uniform natural cause being able to explain all of the earth's features and history.

Explanation:

Charles Lyell's thesis can be summarized by the phrase the present is the key to the past.

Lyell maintained that all of Earth's history must be explained by extrapolating process that can be observed in the present.

The theory of uniform natural process has dominated the world view of most scientists since the time of Lyell. His theory greatly influenced and shaped Charles Darwin's theory of biologically evolution.

The theory of slow uniform process has proven inadequate to explain all of the Earth's history. The theory that an astroid caused the extinction of the dinosaurs is one example of a process that is not slow or uniform. Plate Tectonic was opposed in the beginning because it was thought to violate uniform process, ( It has since been adapted to conform better with Lyell's theory) as was Betz theory of the Missoula flood. ( Also proven true and modified)