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Shifting Paradigms:Why History Matters in Geological Sciences


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1 Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Bengaluru 560 064, India
 

Geology as a scientific enterprise emerged in the 18th century, both at intellectual and commercial levels, as an exploitive tool in the hands of imperial powers to locate and assess natural resources, and it eventually evolved into a post-modernistic manifestation of an all-embracing science of sustainability, called Earth-system science. Following the timeline of geology, which began as a classical scientific discipline, we see a prime example of a socially embedded science that goes through various cycles of growth pangs and transitions during its evolution concomitant with epochal changes in social perspectives. This article explores how geology as a scientific discipline evolved to its present status.

Keywords

Geological Sciences, History, Shifting Paradigms.
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  • Shifting Paradigms:Why History Matters in Geological Sciences

Abstract Views: 522  |  PDF Views: 118

Authors

C. P. Rajendran
Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Bengaluru 560 064, India

Abstract


Geology as a scientific enterprise emerged in the 18th century, both at intellectual and commercial levels, as an exploitive tool in the hands of imperial powers to locate and assess natural resources, and it eventually evolved into a post-modernistic manifestation of an all-embracing science of sustainability, called Earth-system science. Following the timeline of geology, which began as a classical scientific discipline, we see a prime example of a socially embedded science that goes through various cycles of growth pangs and transitions during its evolution concomitant with epochal changes in social perspectives. This article explores how geology as a scientific discipline evolved to its present status.

Keywords


Geological Sciences, History, Shifting Paradigms.

References





DOI: https://doi.org/10.18520/cs%2Fv117%2Fi6%2F927-931