INTRODUCTION TO GEOLOGY
Geology is the scientific study of
the earth as a whole. It involves the
study of the earth’s origin, its composition, its evolution and changes it has
undergone in the course of its evolution.
Geology
is the multi-disciplinary science that studies the earth and its history. Geology incorporates those aspects of
astronomy, biology, chemistry, engineering, mathematics and physics that are
important to understanding the Earth and its interactions with the atmosphere,
the biosphere, and the hydrosphere.
It
is an exciting subject that involves a combination of indoor work (theoretical
lessons in the classroom) and outdoor work (fieldwork).
A brief history of Geology
The
first people to make use of geology were the “early men” (our ancient
ancestors) who lived about 100,000 years ago.
They had no clue about what geology was, but made use of “geology” when
they began using rocks to make tools which enabled them to build and hunt.
Geology
as a science was born in Europe, when scientific reasoning was applied to those
processes that shape the Earth. Early
observations on the earth structure and processes were made by a many ancient
scientists like Aristotle, Herodotus and Lucretius, but their conclusions were
merely speculative in nature.
Modern
geology began in the 18th century as a result of field studies
carried out by J.E Guettard (a French mineralogist) and a host of other
scientists. In 1975, James Hutton (the
founder of modern geology) published his thesis “we find no sign of a beginning – and no prospect for an end” after
which Charles Darwin in the 1800s gave a widespread attention to Hutton’s
concept.
According
to Hutton, the processes operating today are the same processes that operated
in the past yielding the same results and these processes have operated for
time immemorial. Charles Lyell referred
to this concept as the principle of
uniformitarianism and became known as the Father of Geology.
In
the twentieth century, geology is advancing at a tremendous pace initiated by
close studies of the atomic structure and the discovery of radioactivity. Important discoveries were made during the
International Geophysical Year (1957 – 1958) when scientists from 67 nations
joined forces in investigating problems in all branches of geology. These tremendous advances in geology have not
only increased interest in the earth, but it has also caused an increase in outer
space surveys such as the remote sensing of other planets by spacecrafts leading
to new and more interesting revelations about outer space and origin of the
earth.
The scope of Geology
The study of the earth is wide and
diverse and can be divided into 5 major divisions and many branches.
1.
Astrology
or planetary geology:
It is the study
of the universe and material like stars, comets, asteroids, planets including
the earth etc.
2. Petrology:
It
is the study of the material comprising the earth crust. This include branches
like;
a) Mineralogy
and crystallography.
b) Petrologies.
3. Physical Geology:
This division studies
the physical processes and changes operating on the earth crust. Included here
are:
a) Structural
geology
b) Geomorphology
4.
Applied
and economic geology:
It deals with the application of physical concepts
to study and exploit natural resources for economic and human benefits.
Included here are:
a) Mining
geology
b) Petroleum
geology
c) Engineering
geology
d) Geochemistry
e) Geophysics
f) Environmental
geology
g) Hydrogeology
etc.
5.
Historical
Geology
It studies the evolution of the earth from its
origin till present. Branches of historical geology are:
a) Stratigraphy
b) Palaeotomogy
c) Palaeogeography.
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