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Ground Water Potential in Different parts of India The important factors influencing the ground water potential in any area are: Lithology (types of rocks with their inherent porosity and permeability characters). 2. Geological structures (such as folds, joints and intrusive). 3. Rainfall. 4. Occurrence of surface water bodies such as rivers, ponds and reservoirs (which help in enriching ground water potential of the area concerned). Of the preceding four factors, lithology is the most important and hence knowledge of regional lithology helps in broadly predicting the ground water potentiality in any area. In the Indo-Gangetic alluvial plains, aquifers occur in abundance and the water table generally lies at a shallow depth. In such regions, therefore, the ground water can easily be drawn through ordinary open wells or bore wells. In the
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Deccan trap country, on the other hand, the water table is generally present at a great depth and hence ground water can be drawn only through deep wells. In Rajasthan and adjacent regions, where the climate is dry, the water supply is obtained from the underground through deep wells. In South India, aquifers occur within the crystalline and sedimentary rocks of Archeans, Precambrians and Gondwanaa. The ground water from them is tapped through wells of moderate to great depth. Ground water does not occur everywhere below the earths surface. Further, as its occurrence is below the surface, direct check-up is not possible. Hence suitable studies are necessary to make the attempts of tapping ground water successful. Otherwise, time, money and energy spent may become useless. To deal with the general shortage of surface water and growing demands of water, huge funds are spent to explore and to locate places where ground water occurs in plenty. Geological Investigation Geological investigation comprises the study of a given area from different angles as now mentioned to predict the scope of ground water occurrence there. 1. Study of rock types: This refers to not only the outcrops of rock types occurring but also to their thickness, attitude (i.e., strike and dip details) and their porosity and

2.

3.

permeability characters. Attitude of rocks, i.e. dip direction of bedding planes influences the flow of ground water beneath the surface. Study of topography: This refers to occurrence of highlands and low lands . The water table will be roughly parallel to the surface, i.e., occurring at a relatively higher level in hilly regions and at a depth below valleys in low lands. But its rise or fall is always gentle. Further, ground water flows from places with a higher water table level to places with a lower water table level. In ground water exploration, places of the lowest elevation are preferred because (i) the depth of actual occurrence of the water table will be relatively less than in hilly regions and (ii) ground water comes from different sides to that point. Study of weathering: In hard rock areas, surface occurrence of in situ rocks as bare boulders without soil and subsoil zones is not suitable for tapping ground water because they not only lack weathered zones but also joints and fractures which may occur on the surface shall become less prominent and disappear at a depth. This means porosity will be less and hence there is no scope for occurrence of plenty of ground water. On the other hand, the valleys and low lying places are suitable for ground water
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4.

5.

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tapping because they are not only the places of natural deposition of sediments but also they are the places where the weathering of in situ rocks would have occurred more for various reason. Low lying places have also the advantages mentioned in the preceding paragraphs. Study of geological structures: This refers to the trend or attitude of joints, cracks, faults, shear zones, folds, etc., which not only contribute to secondary porosity but also act as channel ways or guide the direction of movement of ground water. Synclinal folding accompanying suitable lithology leads to artesian conditions which are very much sought after in ground water exploration because they generally yield a copious supply of water. Study of intrusive rocks: This refers to the occurrence, trend and extent of dolerite dykes, quartz veins etc., these being hard and resistant may act as barriers to the normal flow of ground water. This results in the accumulation of ground water on one side of the intrusive only. Thus, it is a common experience that in some places ground water may be plenty in a particular area and may be scarce in a nearby area. Geological mapping: This of course reveals most of the foregoing field data and hence is

very important. In this, the actual mode of occurrence of rocks along with the associated geological structures and intrusive are shown over the contour map of that area. Sources of Ground Water Supply (1) Upon the surface, perennial rivers and lakes of considerable size and depth constitute importance and dependable sources of water supply, while the smaller lakes and rivers do not maintain an appreciable flow of water throughout the year and are hence undependable. Construction of dams and barrages along the courses of rivers which discharge a lot of water only during the monsoons constitutes a wise means of impounding or storing water in reservoirs for use during the dry season. (2) Below the surface, ground water occurs within the loose soil and porous or fractured rocks. The saturated zone is a great natural subterranean reservoir of fresh water which absorbs and stores precipitation during the rainy season and releases it when required during dry periods. Sometimes, ground water comes out in the form of natural springs and seepages. Ordinary open wells bore wells and artesian wells are some of the common ways of exploiting ground water. It is, however, necessary to remember the basic fact that all natural sources of water supply upon or below the surface of the earth are, in turn, fed by and entirely
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dependent on rainfall or melting of ice. This means in humid countries having good rainfall, natural sources of water supply would be plentiful and in arid places, where the rainfall is scanty, the water supply would be inadequate. At the very outset, it appears paradoxical that we are made to consider the water supply issue so seriously, in spite of the fact that more than three-fourths of the earths surface is covered by water and hundreds of lakes and thousands of rivers exist on land. In other words, acute scarcity exists amidst apparent plenty. In this context it may be interesting to know that: 1. Seas and oceans contain 330 million cubic miles of water. If this water is imagined to occur over a perfectly spherical earth, the depth of water works out to be about 11/2 miles. 2. In addition to the foregoing, huge quantities of ice occur as ice caps at poles and as numerous glaciers over mountain tops. The water contained in this form is estimated to be about 4 million cubic miles. It may be interesting to know that if all this ice melts the level of sea would rise by 250 feet and submerge important cities like New York, London and Mumbai. In Greenland, the ice is 9000 feet thick. 3. It is found that 97.2% of water on our planet occurs in sea. Nearly 2.0% occurs in ice bodies. The

remaining 0.8% occurs as surface water and ground water. Of this 0.8%, one-third is in the form of surface water and two-thirds is in the form of ground water. Importance of Water The foregoing details indicate that 99.2% of available water on the earth is unsuitable for direct use because it is either saline or occurs as solid ice in inaccessible places. So, only the remaining 0.8% of water is available for direct exploitation. This limited resource becomes more precious because the demand for water is growing at an alarming rate. Demand for Water Apart from numerous minor requirements, water is mainly needed for irrigation, industries and domestic purpose. As more and more land is quickly brought under irrigation and as more industries are established at a very fast rate and also as rapid growth is noticed in population, it is needless to say that the demand for more and more water is growing in every sphere. Reliable statistics giving actual consumption of water in these three main fields are not available. But it is believed that approximately 75% of water is used for irrigation, 20% in industries and 5% for domestic purposes, including drinking requirements. Enormous
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quantities of water are needed by us. It also makes clear that all our demands for water are to be met from the negligible 0.8% of global fresh waters only, which include both surface and ground water resources. It has been stated that ground water resources are double that of surface fresh water resources. Hence, the role expected to be played by ground water in meeting the demands for water is very substantial. Advantages of Using Ground Water Ground water exploitation is much more advantageous than using surface water for various reasons, which are as follow: 1. Though streams and rivers are numerous and form a good network in many countries, still, there are many places which do not have rivers or ponds or lakes nearby for ready use. In some other places, available surface water supply may be inadequate. In such cases, ground water is the only alternative and dependable source of water. 2. Even in places where streams or rivers occur, water flowing through them will not be constantly steady and would dwindle during summer. Many streams actually flow only during rainy seasons. In our country, only north Indian rivers are perennial and maintain satisfactory discharges as they are fed by the melting of glaciers. Further, during droughts, surface water bodies get dry naturally. Therefore, in all such

cases, ground water shall be the only sources of water supply. 3. In places where rivers occur, to exploit their water suitably, it becomes necessary to construct and maintain dams and canal which means spending of thousands of crore of rupees and waiting for decades for getting water supply from such projects. Further, such projects shall also require the labour of thousands of skilled and unskilled people. Thus they involve money, time and work on a very large scale. When compared with this stupendous task, the exploitation of ground water simply requires digging a suitable well or bore well which can be accomplished cheaply in a very short time and with much less labour. 4. To harness surface river water b dams, it is also necessary to have reservoirs of adequate capacity to store the enormous quantities of impounded water. This means hundreds of thousands of acres of valuable or fertile or historically important surface land will get submerged under water permanently and become unusable for any purpose such as cultivation, developing township or industries. The acquisition of such extensive land will involve many problems like huge monetary compensation, evacuation of a number of villages, submergence of centres of ancient culture (such as those of the Buddhist religion under the Nagarjuna Sagar Dam), sacred
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temples, etc. (Such a threat to the famous and historically important Alampur Temples at Sri Sailam reservoir site is a relevant example.) But in exploiting ground water, either a well or bore well occupies a practically negligible place as all its reserve of water is drawn from subsurface formations. This means any problems mentioned in the cases of reservoir will not arise. 5. In case of reservoirs, there shall be scope for leakage of water depending on the types of rocks, geological structures and water table position existing at the reservoir basin. But in the case of a well there is no such possibility as the water from the well is drawn from the zone of saturation itself. 6. In case of reservoir, again, the water occurs over a very wide area which means considerable loss of water by evaporation (which is a natural process taking place at all times). In case of wells this is not so. 7. Though rivers are capable of selfpurification, there is always the threat of pollution due to release of industrial wastes, sewage and other effluents at a number of places along their course. The multimillion project of Ganga river purification, taken up recently by the government, illustrates the severity of this aspect. Such a possibility is remote in the case of well, as they are well maintained by the owners concerned of course, sometimes, ground water too may cause some health (particularly dental) problems

depending on the composition of subsurface formations. Fluorosis noticed in some districts of Andhra Pradesh may be cited in this regard. 8. Reservoirs, being artificial lakes, always face silting problems which gradually decrease their storage capacity. This means that, after some years, they become more or less useless. Any number of precautions taken can only reduce the rate of silting but cannot altogether eliminate it. In the case of wells, such conditions do not exist and even if silting does occur after a long time, it can be removed without much difficulty. 9. Dams are designed and constructed taking into account certain facts of the river concerned. But natural calamities such as unpredictable earthquakes, landslides and unprecedented floods may lead to their failure, which means incalculable loss. However, in the case of wells, for obvious reason such a fear does not exist. 10.Further, well making is not only inexpensive but also relatively easy, and as it belongs to an individual, it is looked after with due care and maintained well. But maintenance of reservoirs, dams and canals is considerable expensive. 11.Above all, the availability and potentiality of ground water are so high that it is estimated to be on an average equal to ten years of total rainfall. So, it shall be a reliable and immediate source of water supply at times of need. Therefore, it is only
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necessary for us to know where it occurs, how much of it occurs and of what quality, i.e., whether it is saline or fresh (potable). Ground water being a hidden resource naturally needs careful geological, geophysical and hydrological investigations before the above questions can be answered with confidence. Sources of Ground Water The ultimate source for ground water is nothing but rainfall. Of course, depending on influent or effluent conditions prevailing in some places, rivers or ponds maintain a give-and-take relation with ground water. Obviously, the surface water bodies too are generally fed by rainfall only.When rainfall occurs in any area, it gets naturally distributed in three ways as follows: Depending on the surface slope (i.e., topography) and surface rock types, some rain water flows on the surface and forms streams, rivers, etc. This fraction of the rainfall is called runoff. Due to the matueal process of evaporation which takes place at all times, some fraction of the rainfall goes back into the atmosphere. This part is called flyoff. Some part of the rainfall, under the influence of gravity, percolates underground through the pore spaces of soil or fractures of rocks. This actually becomes ground water. This part of rainfall may be described as

1.

2.

3.

delayed runoff because it moves slowly through underground formations and comes out under favorable conditions in the form of springs and seepages. This relative distribution of rainfall into runoff, flyoff and delayed runoff depends primarily on topography, climate, lithology and geological structures, which are described as follow. Topography If the surface has a steep slope, most of the rainfall quickly flows as streams will be very high and only very little water undergoes either evaporation or percolation. On the other hand, if rainfall occurs in depressed areas the reverse will be true, i.e., runoff will be negligible, while the other two processes will occur to a greater extent. Climate In regions with a humid climate, there shall be less evaporation, whereas percolation and/or runoff will be considerable. But in places of hot and dry climate, if rainfall occurs, evaporation will be considerable and the others will be less. Lithology Depending on the mode of formation, cementation, compaction, etc., different rock types have different degrees of porosity and permeability characters. Highly porous and permeable formations lide some sandstones, conglomerates and unconsolidated sediments will allow rapid percolation
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and the other two fractions will be less. But if rainfall occurs over rocks which are neither porous nor permeable, all water either flows as runoff or undergoes evaporation. Geological structures Whether the rocks are inherently porous and permeable or not, if they have suitably interconnected fractures, cracks, joints, crushed zones (such as fault zones or shear zones) or solution cavities, rain water can easily percolate through them and contribute to ground water. Their absence naturally results in less percolation which means the other two, i.e., flyoff and runoff, will be more.Thus, percolation of rain water which is the main source of ground water is influenced by so many factors. Porosity and Permeability Ground water can be drawn either from consolidated rocks or unconsolidated loose sediments. The occurrence of ground water in a geological formation and the scope for its exploitation primarily depend on the porosity and permeability properties of that formation. In view of the special importance of these two properties, the following details are relevant in this context. Porosity In simple terms, porosity may be described as the amount of openings (or empty spaces) present in a rock. However, it may be defined as the ratio of the volume of voids (i.e., openings) in a rock mass to the total volume of the rock expressed in percentage.Porosity presents in a rock

may be either primary or secondary. Primary porosity is that which is present in the rock right from its formation. Secondary porosity is that which is present in the rock after the concerned rock has been formed.Primary porosity occurs as intergranular space in sedimentary rocks. It is dependent on the size, shape and arrangement of sediments. The degree of compaction and cementation of sediments are also the factors influencing porosity. In volcanic igneous rocks, primary porosity is due to the vesicular structure, if present. However, by virtue of the mode of formation, these vesicles may or may not be interconnected. To be of use from the ground water point of view, these vesicles should be interconnected (by fractures) and not isolated. The amount of open space which can get saturated with water represents the effective porosity in such cases. Among metamorphic rocks, foliation and lineation are responsible for the little primary porosity that occurs in slates, phyllites, schists, etc.Secondary porosity occurs in rocks mainly in the form of joints, faults, shear zones, irregular cracks, etc. These occur in all kinds of rocks. In calcareous rocks, solution cavities and channels also may develop, contributing to additional secondary porosity. In all rocks (and hard crystalline rocks in particular) secondary porosity may occur due to weathering. The natural weathering process decomposes and disintegrates all rocks exposed on the surface and produces soil which is highly porous. In general, the porosity decreases with depth because of the pressure exerted by overburden. This is also because the joints,
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cracks, etc., decrease in number and magnitude, with depth. Further, the weathering effect also ceases with an increase in depth because the overlaying soil and subsoil act as a protective covering.The porosity of rocks and unconsolidated material may vary considerably. It may be less than 1% or more than 50%. Porosity more than 20% is considered as large and porosity less than 5 % is considered as small. Medium porosity is between 5 and 20&. The average porosity basues for some common geological formations are as follows (in the increasing order): Granite; quartzite = 15%; slate, shale = 4%; limestone = 5 to 10%; sandstones = 10 to 15%; sand with gravel = 20 to 30%; only gravel = 25%; only sand = 35%; clay = 45%.Rocks which do not have any porosity cannot yield any ground water. Porosity in a rock provides not only space for the occurrence of ground water but also scope for the movement of such water through the rock (of course, shales are an exception). Permeability Permeability is the ability of the rock to transmit water through it, i.e., permeable rocks allow the water to pass through them. This property of the rock is due to the interconnected voids (i.e. porosity) present in the rock. Thus, permeability is dependent on the porosity character of the rock. In other words, only porous rocks can be permeable. As naturally expected, more porous rocks are more permeable too. Of course, this is not true always, for example: 1. Shales are highly porous but less permeable because their inter-

granular space is too narrow to allow water to pass through the rock. 2. Similarly, some vesicular basalt also are highly porous but less permeable, because the vesicles in them are not inter-connected (i.e., the effective porosity is less). Since ground water has to move through minute pores or narrow fractures, its flow will naturally be slow. The flow rates of ground water vary from a few centimeters per year in rocks of low permeability to several centimeters per second in the large passages of some caves. Darcys Law The movement of ground water depends on the prevailing effects of gravity, velocity and pressure of water. According to Darcys Law, the flow of water through a porous medium is proportional to a factor known as hydraulic conductivity or coefficient permeability, k, which is characteristic of the porous medium. This is expressed as: Q = k I A, where Q = volume of water flowing per unit time through a cross-section area A under a hydraulic gradient i. (The hydraulic gradient, i, is measured by the difference in the virtual elevation of the water table between two points, H, is divide by the distance between the two points.) From the preceding relationship, it is clear that the volume of water flow depends on the factor k, when I and A are the same. This k is defined as the coefficient of permeability.
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Since Q/A gives the velocity of flow, V, it can be shown that the coefficient of permeability, k expresses a velocity of flow for a unit hydraulic gradient or V=k when i = 1

For some of the geological formations the permeability coefficient values are as follows: Granite == 0.04, shale == 4, sandstone = 400, sand == 4000, sand and gravel = 400,000, clay == 0.04, limestone = 4, slate = 4 and quartzite = 0.04. To estimate the reserves of ground water and its flow in a geological formation, K value has to be determined separately because the value determined place. This means that permeability is not only a function of the porous medium but also of its environment. Factors influencing Permeability The permeability of rocks depends on many factors, some of which are as follows:
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Size and shape of constituent grains: Uniformity coarse-grained gravel will form a highly permeable aquifer, but when the same rock consists of fractions of different sizes, there is a tendency for the smaller sediments shall have a higher porosity and hence a better permeability than angular sediments in the same grain size range. Sorting of grains: Well-sorted materials (i.e., where grains of a particular size are in one layer followed by grains of the next size)

have a higher permeability than illsorted or unsorted grains in a rock. 3. Continuity and nature of interstices: These are particularly relevant in the case of secondary porosity. Mere presence of cracks or cavities or joints does not make a rock permeable. All these openings must also be interconnected; only then flow of water through the rock will be possible. Classification of Rocks Based on Porosity and Permeability The ground water potentiality of any region depends on the porosity and permeability characters of rocks (or earth material such as gravels and sand) occurring there. Irrespective of the mode of origin, mineral content or chemical composition, different kinds of rocks may be classified, based only on porosity and permeability properties, into four groups, namely, aquifers, aquifuges, aquicludes and aquitards (aqua == water). Aquifers are those rocks which are both porous and permeable. These are suitable for ground water occurrence and exploitation. Sandstones and gravels are ideal examples of aquifers. Depending on other associated lithological and structural factors, aquifers are of two kinds, i.e., confined aquifers and unconfined aquifers. Aquifuges are the rocks which are neither porous nor permeable. Naturally, these are not suitable for ground water occurrence. Massive granites and quartzite are typical example of aquifuges. Aquicludes are those rocks which are porous but not permeable. Such rocks may
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bear water but do not yield the same as they are impermeable. Argillaceous rocks like shale and clay are typical examples of aquicludes. The inter-granular spaces (interstices) of these formations contribute to porosity. However, these spaces are too fine to allow water to pass through the rock and are responsible for its impermeability. Aquitards are those aquifuges and aquicludes which have a considerable number of interconnected fractures (joints, faults, etc). Such fractures not only hold water but also act as channel ways for transmission of ground water in those rocks. Thus, these aquifuges and aquicludes are rendered porous and permeable. However, as these rocks are not porous and permeable as a whole and as these properties are only due to the fractures present, only limited ground water may be present. Based on petrological knowledge, it will be easy to assess the aquifer characters of common igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rocks .Among different igneous rocks we know that there are three subdivisions: Plutonic, hypabyssal and volcanic. Granites, dolerites and basalts are the most abundant among these subdivisions, respectively. Of these, granites and dolerites have not only an interlocking texture but also being intrusive; they are massive, dense and compact. As a result, these have negligible porosity and permeability. So, these rocks are typical examples of aquifuges. They can bear ground water only when they are either intensely fractured (due to faults and joints) or have undergone considerable

weathering, producing thick zones of soil and subsoil. (In other words, the bedrock should have considerable loose or fractured overburden.) However, as both weathering and fracturing decrease with depth and disappear, no ground water can be expected in such rocks at great depths (say, 80 to 100 meters). Charnockites which occur extensively in some places (particularly in parts of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka) are very similar to granites in terms of aquifer characters. Coming to basalts, the important points in this context are: 1. These rocks are often vesicular, in these, vesicles are of considerable size and number and if these are interconnected (by fractures), they can serve as aquifers. 2. The contraction joints (like columnar joints) and other fractures, if present, also contribute to the porosity and permeability characters of basalts. 3. Since basalts originate as lava flows, sometimes, they may be overlying the buried valleys which offer good ground water potential. 4. Depending on the attitude of associated strata, basalts may even give rise to artesian conditions. But massive, fresh (unweathered) basalts with their interlocking texture are practically not porous and not permeable like granites. Such basalts are aquifuges. Among sedimentary rocks, the most common ones are
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shales, sandstones, and limestone. Of these, sandstones and shales are formed out of the deposition of mechanically transported sediments. Generally, the factors which contribute to the primary porosity in them (sandstones and shales) are: 1. Assorted and unasserted characters of sediments. 2. Size and shape of sediments. 3. Nature of compaction and/or cementation undergone by sediments. A generalization may be made that coarse, rounded, sorted (i.e. uniform size sediments), less compacted and poorly cemented rocks are more porous. In the case of dense and fine grained limestone (formed out of compaction of chemically precipitated calcareous material), they have no primary porosity, but solution cavities and channels are common in them which sometimes make these rocks highly porous. In laterites, which represent the residual type, the porosity is due to the intense leaching of the rock concerned. All the foregoing rocks may also have joints, faults, shear zones, cracks, etc., which contribute to additional porosity in them. In sediments and sedimentary rocks the following represents the increasing order of acquifer character: clays, shale, limestone, sandstones, sand and gravel.Shales are impermeable rocks, though considerably porous. Clays may have 50-60% porosity. Therefore, these are quoted as typical examples of aquicludes. If numerous fractures occur in them, they

may act as aquitards. But when wet, they may become plastic and close the fractures. From the ground water point of view, shales are important because, being a very common sedimentary rock; they often contribute to artesian and perched water conditions. Sandstones, though less porous (10-15% only) than shales are fairly permeable rocks. Thus, by virtue of reasonable porosity and permeability, these make up common and good aquifers. It is a fact that in some places of Tamil Nadu; ground water is drawn out from very great depths from sandstones. Of course, all sandstones do not serve as equally good aquifers because their aquifer characters as we know are influenced by factors such as their grain size, shape, sorting and cementation. Conglomerates which are similar to sandstones in their mode of formation may act as better aquifers by virtue of the large size and the rounded shape of constituent pebbles and gravels. From the ground water point of view, limestones are unpredictable. Some limestones are highly porous due to solution cavities and channels. They act as good aquifers. But some limestones are very dense, compact and extremely fine grained. They are neither porous nor permeable. Therefore, they act as aquifuges. But usually cracks or fractures which occur on all rocks may occur in limestones too and make them aquitards. In Metamorphic Rocks,Foliation and/or lineation, if present and well developed, may contribute some porosity to metamorphic rocks. But as such rocks are formed under great pressure,
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primary porosity cannot be expected to be much. Among the foliated group of metamorphic rocks, gneisses are less porous than schists. Further, schistose rocks which are generally made up of soft and cleavage-bearing minerals are more susceptible to weathering. Hence, they tend to be relatively more porous. Slates which are fine grained rocks like shales may have some ground water potential by virtue of their cleavage and secondary porosity (joints, fractures, etc.) Among the non-foliated rocks, quartzites have very little porosity by virtue of their compactness and granulose texture. Further, they are also highly resistant to weathering because of their high hardness and silica composition. Hence, they are inherently unsuitable for ground water occurrence. Marbles are like limestones as far as ground water occurrence is concerned because they too have little porosity if massive. But the solution cavities and channels present contribute significantly to porosity and permeability. Water Table and Types of Ground Water Due to the natural phenomenon of weathering of rocks, generally, the land surface is covered by loose soil. Since the effect of weathering (i.e. disintegration and decomposition) decreases gradually with depth, a fractured zone of rocks exists below the soil zone. Further, below this zone, occurs the bedrock which is free from fractures. Thus, a vertical section consisting of loose soil (at the top), fractured rock (in the middle) and compact bedrock (at the bottom) is generally encountered in any given area, more so in

a hard rock terrain. Hence, when rainfall occurs in any area, an appreciable percentage of water (not used by plants, and not evaporated into the atmosphere, and not held as soil moisture) moves downwards through fractures, under the influence of gravity, until it reaches the bedrock. Then, the percolation of rain water leads to the development of a zone of saturation above the bedrock, in which all openings are filled with water. Such water is ground water, in the true sense. The upper surface of this zone of saturation is called water table. Above the zone of saturation and below the ground surface is the zone of aeration, in which water fills only a portion of the pore space. (This water is actually the percolating water moving downwards under the influence of gravity through these openings.) The following are the types of ground water which occur in the zone of aeration:
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4.

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other words, the ground water is recharged or enriched this way. Perched water: This occurs above a suitable aquifuges within the zone of aeration. Capillary water: This exists within very fine openings, just above, and in contact with, the water table.

The different types of ground water which occur in the zone of saturation are:
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2.

2.

3.

Soil water: This is the water which occurs in the soil and is available to the roots of plants or vegetation existing on the surface. Pellicular water: When rain water percolates downwards, some water sticks to the sides of fractures or to the surface of openings in rocks. It does not move down under the influence of gravity. Such water is called pellcular water. Vadose water: This is also called gravity water. It is actually that fraction of rainfall which percolates downwards under the influence of gravity and reaches the water table and joins the zone of saturation. In
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3.

4.

5.

6.

Unconfined or free ground water: This is the type of ground water which lies below the water table and under atmospheric pressure only. This water can move freely upwards or downwards within the aquifer. Confined water: This water occurs below the water table and is confined between aquicludes or aquifuges (i.e. in between impervious beds). Unlike free water, this type of ground water occurs under some hydrostatic pressure. Fixed ground water: this exists within extremely small openings in aquicludes and cannot move under gravity. Connate water: this is the water which is held within the rocks right from the beginning of their formation. Internal water: the underground water occurring at very great depths within the zone of disconnected openings is known as internal water. Juvenile water: this is the name given to the water from a magnitude source.

Out of the different types of ground water, only perched water, free water and

confined water can be utilized under favorable conditions as suitable sources of water supply. The usefulness of perched water as a dependable source of water supply is determined by: (i) the nature, shape and extent of the impermeable barrier on which the perched water accumulates and (ii) the rate of percolation of water in the zone of aeration. If the upper surface of the impermeable barrier is flat or convex, it cannot hold much water. On the other hand, if the barrier is sufficiently large in size with its upper surface concave, it shall be capable of holding a considerable quantity of water. Confined water, like perched water, shall be useful only under certain conditions. It can be tapped through artesian wells, springs, and the amount of water supply from such sources depends on the size and shape of the aquifer and the recharge or percolation that takes place into it from the surface (catchment area). Free water is, however, the most commonly used type of ground water by digging open wells or drilling bore wells and penetrating the saturated zone below the water table. In any well of this kind, the static level of water coincides with the water table of the surroundings. Types of Aquifers Based on the type of ground water contained, i.e., free water or confined water or perched water, the aquifers are named as unconfined aquifers, confined aquifers and perched aquifers. Unconfined Aquifers

These do not have any impermeable beds above them and the water table is under atmospheric pressure only. Depending on whether the water is tapped from the aquifer or recharged into such an aquifer, the water table will fail or rise uniformity throughout the rock. Wells dug in such an aquifer will have the water level equal to the level of the water table as shown in the earlier figure. Such wells are described as gravity wells or unconfined wells. Confined Aquifers These are also called artesian aquifers. The requirements and the conditions prevailing in the case of confined aquifers are as follows: 1. An aquifer should be sandwiched between two impermeable formations. 2. Such an aquifer should have suitable structural conditions, so that the confined water occurs in it under some hydrostatic pressure. 3. The aquifer should outcrop on the surface at a higher level to serve as a catchment area and facilities percolation of rain water through it. 4. In the preceding set-up, if the overlying impermeable formation is punctured, depending on the surface height at that point and the level of the pressure surface (of ground water) existing there, the water may gush out under pressure in the form of a spring or may rise to some height below the ground level. Then these are called artesian spring or artesian well, respectively. Geological Controls on Ground Water Movement
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Ground water movement in the zone of aeration takes place under the influence of gravity. But the factors influencing ground water movement in the zone of saturation are of different kinds. Most of them are geological and are as follows: 1. The permeability character of rocks is one of the most influencing factors of ground water movement. Details of this aspect have been given under permeability. 2. The most important geological control is the kind of secondary porosity associated with the rocks. Well-developed, if present, guide the movement of ground water along their alignment. Sheet joints are sometimes very important in this regard. Similarly, faults, if present, also influence the ground water to move along them. This is the reason for the alignment of springs, noticed in some places. 3. The other important geological control is the attitude of bedding. Generally, different sedimentary beds differ in their permeability; some may be impermeable too. If such beds occur inclined or folded (into synclines or anticlines) the percolated water moves along the bedding planes only, i.e., not vertically downwards as usual under the influence of gravity. The artesian conditions occur in this way only. Sometimes tilted beds, if accompanied by faults, joints or
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4.

5.

6.

7.

intrusive lead to the occurrence of springs and seepages. The buried river channel and unconformities also influence the ground water movement as they are more porous and permeable. Relatively small pockets of zones of saturation occur within the zone of aeration as perched water only due to the prevention of movement of vadose water by the locally occurring impermeable formation. Occurrence of vertical or steeply inclined dolerite dykes, quartz veins, etc., which are relatively more hard and resistant than the associated country rocks, may act as barriers to the natural flow of ground water and force it to stop and accumulate on one side of them (i.e., dykes or veins). This makes ground water occur in plenty on one side of the intrusive and very less on the other side. Another important factor which influences ground water movement is the hydraulic gradient (i.e., slope or difference in the water table level).

The natural hydraulic gradient has a geological bearing because the water table has the tendency to occur at a higher level in hilly (or elevated) regions and at a lower level in a valley (or depressed regions). This natural difference in the water table level makes ground water along the downward slope of this table. Of course, the hydraulic gradient is also

developed artificially (rather temporarily) when ground water is pumped out and the cone of depression is made to form. This also influences ground water to move along the drawdown curve. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------1A. External processes include (1) weatheringthe disintegration and decomposition of rock at or near Earths surface; (2) mass wasting-the transfer of rock material downslope under the influence of gravity; and (3) erosion-the removal of material by a mobile agent, usually water , wind, or ice. They are called external processes because they occur at or near Earths surface and powered by energy from the sun. By contrast, internal processes, such as volcanism & Mt. buildings, derive their energy from earths interior. Mechanical weathering is the physical breaking up of rock into smaller piece. Rocks can be broken into smaller fragments by frost wedging (where water works its way into cracks or voids in rock and upon freezing, expands and enlarges the opening), unloading (expansion and breaking due to a great reduction in pressure when the overlying rock is eroded away), and biological activity (by humans, burrowing animals, plants roots etc). Chemical weathering alters a rocks chemistry, changing it into different substances. Water is by far the most important agent of chemical weathering. Oxygen dissolved in water will oxidize iron-rich minerals, while carbon dioxide (CO2) dissolved in water forms carbonic acid, which attacks and alters rock. The chemical weathering of silicate minerals frequently produces (1) soluble products
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containing sodium, calcium, potassium, and magnesium ions, and silica in solution; (2) insoluble iron oxides, including limonite and hematite; and (3) clay minerals. The rate at which rock weathers depends on such factors as (1) particle size-small pieces generally weather faster than large pieces; (2) mineral makeup-calcite readily dissolves in mildly acidic solutions, and silicate minerals that form first from magma are least resistant to chemical weathering and (3) climate factors, particularly temperature and moisture. Frequently, rocks exposed at Earths surface do not weather at the same rate. This differential weathering of rocks is influenced by such factors as mineral makeup and degree of jointing. Soil is a combination of mineral and organic matter, water, and airthat portion of the regolith (the layer of rock and mineral fragments produced by weathering) that supports the growth of plants. About half of the total volume of a good-quality soil is a mixture of disintegrated and decomposed rock (mineral matter) and humus (the decayed remains of animal and plant life); the remaining half consists of pore spaces, where air and water circulate. The most important factors that control soil formation are parent material, time, climate plants, and animals, and topography. Soil-forming process operate from the surface downward and produce zones or layers in the soil called horizons. From the surface downward, the soil horizons are respectively designated as O (largely organic matter), A (largely mineral matter), E (where the fine soil components and soluble materials have been removed by eluviation and leaching), B (or subsoil, often referred to as the zone of accumulation), and C(partially altered

parent material). Together the O and A horizons make up what is commonly called the topsoil. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------1B. The dams are barriers which are constructed across rivers to store water. They are built mainly to control floods, for irrigating lands, for generating electricity and for supplying water to industries and cities. A dam that serves more than one purpose is called a multipurpose dam. Spillway. It is a structure made to discharge the surplus water from storage reservoir into the river on the river on the downstream side of the dam. Through the spillways and gates, the flood water can pass safely without causing any damage to the dam. Heel of Dam. The portion of a dam that touches the ground on the upstream side, is called the heel of a dam The portion of a dam that touches the ground on the downstream side, is called the toe of a dam . Abutments. The sloping sides of a river valley upon which the sides of a dam are keyed, are called abutments. Grouting is a method in which suitable mixture of cement water, cement-calcium chloride, cement-clay, esphaltic emulsions, of other material is injected into the rocks to deal the openings. The grouting mixture is usually pumped through holes drilled in the rocks for this purpose. Grouting is done to consolidate the rocks and to check the seepage of water through them. The dams may be classified into two groups: (i) concrete and masonry dams, (ii) earth fill dams, the concrete and masonry dams are commonly built to big heights. The earth dams, however, are used for small projects with a maximum height of about 100 meters. The main types of dams are as follows. (i) Gravity Dam. It is a massive
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structure of concrete or masonry which stands by its own weight. Generally a sound foundation rock is required for the construction of gravity dams. (ii) Arch Dam. It is an arch-shaped structure of a single concrete wall, the convex side of which faces upstream. The arch dams transmit water pressures to the abutments by arch action. Hence very strong abutment rocks are required for constructing arch dams. (iii) Buttress Dam. In this type of dams buttresses are constructed at the downstream side to side to support an upstream deck of reinforced concrete. The buttress dam are usually constructed on a good foundation rock. (iv) Earth Dam. The earth dams are constructed mainly by soil or earth. These dams have an advantage as they can be built on earth or poor rock conditions. Most of the dam failures that have occurred in the past are not due to faulty, design or construction but mainly due to neglect of the geological flaws. The main geological problems that are usually met with at dam sites are as follows. (i) Dams of shales. (ii) Dams on soluble rocks. (iii) Dams on strata dipping upstream. (iv) Dams on strata dipping downstream. (v) Dams built across strike of rocks.(vi) Dams on jointed and permeable rocks. (vii) Dams on faults. (viii) Abutment problems. (i) Dams on Shales. Shales are of two types: (i) cementation shales, and (ii) compaction shales. The cementation shales are stronger and do not disintegrate when subjected to wetting and drying. The compaction shales on the other hand are soft and they slake when subjected to alternate wetting and drying. Their bearing strength is low and they become plastic when wetted. The compaction shales have a tendency to flow away from the loaded area and therefore the structure settles. Swelling and caving may result during the excavation work which may cause trouble.

If dams have to be built on compaction shales, heavier structures like gravity dams should be avoided. After excavating the weathered rock either concrete should be placed immediately without delay or its surface should be coated with asphalt to avoid swelling and caving. (ii) Dams on Soluble Rocks. The soluble rocks include limestones, dolomites and marbles. These rocks are generally sufficiently strong to support the weight of the dam, but they may contain underground solution channels and caverns. If such solution channels are present at a dam site, the leakage through them may be on such a large scale that the reservoir may not hold water for long. The treatment of such openings is very expensive therefore they should be carefully looked for in the soluble rocks before constructing a dam. (iii) Dams on Strata Dipping Upstream. The dams located on rocks dipping upstream represent ideal foundation conditions. They are the most capable of supporting the weight of dams and the pressure of the reservoir because the resultant of these two forces acts nearly at right angles to the bedding planes of rocks . Further, the upstream dip of rocks does not allow the water in the reservoir to percolate below the dam. As a result the leakage of water and the development of uplift pressure will be minimum. (iv) Dams on strata Dipping Downstream. The dams constructed on rocks dipping downstream may not be safe due to the following reasons. (a) The percolation of water may lubricate the junctions of rock sbeds which may facilitate sliding of dams.(b) The water percolating through the strata dissolves the cementing material of rocks and enlarges the openings by mechanical erosion. This undermines the strength of the rocks and increases the seepage of water. (c) The water which enters into the openings of rocks below the dam, causes the development of uplift pressure which tends to decrease the stability of the structure. (d)

the weight of the dam and pressure of the reservoir water, resultant acts nearly parallel to the bedding planes and endangers the stability of the dam. (v) Dams Built Across Strike of Rocks. The best foundation condition is when only one uniform rock is present along the length of a dam. If a dam is aligned across the strike of strata, its foundation will be on different rock types of varying properties. In such a case, there are chances of unequal settlement of the dam. Further, as the bedding planes of strata lie across the axis of the dam, there is a possibility of serous leakage of water not only through the porous beds but through bedding planes also (vi)Dams on Jointed and Permeable Rocks. Where highly fissured, jointed and permeable rocks exist below the dam, they will not only leakage of water, but also build uplift pressure at the base of the dam. The uplift pressure acts opposite to the weight of the structure and it may cause sliding. Such rocks may be consolidated by grouting.(vii) Dams on Faults. Faults are most troublesome if they are encountered across the length of the dam. It is better to avoid fault zones for the construction of dams. The faults zones cause the following troubles. (a) It is difficult to seal the faults zones and prevent leakage of water from the reservoir at reasonable cost. (b) The rocks may weather upto a great depth along a fault zone. This requires digging and scraping of the weathered rock to a great depth and refilling the trench with concrete. (c) The crushed and fissured rocks that exist along a fault zone in the foundation, have to be grouted intensively to increase their bearing strength. (d) Along a fault some displacement of strata is always expected, particularly during an earthquake. Such a movement will not only reopen the fault fissure but also rupture the dam. (e) A site where the fault is known to have been
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active in recent years, should always be discarded. (viii) Abutment Problems. Careful attention should be given to the orientation of joints, bedding planes, foliations and weak zones that are present in the abutment rocks. If such weak zones lie parallel to the thrust of water in the reservoir, the stability of the structure may be endangered. The rocks that exist in the abutments of an arch dam, should be strong enough to resists the pressure without being crushed. GEOLOGY OF RESERVOIRS The artificial lakes which are created by constructing dams across rivers, are called Reservoirs. A reservoir may fail either due to excessive leakage of water or as a result of rapid sedimentation.The main geological problems connected with the reservoirs are: (i) groundwater conditions, (ii) permeable rocks, and (iii) silting. (i) Groundwater Condition. The amount of leakage of water from the reservoir is controlled by the depth of water table. If the water table is so near the ground surface that the water level in the reservoir does not rise above it, no serious loss by leakage will occur . On the other hand, if water table lies deep below the ground surface, the water level in the reservoir will stand above it. As a result, leakage will occur and its amount will depend on the permeability of rocks. (ii) Permeable Rocks. During the geological investigation it is necessary to locate the highly permeable rocks that are present in the reservoir area. The rocks which are highly fissured, intensely jointed, faulted or have solution channels, are likely to cause serious leakage from the reservoir.Generally the leakage of water from the strata that have downstream dip, will be more than those which have upstream dip. If a permeable rock bed outcrops on the valley slopes in the
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reservoir, it may not only cause leakage but may also cause land-slide . such a landslide may produce an opening in the reservoir rim through which the stored water may escape. (iii) Silting of Reservoir. The reservoirs built on rivers which carry large amount of sediment, may silt up very soon and its water storage capacity may be reduced considerably. The amount of silt produced and supplied to the rivers depends mainly upon the lithological character and topography of the catchment area. The rivers flowing over the soft rocks and high gradient areas, carry greater amount of silt. On such river silt traps may be constructed upstream in order to check the rate of silting in the reservoir. Provisions should also be made for washing out the silt through the passage in the dam. TUNNELS A tunnel is a nearly horizontal underground passage which is open at both the ends to the ground surface. Tunnels are constructed below cities, rivers, and through mountains for carrying railways, roads, canals, water supply and sewage.A tunnel which functions as a part of pipe line and carries water under pressure is called pressure tunnel. Such water tunnels are used in producing hydroelectricity. The lining of a pressure tunnel is subjected to three types of pressures: (i) internal hydrostatic pressure, (ii) external rock pressure, and (ii) external rock pressure, and (iii) external hydraulic pressure. The external hydraulic pressure develops when water form the tunnel seeps into the adjacent country rocks. In water tunnels an important function of lining is to reduce the frictional losses. Tunnel Lining. In hard, massive and unfractured rocks the tunnels may be constructed without lining. However in weak, thinly bedded and fractured rocks lining has to be given to support the roof

load and to prevent the seepage and large volume of water into the tunnel. The concrete, plain or reinforces if generally used for the lining. Tunnel Support. While tunneling through the rock or soil, supports are generally required to prevent the rock material from caving. If tunnel support are not place, the material will fall piece by piece and overbreak will result. The tunnel walls and roof are supported by wood and steel. These support may be removed prior to lining or thy may be allowed to remain in place and are embedded in the concrete. Overbreak. During the excavation work some rock outside the desired permeter of the tunnel is removed so that a concrete lining of proper thickness may be placed. The rock excavated beyond the required cross-section of the tunnel is known as overbreak. As the overbreak has to be filled back with the concrete, it increases the cost of lining. The chief factors which cause overbreak are : (i) presence of hard tough rocks, (ii) presence of closely spaced joints and fractures, (iii) presence of thinly bedded rocks, and (iv) delay in placing roof supports. The soft ground includes those soft and unconsolidated materials which possess little or no cohesion and have a very low crushing strength. These materials consist of gravels, sands, silts, clays and soft shales. They may be dry or water bearing. Excavation through such a ground does not require blasting. Arch supports are always necessary. The soft ground may be divided into three groups. (i) Revelling Ground. The material of the reveling ground flakes and breaks into pieces sometime after it is exposed. (ii) Running Ground. Such a ground consists of clean loose gravels or sands which run into the excavation. (iii) Squeezing Ground. The squeezing ground consists of material that contains a
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large amount of clay. Such a material flows into the tunnel plastically. In shallow tunnels that are driven in the soft ground, the roof load is enormous. It will be equivalent to the full weight of the overlying material and therefore, a very strong lining is required to support it. In some cases, an inverted arch has to be put on the floor of the tunnel to prevent the wet material from being pushed up into the tunnel. Because of these difficulties shallow tunnels are not constructed and deep open cuts are generally made instead. Tunneling through rocks requires blasting. If the rocks met with are structurally poor, support is often placed under the tunnel ceiling to prevent the rock falling blasting. The geological factors which influence tunneling are as follows. (i) Swelling rocks. (ii)Inclined strata. (iii) Folded rocks. (iv) Fault zones. (v) Jointed rocks. (vi) Water bearing rocks. (i) Swelling Rocks. If a tunnel is to be constructed through swelling rocks. It will require special treatment. The examples of swelling rocks are shale, unconsolidated tuff and anhydrite. Such rocks when exposed, absorb moisture and swell. In such cases very strong support should be used. The swelling rocks should also be protected from wetting to the greatest possible degree. (ii) Inclined Strata. In inclined rock beds when a tunnel is driven parallel to the strike direction, there is a tendency in the rocks to fall into the tunnel from the side where the beds dip into the tunnel. This is particularly the case if the hard and soft rocks. Such as sandstone and shale are interbedded.When a tunnel is made across the strike of rocks, it will traverse beds of different rocks . In such cases there will be downward pressure from the roof. Water troubles are likely to be encountered where porous beds are found.

(iii) Folded Rocks. In tunnels that are driven through synclinal folds, the joint blocks form inverted keystones in the arch and cause rockfalls. In case the rocks happen to be water-bearing, the water flows into the tunnel and causes great difficulties .In a tunnel that cuts through an anticline, the danger from sudden rockfalls is less because the joint blocks will be the shape of normal keystones and therefore they are unlikely to fall into the tunnel if the water-bearing strata are met with, the water trouble will be less because in anticlines the water flows away from it . (iv) Fault Zones. Faults are commonly found associated with a zone of highly crushe rock or clay gouge. The crushed rocks being highly permeable allows groundwater to seep into the tunnel. Besides this they also form unstable roof rock. The clay rouge is a very fine and soft material. On wetting it becomes plastic and caves into the tunnel. Faults therefore, are a source of major trouble in tunneling. It is always better to deviate the tunnel alignment and avoid fault zones. If this is not possible, the tunnel should be driven at right angles to the fault so as to meet the disturbed zone for a minimum distance. Exceedingly strong lining is required to be put in the fault zone sections. (v) Jointed Rocks. Joints at one hand may help in excavating the rocks but on the other hand they may present difficulties in tunneling. If the joins are closely spaced and water-bearing, rockfalls and groundwater seepage may occur into the tunnel. If a lake, canal or river is present in the vicinity of the tunnel, its water may drain into the excavation through open joints and fissures. (vi) Waterbearing Rocks. Driving a tunnel though water-bearing rocks is a difficult job. During excavation the groundwater rushes into the tunnel and causes flooding. This makes construction work difficult. If some clayey rocks are
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present, their strength may be strongly affected by the flow of water through them. Bridges form an important part of the transportation rutes. They are constructed across the rivers to carry highways and railways. In a country, roads and railways often follow the shortest rute and therefore there alignment is determined mush before the construction of bridges. As a result, the site of a bridge does not allow much freedom of choice. The abutment is a terminal support of the bridge. It is built on either side of a river valley where the road or railways joins the bridge . In a multispan bridge piller-like support are constructed between the abutments. These supports are called piers . The piers are built mostly or concrete. Plain or reinforced. They are commonly faced with dimension stones. The rock selected for this purpose must be able to withstand the constant impact of running water. When a bridge is supported by abutments on either side of a valley and there are no piers in between, it is called one span bridge. In a multispan bridge there are several piers and hence several spans. The multispan bridges are built in the middle or lower reaches of rivers where the valleys are generally very wide. A bridge which is suspended with the help of cables and steel towers across a deep and narrow river valley, is called suspension bridge. In a suspension bridge the ends of the cable are firmly anchored in the hard rock or massive concrete wall on either side of the valley . the suspension bridges are usually built on the mountain rivers because: (i) their valley being narrow and deep, the height os the piers would be out of proposition as compared to the length of the bridge, and (ii) the scouring of the pier foundation in the narrow stream channel would be very rapid.

The chief factors which govern the stability of bridges are : (i) lateral forces, (ii) earthquake forces, and (iii) scouring action of rivers. (i) Lateral Forces. The pressure of the wind and the running water are the main interal forces which operate on bridge. These forces have a tendency to push the structure on the lee side where the overloading of the foundation is caused. If the foundation of piers are not keyed sufficiently deep, the stability of the bridge may become critical. But in modern bridge constructions where the foundation of piers are generally kept deep, the lateral forces are of little importance. (ii) Earthquake Forces. The earthquakes undoubtedly reduce the stability of bridges. The accelerations produced by the earthquakes depend of the intensity of shock and on the nature of the ground. The changes of damage are maximum in those bridges which are situated close to an active fault or founded on loose earth materials. Therefore while, constructing bridges in the earthquake effected regions, suitable precautionary measures should be taken. (iii) Scouring Action or Rivers. The scouring action of a river is very nearly proportional to the square of its velocity. However this is complicated by various factors such as roughness of the river bed, uniformity of the channel, nature of rocks in the river bed, and the amount of suspended matter in the flowing water. where the river flows straight, the maximum velocity is found half way between the banks but at beds the water currents of maximum velocity lie near the concave bank. The rivers whose channels are composed of alluvial material may give a false impression of the level of the river bed during is low water. During floods when the velocity of the flowing water is
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increased, the river bed is vigorously scoured and deepened, and when the flood recedes, it is filled up again to the level when the river was low. The piers should be founded at such a depth where they remain safe from the erosion during high water period. The piers of the bridge constructed in a river channel, obstruct a part of the channel. As a result, there will be an increase I the velocity around the piers which causes enhanced scouring.The weight of the bridge, the load of the traffic and pressure of the wind and flowing water are ultimately transmitted to the foundation of the piers and abutments. Therefore the design and construction of bridges is governed largely by : (i) nature of rocks, (ii) structure of rocks, (iii) faults and (iv) type of river channel. (i) Nature of Rocks. Rocks over which the piers and abutments are to be founded must be strong and durable. They should be free from closely spaced joints, fissures, shear zones, solution channels and other zones of weakness. Poorly cemented, thinly bedded and soft sedimentary rock should be avoided. The rocks having joints and fractures may be consolidated by grouting. (ii) Structure of Rocks. If a bridge is aligned across the strike of the country rocks, different types of rocks beds having varying strength and composition are met with along the foundation. In such cases a close examination of the foundation rock under each pier and abutment should be done by putting bore holed. If thinly bedded soft rocks such as shales are expose in the river bed, the water currents would easily cut deep grooves parallel to the bedding and hence would undermine the foundation of piers. (iii)A fault, if it is running across the bridge alignment, is a source of many troubles. The highly crushed and

weathered rocks which exist in the fault zones, make the foundation treatment extremely expensive. It is therefore advised that the possibility of avoiding the fault by shifting the bridge alignment upstream or downstream may seriously be considered. (iv) Types of River Channel. In alluvial channels the thickness of loose sands and gravels may be so great that it is not economical to each the bed rock for placing the piers. In such cases pile foundation is used. The piles are generally driven though the alluvial material to the bed rock. Friction piles are used where the bed rock is not available upto a great depth. LANDSLIDES The study of landslides is important because they affect many types of engineering works, particularly and railways. Loose rock material ordinarily creeps downhill under the force of gravity. However on the sloping surfaces, in presence of water, the creeping may become a fast moving landslide. Thus the rate of movement of earth materials varies from very slow to very rapid. The movement of the earth material can be classified into two major groups: (i) earthflows, and (ii) landslides. In earthflows the unconsolidated material flows slowly downhill under the pull of gravity. The movements are distributed thought the mass and the well defined slip surface which is characteristic of landslides, does not occur. The various types of earthflows are: (i) soil creep, (ii) rock creep, (iii) solifluction, and (iv) mudflows. (i) Soil Creep. When the unconsolidated earth material moves slowly and consolidated earth moves slowly and continuously down the slope, it is called soil creep. The rate of soil creep on a hill slide depends mainly on: (a)
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temperature changes, (b) amount of rainfall, (c) angle of slope, (d) type of soil, and (e) nature of parent material. The soil creep is indicated by the presence of tilted fence posts and telegraph poles, curved tree trunks, broken an displaced retaining walls, lines of stone accumulation in the soil, displacement of railway and highway alignments, and many other features. (ii) Rock Creep. Where the well jointed rock-formation outcrop along a hillslope, the large joint block are displaced by the process of rock creep. The movement consists mainly of slipping of joints blocks slowly in the downhill direction. The slates or thinly bedded sedimentary rocks, if exposed on a hillside, often bend downslope and may show reversal of true dip direction. (iii) Solifluction. Solifluction is a type of creep which takes place in regions of cold climate where the ground freezes to a considerable depth. During the summer the ground thaws and the upper soil layer becomes saturated with water. This mass of water-saturated soil moves slowly downhill over the frozen material at grater depth. (iv) Mudflows. Mudflows differ from soil creep in the respect that they move more rapidly and usually follow old stream channels. Mudflows are produced in those steep mountain areas where large amount of loose earth material are available and where abundant water is supplied by heavy rain or melting of snow. Mudflows have destroyed buildings, roads, and useful land at may places in semiarid regions Where a mass of earth or rocks slides down the slope along a definite zone or surface, the movement is called a landslide. This movement takes place under gravity and is facilitated by moistur3 which acts as a lubricating lowed by a more rapid movement of the separates portion of the earth mass. The slip surface

is usually bounded by a crack which distinguishes a slide from creep on which a continuous crack is often absent. The chief types of landslides are : (i) slump, (ii) rock slides, and (iii) rockfalls. Slump. In a nearly homogeneous cohesive material, such as clays and some soils, a slope fails primarily by shear and the slip surface s approximately cylindrical or spoon shaped. The movement of the mass starts by cracking along a shearing surface and then the separated mass slides down rapidly. Such a slide is called a slump or shear slide. Slump is often accompanied by bulges at the toe . Rock Slide. When detached blocks of bed rocks move down the hill, it is called a rock slide. In a rock slide the movement takes place on bedding planes, joints or any other planes of weakness in the country rocks. The factors which promote landslides are: (i) water, (ii) slopes, (iii) nature of rocks, (iv) structure of rocks and (v) disturbance of equilibrium. (i) Water. The essential conditions which cause landslides, are lack of support in front and lubrication behind. Thus water is an important factor in causing landslides. It acts in three ways (a) Water diminishes the strength of rocks and thus help in their movement. (b) the water the seeps into the rocks or soil, not only produces lubrication but also exerts additional force on the grains tending to displace them along the direction of water movement. (c) It adds weight to the material. Hence may landslides occur after rains.(d) On freezing it exerts an expansive force. (ii)Slope. It has been observed that majority of the earth or rock failures are confined to slopes. This indicated that slopes are directly responsible for landslides. As a rule, steeper the slope, greater is the instability of such a mass.(iii)
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Nature of Rocks. Unconsolidated sediments, such as clay, sand, gravel, etc. can not stand permanently along slopes greater than their angle of repose (about 35) and are likely to be affected by landslides. Where weak and slippery rocks like shale, volcanic tuff, phyllites or micaschists are present, they are not likely to remain stable on steep slopes for a considerable periods of time.(iv) Structure of Rocks. Joints, fractures, shear zones and bedding planes usually become the slip surface in case of rock slides. Landslides are particularly common on hill slopes where dip of rock beds is also in the same direction . 10.9.1.Prevention of Landslides The methods which are commonly used prevention of landslides are as follows. 1. Slides in the impervious material are prevented by reducing slopes. Efforts should also be made not to allow the additional water to enter into the material. 2. In order to check the surface water to enter into the unstable ground, it is diverted and made to run off as rapidly as possible away from that area. 3. In pervious materials, the landslides may be prevented by increasing the internal fraction of the mass by lowering the water content. Their water may be removed by drain pipes, by drainage through tunnels or by pumping from wells. 4. In situations where slides may cause loss of life and property, the loose rocks material is prevented from sliding by constructing retaining walls, concrete piers or by use of pilling. 5. At some places the unstable unconsolidated material may be consolidated by cement grouting, chemical means, and artificial freezing. 2.Geology means the study of Earth. The two broad areas of the science of geology are (1) physical geology, which examines

the materials composing Earth and the processes that operate beneath and upon its surface; and (2) historical geology, which seeks to understand the origin of Earth and its development through time. The relationship between people and the natural environment is an important focus of geology. This includes natural hazards, resources, and human influences on geologic processes. During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, catastrophism influenced the formulation of explanations about Earth. Catastrophism states that Earths landscapes developed over short time spans primarily as a result of great catastrophes. By contrast, uniformitarianism, one of the fundamental principles of modern geology advanced by James Hutton in the late 1700s, states that the physical, chemical, and biological laws that operate today have also operated in the geologic past. The idea is often summarized as The present is the key to the past. Hutton argued that processes that appear to be slow-acting could, over long spans of time, produce effects that are just as great as those resulting from sudden catastrophic events. Using the principles of relative dating, the placing of events in their proper sequence or order without knowing their age in years, scientists developed a geologic time scale during the nineteenth century. Relative dates can be established by applying such principles as the law of superposition and the principle of fossil succession. All science is based on the assumption that the natural world behaves in a consistent and predictable manner. The process by which scientists gather facts and formulate scientific hypotheses and theories is called the scientific method. To determine what is occurring in the natural world, scientists often (1) collect facts, (2)
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develop a scientific hypothesis, and (4) accept, modify, or reject the hypothesis on the basis of extensive testing. Other discoveries represent purely theoretical ideas that have stood up to extensive examination. Still other scientific advancements have been made when a totally unexpected happening occurred during an experiment. Earths physical environment is traditionally divided into three major parts: the solid Earth, or geosphere; the water portion of our planet, the hydrosphere; and Earths gaseous envelope, the atmosphere. In addition, the biosphere, the totality of life on Earth, interacts with each of the three physical realms and is an equally integral part of Earth. Although each of Earths four spheres can be studies separately, they are all related in a complex and continuously interacting whole that we call the Earth system. Earth system science uses an interdisciplinary approach to integrate the knowledge of several academic fields in the study of our planet and its global environmental problems. A system is a group of interacting parts that form a complex whole. Closed systems are those, in which energy moves freely in and out, but matter does not enter or leave the system. In an open system, both energy and matter flow into and out of the system. Most natural system have mechanisms that tend to enhance change, called positive feedback mechanisms, and other mechanisms, called negative feedback mechanisms, that tend to resist change and thus stabilize the system. The two sources of energy that power the Earth system are (1) the Sun, which drives the external processes that occur in the atmosphere, hydrosphere, and at Earths surface, and (2) heat from Earths interior that powers the internal processes that

produce volcanoes, earthquakes, and mountains. The nebular hypothesis describes the formation of the solar system. The planets and Sun began forming about 5 billion years ago from a large cloud of dust and gases. As the cloud contracted, it began to rotate and assume a disk shape. Material that was gravitationally pulled towards the center became the protosun. Within the rotating disk, small centers called protoplanets, swept up more and more of the clouds debris. Because of the high temperatures near the Sun, the inner planets were unable to accumulate many of the elements that vaporize at low temperatures. Because of the very cold temperatures existing far from the Sun, the large outer planets consist of huge amounts of ices and lighter materials. These substances account for the comparatively large sizes and low densities of the outer planets. Earths internal structure is divided into layers based on differences in chemical composition and on the basis of changes in physical properties. Compositionally, Earth is divided into a thin outer crust, a solid rocky mantle, and a dense core. Based on physical properties, the layers of earth are (1) the lithosphere - the cool, rigid, outermost layer that averages about 100 kilometers thick, (2) the asthenosphere, a relatively weak layer located in the mantle beneath the lithosphere, (3) the more rigid mesosphere, where rocks are very hot and capable of very gradual flow, (4) the liquid outer core, where Earths magnetic field is generated, and (5) the solid inner core. Two principal divisions of Earths surface are the continents and ocean basins. A significant difference is their relative levels. The elevation differences between continents and ocean basins are
26

primarily the result of differences in their respective densities and thicknesses. The largest features of the continents can be divided into two categories: mountain belts and the stable interior. The ocean floor is divided into three major topographic units: continental margins, deep-ocean basins, and oceanic ridges. The theory of plate tectonics provides a comprehensive model of Earths internal workings. It holds that Earths rigid outer lithosphere consists of several segments called plates that are slowly and continually in motion relative to one another. Most earthquakes, volcanic activity, and mountain building are associated with the movements of these plates. The three distinct types of plate boundaries are (1) divergent boundaries, where plates move apart (2) convergent boundaries, where plates move together, causing one to go beneath another, or where plates collide, which occurs when the leading edges are made of continental crust; and (3) transform fault boundaries, where plates slide past one another. Volca nism 2. The primary factors that determine the nature of volcanic eruptions include the magmas composition, its temperature, and the amount of dissolved gases it contains. As lava cools, it begins to congeal, and as viscosity increases, its mobility decreases.

The viscosity of magma is directly related to its silica content. Rhyolitic (felsic) lava, with its high silica content (about 70 percent), is very viscous and forms short, thick flows, Basaltic (Mafic) lava, with a lower silica content (about 50 percent), is more fluid and may travel a long distance before congealing. Dissolved gases tend to increase the fluidity of magma and, as they expand, provide the force that propels molten rock from the vent of a volcano. 3. The materials associated with a volcanic eruption include (1) lava flows (pahoehoe flows, which resemble twisted braids; and aa flows, consisting of rough, jagged blocks; both form from basaltic lavas), (2) gases (primarily water vapor), and (3) pyroclastic material (pulverized rock and lava fragments blown form the volcanos vent, which include ash, pumice, lapilli, cinders, blocks, and bombs.) 4. Successive eruptions of lava from a central vent result in a mountainous accumulation of material known as a volcano. Located at the summit of many volcanoes is a steep-walled depression called a crater, Shield cones are broad, slightly domed volcanoes built primarily of fluid, basaltic lava. Cinder cones have steep slopes composed of pyroclastic material. Composite cones, or stratovolcanoes, are large, nearly symmetrical structures built of interbedded lavas and pyroclastic deposits. Composite cones produce some of the most violent volcanic activity. Often associated with a
27

violent eruption is a nuee ardente, a fiery cloud of hot gases infused with incandescent ash that races down steep volcanic slopes. Large composite cones may also generate a type of mudflow known as a lahar. 5. Most volcanoes are fed by conduites or pipes. As erosion progress, the rock occupying the pipe is often more resistant and may remain standing above the surrounding terrain as a volcanic neck. The summits of some volcanoes have large, nearly circular depressions called calderas that result from collapse following an explosive eruption. Calderas also form on shield volcanos by subterranean drainage from a central magma chamber, and the largest calderas form by the discharge of colossal volumes of silica-rich pumice along ring fractures. Although volcanic eruption form a central vent are the most familiar, by far the largest amounts of volcanic material are extruded from cracks in the crust called fissures. The term flood basalts describes the fluid, water like, basaltic lava flows that cover an extensive region in the northwestern United States known as the Colombia Plateau. When silica-rich magma is extruded, pyroclastic flows consisting largely of ash and pumice fragments usually result. 6. Intrusive igneous bodies are classified according to their shape and by their orientation with respect to the host rock, generally sedimentary rock. The two general shapes are tabular (sheet like) and massive. Intrusive igneous bodies that cut

across existing sedimentary beds are said to be discordant; those that form parallel to existing sedimentary beds are concordant. 7. Dikes are tabular, discordant igneous bodies produced when magma is injected into fractures that cut across rock layers. Tabular, concordant bodies, called sills, form when magma is injected along the bedding surfaces of sedimentary rocks. In many respect sills closely resemble buried lava flows. Laccoliths are similar to sills but form from less fluid magmas that collect as lens-shaped masses that arch the over-lying strata upward. Batholiths, the largest intrusive igneous bodies, frequently make up the cores of mountains, as exemplified by the Sierra Nevada. 8. Most active volcanoes are associated with plate boundaries. Active areas of volcanism are found along oceanic ridges where seafloor spreading is occurring (divergent plate boundaries), in the vicinity of ocean trenches where one plate is being subducted beneath another (convergent plate boundaries), and in the interiors of plates themselves (intraplate volcanism). Rising plumes of hot mantle rock are the source of most intraplate volcanism. Chapter 4a Geology An Introduction Geology means the study of Earth. The two broad areas of the science of geology are (1) physical geology, which examines the materials composing Earth and the processes that operate beneath and upon its surface; and (2) historical geology, which
28

seeks to understand the origin of Earth and its development through time. The relationship between people and the natural environment is an important focus of geology. This includes natural hazards, resources, and human influences on geologic processes. During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, catastrophism influenced the formulation of explanations about Earth. Catastrophism states that Earths landscapes developed over short time spans primarily as a result of great catastrophes. By contrast, uniformitarianism, one of the fundamental principles of modern geology advanced by James Hutton in the late 1700s, states that the physical, chemical, and biological laws that operate today have also operated in the geologic past. The idea is often summarized as The present is the key to the past. Hutton argued that processes that appear to be slow-acting could, over long spans of time, produce effects that are just as great as those resulting from sudden catastrophic events. Using the principles of relative dating, the placing of events in their proper sequence or order without knowing their age in years, scientists developed a geologic time scale during the nineteenth century. Relative dates can be established by applying such principles as the law of superposition and the principle of fossil succession. All science is based on the assumption that the natural world behaves in a consistent and predictable manner. The process by which scientists gather facts and formulate scientific hypotheses and theories is called the scientific method. To determine what is occurring in the natural world, scientists often (1) collect facts, (2) develop a scientific hypothesis, and (4) accept, modify, or reject the hypothesis on the basis of extensive testing. Other

discoveries represent purely theoretical ideas that have stood up to extensive examination. Still other scientific advancements have been made when a totally unexpected happening occurred during an experiment.

A H
yd .

tm .

it.

Earths physical environment is traditionally divided into three major parts: the solid Earth, or geosphere; the water portion of our planet, the hydrosphere; and Earths gaseous envelope, the atmosphere. In addition, the biosphere, the totality of life on Earth, interacts with each of the three physical realms and is an equally integral part of Earth. Although each of Earths four spheres can be studies separately, they are all related in a complex and continuously interacting whole that we call the Earth system. Earth system science uses an interdisciplinary approach to integrate the knowledge of several academic fields in the study of our planet and its global environmental problems. A system is a group of interacting parts that form a complex whole. Closed systems are those, in which energy moves freely in and out, but matter does not enter or leave the system. In an open system, both energy and matter flow into and out of the system. Most natural system have mechanisms that tend to enhance change, called positive feedback mechanisms, and other mechanisms, called negative feedback
29

mechanisms, that tend to resist change and thus stabilize the system. The two sources of energy that power the Earth system are (1) the Sun, which drives the external processes that occur in the atmosphere, hydrosphere, and at Earths surface, and (2) heat from Earths interior that powers the internal processes that produce volcanoes, earthquakes, and mountains. The nebular hypothesis describes the formation of the solar system. The planets and Sun began forming about 5 billion years ago from a large cloud of dust and gases. As the cloud contracted, it began to rotate and assume a disk shape. Material that was gravitationally pulled towards the center became the protosun. Within the rotating disk, small centers called protoplanets, swept up more and more of the clouds debris. Because of the high temperatures near the Sun, the inner planets were unable to accumulate many of the elements that vaporize at low temperatures. Because of the very cold temperatures existing far from the Sun, the large outer planets consist of huge amounts of ices and lighter materials. These substances account for the comparatively large sizes and low densities of the outer planets.

 Earths internal structure is divided into layers based on differences in chemical composition and on the basis of changes in physical properties. Compositionally, Earth is divided into a thin outer crust, a solid rocky mantle, and a dense core. Based on physical properties, the layers of earth are (1) the lithosphere - the cool, rigid, outermost layer that averages about 100 kilometers thick, (2) the asthenosphere, a relatively weak layer located in the mantle beneath the lithosphere, (3) the more rigid mesosphere, where rocks are very hot and capable of very gradual flow, (4) the liquid outer core, where Earths magnetic field is generated, and (5) the solid inner core. Two principal divisions of Earths surface are the continents and ocean basins. A significant difference is their relative levels. The elevation differences between continents and ocean basins are primarily the result of differences in their respective densities and thicknesses. The largest features of the continents can be divided into two categories: mountain belts and the stable interior. The ocean
30

floor is divided into three major topographic units: continental margins, deep-ocean basins, and oceanic ridges. The theory of plate tectonics provides a comprehensive model of Earths internal workings. It holds that Earths rigid outer lithosphere consists of several segments called plates that are slowly and continually in motion relative to one another. Most earthquakes, volcanic activity, and mountain building are associated with the movements of these plates. The three distinct types of plate boundaries are (1) divergent boundaries, where plates move apart (2) convergent boundaries, where plates move together, causing one to go beneath another, or where plates collide, which occurs when the leading edges are made of continental crust; and (3) transform fault boundaries, where plates slide past one another. Universe: ..the entirety of space and time including matter, energy and momentum, and the physical laws and constants that govern them. The age of the Universe is 13.73 billion years, and that the diameter of the observable Universe is at least 93 billion light years, or 8.80 1026 metres.It is uncertain whether the size of the Universe is finite or infinite. According to the prevailing scientific model of the Universe, known as the Big Bang, the Universe expanded from an extremely hot, dense phase called the Planck epoch, in which all the matter and energy of the observable Universe was concentrated. Since the Planck epoch, the Universe has been expanding to its present form, possibly with a brief period (less than 10-32 seconds) of cosmic inflation. Several independent experimental measurements support this theoretical expansion and, more generally, the Big Bang theory. Recent observations indicate

that this expansion is accelerating because of the dark energy, and that most of the matter and energy in the Universe is fundamentally different from that observed on Earth. The Universe is very large and possibly infinite in volume; the observable matter is spread over a space at least 93 billion light years across. For comparison, the diameter of a typical galaxy is only 30,000 lightyears, and the typical distance between two neighboring galaxies is only 3 million light-years. As an example, our Milky Way galaxy is roughly 100,000 light years in diameter,and our nearest sister galaxy, the Andromeda Galaxy, is located roughly 2.5 million light years away. There are probably more than 100 billion (1011) galaxies in the observable universe. Typical galaxies range from dwarfs with as few as ten million stars up to giants with one trillion(1012) stars, all orbiting the galaxy's center of mass.

properties of dark energy and dark matter are largely unknown. Dark matter gravitates as ordinary matter, and thus works to slow the expansion of the Universe; by contrast, dark energy accelerates its expansion.The relative fractions of different chemical elements particularly the lightest atoms such as hydrogen, deuterium and helium seem to be identical throughout the universe and throughout its observable history. Big Bang According to the Big Bang model, proposed by Abbe Georges Lematre, the universe expanded from an extremely dense and hot state and continues to expand today. He called it his hypothesis of primeval atom. The framework for the model relies on Albert Einstein's general relativity and on simplifying assumptions (such as homogeneity and isotropy of space). The governing equations had been formulated by Alexander Friedmann. After Edwin Hubble discovered in 1929 that the distances to far away galaxies were generally proportional to their redshifts, as suggested by Lematre in 1927, this observation was taken to indicate that all very distant galaxies and clusters have an apparent velocity directly away from our vantage point: Planetary geology: a branch of geology devoted to the study of structure, composition, processes, and origin of major and minor planetary bodies in our solar system and beyond, and to the effects of interaction between planetary bodies within our solar system. Planetary geology interfaces with many other fields including astronomy, biology, chemistry, and physics. Planetary geologists work in the field, laboratory, andindirectlyin outer
31

The present overall density of the Universe is very low, roughly 9.9 1030 grams per cubic centimetre. This mass-energy appears to consist of 73% dark energy, 23% cold dark matter and 4% ordinary matter. Thus the density of atoms is on the order of a single hydrogen atom for every four cubic meters of volume. The

space through imagery and other data returned by spacecraft. One planetary geologist has visited another planetary body (Dr. Harrison Schmitt worked on the Moon during the Apollo 17 mission in 1974) .The goal is to understand the origin of the features seen. Planetary geology studies usually relate to the quest for an understanding of the geological history of the body from its formation during accretion from the early solar nebula to its present condition. Most planetary bodies in the solar system of any significant size have passed through stages of accretion, internal heating and differentiation, and surficial and tectonic evolution. However, some objects have not, for example, small asteroids, comets, and smaller solar system debris such as meteorites. These objects can give important clues to the nature of the origin of our solar system, as they contain unaltered primordial material from the original nebular dust cloud. An important sub-discipline within planetary geology is meteoritics, the study of meteorites. Most initial planetary geology studies help establish a temporal (time) framework for major events in the history of a planetary body. This framework, called a geologic time scale, is used to help fit events into a sequential order. On Earth, this kind of framework was established over a period of about 200 years using fossils, age relations among rocks, and absolute (radiometric) age dating. For planetary bodies like the Moon and Mars, for which we have some surface samples, some radiometric age dating is possible. Mainly, planetary age relations are established by examining photographic evidence such as
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impact-crater densities, cross-cutting relationships, and superposition relationships (layers lying on top of one another). This is worked out by careful geologic mapping using photographic mosaics of planetary surfaces. Planetary geologists are also interested in studying interactions among planetary bodies. When one planetary body impacts another, great energy can be released. Large body impacts represent the most energetic geologic process known. Very large body impacts can release the energy equivalent to thousands or even millions of megatons of TNT (megaton = 1 million tons) in a few seconds. Impact events produce impact craters, whose size and shape are controlled by factors like planetary gravity, strength of crustal materials, and density of planetary atmosphere. The impact crater is the most common feature on rocky and icy planetary surfaces in the solar system, except where "resurfacing" processes (like volcanism, erosion and sedimentation, and crustal melting) remove impact craters faster than they can form. Studies of large impact craters on Earth have lead geologists to new understandings of how large body impacts, and the ecological disasters that they can cause, have affected evolution of life on Earth. Some large body impact events have been strongly connected to mass extinctions of life on Earth, a driving force in evolutionary change. The best modern example of this is the great CretaceousTertiary mass extinction event (65 million years ago), which has been dated as the same age as two large impact craters on Earth ,Chicxulub crater in Mexico, and

Boltysh crater in the Ukraine.Studies of impact craters hold considerable academic interest for investigators, but on the practical side, considerable natural resources have been discovered within impact craters. For this reason, their study has been supported by petroleum, mining, and groundwater concerns. The intensive fracturing caused by impact creates avenues for fluid movement within the affected crustal area, causing entrapment of hydrocarbons and emplacement of some types of fluid-borne mineral resources. Groundwater accessibility and quality is either enhanced or degraded in impact areas, depending upon geological conditions. Galaxy: is a large collection of stars similar to the Milky Way galaxy in which our solar system is located. Astronomers classify galaxies according to their shape as either spiral, elliptical, or irregular. Spiral galaxies are further subdivided into normal and barred spirals. Elliptical galaxies can be either giant or dwarf ellipticals, depending on their size. Galaxies can contain anywhere from a few million stars, for dwarf ellipticals, to a few trillion stars, for giant ellipticals or spirals. Galaxies, emitting far more energy than a collection of stars ,are classified as active galaxies. Sun: It is the largest and most massive object in the solar systemits diameter is 109 times that of Earth, and it is 333,000 times more massive. The extent of the solar system is determined by the gravitational attraction of the Sun. The boundary of the solar system is defined as the surface within which the gravitational pull of the Sun dominates over that of the galaxy. Under this definition, the solar
33

system extends outwards from the Sun to a distance of about 100,000 AU. The solar system is much larger, therefore, than the distance to the remotest known planet, Pluto, which orbits the Sun at a mean distance of 39.44 AU. The Sun and the solar system are situated some 26,000 light years from the center of our galaxy. Traveling at a velocity of 137 MPH (220 km/h), the Sun takes about 240 million years to complete one orbit about the galactic center, and since its formation the Sun has completed about 19 such trips. As it orbits the center of the galaxy the Sun also moves in an oscillatory fashion above and below the galactic plane,with a period of about 30 million years.

The Solar Nebula Hypothesis: Astronomers almost universally believe that the best descriptive model for the formation of the solar system is the solar nebula hypothesis. The essential idea behind the solar nebula model is that the Sun and planets formed through the collapse of a rotating cloud of interstellar gas and dust.The German philosopher Immanuel Kant first discussed the idea in 1755. Later, the French mathematician Pierre-Simon Marquis de Laplace developed the model . The model is still under development today. The key idea behind the solar nebula hypothesis is that once a rotating interstellar gas cloud has commenced gravitational collapse, then the conservation of angular momentum will

force the cloud to develop a massive, central condensation that is surrounded by a less massive flattened bodies of presentday solar system. The nebula hypothesis asserts that the Sun forms from the central condensation, and that the planets accumulate from the material in the disk. The solar nebula model naturally explains why the Sun is the most massive object in the solar system, and why the planets rotate about the Sun in the same sense, along nearly circular orbits and in essentially the same plane. During the gravitational collapse of an interstellar cloud, the central regions become heated through the release of gravitational energy. This means that the young solar nebular is hot, and that the gas and dust in the central regions is wellmixed. By constructing models to follow the gradual cooling of the solar nebula, scientists have been able to establish a chemical condensation sequence. Near to the central proto-sun, the nebular temperature will be very high, and consequently no solid matter can exist. Everything is in a gaseous form. As one moves further away from the central protosun, however, the temperature of the nebula falls off. At distances beyond 0.2 AU from the proto-sun, the temperature drops below 2,000 K . At this temperature metals and oxides can begin to form. Still further out, the temperature will drop below 1,000K and silicate rocks can begin to form. Beyond about 5 AU from the proto-sun, the temperature of the nebula
34

will be below 200 K, and ices can start to condense. The temperature and distance controlled sequence of chemical condensation in the solar nebula correctly predicts the basic chemical make-up of the planets. Perhaps the most important issue to be resolved in future versions of the solar nebula model is that of the distribution of angular momentum. The problem for the solar nebula theory is that it predicts that most of the mass and angular momentum should be in the Sun. In other words, the Sun should spin much more rapidly than it does. A mechanism is therefore required to transport angular momentum away from the central proto-sun and redistribute it in the outer planetary disk. One proposed transport mechanism invokes the presence of magnetic field in the nebula, while another mechanism proposed the existence of viscous stresses produced by turbulence in the nebular gas. Geology of the Moon The geology of the Moon is quite different from that of the Earth. The Moon lacks a significant atmosphere and any bodies of water, which eliminates erosion due to weather; it does not possess any form of plate tectonics, it has a lower gravity, and because of its small size, it cooled more rapidly. The complex geomorphology of the lunar surface has been formed by a combination of processes, chief among which are impact cratering and volcanism. The Moon is a differentiated body, possessing a crust, mantle and core. Elemental composition Elements present on the lunar surface include, among others, oxygen (O), silicon (Si), iron (Fe), magnesium (Mg), calcium

(Ca), aluminium (Al), manganese (Mn) and titanium (Ti). Among the more abundant are oxygen, iron and silicon. The oxygen content is estimated at 45%. Carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) appear to be present only in trace quantities from deposition by solar wind. Formation (Giant impact theory) At present the best explanation for the origin of the Moon involves a collision of two protoplanetary bodies during the early accretional period of Solar System evolution. This "giant impact theory", which became popular in 1984 (although Reginald Aldworth Daly, a Canadian professor at Harvard college, originated it in the 1940s), satisfies the orbital conditions of the Earth and Moon and can account for the relatively small metallic core of the Moon. Collisions between planetesimals are now recognized to lead to the growth of planetary bodies early in the evolution of the Solar System, and in this framework it is inevitable that large impacts will sometimes occur when the planets are nearly formed. The theory requires a collision between a body about 90% the present size of the Earth, and another the diameter of Mars (half of the terrestrial radius and a tenth of its mass). The colliding body has sometimes been referred to as Theia, the mother of Selene, the Moon goddess in Greek mythology. This size ratio is needed in order for the resulting system to possess sufficient angular momentum to match the current orbital configuration. Such an impact would have put enough material into orbit about the Earth to have eventually accumulated to form the Moon.
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Computer simulations of this event appear to show that the collision must occur with a somewhat glancing blow. This will cause a small portion of the colliding body to form a long arm of material that will then shear off. The asymmetrical shape of the Earth following the collision then causes this material to settle into an orbit around the main mass. The energy involved in this collision is impressive: trillions of tons of material would have been vaporized and melted. In parts of the Earth the temperature would have risen to 10,000C (18,000F). This formation theory helps explain why the Moon possesses only a small iron core (roughly 25% of its radius, in comparison to about 50% for the Earth). Most of the iron core from the impacting body is predicted to have accreted to the core of the Earth. The lack of volatiles in the lunar samples is also explained in part by the energy of the collision. The energy liberated during the reaccreation of material in orbit about the Earth would have been sufficient to melt a large portion of Moon, leading to the generation of a magma ocean. The newly formed moon orbited at about one-tenth the distance that it does today, and became tidally-locked with the Earth, where one side continually faces toward the Earth. The geology of the Moon has since been independent of the Earth. While this theory explains many aspects of the Earth-Moon system, there are still a few unresolved problems facing this theory, such as the Moon's volatile elements not being as depleted as expected from such an energetic impact.[2] Geologic history

The lunar geologic timescale, Starting about 4.5 billion years ago, the newly formed Moon was in a molten state and was orbiting much closer to the Earth. The resulting tidal forces deformed the molten body into an ellipsoid, with the major axis pointed towards Earth. The first important event in the geologic evolution of the Moon was the crystallization of the near global magma ocean. It is not known with certainty what its depth was, but several studies imply a depth of about 500 km or greater. The first minerals to form in this ocean were the iron and magnesium silicates olivine and pyroxene. Because these minerals were denser than the molten material around them, they sank. After crystallization was about 75% complete, less dense anorthositic plagioclase feldspar crystallized and floated, forming an anorthositic crust about 50 km in thickness. The majority of the magma ocean crystallized quickly (within about 100 million years or less), though the final remaining KREEP-rich magmas, which are highly enriched in incompatible and heat producing elements, could have remained partially molten for several hundred million (or perhaps 1 billion) years. It appears that the final KREEP-rich magmas of the magma ocean eventually became concentrated within the region of Oceanus Procellarum and the Imbrium basin, a unique geologic province that is now known as the Procellarum KREEP Terrane. Quickly after the lunar crust formed, or even as it was forming, different types of magmas that would give rise to the Mgsuite norites and troctolites[3] began to
36

form, although the exact depths at which this occurred are not known precisely. Recent theories suggest that Mg-suite plutonism was largely confined to the region of the Procellarum KREEP Terrane, and that these magmas are genetically related to KREEP in some manner, though their origin is still highly debated in the scientific community. The oldest of the Mg-suite rocks have crystallization ages of about 3.85 Ga. However, it should be noted that the last large impact that could have excavated deep into the crust (the Imbrium basin) also occurred at 3.85 Ga before present. Thus, it seems probable that Mg-suite plutonic activity continued for a much longer time, and that younger plutonic rocks exist deep below the surface. Analysis of the lunar samples seem to imply that a significant percentage of the lunar impact basins formed within a very short period of time between about 4 and 3.85 Ga ago. This hypothesis is referred to as the lunar cataclysm or late heavy bombardment. However, it is now recognized that ejecta from the Imbrium impact basin (one of the youngest large impact basins on the Moon) should be found at all of the Apollo landing sites. It is thus possible that ages for some impact basins (in particular Mare Nectaris) could have been mistakenly assigned the same age as Imbrium. The lunar mare represent ancient flood basaltic eruptions. In comparison to terrestrial lavas, these contain higher iron abundances, have low viscosities, and some contain highly elevated abundances of the titanium-rich mineral ilmenite. The majority of basaltic eruptions occurred

between about 3 and 3.5 Ga ago, though some mare samples have ages as old as 4.2 Ga, and the youngest (based on the method of crater counting) are believed to have erupted only 1 billion years ago. Along with mare volcanism came pyroclastic eruptions, which launched molten basaltic materials hundreds of kilometers away from the volcano. A large portion of the mare formed, or flowed into, the low elevations associated with the nearside impact basins. However, it must be noted that Oceanus Procellarum does not correspond to any known impact structure, and the lowest elevations of the Moon within the farside South Pole-Aitken basin are only modestly covered by mare (see lunar mare for a more detailed discussion). Impacts by meteorites and comets are the only abrupt geologic force acting on the Moon today, though the variation of Earth tides on the scale of the Lunar anomalistic month causes small variations in stresses. (Yu. V. Barkin, J. M. Ferrndiz and Juan F. Navarro, 'Terrestrial tidal variations in the selenopotential coefficients,' Astronomical and Astrophysical Transactions, Volume 24, Number 3 / June 2005, pp. 215 - 236.) [1] Some of the most important craters used in lunar stratigraphy formed in this recent epoch. For example, the crater Copernicus, which has a depth of 3.76 km and a radius of 93 km, is believed to have formed about 900 million years ago (though this is debatable). The Apollo 17 mission landed in an area in which the material coming from the crater Tycho might have been sampled. The study of these rocks seem to indicate that this crater could have formed 100 million years ago, though this is debatable as well. The
37

surface has also experienced space weathering due to high energy particles, solar wind implantation, and micrometeorite impacts. This process causes the ray systems associated with young craters to darken until it matches the albedo of the surrounding surface. However, if the composition of the ray is different from the underlying crustal materials (as might occur when a "highland" ray is emplaced on the mare), the ray could be visible for much longer times. Lunar landscape The lunar landscape is characterized by impact craters, their ejecta, a few volcanoes, hills, lava flows and depressions filled by magma.The most distinctive aspect of the Moon is the contrast between its light and dark zones. Lighter surfaces are the lunar highlands, which receive the name of terrae (singular terra, from the Latin for Earth), and the darker plains are called maria (singular mare, from the Latin for sea), after Johannes Kepler who introduced the name in the 1600s. The highlands are anorthositic in composition, whereas the maria are basaltic. The maria often coincide with the "lowlands," but it is important to note that the lowlands (such as within the South Pole-Aitken basin) are not always covered by maria. The highlands are older than the visible maria, and hence are more heavily cratered. Internal structure of the Moon The current model of the interior of the Moon was derived using seismometers left behind during the manned Apollo program

missions, as well as investigations of the Moon's gravity field and rotation. The mass of the Moon is sufficient to eliminate any voids within the interior, so it is believed to be composed of solid rock throughout. Its low bulk density (~3346 kg m-3) indicates a low metal abundance. Mass and moment of inertia constraints indicate that the Moon likely has an iron core that is less than about 450 km in radius. Studies of the Moon's physical librations (small perturbations to its rotation) furthermore indicate that the core is still molten. Most planetary bodies and moons have iron cores that are about half the size of the body. The Moon is thus anomalous in possessing a core whose size is only about one quarter of its radius. The crust of the Moon is on average about 50 km thick (though this is uncertain by about 15 km). It is widely believed that the far-side crust is on average thicker than the near side by about 15 km. Seismology has constrained the thickness of the crust only near the Apollo 12 and 14 landing sites. While the initial Apollo-era analyses suggested a crustal thickness of about 60 km at this site, recent reanalyses of this data set suggest a thinner value, somewhere between about 30 and 45 km. Compared to that of Earth, the Moon has only a very weak external magnetic field. Other major differences are that the Moon does not currently have a dipolar magnetic field (as would be generated by a geodynamo in its core), and the magnetizations that are present are almost entirely crustal in origin. One hypothesis holds that the crustal magnetizations were acquired early in lunar history when a geodynamo was still operating. The small
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size of the lunar core, however, is a potential obstacle to this theory. Alternatively, it is possible that on airless bodies such as the Moon, transient magnetic fields could be generated during impact processes. In support of this, it has been noted that the largest crustal magnetizations appear to be located near the antipodes of the largest impact basins. While the Moon does not possess a dipolar magnetic field like the Earth does, some of the returned rocks possess strong magnetizations. Furthermore measurements from orbit show that some portions of the lunar surface are associated with strong magnetic fields. Meteorite It is a natural extra-terrestrial object originating in outer space.When it enters the atmosphere, impact pressure causes the body to heat up and emit light, thus forming a fireball, also known as a meteor or shooting star. The term bolide refers to either an extraterrestrial body that collides with the Earth, or to an exceptionally bright, fireball-like meteor.Meteorites that have been recovered after being observed falling or impacted the Earth are called falls. All other meteorites are known as finds. As of mid-2006, there are approximately 1,050 witnessed falls having specimens in the world's collections. In contrast, there are over 31,000 well-documented meteorite finds. Meteorites have traditionally been divided into three broad categories:stony meteorites are rocks, mainly composed of silicate minerals; iron meteorites are largely composed of metallic iron-nickel; and, stony-iron meteorites contain large amounts of both metallic and rocky material. Meteorite types

Most meteorites are stony meteorites, classed as chondrites and achondrites. Only 6% of meteorides are iron meteorites or a blend of rock and metal, the stony-iron meteorites.About 86% of the meteorites that fall on Earth are chondrites, which are named for the small, round particles they contain. These particles, or chondrules, are composed mostly of silicate minerals that appear to have been melted while they were free-floating objects in space. Chondrites also contain small amounts of organic matter, including amino acids. Chondrites are typically about 4.55 billion years old and are thought to represent material from the asteroid belt that never formed into large bodies. Like comets, chondritic asteroids are some of the oldest and most primitive materials in the solar system. Chondrites are often considered to be "the building blocks of the planets". About 8% of the meteorites that fall on Earth are achondrites, some of which appear to be similar to terrestrial mafic igneous rocks. Most achondrites are also ancient rocks, and are thought to represent crustal material of asteroids. About 5% of meteorites that fall are iron meteorites with intergrowths of iron-nickel alloys, such as kamacite and taenite. Most iron meteorites are thought to come from the core of a number of asteroids that were once molten. As on Earth, the denser metal separated from silicate material and sank toward the center of the asteroid, forming a core. After the asteroid solidified, it broke up in a collision with another asteroid. Due to the low abundance of irons in collection areas such as Antarctica, where most of the meteoric material that has fallen can be recovered, it is possible that the actual percentage of iron-meteorite falls is lower than 5%.Stony-iron meteorites constitute the remaining 1%. They are a mixture of iron-nickel metal and silicate minerals. One type, called pallasites, is thought to have originated in the boundary zone
39

above the core regions where iron meteorites originated. The other major type of stony-iron meteorites is the mesosiderites.Tektites are not themselves meteorites, but are rather natural glass objects up to a few centimeters in size which were formed by the impacts of large meteorites on Earth's surface. Iron Meteorites only about 10% of the meteorites that reach Earth are Irons. The rest are stone or stony-irons. Iron meteorites are thought to originate from the metallic cores of planets or planetoids, or perhaps from the explosion of a supernova. Iron is a major by-product of stellar fusion. The core of the Earth is thought to be nickel-iron. In fact, iron meteorites also contain some portion of nickel. Iron and nickel are related metals, and only one other element, cobalt, separates them on the periodic table of elements.The crystalline structure is revealed when a freshly cut or ground section of meteorite is etched with a mild acid. The Widmanstatten pattern is the unmistakable signature of an iron meteorite. It is rated in various classifications from fine to coarse, depending on the size of the crystal structure. Some meteorites with high nickel content will show no such pattern, however, nor do stone meteorites. Most of the time the pattern is broken up by inclusions of various types, made up of silicates, sulphur, carbon, and other material. If inclusions dominate extensively, the meteorite is reclassified.Silicated irons have a large percentage of inclusions. So much so that the metal pattern inside is made up of clumps and veins of metal and other material. They are lighter than pure Irons, and because the different materials have varying burn characteristics, the surface texture is more interesting, with more "thumbprints"concave depressions resembling craters or hollows.

Stony-Iron Meteorites Stony-Irons are rare and among the most beautiful and precious of meteorites. It is unclear when a silicated iron becomes a Stony-Iron. There are two kinds: mesosiderites, and pallasites. Mesosiderites are a conglomeration of stone and metal, while pallasites, is the most beautiful meteorite that exists, having nickel-iron interspersed with large crystals of olivine. Stone Meteorites Stone meteorites are the most common type, but also the most precious and valuable because they are hard to distinguish from Earth rocks. They also erode more quickly than the durable irons and stony-irons. Although these are the most varied in structure and content, they are divided up into two main types, chondrites and achondrites. Chondrites contain chondrules, microscopic to marblesized spherical globs of silicates from the earliest solar nebula. Chondritic material accreted into planetesimals, which were then bombarded by other bodies, resulting in the breakup and destruction of the planetesimal. If the parent planetesimal grew large enough, the pressure and temperature melted and recrystallized the chondritic material, resulting in achondrites, the rarest form of meteorite. Achondritic meteorites can be pieces of other mature planets or moons, which were ejected by a large impact, and may have traveled the solar system for eons before landing on Earth. Radiometric dating It is a technique used to date materials. It is the principal source of information about the absolute age of rocks and other geological features, including the age of the Earth itself, and can be used to date a wide range of natural and man-made materials. Together with stratigraphic
40

principles, radiometric dating methods are used in geochronology to establish the geological time scale. Among the bestknown techniques are radiocarbon dating, potassium-argon dating and uranium-lead dating.it provides a significant source of information about the ages of fossils and the deduced rates of evolutionary change. Radiometric dating is also used to date archaeological materials, including ancient artifacts.Different methods of radiometric dating vary in the timescale over which they are accurate and the materials to which they can be applied. Fundamentals of radiometric dating Radioactive decay

Example of a radioactive decay chain from lead-212 to lead-208 . Each parent nuclide spontaneously decays into a daughter nuclide (the decay product) via a decay. The final decay product, lead-208 , is stable and can no longer undergo spontaneous radioactive decay.

.All ordinary matter is made up of combinations of chemical elements, each with its own atomic number, indicating the number of protons in the atomic nucleus. Additionally, elements may exist in different isotopes, with each isotope of an element differing in the number of neutrons in the nucleus. A particular isotope of a particular element is called a nuclide. Some nuclides are inherently unstable. That is, at some point in time, an atom of such a nuclide will spontaneously transform into a different nuclide. This transformation may be accomplished in a number of different ways, including radioactive decay, either by emission of particles (usually electrons (beta decay), positrons or alpha particles) or by spontaneous fission, and electron capture. While the moment in time at which a particular nucleus decays is unpredictable, a collection of atoms of a radioactive nuclide decays exponentially at a rate described by a parameter known as the half-life, usually given in units of years when discussing dating techniques. After one half-life has elapsed, one half of the atoms of the nuclide in question will have decayed into a "daughter" nuclide or decay product. Isotopic systems that have been exploited for radiometric dating have halflives ranging from only about 10 years (e.g.tritium) to over 100 billion years (e.g.Samarium-147). In general, the half-life of a nuclide depends solely on its nuclear properties; it is not affected by external factors such as temperature, pressure, chemical environment, or presence of a magnetic or electric field. In general, the half-life of any nuclide is essentially a constant. Therefore, in any material containing a radioactive nuclide, the proportion of the original nuclide to its decay product(s) changes in a predictable way as the original nuclide decays over time. This predictability allows the relative
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abundances of related nuclides to be used as a clock to measure the time from the incorporation of the original nuclide into a material to the present. precision of a dating method depends in part on the half-life of the radioactive isotope involved. For instance, carbon-14 has a half-life of about 6000 years. After an organism has been dead for 60,000 years, so little carbon-14 is left in it that accurate dating has not been established. On the other hand, the concentration of carbon-14 falls off so steeply that the age of relatively young remains can be determined precisely to within a few decades. Modern dating methods Radiometric dating has been carried out since 1905, and in the century since then the techniques have been greatly improved and expanded. Dating can now be performed on samples as small as a billionth of a gram using a mass spectrometer. The mass spectrometer was invented in the 1940s and began to be used in radiometric dating in the 1950s. The mass spectrometer operates by generating a beam of ionized atoms from the sample under test. The ions then travel through a magnetic field, which diverts them into different sampling sensors, known as "Faraday cups", depending on their mass and level of ionization. On impact in the cups, the ions set up a very weak current that can be measured to determine the rate of impacts and the relative concentrations of different atoms in the beams. Uranium-lead dating is often performed on the mineral zircon (ZrSiO4), though it can be used on other materials, such as baddeleyite. Zircon and baddeleyite incorporate uranium atoms into their crystalline structure as substitutes for zirconium, but strongly reject lead. It has a very high closure temperature, is resistant to mechanical weathering and is

chemically inert. Zircon also forms multiple crystal layers during metamorphic events, which each may record an isotopic age of the event. One of its great advantages is that any sample provides two clocks, one based on uranium-235's decay to lead-207 with a half-life of about 700 million years, and one based on uranium-238's decay to lead206 with a half-life of about 4.5 billion years, providing a built-in crosscheck that allows accurate determination of the age of the sample even if some of the lead has been lost. Samarium-neodymium dating method This involves the alpha-decay of 147Sm to 143 Nd with a half life of 1.06 x 1011 years. Accuracy levels of less than twenty million years in two-and-a-half billion years are achievable. Potassium-argon dating method This involves electron capture or positron decay of potassium-40 to argon-40. Potassium-40 has a half-life of 1.3 billion years, and so this method is applicable to the oldest rocks. Radioactive potassium-40 is common in micas, feldspars, and hornblendes, though the closure temperature is fairly low in these materials, about 125C (mica) to 450C (hornblende). Rubidium-strontium dating method This is based on the beta decay of rubidium-87 to strontium-87, with a halflife of 50 billion years. This scheme is used to date old igneous and metamorphic rocks, and has also been used to date lunar samples. Closure temperatures are so high that they are not a concern. Rubidiumstrontium dating is not as precise as the uranium-lead method, with errors of 30 to 50 million years for a 3-billion-year-old sample.
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Uranium-thorium dating method A relatively short-range dating technique is based on the decay of uranium-238 into thorium-230, a substance with a half-life of about 80,000 years. It is accompanied by a sister process, in which uranium-235 decays into protactinium-231, which has a half-life of 34,300 years.While uranium is water-soluble, thorium and protactinium are not, and so they are selectively precipitated into ocean-floor sediments, from which their ratios are measured. The scheme has a range of several hundred thousand years. Radiocarbon dating method Carbon-14 is a radioactive isotope of carbon, with a half-life of 5,730 years, which is very short compared with those above. In other radiometric dating methods, the heavy parent isotopes were synthesized in the explosions of massive stars that scattered materials through the universe. The parent isotopes have been decaying since that time, and so any parent isotope with a short half-life should be extinct by now. Carbon14 is an exception. It is continuously created through collisions of neutrons generated by cosmic rays with nitrogen in the upper atmosphere. The carbon-14 ends up as a trace component in atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2). An organism acquires carbon during its lifetime. Plants acquire it through photosynthesis, and animals acquire it from consumption of plants and other animals. When an organism dies, it ceases to take in new carbon-14, and the existing isotope decays with a characteristic halflife (5730 years). The proportion of carbon-14 left when the remains of the organism are examined provides an indication of the time elapsed since its death.

The rate of creation of carbon-14 appears to be roughly constant, as cross-checks of carbon14 dating with other dating methods show it gives consistent results. However, local eruptions of volcanoes or other events that give off large amounts of carbon dioxide can reduce local concentrations of carbon14 and give inaccurate dates. The releases of carbon dioxide into the biosphere as a consequence of industrialization have also depressed the proportion of carbon-14 by a few percent; conversely, the amount of carbon-14 was increased by above-ground nuclear bomb tests that were conducted into the early 1960s. Also, an increase in the solar wind or the Earth's magnetic field above the current value would depress the amount of carbon-14 created in the atmosphere. These effects are corrected for by the calibration of the radiocarbon dating scale. Fission track dating method This involves inspection of a polished slice of a material to determine the density of "track" markings left in it by the spontaneous fission of uranium-238 impurities. The uranium content of the sample has to be known, but that can be determined by placing a plastic film over the polished slice of the material, and bombarding it with slow neutrons. This causes induced fission of 235U, as opposed to the spontaneous fission of 238U. The fission tracks produced by this process are recorded in the plastic film. The uranium content of the material can then be calculated from the number of tracks and the neutron flux. This scheme has application over a wide range of geologic dates, up to a few million years .Mica, tektites (glass fragments from volcanic eruptions), and meteorites are best used. Older materials can be dated using zircon, apatite, titanite, epidote and garnet which have a variable
43

amount of uranium content. Because the fission tracks are healed by temperatures over about 200C ,the technique has limitations as well as benefits. The technique has potential applications for detailing the thermal history of a deposit. Chlorine-36 dating method Large amounts of otherwise rare 36Cl were produced by irradiation of seawater during atmospheric detonations of nuclear weapons between 1952 and 1958. The residence time of 36Cl in the atmosphere is about 1 week. Thus, as an event marker of 1950s water in soil and ground water, 36Cl is also useful for dating waters less than 50 years before the present. 36Cl has seen use in other areas of the geological sciences, including dating ice and sediments. Optically stimulated luminescence dating method Natural sources of radiation in the environment knock loose electrons in, say, a piece of pottery, and these electrons accumulate in defects in the material's crystal lattice structure. Heating the object will release the captured electrons, producing a luminescence. When the sample is heated, at a certain temperature it will glow from the emission of electrons released from the defects, and this glow can be used to estimate the age of the sample to a threshold of approximately 15 percent of its true age. The date of a rock is reset when volcanic activity remelts it. The date of a piece of pottery is reset by the heat of the kiln. Typically temperatures greater than 400 degrees Celsius will reset the "clock". This is termed thermoluminescence. Argonargon dating 40 Ar/39Ar dating is a radiometric dating method invented to supersede potassiumargon (K-Ar) dating in accuracy. In this technique, the decay of 40K to 40Ar* (* indicates radiogenic) is used to date

geological events, particularly the eruption and cooling of igneous rocks and minerals. This technique differs from the K-Ar technique in that prior to measurement in a mass spectrometer, the sample is irradiated with neutrons in a nuclear reactor and some of the 39K (present as a known fraction of the total K in the rock) is converted to 39Ar. The ratio of the radiogenic daughter product, 40Ar*, to 39Ar (as a proxy for 40K) can be measured in the same sample, giving a practical advantage over K-Ar dating, where the 40K and 40Ar must be measured separately, and improving accuracy of the measurement. Method The sample is generally crushed and single crystals of a mineral hand-selected for analysis. These are then irradiated to produce 39Ar from 39K. The sample is then degassed in a high-vacuum mass spectrometer via a laser or resistance furnace. Dating relies on the conversion of K to Ar, and accurate measurement of this conversion. The sample is heated in increments (step heating) which releases argon from different reservoirs within the crystal grain. Each step produces argon with a certain 40Ar:39Ar ratio, and only when 80% or more of these steps are within acceptable error is the crystal's age known. Dating via 40Ar/39Ar geochronology is generally accurate to within 1-2% for properly collected and irradiated and treated samples. Applications The primary use for 40Ar/39Ar geochronology is dating metamorphic and igneous minerals. 40Ar/39Ar is unlikely to provide the age of intrusions of granite as the age typically reflects the time when a mineral cooled through its closure temperature. However, in a metamorphic rock that has not exceeded its closure temperature the age could be the likely dates the crystallization of the mineral.
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Dating of movement on fault systems is also possible with the 40Ar/39Ar method. Different minerals have different closure temperatures; biotite is ~300C, muscovite is about 400C and hornblende has a closure temperature of ~550C. Thus, a granite containing all three minerals will record three different "ages" of emplacement as it cools down through these closure temperatures. Thus, although a crystallization age is not recorded, the information is still useful in constructing the thermal history of the rock. Dating minerals may provide age information on a rock, but assumptions must be made. Minerals usually only record the last time they cooled down below the closure temperature, and this may not represent all of the events which the rock has undergone, and may not match the age of intrusion. Thus, discretion and interpretation of age dating is essential. 40Ar/39Ar geochronology assumes that a rock retains all of its 40Ar after cooling past the closing temperature and that this was properly sampled during analysis. This technique allows the errors involved in K-Ar dating to be checked. Argon argon dating has the advantage of not requiring determinations of potassium. Modern methods of analysis allow individual regions of crystals to be investigated. This method is important as it allows crystals forming and cooling during different events to be identified. Iodine-xenon dating is a dating method in which the ratio of (129I), with a half-life of 15.7 million years, to (129Xe), which is stable, is measured. This method is applied to meteorites and old waters. Uranium-uranium dating is a radiometric dating technique which compares two isotopes of uranium (U) in a sample: 234U and 238U. 234U/238U dating is one of several radiometric dating techniques exploiting

the uranium radioactive decay series, in which 238U undergoes 14 alpha and beta decay events while decaying to the stable isotope 206Pb. Other dating techniques using this decay series include uraniumthorium (using 230Th/238U) and uraniumlead dating. 238 U, with a half-life of about 4.5 billion years, decays to 234U through emission of an alpha particle to an isotope of thorium (234Th), which is comparatively unstable with a half-life of just 24 days. 234Th then decays through beta particle emission to an isotope of protactinium, 234Pa. 234Pa decays with a half-life of 6.7 hours, again through emission of a beta particle, to 234U. This isotope has a half-life of about 245,000 years. The next decay product, 230Th, has a half-life of about 75,000 years and is used for the related 230Th/238U technique. Although analytically simpler than 230 Th/238U dating, in practice 234U/238U dating is almost never used as unlike 230 Th/238U dating it requires prior knowledge of the 234U/238U ratio at the time the material under study was formed. For those materials (principally marine carbonates) for which the initial ratio is known, 230Th/238U remains a superior technique. This restricts the application of 234 U/238U to extremely rare cases where the initial 234U/238U is well-constrained and the sample is also beyond the ca. 450,000 year upper limit of the 230Th/238U technique. Unlike other radiometric dating techniques, those using the uranium decay series (except for those using the stable final isotopes 206Pb and 207Pb) compare the ratios of two radioactive unstable isotopes. This complicates calculations as both the parent and daughter isotopes decay over time into other isotopes. In theory, the 234U/238U technique can be useful in dating samples between about 10,000 and 2 million years Before Present (BP), or up to about eight times the halflife of 234U. As such, it provides a useful
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bridge in radiometric dating techniques between the ranges of 230Th/238U (accurate up to ca. 450,000 years) and U-Pb dating (accurate up to the age of the solar system, but problematic on samples younger than about 2 million years).

Wegener, a German Scientist, propounded his hypothesis of Continental Drift in 1922. The second addition of his hypothesis attracted the attention of scientists to this phenomenon. According to Wegener, all the continents were compact and one in the Paleozoic era. This Super and compact continent was called Pangaea. It was surrounded on sides by oceans. The Pangaea was composed of light Sial material while the oceans consisted of heavy Sima. Wegener does not subscribe to the view that the whole earth had a covering of sial. The continent had a sea in its middle part. This sea was called Tethys by Wegener. Lauresia land mass was situated to the north of Tethys and consisted of North America, Europe and Asia. Gondwana land was another landmass situated tot he south of the Tethys and comprised Australia, Africa, South Africa, Antarctica and Peninsular India.

The continents had two directions of drift (i) towards the Equator, (ii) towards the west. The movement towards the Equator is considered to be caused by the relation of the forces of gravitation and Buoyancy. The centre of gravity and the centre of buoyancy existed in such a position that the continent began to drift towards the Equator. The movement towards the west is ascribed to the tidal forces affecting the Earth. The drift in this way caused the redistribution of continents and ocean basins resulting in the present form and shape. According to Wegener, the drift has not come to a stop but is still continuing. Evidences hypothesis Wegener was a climatologist. In order to support his hypothesis, he collected evidences from many branches of science, i.e., Geology, Botany, Zoology, Mathematics, Climatology, etc. As a result his hypothesis was subjected to criticism from all the thinkers belonging to various branches of knowledge, from where he collected evidences. There are a large number of evidences advocated to support his hypothesis but a critical study of a few is
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sufficient to throw a lot of light on the hypothesis. 1. Joints-Fitting : According to

Wegener, the continents have drifted from each other. If the continents are brought back they will fit into one another. After studying the coasts of the continents, Wegener states that the joints fit into one another. He put forward a larger number of examples to support his contention: (JIGSAW FIT) i. The joint between Africa and

South America : Wegener said that Africa and South America were once one. If these continents are brought close to each other, their joints fit into each other. For example, the 'bulge' of Brazil fits into the Gulf of Guinea. ii. have The Cape and the Tendil similarity. The Cape

in

Support

of

Wegener's

mountains : South America and Africa another mountains of Africa and the Sierra de Tendil (north of Bahia Blanca) are folded mountains and appear continuous if joined together. They appear to have continuous in some remote past. iii. The fitting of Islands:

Greenland, Baffin-land and Ellesmere Islands fit into each other if brought together.

iv. The other

The existence and Crossing of part of the Caledonian

forces exerted by diverging convective currents. This process causes thinning of sialic layer which results in the creation of a geosynclines. The former Tethys geosynclines is considered to have been formed in this manner. (ii) Alternatively, the continental mass may be separated by enormous tensile force generated by divergent convective currents. Former Ural geosynclines is supposed to have been formed due to this mechanism.

Caledonian and Hercynian mountains : mountains of Britain are claimed to be existing in the Appalachian mountains of North America. Similarly the Hercyanian mountain range appears both in the Western Europe and at the eastern coast of North America. It appears as if the two ranges (Caledonian and Hercyanian) would cross each in South Walles and Southern Ireland and extend on-ward but the land to their west comes to an abrupt end. Bailey, Supporting hypothesis said that these ranges cross each other in North America and the process of crossing takes place in Pennsylvania. This proves that the Western Europe and North America had been joined with each other in the past. v. India, Madagascar and

Stages Of Geosynclines The geosynclinal history is divided into three stages viz. (i) lithogenesis (the stage of creation of geosynclines, sedimentation and subsidence of the beds of geosynclines) (ii) orogenesis (the stage of squeezing and folding of geosynclinals sediments into mountain ranges and) (iii) gliptogenesis (the stage of gradual rise of mountains and their denudation and consequent lowering of their heights). These stages would be elaborated during the discussion of geosynclinals theory of Kober.

Africa : The eastern coasts of India Madagascar and Africa were joined with one other. If we bring them together, the figure becomes complete. vi. Formation of Geosynclines

due to Thinning of Sialic Layer: According to Holmes there may be two possibilities if a column of rising convective currents diverges after reaching the lower layer of the crust in opposite directions. (i) The sialic layer is stretched apart due to tensile
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V. India, Madagascar and Africa: The eastern coasts of India, Madagascar and Africa were joined with one other. If we

bring them together, the figure becomes complete.

Vi. The Mid Atlantic Ridge: There is submerged ridge on the floor of the Atlantic ocean in its middle part. if the continents of North and South America on the west and those of Europe and Asia on the east are brought along this MidAtlantic ridge, the continents are fitted with one another.

iii.

iv. Discussion of the theory: It is said that he as a scientist did well to show similarities between various continents in their coastal shapes but he did not act as a good scientist by completely fitting them into one another. To prove the truth of his hypothesis, he acted as an advocate which does not represent him to be a good scientist.

v.

i.

ii.

Fitting: The first criticism against fitting the coasts is that the coasts are nto a permanent feature of continents. It is a local phenomenon and can take any shape by an up and down movement of seas. It is subjected to erosion and deposition by rivers and sea actions. To use a temporary phenomenon to prove a permanent feature is untenable. The Cape and Tendil Mountains: Though these mountains fit well but the Table mountains situated between them escaped the attention of Wegener. The Table mountains have horizontal sandstone rocks. How could the
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sandstone rocks remain horizontal when the Cape and Tendil mountains separated and even folded? Moreover, the Cape mountains do not turn towards the Tendil mountains but extended to the north towards Cedarberge. Fitting of Islands: No body made any objections against the fitting of Greenland, Ellismere and Baffin Islands but it is said that drift hypothesis is not necessary to explain the similarities between them. Caledonian extension: The extension of Caledonian rane is doubtful. There are few evidences of the similarity between Caledonian ranges in Europe and the Appalachian range in America. India, Madagascar and Africa: Wegener said that India, Madagascar and Africa would join together if the Himalayas are filled back into its base from where the Himalayas were originated. In this process, Wegener shifted India too much towards the south. This distorts the position of India along with Mediterranean Sea and the Alps. The forces causing drift: Wegener stated that the forces causing the split and separation are two-(i) The force produced from gravitation and buoyancy. (ii) The tidal force. There appears to be no scientific base for the existence of the first force. Even if we suppose itot exist, its magnitude can be more

2.

than a 20 millionth part of the gravitation force. Even this valued is calculated to be at 45 latitude where it is maximum. How can continents drift with such a small force in a liquid substratum of high viscosity? Holmes thought that the viscosity of the stratum might have been very small but the drift of the continents does not appear to have been possible even with lower viscosity. The second force which Wegener thought was caused by tides, is also very small and cannot turn the continents towards the west. According to a calculation, the tidal force should be 10 billion times to be able to move the continent towards the west. Wegener argued that the speed of rotation of the Moon was much faster in the past than what is now. The tidal force, as a consequence of high rotational speed of the Moon, was high enough to move the continents. Even this argument of Wegener appears to be false. The rotational speed of the Moon can never be so high as Wegener imagined. Even if it is supposed that the rotaional spped of the Moon was high enough, the force generated, according th mathematical calculation, would be so strong as to stop the rotation of the Earth because this force will be against the rotation of the earth. In other words, the Earth would stop spinning around its axis.
49

Criticism: There appears to be no scientific base for the existence of the first force. Even if we suppose it to exist, its magnitude can not be more than a 20 millionth part of the gravitation force. Even this value is calculated to be at 45 latitude where it is maximum. How can continents drift with such a small force in a liquid substratum of high viscosity? Holmes thought that the viscosity to the stratum might have been very small but the drift of the continents does not appear to have been possible even with lower viscosity.

The second force which Wegener thought was caused by tides, is also very small and cannot turn the continents towards the west. According to a calculation, the tidal force should be 10 billion times to be able to move the continents towards the west. Wegner argued that the speed of rotation of the Moon was much faster in the past than what it is now. The tidal force, as a consequence of high rotational speed of the Moon, was high enough to move the continents. Even this argument of Wegener appears to be false. The rotational speed of the Moon can never be so high as Wegener imagined. Even if it is supposed that the rotational speed of the Moon was

high enough, the force generated, according to mathematical calculation, would be so strong as to stop the rotation of the Earth because this force will be against the rotation of the earth. In other words, the Earth would stop spinning around its axis. 3. The Nature of Sima and Sial: According to Wegener, Slal which constitutes the continents is loating in a heavier and liquid like Sima. The drift towards the west made the America continent exert so much pressure on the Sial existing in the west of the continent as to raise it up and form it into the cordilleras of the present. In other words, the hypothesis of Wegener explains not only the drift but also the building of mountains. Criticism: It is very strange that Sima (whom Wegener regards so weak that Sial can float in it) became so rigid at the time of mountain formation that Sial striking against it rose in the form of a mountain. If we take Sima rigid, the continents cannot float in it and if we take it as weak and mobile, the mountains cannot be formed.
4.

coal resources of the present were formed in the equatorial forests of those times. These facts are cogently argued and well described. Wegener explained that the southern part of Pangaea was split in the Mesozoic era. Similar split took place in the northern part of Pangaea later in the Tertiary period.

Criticism: Wegener has given little description prior to carboniferous period. How is it possible that the process of drift did not take place earlier than the Mesozoic and it started only in the Mesozoic? The answer to this problem is given by saying that very little is known about the period prior to Paleozoic era. They argument looks reasonable.

5.

The Movement of Poles: The movement of poles occupies a primary place in the hypothesis of Wegener. He explained that the position of poles has been changing in relation to that of continents.

The description of drift in relation to geological times: Wegener was a climatologist. He has described the drift of the continents according to the geological succession in time. Along with it, he explained the dry and wet climatic changes and distribution of glaciations. The
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Criticism: The movement of continents, if excepted, naturally leads to the movements of poles. Scientists argue that there was no movement of continents themselves.

6.

The evidence of Botany: Wegener explained the distribution of some vegetation on the basis of his hypothesis. For example, Glossopteris vegetation is found inthe carboniferous rocks of India, Australia, South Africa, South America, Falkland Islands, Antarctica, etc. How could this vegetation reach these far flung areas? It is a serious problem. On the basis of Wegener's hypothesis, its distribution in various continents were one in the past and have separated since them. Wegener's hypothesis can not explain the distribution of this vegetation. He stated that this vegetation is not only found in the continents mentioned above but is also found in Kashmir, North West Afghanistan. North East Iran, Tonquin, Siberia, etc. If we show its distribution over a map of the earth, we do not need Wegener's hypothesis for its distribution. This distribution of Tillites is also a problem for Wegener's hypothesis.

Africa, South America Australia and India (Talchir). This can be explained in two ways.

a) The Earth went through a period that was sufficiently cold to generate extensive continental glaciation. This, however is not the case, because at the time large swamps existed in Northern Hemisphere. These swamps with their thick vegetation became the major coalfields of eastern United States b) The land masses were joined to form a super continent and South Africa was centered over South Pole proper. This if further proven by the direction of the ice flow which shows a radiating pattern in all directions away from SW Africa. The scarcity of glacial deposits in south west Africa coupled with abundant evidence of the erosion can be interpreted as meaning that southwest Africa was covered by an actively eroding ice sheet which dumped it load farther where glacial tills strewn all over the surface is found. These ideas met with varied responses at the time, but most were hostile and many ridiculed his concept. Every point particular inadequate geophysical mechanism envisaged for the movement. The forces tentatively suggested by Wegener to accunt for the movement(a rather vague tidal force combined with movement towards the equator due to rotations were
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Palaeoclimatic evidence: This is the most convincing line of evidence for Wegener's worklayers of glacial deposits (tillites) and striations and grooved marks (See Glcial Landform) are found in tropical regions of Southern

insufficient and that in any case the rocks of the continental crust/ocean crust division were rigid and would not permit the drifting of the continents over ocean floor much like an ice breaker cuts through the ice. Further, the ocean floor was not sw weak that it permitted passage of the continents without themselves being appreciably deformed. Support for Wegener came from South African geologist Du Toit and Holmes. Du Toit amassed more and more evidence to show links between continents in the past. Holmes, the British geologist was involved in applying his studies of radioactive elements to internal energy sources and suggested a model which directed attention to a zone along which movements might take place somewhat lower in the earth than the continental crust boundary.

Most scientist however rejected the idea of continental drift-largely on geophysical grounds until geophysical evidence from palacomagnetism and ocean floor studies led to synthesis of ideas in Plate Tectonics.

Fossil Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals, plants, and other organisms from the remote past. The totality of fossils, both discovered and undiscovered, and their placement in fossiliferous rock formations and sedimentary layers is
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known as the fossil record. Such a preserved specimen is called a "fossil" if it is older than 10000 years ago. Hence, fossils range in age from the youngest at the start of the Holocene Epoch to the oldest from the Archaean Eon several billion years old. The observations that certain fossils were associated with certain rock strata led early geologists to recognize a geological timescale in the 19th century. The development of radiometric dating techniques in the early 20th century allowed geologists to determine the numerical or "absolute" age of the various strata and thereby the included fossils. fossils vary in size from microscopic, such as single bacterial cells only one micrometer in diameter, to gigantic, such as dinosaurs and trees many meters long and weighing many tons. A fossil normally preserves only a portion of the deceased organism, usually that portion that was partially mineralized during life, such as the bones and teeth of vertebrates, or the chitinous exoskeletons of invertebrates. Preservation of soft tissues is rare in the fossil record. Fossils may also consist of the marks left behind by the organism while it was alive, such as the footprint or feces (coprolites) of a reptile. These types of fossil are called trace fossils ( ichnofossils), as opposed to body fossils. past life leaves marks that cannot be seen but can be detected in the form of biochemical signals are known as chemofossils or biomarkers. Places of exceptional fossilization Fossil sites with exceptional preservation including preserved soft tissues are known as Lagersttten. These formations may have resulted from carcass burial in an anoxic environment with minimal bacteria, thus delaying decomposition. Lagersttten span geological time from the Cambrian period to the present. Worldwide, some of the best examples of near-perfect fossilization are the Cambrian

Maotianshan shales and Burgess Shale, the Devonian Hunsrck Slates, the Jurassic Solnhofen limestone, and the Carboniferous Mazon Creek localities. Earths oldest fossils are the stromatolites consisting of rock built from layer upon layer of sediment and other precipitants. Based on studies of stromatolites ( bluegreen bacteria), the growth of fossil stromatolitic structures was biogenetically created. However, abiotic mechanisms for stromatolitic growth are also known, leading to a decades-long and sometimescontentious scientific debate regarding biogenesis of certain formations, especially those from the lower to middle Archaean eon. It is most widely accepted that stromatolites from the late Archaean and through the middle Proterozoic eon were mostly formed by massive colonies of cyanobacteria and that the oxygen byproduct of their photosynthetic metabolism first resulted in earths massive banded iron formations and subsequently oxygenated earths atmosphere. Even though it is extremely rare, microstructures resembling cells are sometimes found within stromatolites, but these are also the source of scientific contention. The Gunflint Chert contains abundant microfossils widely accepted as a diverse consortium of 2.0 Ga microbes. Developments in interpretation of the fossil record The fossil record was one of the early sources of data relevant to the study of evolution and continues to be relevant to the history of life on Earth. Paleontologists examine the fossil record in order to understand the process of evolution and the way particular species have evolved. Explanations
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Various explanations have been put forth throughout history to explain what fossils are and how they came to be where they were found. Many of these explanations relied on folktales or mythologies. In China the fossil bones of ancient mammals including Homo erectus were often mistaken for dragon bones and used as medicine and aphrodisiacs. In the West the presence of fossilized sea creatures high up on mountainsides was seen as proof of the biblical deluge. Greek scholar Aristotle realized that fossil seashells from rocks were similar to those found on the beach, indicating the fossils were once living animals. Leonardo da Vinci concurred with Aristotle's view that fossils were the remains of ancient life.[6] In 1027, the Persian geologist, Ibn Sina (known as Avicenna in Europe), explained how the stoniness of fossils was caused in The Book of Healing. However, he rejected the explanation of fossils as organic remains.[7] Aristotle previously explained it in terms of vaporous exhalations, which Ibn Sina modified into the theory of petrifying fluids (succus lapidificatus), which was elaborated on by Albert of Saxony in the 14th century and accepted in some form by most naturalists by the 16th century.[8] Ibn Sina gave the following explanation for the origin of fossils from the petrifaction of plants and animals: "If what is said concerning the petrifaction of animals and plants is true, the cause of this (phenomenon) is a powerful mineralizing and petrifying virtue which arises in certain stony spots, or emanates suddenly from the earth during earthquake and subsidences, and petrifies whatever comes into contact with it. As a matter of fact, the petrifaction of the bodies of plants and animals is not more extraordinary than the transformation of waters."[9]

More scientific views of fossils emerged during the Renaissance. For example, Leonardo Da Vinci noticed discrepancies with the use of the biblical flood narrative as an explanation for fossil origins: "If the Deluge had carried the shells for distances of three and four hundred miles from the sea it would have carried them mixed with various other natural objects all heaped up together; but even at such distances from the sea we see the oysters all together and also the shellfish and the cuttlefish and all the other shells which congregate together, found all together dead; and the solitary shells are found apart from one another as we see them every day on the sea-shores. And we find oysters together in very large families, among which some may be seen with their shells still joined together, indicating that they were left there by the sea and that they were still living when the strait of Gibraltar was cut through. In the mountains of Parma and Piacenza multitudes of shells and corals with holes may be seen still sticking to the rocks..."[10] William Smith (1769-1839), an English canal engineer, observed that rocks of different ages (based on the law of superposition) preserved different assemblages of fossils, and that these assemblages succeeded one another in a regular and determinable order. He observed that rocks from distant locations could be correlated based on the fossils they contained. He termed this the principle of faunal succession. Smith, who preceded Charles Darwin, was unaware of biological evolution and did not know why faunal succession occurred. Biological evolution explains why faunal succession exists: as different organisms
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evolve, change and go extinct, they leave behind fossils. Faunal succession was one of the chief pieces of evidence cited by Darwin that biological evolution had occurred. Georges Cuvier came to believe that most if not all the animal fossils he examined were remains of species that were now extinct. This led Cuvier to become an active proponent of the geological school of thought called catastrophism. Near the end of his 1796 paper on living and fossil elephants he said: All of these facts, consistent among themselves, and not opposed by any report, seem to me to prove the existence of a world previous to ours, destroyed by some kind of catastrophe.[11] Biological explanations Early naturalists well understood the similarities and differences of living species leading Linnaeus to develop a hierarchical classification system still in use today. It was Darwin and his contemporaries who first linked the hierarchical structure of the great tree of life in living organisms with the then very sparse fossil record. Darwin eloquently described a process of descent with modification, or evolution, whereby organisms either adapt to natural and changing environmental pressures, or they perish. When Charles Darwin wrote On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life, the oldest animal fossils were those from the Cambrian Period, now known to be about 540 million years old. The absence of older fossils worried Darwin about the implications for the validity of his theories, but he expressed hope that such fossils would be found, noting that: "only a small

portion of the world is known with accuracy." Darwin also pondered the sudden appearance of many groups (i.e. phyla) in the oldest known Cambrian fossiliferous strata.[12] Further discoveries Since Darwin's time, the fossil record has been pushed back to between 2.3 and 3.5 billion years before the present.[13] Most of these Precambrian fossils are microscopic bacteria or microfossils. However, macroscopic fossils are now known from the late Proterozoic. The Ediacaran biota (also called Vendian biota) dating from 575 million years ago collectively constitutes a richly diverse assembly of early multicellular eukaryotes. The fossil record and faunal succession form the basis of the science of biostratigraphy or determining the age of rocks based on the fossils they contain. For the first 150 years of geology, biostratigraphy and superposition were the only means for determining the relative age of rocks. The geologic time scale was developed based on the relative ages of rock strata as determined by the early paleontologists and stratigraphers. Since the early years of the twentieth century, absolute dating methods, such as radiometric dating (including potassium/argon, argon/argon, uranium series, and, for very recent fossils, carbon14 dating) have been used to verify the relative ages obtained by fossils and to provide absolute ages for many fossils. Radiometric dating has shown that the earliest known stromatolites are over 3.4 billion years old. Various dating methods have been used and are used today depending on local geology and context, and while there is some variance in the results from these dating methods, nearly all of them provide evidence for a very old Earth, approximately 4.6 billion years.
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Modern view "The fossil record is lifes evolutionary epic that unfolded over four billion years as environmental conditions and genetic potential interacted in accordance with natural selection."[14] The earths climate, tectonics, atmosphere, oceans, and periodic disasters invoked the primary selective pressures on all organisms, which they either adapted to, or they perished with or without leaving descendants. Modern paleontology has joined with evolutionary biology to share the interdisciplinary task of unfolding the tree of life, which inevitably leads backwards in time to the microscopic life of the Precambrian when cell structure and functions evolved. Earths deep time in the Proterozoic and deeper still in the Archaean is only "recounted by microscopic fossils and subtle chemical signals."[15] Molecular biologists, using phylogenetics, can compare protein amino acid or nucleotide sequence homology (i.e., similarity) to infer taxonomy and evolutionary distances among organisms, but with limited statistical confidence. The study of fossils, on the other hand, can more specifically pinpoint when and in what organism branching occurred in the tree of life. Modern phylogenetics and paleontology work together in the clarification of sciences still dim view of the appearance of life and its evolution during deep time on earth.[16] Niles Eldredges study of the Phacops trilobite genus supported the hypothesis that modifications to the arrangement of the trilobites eye lenses proceeded by fits and starts over millions of years during the Devonian.[17] Eldredge's interpretation of the Phacops fossil record was that the aftermaths of the lens changes, but not the rapidly occurring evolutionary process, were fossilized. This and other data led

Stephen Jay Gould and Niles Eldredge to publish the seminal paper on punctuated equilibrium in 1971. Example of modern development An example of modern paleontological progress is the application of synchrotron X-ray tomographic techniques to early Cambrian bilaterian embryonic microfossils that has recently yielded new insights of metazoan evolution at its earliest stages. The tomography technique provides previously unattainable threedimensional resolution at the limits of fossilization. Fossils of two enigmatic bilaterians, the worm-like Markuelia and a putative, primitive protostome, Pseudooides, provide a peek at germ layer embryonic development. These 543million-year-old embryos support the emergence of some aspects of arthropod development earlier than previously thought in the late Proterozoic. The preserved embryos from China and Siberia underwent rapid diagenetic phosphatization resulting in exquisite preservation, including cell structures. This research is a notable example of how knowledge encoded by the fossil record continues to contribute otherwise unattainable information on the emergence and development of life on Earth. For example, the research suggests Markuelia has closest affinity to priapulid worms, and is adjacent to the evolutionary branching of Priapulida, Nematoda and Arthropoda.[18] Rarity of fossils Fossilization is an exceptionally rare occurrence, because most components of formerly-living things tend to decompose relatively quickly following death. In order for an organism to be fossilized, the remains normally need to be covered by sediment as soon as possible. However there are exceptions to this, such as if an organism becomes frozen, desiccated, or comes to rest in an anoxic (oxygen-free)
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environment. There are several different types of fossils and fossilization processes. Due to the combined effect of taphonomic processes and simple mathematical chance, fossilization tends to favor organisms with hard body parts, those that were widespread, and those that existed for a long time before going extinct. On the other hand, it is very unusual to find fossils of small, soft bodied, geographically restricted and geologically ephemeral organisms, because of their relative rarity and low likelihood of preservation. Larger specimens (macrofossils) are more often observed, dug up and displayed, although microscopic remains (microfossils) are actually far more common in the fossil record. Some casual observers have been perplexed by the rarity of transitional species within the fossil record. The conventional explanation for this rarity was given by Darwin, who stated that "the extreme imperfection of the geological record," combined with the short duration and narrow geographical range of transitional species, made it unlikely that many such fossils would be found. Simply put, the conditions under which fossilization takes place are quite rare; and it is highly unlikely that any given organism will leave behind a fossil. Eldredge and Gould developed their theory of punctuated equilibrium in part to explain the pattern of stasis and sudden appearance in the fossil record. Furthermore, in the strictest sense, nearly all fossils are "transitional," due to the improbability that any given fossil represents the absolute termination of an evolutionary path. Types of preservation Permineralization Permineralization occurs after burial, as the empty spaces within an organism

(spaces filled with liquid or gas during life) become filled with mineral-rich groundwater and the minerals precipitate from the groundwater, thus occupying the empty spaces. This process can occur in very small spaces, such as within the cell wall of a plant cell. Small scale permineralization can produce very detailed fossils. For permineralization to occur, the organism must become covered by sediment soon after death or soon after the initial decaying process. The degree to which the remains are decayed when covered determines the later details of the fossil. Some fossils consist only of skeletal remains or teeth; other fossils contain traces of skin, feathers or even soft tissues. This is a form of diagenesis. Casts and molds In some cases the original remains of the organism have been completely dissolved or otherwise destroyed. When all that is left is an organism-shaped hole in the rock, it is called an external mold. If this hole is later filled with other minerals, it is a cast. An internal mold is formed when sediments or minerals fill the internal cavity of an organism, such as the inside of a bivalve or snail. Replacement and recrystallization Replacement occurs when the shell, bone or other tissue is replaced with another mineral. In some cases mineral replacement of the original shell occurs so gradually and at such fine scales that microstructural features are preserved despite the total loss of original material. A shell is said to be recrystallized when the original skeletal compounds are still present but in a different crystal form, as from aragonite to calcite. Compression fossils Compression fossils, such as those of fossil ferns, are the result of chemical reduction
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of the complex organic molecules composing the organism's tissues. In this case the fossil consists of original material, albeit in a geochemically altered state. Often what remains is a carbonaceous film. This chemical change is an expression of diagenesis. Bioimmuration Bioimmuration is a type of preservation in which a skeletal organism overgrows or otherwise subsumes another organism, preserving the latter, or an impression of it, within the skeleton.[20] Usually it is a sessile skeletal organism, such as a bryozoan or an oyster, which grows along a substrate, covering other sessile encrusters. Sometimes the bioimmured organism is soft-bodied and is then preserved in negative relief as a kind of external mold. There are also cases where an organism settles on top of a living skeletal organism which grows upwards, preserving the settler in its skeleton. Bioimmuration is known in the fossil record from the Ordovician[21] to the Recent.[20] To sum up, fossilization processes proceed differently for different kinds of tissues and under different kinds of conditions. Trace fossils are the remains of trackways, burrows, bioerosion, eggs and eggshells, nests, droppings and other types of impressions. Fossilized droppings, called coprolites, can give insight into the feeding behavior of animals and can therefore be of great importance. Microfossils Microfossil' is a descriptive term applied to fossilized plants and animals whose size is just at or below the level at which the fossil can be analyzed by the naked eye. A commonly applied cut-off point between "micro" and "macro" fossils is 1 mm, although this is only an approximate guide.

Microfossils may either be complete (or near-complete) organisms in themselves (such as the marine plankters foraminifera and coccolithophores) or component parts (such as small teeth or spores) of larger animals or plants. Microfossils are of critical importance as a reservoir of paleoclimate information, and are also commonly used by biostratigraphers to assist in the correlation of rock units. Resin fossils Fossil resin (colloquially called amber) is a natural polymer found in many types of strata throughout the world, even the Arctic. The oldest fossil resin dates to the Triassic, though most dates to the Tertiary. The excretion of the resin by certain plants is thought to be an evolutionary adaptation for protection from insects and to seal wounds caused by damage elements. Fossil resin often contains other fossils called inclusions that were captured by the sticky resin. These include bacteria, fungi, other plants, and animals. Animal inclusions are usually small invertebrates, predominantly arthropods such as insects and spiders, and only extremely rarely a vertebrate such as a small lizard. Preservation of inclusions can be exquisite, including small fragments of DNA. Pseudofossils are visual patterns in rocks that are produced by naturally occurring geologic processes rather than biologic processes. They can easily be mistaken for real fossils. Some pseudofossils, such as dendrites, are formed by naturally occurring fissures in the rock that get filled up by percolating minerals. Other types of pseudofossils are kidney ore (round shapes in iron ore) and moss agates, which look like moss or plant leaves. Concretions, spherical or ovoid-shaped nodules found in some sedimentary strata, were once thought to be dinosaur eggs, and are often mistaken for fossils as well.
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Living fossils Living fossil is an informal term used for any living species which is apparently identical or closely resembles a species previously known only from fossilsthat is, it is as if the ancient fossil had "come to life." This can be (a) a species or taxon known only from fossils until living representatives were discovered, such as the lobe-finned coelacanth, primitive monoplacophoran mollusk, and the Chinese maidenhair tree, or (b) a single living species with no close relatives, such as the New Caledonian Kagu, or the Sunbittern, or (c) a small group of closelyrelated species with no other close relatives, such as the oxygen-producing, primordial stromatolite, inarticulate lampshell Lingula, many-chambered pearly Nautilus, rootless whisk fern, armored horseshoe crab, and dinosaur-like tuatara that are the sole survivors of a once large and widespread group in the fossil record Stromatolite are layered accretionary structures formed in shallow water by the trapping, binding and cementation of sedimentary grains by biofilms of microorganisms, especially cyanobacteria (commonly known as bluegreen algae). They include some of the most ancient records of life on Earth. Morphology A variety of stromatolite morphologies exist including conical, stratiform, branching, domal,[1] and columnar types. Stromatolites occur widely in the fossil record of the Precambrian, but are rare today. Very few ancient stromatolites contain fossilized microbes. While features of some stromatolites are suggestive of biological activity, others possess features that are more consistent with abiotic (nonorganic) precipitation. Finding reliable ways to distinguish between biologically-

formed and abiotic (non-biological) stromatolites is an active area of research in geology. Fossil record Stromatolites were much more abundant on the planet in Precambrian times. While older, Archean fossil remains are presumed to be colonies of single-celled blue-green bacteria, younger (that is, Proterozoic) fossils may be primordial forms of the eukaryote chlorophytes (that is, green algae). One genus of stromatolite very common in the geologic record is Collenia. The earliest stromatolite of confirmed microbial origin dates to 2.724 billion years ago.[2] A recent discovery provides strong evidence of microbial stromatolites extending as far back as 3,450 million years ago.[3] Stromatolites are a major constituent of the fossil record for about the first 3.5 billion years of life on earth,[4] with their abundance[verification needed] peaking about 1.25 billion years ago. They subsequently declined in abundance and diversity, which by the start of the Cambrian had fallen to 20% of their peak. The most widelysupported explanation is that stromatolite builders fell victims to grazing creatures (the Cambrian substrate revolution), implying that sufficiently complex organisms were common over 1 billion years ago.[5][6][7] The connection between grazer and stromatolite abundance is well documented in the younger Ordovician evolutionary radiation; stromatolite abundance also increased after the end-Ordovician and end-Permian extinctions decimated marine animals, falling back to earlier levels as marine animals recovered.[8] While prokaryotic cyanobacteria themselves reproduce asexually through cell division, they were instrumental in priming the environment for the evolutionary development of more
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complex eukaryotic organisms. Cyanobacteria are thought to be largely responsible for increasing the amount of oxygen in the primeval earth's atmosphere through their continuing photosynthesis. Cyanobacteria use water, carbon dioxide, and sunlight to create their food. The byproducts of this process are oxygen and calcium carbonate (lime).[verification needed] A layer of mucus often forms over mats of cyanobacterial cells. In modern microbial mats, debris from the surrounding habitat can become trapped within the mucus, which can be cemented together by the calcium carbonate to grow thin laminations of limestone. These laminations can accrete over time, resulting in the banded pattern common to stromatolites. The domal morphology of biological stromatolites is the result of the vertical growth necessary for the continued infiltration of sunlight to the organisms for photosynthesis. Modern stromatolites are mostly found in hypersaline lakes and marine lagoons where extreme conditions due to high saline levels exclude animal grazing. One such location is Hamelin Pool Marine Nature Reserve, Shark Bay in Western Australia where excellent specimens are observed today, and another is Lagoa Salgada, state of Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil, where modern stromatolites can be observed as bioherm (domal type) and beds. Inland stromatolites can also be found in saline waters in Cuatro Cinegas, a unique ecosystem in the Mexican desert, and in Lake Alchichica, a maar lake in Mexico's Oriental Basin. Modern stromatolites are only known to prosper in an open marine environment in the Exuma Cays in the Bahamas.[9] Freshwater stromatolites are found in Lake Salda in southern Turkey. The waters are rich in magnesium and the stromatolite structures are made of hydromagnesite.[10]

Another pair of instances of freshwater stromatolites are at Pavilion and Kelly Lakes in British Columbia, Canada. Pavilion Lake has the largest known freshwater stromatolites and has been researched by NASA as part of xenobiology research.[11] Layered spherical growth structures named oncolites are similar to stromatolites, and are also known from the fossil record. The history of paleontology traces the effort to understand the history of life on Earth by studying the fossil record left behind by living organisms. Paleontology is a field of biology, but its development has been closely tied to geology and the effort to understand the history of Earth itself. In ancient times Xenophanes (570480 BC) wrote about fossil sea shells indicating that land was once under water. During the Middle Ages, fossils were discussed by the Persian naturalist, Ibn Sina (known as Avicenna in Europe), in The Book of Healing (1027), which proposed a theory of petrifying fluids that Albert of Saxony would elaborate on in the 14th century. The Chinese naturalist Shen Kuo (1031-1095) would propose a theory of climate change based on evidence from petrified bamboo. In early modern Europe, the systematic study of fossils emerged as an integral part of the changes in natural philosophy that occurred during the Age of Reason. The nature of fossils and their relationship to life in the past became better understood during the 17th and 18th centuries, and at the end of the 18th century the work of Georges Cuvier ended a long running debate about the reality of extinction and led to the emergence of paleontology, in association with comparative anatomy, as a scientific discipline. The expanding knowledge of the fossil record also played an increasing role in the development of geology, particularly stratigraphy.
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The first half of the 19th century saw geological and paleontological activity become increasingly well organized with the growth of geologic societies and museums and an increasing number of professional geologists and fossil specialists. This contributed to a rapid increase in knowledge about the past history of life on Earth, and progress towards definition of the geologic time scale largely based on fossil evidence. In 1822 the word "paleontology" was invented by the editor of a French scientific journal to refer to the study of ancient living organisms through fossils. As knowledge of life's past history continued to improve, it became increasingly obvious that there had been some kind of successive order to the development of life. This would encourage early evolutionary theories on the transmutation of species.[1] After Charles Darwin published Origin of Species in 1859, much of the focus of paleontology shifted to understanding evolutionary paths, including human evolution, and evolutionary theory.[1] The last half of the 19th century saw a tremendous expansion in paleontological activity, especially in North America. The trend continued in the 20th century with additional regions of the Earth being opened to systematic fossil collection, as demonstrated by a series of important discoveries in China near the end of the century. The last few decades of the 20th century saw a renewed interest in mass extinctions and their role in the evolution of life on Earth.[2] There was also a renewed interest in the Cambrian explosion that saw the development of the body plans of most animal phyla. The discovery of fossils of the Ediacaran biota and developments in paleobiology extended knowledge about the history of life back far before the Cambrian. Prior to the 17th century

As early as the 6th century BC, the Greek philosopher Xenophanes of Colophon (570-480 BC) recognized that some fossil shells were remains of shellfish, which he used to argue that what was at the time dry land was once under the sea.[3] Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519), in an unpublished notebook, also concluded that some fossil sea shells were the remains of shellfish. However, in both cases, the fossils were complete remains of shellfish species that closely resembled living species, and were therefore easy to classify.[4] In 1027, the Persian naturalist, Ibn Sina (known as Avicenna in Europe), proposed an explanation of how the stoniness of fossils was caused in The Book of Healing. He modified an idea of Aristotle's, which explained it in terms of vaporous exhalations. Ibn Sina modified this into the theory of petrifying fluids (succus lapidificatus), which was elaborated on by Albert of Saxony in the 14th century and was accepted in some form by most naturalists by the 16th century.[5] Ibn Sina gave the following explanation for the origin of fossils from the petrifaction of plants and animals: "If what is said concerning the petrifaction of animals and plants is true, the cause of this (phenomenon) is a powerful mineralizing and petrifying virtue which arises in certain stony spots, or emanates suddenly from the earth during earthquake and subsidences, and petrifies whatever comes into contact with it. As a matter of fact, the petrifaction of the bodies of plants and animals is not more extraordinary than the transformation of waters."[6] Shen Kuo (Chinese: ) (1031 - 1095) of the Song Dynasty used marine fossils found in the Taihang Mountains to infer the existence of geological processes such as geomorphology and the shifting of seashores over time.[7] Using his
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observation of preserved petrified bamboos found underground in Yan'an, Shanbei region, Shaanxi province, he argued for a theory of gradual climate change, since Shaanxi was part of a dry climate zone that did not support a habitat for the growth of bamboos.[8] As a result of a new emphasis on observing, classifying, and cataloging nature, 16th century natural philosophers in Europe began to establish extensive collections of fossil objects (as well as collections of plant and animal specimens), which were often stored in specially built cabinets to help organize them. Conrad Gesner published a 1565 work on fossils that contained one of the first detailed descriptions of such a cabinet and collection. The collection belonged to a member of the extensive network of correspondents that Gesner drew on for his works. Such informal correspondence networks among natural philosophers and collectors became increasingly important during the course of the 16th century and were direct forerunners of the scientific societies that would begin to form in the 17th century. These cabinet collections and correspondence networks played an important role in the development of natural philosophy.[9] However, most 16th century Europeans did not recognize that fossils were the remains of living organisms. The etymology of the word fossil comes from the Latin for things having been dug up. As this indicates, the term was applied to wide variety of stone and stone-like objects without regard to whether they might have an organic origin. Sixteenth century writers such as Gesner and Georg Agricola were more interested in classifying such objects by their physical and mystical properties than they were in determining the objects' origins.[10] In addition, the natural philosophy of the period encouraged alternative explanations for the origin of

fossils. Both the Aristotelian and Neoplatonic schools of philosophy provided support for the idea that stony objects might grow within the earth to resemble living things. Neoplatonic philosophy maintained that there could be affinities between living and non-living objects that could cause one to resemble the other. The Aristotelian school maintained that the seeds of living organisms could enter the ground and generate objects resembling those organisms.[11] During the Age of Reason, fundamental changes in natural philosophy were reflected in the analysis of fossils. In 1665 Athanasius Kircher attributed giant bones to extinct races of giant humans in his Mundus subterraneus. In the same year Robert Hooke published Micrographia, an illustrated collection of his observations with a microscope. One of these observations was entitled Of Petrify'd wood, and other Petrify'd bodies, which included a comparison between petrified and ordinary wood. He concluded that petrified wood was ordinary wood that had been soaked with "water impregnated with stony and earthy particles". He then suggested that several kinds of fossil sea shells were formed from ordinary shells by a similar process. He argued against the prevalent view that such objects were "Stones form'd by some extraordinary Plastick virtue latent in the Earth itself".[12] In 1667 Nicholas Steno wrote a paper about a shark head he had dissected. He compared the teeth of the shark with the common fossil objects known as tongue stones. He concluded that the fossils must have been shark teeth. Steno then took an interest in the question of fossils, and to address some of the objections to their organic origin he began studying rock strata. The result of this work was published in 1669 as Forerunner to a Dissertation on a solid naturally enclosed
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in a solid. In this book, Steno drew a clear distinction between objects such as rock crystals that really were formed within rocks and those such as fossil shells and shark teeth that were formed outside of those rocks. Steno realized that certain kinds of rock had been formed by the successive deposition of horizontal layers of sediment and that fossils were the remains of living organisms that had become buried in that sediment. Steno who, like almost all 17th century natural philosophers, believed that the earth was only a few thousand years old, resorted to the Biblical flood as a possible explanation for fossils of marine organisms that were far from the sea.[13] Despite the considerable influence of Forerunner, naturalists such as Martin Lister (1638-1712) and John Ray (16271705) continued to question the organic origin of some fossils. They were particularly concerned about objects such as fossil Ammonites, which Hooke claimed were organic in origin, that did not resemble any known living species. This raised the possibility of extinction, which they found difficult to accept for philosophical and theological reasons.[14] In his 1778 work Epochs of Nature Georges Buffon referred to fossils, in particular the discovery of fossils of tropical species such as elephants and rhinoceros in northern Europe, as evidence for the theory that the earth had started out much warmer than it currently was and had been gradually cooling. In 1796 Georges Cuvier presented a paper on living and fossil elephants comparing skeletal remains of Indian and African elephants to fossils of mammoths and of an animal he would later name mastodon utilizing comparative anatomy. He established for the first time that Indian and African elephants were different species, and that mammoths differed from both and must be extinct. He further

concluded that the mastodon was another extinct species that also differed from Indian or African elephants, more so than mammoths. Cuvier made another powerful demonstration of the power of comparative anatomy in paleontology when he presented a second paper in 1796 on a large fossil skeleton from Paraguay, which he named Megatherium and identified as a giant sloth by comparing its skull to those of two living species of tree sloth. Cuviers ground-breaking work in paleontology and comparative anatomy lead to the widespread acceptance of extinction.[15] It also lead Cuvier to advocate the geological theory of catastrophism to explain the succession of organisms revealed by the fossil record. He also pointed out that since mammoths and wooly rhinoceros were not the same species as the elephants and rhinoceros currently living in the tropics, their fossils could not be used as evidence for a cooling earth. In a pioneering application of stratigraphy, William Smith, a surveyor and mining engineer, made extensive use of fossils to help correlate rock strata in different locations. He created the first geological map of England during the late 1790s and early 1800s. He established the principle of faunal succession, the idea that each strata of sedimentary rock would contain particular types of fossils, and that these would succeed one another in a predictable way even in widely separated geologic formations. At the same time, Cuvier and Alexandre Brongniart, an instructor at the Paris school of mine engineering, used similar methods in an influential study of the geology of the region around Paris. In 1808, Cuvier identified a fossil found in Maastricht as a giant marine reptile that he named Mosasaurus. He also identified, from a drawing, another fossil found in Bavaria as a flying reptile and named it Pterodactylus. He speculated that an age of reptiles had preceded the first mammals.[16]
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Cuvier's speculation would be supported by a series of finds that would be made in Great Britain over the course of the next two decades. Mary Anning, a professional fossil collector since age eleven, collected the fossils of a number of marine reptiles from the Jurassic marine strata at Lyme Regis. These included the first ichthyosaur skeleton to be recognized as such, which was collected in 1811, and the first two plesiosaur skeletons ever found in 1821 and 1823. Many of her discoveries would be described scientifically by the geologists William Conybeare, Henry De la Beche, and William Buckland.[17] It was Anning who observed that stony objects known as "bezoar stones" were often found in the abdominal region of ichthyosaur skeletons, and she noted that if such stones were broken open they often contained fossilized fish bones and scales as well as sometimes bones from small icthyosaurs. This lead Buckland to declare they were fossilized feces, which he named coprolites, and which he used to better understand ancient food chains.[18] In 1824, Buckland found and described a lower jaw from Jurassic deposits from Stonesfield. He determined that the bone belonged to a carnivorous land-dwelling reptile he called Megalosaurus. That same year Gideon Mantell realized that some large teeth he had found in 1822, in Cretaceous rocks from Tilgate, belonged to a giant herbivorous land-dwelling reptile. He called it Iguanodon, because the teeth resembled those of an iguana. In 1832 Mantell would find, in Tilgate, a partial skeleton of an armoured reptile he would call Hylaeosaurus. In 1842 the English anatomist Richard Owen would create a new order of reptiles, that he called Dinosauria for Megalosaurus, Iguanodon, and Hylaeosaurus.[19] This evidence that giant reptiles had lived on Earth in the past caused great excitement in scientific circles,[20] and even

among some segments of the general public.[21] Buckland did describe the jaw of a small primitive mammal, Phascolotherium, that was found in the same strata as Megalosaurus. This discovery, known as the Stonesfield mammal, was a much discussed anomaly. Cuvier at first thought it was a marsupial, but Buckland later realized it was a primitive placental mammal. Due to its small size and primitive nature, Buckland did not believe it invalidated the overall pattern of an "age of reptiles", when the largest and most conspicuous animals had been reptiles rather than mammals.[22] Paleobotany and the origin of the word paleontology In 1828 Alexandre Brongniart's son, the botanist Adolphe Brongniart, published the introduction to a longer work on the history of fossil plants. Adolphe Brongniart concluded that the history of plants could roughly be divided into four parts. The first period was characterized by cryptogams. The second period was characterized by the appearance of the conifers. The third period brought emergence of the cycads, and the fourth by the development of the flowering plants (such as the dicotyledons). The transitions between each of these periods was marked by sharp discontinuities in the fossil record, with more gradual changes within the periods. Brongniart's work is the foundation of paleobotany and reinforced the theory that life on earth had a long and complex history, and different groups of plants and animals made their appearances in successive order.[23] The increasing attention being paid to fossil plants in the first decades of the 19th century also caused a significant change in the terminology for the study of past life. The editor of the influential french scientific journal, Journal de Phisique, a student of Cuvier's named Henri Marie
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Ducrotay de Blanville, coined the term "paleozoologie" in 1817 to refer to the work Cuvier and others were doing to reconstruct extinct animals from fossil bones. However, Blanville began looking for a term that could refer to the study of both fossil animal and plant remains. After trying some unsuccessful alternatives, he hit on "paleontologie" in 1822. Blanville's term for the study of the living organisms of the past quickly became popular and was anglicized into "paleontology".[24] Catastrophism, uniformitarianism and the fossil record In Cuvier's landmark 1796 paper on living and fossil elephants, he referred to a single catastrophe that destroyed life to be replaced by the current forms. As a result of his studies of extinct mammals, he realized that animals such as Palaeotherium had lived before the time of the mammoths, which lead him to write in terms of multiple geological catastrophes that had wiped out a series of successive faunas.[25] By 1830, a scientific consensus had formed around his ideas as a result of paleobotany and the dinosaur and marine reptile discoveries in Britain.[26] In Great Britain, where natural theology was very influential in the early 19th century, a group of geologists that included Buckland, and Robert Jameson insisted on explicitly linking the most recent of Cuvier's catastrophes to the biblical flood. Catastrophism had a religious overtone in Britain that was absent elsewhere.[27] Partly in response to what he saw as unsound and unscientific speculations by William Buckland and other practitioners of flood geology, Charles Lyell advocated the geological theory of uniformitarianism in his influential work Principles of Geology.[28] Lyell amassed evidence, both from his own field research and the work of others, that most geological features could be explained by the slow action of

present day forces, such as vulcanism, earthquakes, erosion, and sedimentation rather than past catastrophic events.[29] Lyell also claimed that the apparent evidence for catastrophic changes in the fossil record, and even the appearance of directional succession in the history of life, were illusions caused by imperfections in that record. For instance he argued that the absence of birds and mammals from the earliest fossil strata was merely an imperfection in the fossil record attributable to the fact that marine organisms were more easily fossilized.[29] Also Lyell pointed to the Stonesfield mammal as evidence that mammals had not necessarily been preceded by reptiles, and to the fact that certain Pleistocene strata showed a mixture of extinct and still surviving species, which he said showed that extinction occurred piecemeal rather than as a result of catastrophic events.[30] Lyell was successful in convincing geologists of the idea that the geological features of the earth were largely due to the action of the same geologic forces that could be observed in the present day, acting over an extended period of time. He was not successful in gaining support for his view of the fossil record, which he believed did not support a theory of directional succession.[31] Transmutation of species and the fossil record Jean Baptiste Lamarck used fossils in his arguments for his theory of the transmutation of species in the early 19th century.[32] Fossil finds, and the emerging evidence that life had changed over time, fueled speculation on this topic during the next few decades.[33] Robert Chambers used fossil evidence in his 1844 popular science book Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation, which advocated an evolutionary origin for the cosmos as well as for life on earth. Like Lamarck's theory
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it maintained that life had progressed from the simple to the complex.[34] These early evolutionary ideas were widely discussed in scientific circles but were not accepted into the scientific mainstream.[35] Many of the critics of transmutational ideas used fossil evidence in their arguments. In the same paper that coined the term dinosaur Richard Owen pointed out that dinosaurs were at least as sophisticated and complex as modern reptiles, which he claimed contradicted transmutational theories.[36] Hugh Miller would make a similar argument, pointing out that the fossil fish found in the Old Red Sandstone formation were fully as complex as any later fish, and not the primitive forms alleged by Vestiges.[37] While these early evolutionary theories failed to become accepted as mainstream science, the debates over them would help pave the way for the acceptance of Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection a few years later.[38] Geological time scale and the history of life Geologists such as Adam Sedgwick, and Roderick Murchison continued, despite disputes such as The Great Devonian Controversy, to make advances in stratigraphy. They described new geological epochs such as the Cambrian, the Silurian, the Devonian, and the Permian. Increasingly, such progress in stratigraphy depended on the opinions of experts with specialized knowledge of particular types of fossils such as William Lonsdale (fossil corals), and John Lindley (fossil plants) who both played a role in the Devonian controversy and its resolution.[39] By the early 1840s much of the geologic time scale had been developed. In 1841, John Phillips formally divided the geologic column into three major eras, the Paleozoic, Mesozoic, and Cenozoic, based on sharp breaks in the fossil record.[40] He identified the three periods of the

Mesozoic era and all the periods of the Paleozoic era except the Ordovician. His definition of the geological time scale is still used today.[41] It remained a relative time scale with no method of assigning any of the periods' absolute dates. It was understood that not only had there been an "age of reptiles" preceding the current "age of mammals", but there had a time (during the Cambrian and the Silurian) when life had been restricted to the sea, and a time (prior to the Devonian) when invertebrates had been the largest and most complex forms of animal life. Expansion and professionalization of geology and paleontology This rapid progress in geology and paleontology during the 1830s and 1840s was aided by a growing international network of geologists and fossil specialists whose work was organized and reviewed by an increasing number of geological societies. Many of these geologists and paleontologists were now paid professionals working for universities, museums and government geological surveys. The relatively high level of public support for the earth sciences was due to their cultural impact, and their proven economic value in helping to exploit mineral resources such as coal.[42] Another important factor was the development in the late 18th and early 19th centuries of museums with large natural history collections. These museums received specimens from collectors around the world and served as centers for the study of comparative anatomy and morphology. These disciplines played key roles in the development of a more technically sophisticated form of natural history. One of the first and most important examples was the Museum of Natural History in Paris, which was at the center of many of the developments in natural history during the first decades of the 19th
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century. It was founded in 1793 by an act of the French National Assembly, and was based on an extensive royal collection plus the private collections of aristocrats confiscated during the French revolution, and expanded by material seized during French military conquests. The Paris museum was the professional base for Cuvier, and his professional rival Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire. The English anatomists Robert Grant and Richard Owen both spent time studying there. Owen would go on to become the leading British morphologist while working at the museum of the Royal College of Surgeons.[43][44] [edit] 19th century after Darwin Evolution Charles Darwin's publication of the On the Origin of Species in 1859 was a watershed event in all the life sciences, especially paleontology. Fossils had played a role in the development of Darwin's theory. In particular he had been impressed by fossils he had collected in South America during the voyage of the Beagle of giant armadillos, giant sloths, and what at the time he thought were giant llamas that seemed to be related to species still living on the continent in modern times.[45] The scientific debate that started immediately after the publication of Origin led to a concerted effort to look for transitional fossils and other evidence of evolution in the fossil record. There were two areas where early success attracted considerable public attention, the transition between reptiles and birds, and the evolution of the modern single-toed horse.[46] In 1861 the first specimen of Archaeopteryx, an animal with both teeth and feathers and a mix of other reptilian and avian features, was discovered in a limestone quarry in Bavaria and described by Richard Owen. Another would be found in the late 1870s and put on display at a Museum in Berlin in 1881. Other primitive toothed birds

were found by Othniel Marsh in Kansas in 1872. Marsh also discovered fossils of several primitive horses in the Western United States that helped trace the evolution of the horse from the small 5toed Hyracotherium of the Eocene to the much larger single-toed modern horses of the genus Equus. Thomas Huxley would make extensive use of both the horse and bird fossils in his advocacy of evolution. Acceptance of evolution occurred rapidly in scientific circles, but acceptance of Darwin's proposed mechanism of natural selection as the driving force behind it was much less universal. In particular some paleontologists such as Edward Drinker Cope and Henry Fairfield Osborn preferred alternatives such as neo-Lamarckism, the inheritance of characteristics acquired during life, and orthogenesis, an innate drive to change in a particular direction, to explain what they perceived as linear trends in evolution.[47] There was also great interest in human evolution. Neanderthal fossils were discovered in 1856, but at the time it was not clear that they represented a different species from modern humans. Eugene Dubois created a sensation with his discovery of Java Man, the first fossil evidence of a species that seemed clearly intermediate between humans and apes, in 1891. developments in the 20th century Two 20th century developments in geology had a big effect on paleontology. The first was the development of radiometric dating, which allowed absolute dates to be assigned to the geologic timescale. The second was the theory of plate tectonics, which helped make sense of the geographical distribution of ancient life.

Geographical expansion of paleontology During the 20th century paleontological exploration intensified everywhere and ceased to be a largely European and North American activity. In the 135 years between Buckland's first discovery and 1969 a total of 170 dinosaur genera were known. In the 25 years after 1969 that number increased to 315. Much of this increase was due to the examination of new rock exposures, particularly in previously little-explored areas in South America and Africa.[49] Near the end of the century the opening of China to systematic exploration for fossils has yielded a wealth of material on dinosaurs and the origin of birds and mammals.[50] Mass extinctions The 20th century saw a major renewal of interest in mass extinction events and their effect on the course of the history of life. This was particularly true after 1980 when Luis and Walter Alvarez put forward the Alvarez hypothesis claiming that an impact event caused the CretaceousTertiary extinction event, which killed off the nonavian dinosaurs along with many other living things.[51] Also in the early 1980s Jack Sepkoski and David M. Raup published papers with statistical analysis of the fossil record of marine invertebrates that revealed a pattern (possibly cyclical) of repeated mass extinctions with significant implications for the evolutionary history of life. Evolutionary paths and theory Throughout the 20th century new fossil finds continued to contribute to understanding the paths taken by evolution. Examples include major taxonomic transitions such as finds in Greenland, starting in the 1930s (with more major finds in the 1980s), of fossils illustrating the evolution of tetrapods from fish, and fossils in China during the 1990s
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that shed light on the dinosaur-bird relationship. Other events that have attracted considerable attention have included the discovery of a series of fossils in Pakistan that have shed light on whale evolution, and most famously of all a series of finds throughout the 20th century in Africa (starting with Taung child in 1924[52]) and elsewhere have helped illuminate the course of human evolution. Increasingly, at the end of the century, the results of paleontology and molecular biology were being brought together to reveal detailed phylogenetic trees. The results of paleontology have also contributed to the development of evolutionary theory. In 1944 George Gaylord Simpson published Tempo and Mode in Evolution, which used quantitative analysis to show that the fossil record was consistent with the branching, non-directional, patterns predicted by the advocates of evolution driven by natural selection and genetic drift rather than the linear trends predicted by earlier advocates of neo-Lamarckism and orthogenesis. This integrated paleontology into the modern evolutionary synthesis.[53] In 1972 Niles Eldredge and Stephen Jay Gould used fossil evidence to advocate the theory of punctuated equilibrium, which maintains that evolution is characterized by long periods of relative stasis and much shorter periods of relatively rapid change.[54] [edit] Cambrian explosion Photo shows a complete Anomalocaris fossil from the Burgess shale. One area of paleontology that has seen a lot of activity during the 1980s, 1990s, and beyond is the study of the Cambrian explosion during which many of the various phyla of animals with their distinctive body plans first appear. The well-known Burgess Shale Cambrian fossil site was found in 1909 by Charles
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Doolittle Walcott, and another important site in Chengjiang China was found in 1912. However, new analysis in the 1980s by Harry B. Whittington, Derek Briggs, Simon Conway Morris and others sparked a renewed interest and a burst of activity including discovery of an important new fossil site, Sirius Passet, in Greenland, and the publication of a popular and controversial book, Wonderful Life by Stephen Jay Gould in 1989.[55] [edit] Pre-Cambrian fossils Photo shows a Spriggina fossil from the Ediacaran. Prior to 1950 there was no widely accepted fossil evidence of life before the Cambrian period. When Charles Darwin wrote The Origin of Species he acknowledged that the lack of any fossil evidence of life prior to the relatively complex animals of the Cambrian was a potential argument against the theory of evolution, but expressed the hope that such fossils would be found in the future. In the 1860s there were claims of the discovery of pre-Cambrian fossils, but these would later be shown not to have an organic origin. In the late 19th century Charles Doolittle Walcott would discover stromatolites and other fossil evidence of pre-Cambrian life, but at the time the organic origin of those fossils was also disputed. This would start to change in the 1950s with the discovery of more stromatolites along with microfossils of the bacteria that built them, and the publication of a series of papers by the Soviet scientist Boris Vasil'evich Timofeev announcing the discovery of microscopic fossil spores in pre-Cambrian sediments. A key breakthrough would come when Martin Glaessner would show that fossils of soft bodied animals discovered by Reginald Sprigg during the late 1940s in the Ediacaran hills of Australia were in fact pre-Cambrian not early Cambrian as Sprigg had originally believed, making the

Ediacaran biota the oldest animals known. By the end of the 20th century paleobiology had established that the history of life extended back at least 3.5 billion years.[56] History of evolutionary thought Evolutionary thought, the conception that species change over time, has roots in antiquity, in the ideas of the ancient Greeks, Romans, and Chinese as well as in medieval Islamic science. However, until the 18th century, Western biological thinking was dominated by essentialism, the belief that every species has essential characteristics that are unalterable. This began to change during the Enlightenment when evolutionary cosmology and the mechanical philosophy spread from the physical sciences to natural history. Naturalists began to focus on the variability of species; the emergence of paleontology with the concept of extinction further undermined the static view of nature. In the early 19th century, Jean-Baptiste Lamarck proposed his theory of the transmutation of species, the first fully formed scientific theory of evolution. In 1858, Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace published a new evolutionary theory that was explained in detail in Darwin's On the Origin of Species (1859). Unlike Lamarck, Darwin proposed common descent and a branching tree of life. The theory was based on the idea of natural selection, and it synthesized a broad range of evidence from animal husbandry, biogeography, geology, morphology, and embryology. The debate over Darwin's work led to the rapid acceptance of the general concept of evolution, but the specific mechanism he proposed, natural selection, was not widely accepted until it was revived by developments in biology that occurred during 1920s through the 1940s. Before that time most biologists argued that other
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factors were responsible for evolution. Alternatives to natural selection suggested during the eclipse of Darwinism included inheritance of acquired characteristics (neo-Lamarckism), an innate drive for change (orthogenesis), and sudden large mutations (saltationism). The synthesis of natural selection with Mendelian genetics during the 1920s and 1930s founded the new discipline of population genetics. Throughout the 1930s and 1940s, population genetics became integrated with other biological fields, resulting in a widely applicable theory of evolution that encompassed much of biologythe modern evolutionary synthesis. Following the establishment of evolutionary biology, studies of mutation and variation in natural populations, combined with biogeography and systematics, led to sophisticated mathematical and causal models of evolution. Paleontology and comparative anatomy allowed more detailed reconstructions of the history of life. After the rise of molecular genetics in the 1950s, the field of molecular evolution developed, based on protein sequences and immunological tests, and later incorporating RNA and DNA studies. The gene-centered view of evolution rose to prominence in the 1960s, followed by the neutral theory of molecular evolution, sparking debates over adaptationism, the units of selection, and the relative importance of genetic drift versus natural selection. In the late 20th century, DNA sequencing led to molecular phylogenetics and the reorganization of the tree of life into the three-domain system. In addition, the newly recognized factors of symbiogenesis and horizontal gene transfer introduced yet more complexity into evolutionary history.

Contents [hide]

1 Antiquity 1.1 Greeks 1.2 Chinese 1.3 Romans 1.4 Augustine of Hippo 2 Middle Ages 2.1 Islamic philosophy and the struggle for existence 2.2 Christian philosophy and the great chain of being 2.3 Thomas Aquinas on creation and natural processes 3 Renaissance and Enlightenment 4 Early 19th century 4.1 Paleontology and geology 4.2 Transmutation of species 4.3 Anticipations of natural selection 4.4 Natural selection 5 18591930s: Darwin and his legacy 5.1 Application to humans 5.2 Alternatives to natural selection 5.3 Mendelian genetics, biometrics, and mutation 6 1920s1940s 6.1 Population genetics 6.2 Modern evolutionary synthesis 7 1940s1960s: Molecular biology and evolution 8 Late 20th century 8.1 Gene-centered view 8.2 Sociobiology
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8.3 Evolutionary paths and processes 8.4 Microbiology, horizontal gene transfer, and endosymbiosis 8.5 Evolutionary developmental biology 9 21st century 9.1 Epigenetic inheritance 10 Unconventional evolutionary theory 10.1 Omega point 10.2 Gaia hypothesis 10.3 Transhumanism 11 See also 12 Notes 13 References 14 External links

[edit] Antiquity [edit] Greeks Several ancient Greek philosophers discussed ideas that involved change in living organisms over time. Anaximander (c.610546 BC) proposed that the first animals lived in water and animals that live on land were generated from them.[1] Empedocles (c. 490430 BC) wrote of a non-supernatural origin for living things.[2] Empedocles suggested that adaptation did not require an organizer or final cause. Aristotle summarized his idea: "Wherever then all the parts came about just what they would have been if they had come to be for an end, such things survived, being organized spontaneously in a fitting way; whereas those which grew otherwise perished and continue to perish ..." although Aristotle himself rejected this view.[3]

Plato (left) and Aristotle (right), a detail of The School of Athens Plato (c. 428348 BC) was, in the words of biologist and historian Ernst Mayr, "the great antihero of evolutionism",[4] as he established the philosophy of essentialism, which he called the Theory of Forms. This theory holds that objects observed in the real world are only reflections of a limited number of essences (eide). Variation is merely the result of an imperfect reflection of these constant essences. In his Timaeus, Plato set forth the idea that the Demiurge had created the cosmos and everything in it because, being good, and hence, "... free from jealousy, He desired that all things should be as like Himself as they could be". The creator created all conceivable forms of life, since "... without them the universe will be incomplete, for it will not contain every kind of animal which it ought to contain, if it is to be perfect". This idea, that all potential forms of life are essential to a perfect creation, is called the plenitude principle, and greatly influenced Christian thought.[5] Aristotle (384322 BC), one of the most influential of the Greek philosophers, is the earliest natural historian whose work has been preserved in any real detail. His writings on biology were the result of his research into natural history on and around the isle of Lesbos, and have survived in the form of four books, usually known by their
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Latin names, De anima (on the essence of life), Historia animalium (inquiries about animals), De generatione animalium (reproduction), and De partibus animalium (anatomy). Aristotle's works contain some remarkably astute observations and interpretationsalong with sundry myths and mistakesreflecting the uneven state of knowledge during his time.[6] However, for Charles Singer, "Nothing is more remarkable than [Aristotle's] efforts to [exhibit] the relationships of living things as a scala natur."[6] This scala natur, described in Historia animalium, classified organisms in relation to a hierarchical "Ladder of Life" or "Chain of Being", placing them according to their complexity of structure and function, with organisms that showed greater vitality and ability to move described as "higher organisms".[5] [edit] Chinese Ideas on evolution were expressed by ancient Chinese thinkers such as Zhuangzi (Chuang Tzu), a Taoist philosopher who lived around the 4th century BC. According to Joseph Needham, Taoism explicitly denies the fixity of biological species and Taoist philosophers speculated that species had developed differing attributes in response to differing environments.[7] Humans, nature and the heavens are seen as existing in a state of "constant transformation" known as the Tao, in contrast with the more static view of nature typical of Western thought.[8] [edit] Romans Titus Lucretius Carus (d. 50 BC), the Roman philosopher and atomist, wrote the poem On the Nature of Things (De rerum natura), which provides the best surviving explanation of the ideas of the Greek Epicurean philosophers. It describes the development of the cosmos, the Earth, living things, and human society through purely naturalistic mechanisms, without

any reference to supernatural involvement. On the Nature of things would influence the cosmological and evolutionary speculations of philosophers and scientists during and after the Renaissance.[9][10] [edit] Augustine of Hippo In line with earlier Greek thought, the 4th century bishop and theologian, St. Augustine of Hippo, wrote that the creation story in Genesis should not be read too literally. In his book De Genesi ad litteram ("On The Literal Interpretation of Genesis"), he stated that in some cases new creatures may have come about through the "decomposition" of earlier forms of life.[11] For Augustine, "plant, fowl and animal life are not perfect ... but created in a state of potentiality", unlike what he considered the theologically perfect forms of angels, the firmament and the human soul.[12] Augustine's idea 'that forms of life had been transformed "slowly over time"' prompted Father Giuseppe Tanzella-Nitti, Professor of Theology at the Pontifical Santa Croce University in Rome, to claim that Augustine had suggested a form of evolution.[13][14] [edit] Middle Ages [edit] Islamic philosophy and the struggle for existence See also: Early Islamic philosophy and Science in medieval Islam Although Greek and Roman evolutionary ideas died out in Europe after the fall of the Roman Empire, they were not lost to Islamic philosophers and scientists. In the Islamic Golden Age, early evolutionary ideas were explored by Islamic philosophers. These ideas included not only transmutation of one kind of living thing into another but also transmutation from non living to living: "from mineral to plant, from plant to animal, and from animal to man".[15][16]
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The first Muslim biologist and philosopher to speculate in detail about evolution was the Afro-Arab writer al-Jahiz in the 9th century. In the Book of Animals, he considered the effects of the environment on an animal's chances for survival, and described the struggle for existence.[17][18] Al-Jahiz was also wrote vivid descriptions of food chains.[19] Al-Jahiz speculated on the influence of the environment on animals and developed an early theory of evolution. Al-Jahiz considered the effects of the environment on the likelihood of an animal to survive, and first described the struggle for existence.[17] He described the struggle for existence in terms that anticipate natural selection. Al-Jahiz's ideas on the struggle for existence in the Book of Animals have been summarized as follows: Animals engage in a struggle for existence; for resources, to avoid being eaten and to breed. Environmental factors influence organisms to develop new characteristics to ensure survival, thus transforming into new species. Animals that survive to breed can pass on their successful characteristics to offspring.[20][unreliable source?] Ibn Miskawayh's al-Fawz al-Asghar and the Brethren of Purity's Encyclopedia of the Brethren of Purity (The Epistles of Ikhwan al-Safa) set forth ideas on how species developed: from matter into vapor and thence to water, then minerals into plants and then animals, leading to apes and, finally, humans.[21][22] Abu Rayhan Biruni explained the idea of artificial selection and argued that nature works in much the same way.[23] [edit] Christian philosophy and the great chain of being Drawing of the great chain of being from Rhetorica Christiana (1579) by Diego Valades

During the Early Middle Ages, Greek classical learning was all but lost to the West. However, contact with the Islamic world, where Greek manuscripts were preserved and expanded, soon led to a massive spate of Latin translations in the 12th century. Europeans were reintroduced to the works of Plato and Aristotle, as well as to Islamic thought. Christian thinkers of the scholastic school, in particular Abelard and Thomas Aquinas, combined Aristotelian classification with Plato's ideas of the goodness of God, and of all potential life forms being present in a perfect creation, to organize all inanimate, animate, and spiritual beings into a huge interconnected system: the scala natur, or great chain of being.[5][24] Within this system, everything that existed could be placed in order, from "lowest" to "highest", with Hell at the bottom and God at the topbelow God, an angelic hierarchy marked by the orbits of the planets, mankind in an intermediate position, and worms the lowest of the animals. As the universe was ultimately perfect, the great chain was also perfect. There were no empty links in the chain, and no link was represented by more than one species. Therefore no species could ever move from one position to another. Thus, in this Christianized version of Plato's perfect universe, species could never change, but remained forever fixed, in accordance with the text of Genesis. For humans to forget their position was seen as sinful, whether they behaved like lower animals or aspired to a higher station than was given them by their Creator.[5] Creatures on adjacent steps were expected to closely resemble each other, an idea expressed in the saying: natura non facit saltum ("nature does not make leaps").[5] This basic concept of the great chain of being greatly influenced the thinking of Western civilization for centuries (and still has an influence today). It formed a part of
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the argument from design presented by natural theology. As a classification system, it became the major organizing principle and foundation of the emerging science of biology in the 17th and 18th centuries.[5] [edit] Thomas Aquinas on creation and natural processes While the development of the great chain of being and the argument from design by Christian theologians contributed to the view that the natural world fit into an unchanging designed hierarchy, some theologians were more open to the possibility that the world might have developed through natural processes. Thomas Aquinas went even farther than Augustine of Hippo in arguing that scriptural texts like Genesis should not be interpreted in a literal way that conflicted with or constrained what natural philosophers learned about the workings of the natural world. He felt that the autonomy of nature was a sign of God's goodness and that there was no conflict between the concept of a divinely created universe, and the idea that the universe may have evolved over time through natural mechanisms.[25] However, Aquinas disputed the views of those like the ancient Greek philosopher Empodocles who held that such natural processes showed that the universe could have developed without an underlying purpose. Rather holding that: Hence, it is clear that nature is nothing but a certain kind of art, i.e., the divine art, impressed upon things, by which these things are moved to a determinate end. It is as if the shipbuilder were able to give to timbers that by which they would move themselves to take the form of a ship.[26] [edit] Renaissance and Enlightenment Main article: Evolutionary ideas of the Renaissance and Enlightenment

Pierre Belon compared the skeletons of birds and humans in his Book of Birds (1555). In the first half of the 17th century, Ren Descartes's mechanical philosophy encouraged the use of the metaphor of the universe as a machine, a concept that would come to characterise the scientific revolution.[27] Between 1650 and 1800, some evolutionist theories supported the view that the universe, including life on Earth, had developed mechanically, entirely without divine guidance. In contrast, most contemporary theories of evolution, such of those of Gottfried Leibniz and J. G. Herder, held that evolution was a fundamentally spiritual process.[28] In 1751, Pierre Louis Maupertuis veered toward more materialist ground. He wrote of natural modifications occurring during reproduction and accumulating over the course of many generations, producing races and even new species, a description that anticipated in general terms the concept of natural selection.[29] Later in the 18th century, the French philosopher G. L. L. Buffon, one of the leading 18th century naturalists, suggested that what most people referred to as species were really just well-marked varieties, modified from an original form by environmental factors. For example, he believed that lions, tigers, leopards and house cats might all have a common ancestor. He further speculated that the
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200 or so species of mammals then known might have descended from as few as 38 original animal forms. Buffon's evolutionary ideas were limited; he believed each of the original forms had arisen through spontaneous generation and that each was shaped by "internal moulds" that limited the amount of change. Buffon's works, Natural History and The Epochs of Nature, containing well developed theories about a completely materialistic origin for the Earth and his ideas questioning the fixity of species, were extremely influential.[30][31] Between 1767 and 1792, James Burnett, Lord Monboddo included in his writings not only the concept that man had descended from primates, but also that, in response to the environment, creatures had found methods of transforming their characteristics over long time intervals.[32] Charles Darwin's grandfather, Erasmus Darwin, published Zonomia in 1796, which suggested that "all warm-blooded animals have arisen from one living filament".[33] In his 1802 poem Temple of Nature, he described the rise of life from minute organisms living in mud to all of its modern diversity.[34] [edit] Early 19th century Diagram of the geologic timescale from an 1861 book by Richard Owen showing the appearance of major animal types [edit] Paleontology and geology See also: History of paleontology In 1796, Georges Cuvier published his findings on the differences between living elephants and those found in the fossil record. His analysis demonstrated that mammoths and mastodons were distinct species different from any living animal, effectively ending a long-running debate over whether the extinction of a species was possible.[35] In 1788, James Hutton

described gradual geological processes operating continuously over deep time.[36] In the 1790s William Smith began the process of ordering rock strata by examining fossils in the layers while he worked on his geologic map of England. Independently, in 1811, Georges Cuvier and Alexandre Brongniart published an influential study of the geologic history of the region around Paris, based on the stratigraphic succession of rock layers. These works helped establish the antiquity of the Earth.[37] Cuvier advocated catastrophism to explain the patterns of extinction and faunal succession revealed by the fossil record. Knowledge of the fossil record continued to advance rapidly during the first few decades of the 19th century. By the 1840s, the outlines of the geologic timescale were becoming clear, and in 1841 John Phillips named three major eras, based on the predominant fauna of each: the Paleozoic, dominated by marine invertebrates and fish, the Mesozoic, the age of reptiles, and the current Cenozoic age of mammals. This progressive picture of the history of life was accepted even by conservative English geologists like Adam Sedgwick and William Buckland; however, like Cuvier, they attributed the progression to repeated catastrophic episodes of extinction followed by new episodes of creation.[38] Unlike Cuvier, Buckland and some other advocates of natural theology among British geologists made efforts to explicitly link the last catastrophic episode proposed by Cuvier to the biblical flood.[39]
[40]

features of the Earth are better explained as the result of the same gradual geologic forces observable in the present daybut acting over immensely long periods of time. Although Lyell opposed evolutionary ideas (even questioning the consensus that the fossil record demonstrates a true progression), his concept that the Earth was shaped by forces working gradually over an extended period, and the immense age of the Earth assumed by his theories, would strongly influence future evolutionary thinkers such as Charles Darwin.[41] [edit] Transmutation of species Main article: Transmutation of species

From 1830 to 1833, Charles Lyell published his multi-volume work Principles of Geology, which, building on Hutton's ideas, advocated a uniformitarian alternative to the catastrophic theory of geology. Lyell claimed that, rather than being the products of cataclysmic (and possibly supernatural) events, the geologic
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Diagram from Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation (1844) by Robert Chambers shows a model of development where fish (F), reptiles (R), and birds (B) represent branches from a path leading to mammals (M). Jean-Baptiste Lamarck proposed, in his Philosophie Zoologique of 1809, a theory

of the transmutation of species. Lamarck did not believe that all living things shared a common ancestor but rather that simple forms of life were created continuously by spontaneous generation. He also believed that an innate life force drove species to become more complex over time, advancing up a linear ladder of complexity that was related to the great chain of being. Lamarck recognized that species were adapted to their environment. He explained this by saying that the same innate force driving increasing complexity caused the organs of an animal (or a plant) to change based on the use or disuse of those organs, just as muscles are affected by exercise. He argued that these changes would be inherited by the next generation and produce slow adaptation to the environment. It was this secondary mechanism of adaptation through the inheritance of acquired characteristics that would become known as Lamarckism and would influence discussions of evolution into the 20th century.[42][43] A radical British school of comparative anatomy that included the anatomist Robert Grant was closely in touch with Lamarck's French school of Transformationism. One of the French scientists who influenced Grant was the anatomist tienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, whose ideas on the unity of various animal body plans and the homology of certain anatomical structures would be widely influential and lead to intense debate with his colleague Georges Cuvier. Grant became an authority on the anatomy and reproduction of marine invertebrates. He developed Lamarck's and Erasmus Darwin's ideas of transmutation and evolutionism, and investigated homology, even proposing that plants and animals had a common evolutionary starting point. As a young student Charles Darwin joined Grant in investigations of the life cycle of marine animals. In 1826 an anonymous
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paper, probably written by Robert Jameson, praised Lamarck for explaining how higher animals had "evolved" from the simplest worms; this was the first use of the word "evolved" in a modern sense.
[44][45]

In 1844, the Scottish publisher Robert Chambers anonymously published an extremely controversial but widely read book entitled Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation. This book proposed an evolutionary scenario for the origins of the Solar System and life on Earth. It claimed that the fossil record showed a progressive ascent of animals with current animals being branches off a main line that leads progressively to humanity. It implied that the transmutations lead to the unfolding of a preordained plan that had been woven into the laws that governed the universe. In this sense it was less completely materialistic than the ideas of radicals like Robert Grant, but its implication that humans were only the last step in the ascent of animal life incensed many conservative thinkers. The high profile of the public debate over Vestiges, with its depiction of evolution as a progressive process, would greatly influence the perception of Darwin's theory a decade later.[46][47] Ideas about the transmutation of species were associated with the radical materialism of the Enlightenment and were attacked by more conservative thinkers. Georges Cuvier attacked the ideas of Lamarck and Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, agreeing with Aristotle that species were immutable. Cuvier believed that the individual parts of an animal were too closely correlated with one another to allow for one part of the anatomy to change in isolation from the others, and argued that the fossil record showed patterns of catastrophic extinctions followed by re-population, rather than gradual change over time. He also noted

that drawings of animals and animal mummies from Egypt, which were thousands of years old, showed no signs of change when compared with modern animals. The strength of Cuvier's arguments and his scientific reputation helped keep transmutational ideas out of the mainstream for decades.[48]

"archetypes" in the Divine mind that would produce a sequence of species related by anatomical homologies, such as vertebrate limbs. Owen led a public campaign that successfully marginalized Robert Grant in the scientific community. Darwin would make good use of the homologies analyzed by Owen in his own theory, but the harsh treatment of Grant, and the controversy surrounding Vestiges, showed him the need to ensure that his own ideas were scientifically sound.[45][52][53] [edit] Anticipations of natural selection Several writers anticipated aspects of Darwin's theory, and in the third edition of On the Origin of Species published in 1861 Darwin named those he knew about in an introductory appendix, An Historical Sketch of the Recent Progress of Opinion on the Origin of Species, which he expanded in later editions.[54] In 1813, William Charles Wells read before the Royal Society essays assuming that there had been evolution of humans, and recognising the principle of natural selection. Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace were unaware of this work when they jointly published the theory in 1858, but Darwin later acknowledged that Wells had recognised the principle before them, writing that the paper "An Account of a White Female, part of whose Skin resembles that of a Negro" was published in 1818, and "he distinctly recognises the principle of natural selection, and this is the first recognition which has been indicated; but he applies it only to the races of man, and to certain characters alone."[55] When Darwin was developing his theory, he was influenced by Augustin de Candolle's natural system of classification, which laid emphasis on the war between competing species.[56][57] Patrick Matthew wrote in the obscure book Naval Timber & Arboriculture (1831) of "continual balancing of life to
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This 1847 diagram by Richard Owen shows his conceptual archetype for all vertebrates. In Britain the philosophy of natural theology remained influential. William Paley's 1802 book Natural Theology with its famous watchmaker analogy had been written at least in part as a response to the transmutational ideas of Erasmus Darwin. [49] Geologists influenced by natural theology, such as Buckland and Sedgwick, made a regular practice of attacking the evolutionary ideas of Lamarck, Grant, and The Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation.[50][51] Although the geologist Charles Lyell opposed scriptural geology, he also believed in the immutability of species, and in his Principles of Geology (18301833), he criticized Lamarck's theories of development.[41] Idealists such as Louis Agassiz and Richard Owen believed that each species was fixed and unchangeable because it represented an idea in the mind of the creator. They believed that relationships between species could be discerned from developmental patterns in embryology, as well as in the fossil record, but that these relationships represented an underlying pattern of divine thought, with progressive creation leading to increasing complexity and culminating in humanity. Owen developed the idea of

circumstance. ... [The] progeny of the same parents, under great differences of circumstance, might, in several generations, even become distinct species, incapable of co-reproduction."[58] Charles Darwin discovered this work after the initial publication of the Origin. In the brief historical sketch that Darwin included in the 3rd edition he says "Unfortunately the view was given by Mr. Matthew very briefly in an Appendix to a work on a different subject ... He clearly saw, however, the full force of the principle of natural selection."[59] It is possible to look through the history of biology from the ancient Greeks onwards and discover anticipations of almost all of Darwin's key ideas. However, as historian of science Peter J. Bowler says, "Through a combination of bold theorizing and comprehensive evaluation, Darwin came up with a concept of evolution that was unique for the time." Bowler goes on to say that simple priority alone is not enough to secure a place in the history of science; someone has to develop an idea and convince others of its importance to have a real impact.[60] T. H. Huxley said in his essay on the reception of the Origin of Species: The suggestion that new species may result from the selective action of external conditions upon the variations from their specific type which individuals present and which we call spontaneous because we are ignorant of their causation is as wholly unknown to the historian of scientific ideas as it was to biological specialists before 1858. But that suggestion is the central idea of the Origin of Species, and contains the quintessence of Darwinism.[61]

Darwin's first sketch of an evolutionary tree from his First Notebook on Transmutation of Species (1837) [edit] Natural selection Main articles: Inception of Darwin's theory, Development of Darwin's theory, and Publication of Darwin's theory The biogeographical patterns Charles Darwin observed in places such as the Galapagos islands during the voyage of the Beagle caused him to doubt the fixity of species, and in 1837 Darwin started the first of a series of secret notebooks on transmutation. Darwin's observations led him to view transmutation as a process of divergence and branching, rather than the ladder-like progression envisioned by Lamarck and others. In 1838 he read the new 6th edition of An Essay on the Principle of Population, written in the late 1700s by Thomas Malthus. Malthus' idea of population growth leading to a struggle for survival combined with Darwin's knowledge on how breeders selected traits, led to the inception of Darwin's theory of natural selection. Darwin did not publish his ideas on evolution for 20 years. However he did share them with certain other naturalists and friends, starting with Joseph Hooker, with whom he discussed his unpublished 1844 essay on natural
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selection. During this period he used the time he could spare from his other scientific work to slowly refine his ideas and, aware of the intense controversy around transmutation, amass evidence to support them. In September 1854 he began full time work on writing his book on natural selection.[53][62][63] Unlike Darwin, Alfred Russel Wallace, influenced by the book Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation, already suspected that transmutation of species occurred when he began his career as a naturalist. By 1855 his biogeographical observations during his field work in South America and the Malay Archipelago made him confident enough in a branching pattern of evolution to publish a paper stating that every species originated in close proximity to an already existing closely allied species. Like Darwin, it was Wallace's consideration of how the ideas of Malthus might apply to animal populations that led him to conclusions very similar to those reached by Darwin about the role of natural selection. In February 1858 Wallace, unaware of Darwin's unpublished ideas, composed his thoughts into an essay and mailed them to Darwin, asking for his opinion. The result was the joint publication in July of an extract from Darwin's 1844 essay along with Wallace's letter. Darwin also began work on a short abstract summarising his theory, which he would publish in 1859 as On the Origin of Species.[64] Diagram by O.C. Marsh of the evolution of horse feet and teeth over time as reproduced in T.H Huxley's 1876 book Professor Huxley in America [edit] 18591930s: Darwin and his legacy See also: Reaction to Darwin's theory By the 1850s whether or not species evolved was a subject of intense debate, with prominent scientists arguing both
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sides of the issue.[65] However, it was the publication of Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species (1859) that fundamentally transformed the discussion over biological origins.[66] Darwin argued that his branching version of evolution explained a wealth of facts in biogeography, anatomy, embryology, and other fields of biology. He also provided the first cogent mechanism by which evolutionary change could persist: his theory of natural selection.[67] One of the first and most important naturalists to be convinced by Origin of the reality of evolution was the British anatomist Thomas Henry Huxley. Huxley recognized that unlike the earlier transmutational ideas of Lamarck and Vestiges, Darwin's theory provided a mechanism for evolution without supernatural involvement, even if Huxley himself was not completely convinced that natural selection was the key evolutionary mechanism. Huxley would make advocacy of evolution a cornerstone of the program of the X Club to reform and professionalise science by displacing natural theology with naturalism and to end the domination of British natural science by the clergy. By the early 1870s in English-speaking countries, thanks partly to these efforts, evolution had become the mainstream scientific explanation for the origin of species.[67] In his campaign for public and scientific acceptance of Darwin's theory, Huxley made extensive use of new evidence for evolution from paleontology. This included evidence that birds had evolved from reptiles, including the discovery of Archaeopteryx in Europe, and a number of fossils of primitive birds with teeth found in North America. Another important line of evidence was the finding of fossils that helped trace the evolution of the horse from its small five-toed ancestors.[68] However, acceptance of evolution among

scientists in non-English speaking nations such as France, and the countries of southern Europe and Latin America was slower. An exception to this was Germany, where both August Weismann and Ernst Haeckel championed this idea: Haeckel used evolution to challenge the established tradition of metaphysical idealism in German biology, much as Huxley used it to challenge natural theology in Britain.[69] Haeckel and other German scientists would take the lead in launching an ambitious programme to reconstruct the evolutionary history of life based on morphology and embryology.[70] Darwin's theory succeeded in profoundly altering scientific opinion regarding the development of life and in producing a small philosophical revolution.[71] However, this theory could not explain several critical components of the evolutionary process. Specifically, Darwin was unable to explain the source of variation in traits within a species, and could not identify a mechanism that could pass traits faithfully from one generation to the next. Darwin's hypothesis of pangenesis, while relying in part on the inheritance of acquired characteristics, proved to be useful for statistical models of evolution that were developed by his cousin Francis Galton and the "biometric" school of evolutionary thought. However, this idea proved to be of little use to other biologists.[72] [edit] Application to humans This illustration was the frontispiece of Thomas Henry Huxley's book Evidence as to Man's Place in Nature (1863). Charles Darwin was aware of the severe reaction in some parts of the scientific community against the suggestion made in Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation that humans had arisen from animals by a process of transmutation. Therefore he
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almost completely ignored the topic of human evolution in The Origin of Species. Despite this precaution, the issue featured prominently in the debate that followed the book's publication. For most of the first half of the 19th century, the scientific community believed that, although geology had shown that the Earth and life were very old, human beings had appeared suddenly just a few thousand years before the present. However, a series of archaeological discoveries in the 1840s and 1850s showed stone tools associated with the remains of extinct animals. By the early 1860s, as summarized in Charles Lyell's 1863 book Geological Evidences of the Antiquity of Man, it had become widely accepted that humans had existed during a prehistoric period which stretched many thousands of years before the start of written history. This view of human history was more compatible with an evolutionary origin for humanity than was the older view. On the other hand, at that time there was no fossil evidence to demonstrate human evolution. The only human fossils found before the discovery of Java man in the 1890s were either of anatomically modern humans or of Neanderthals that were too close, especially in the critical characteristic of cranial capacity, to modern humans for them to be convincing intermediates between humans and other primates.[73] Therefore the debate that immediately followed the publication of The Origin of Species centered on the similarities and differences between humans and modern apes. Carolus Linnaeus had been criticised in the 18th century for grouping humans and apes together as primates in his ground breaking classification system.[74] Richard Owen vigorously defended the classification suggested by Cuvier and Johann Friedrich Blumenbach that placed humans in a separate order from any of the other mammals, which by the early 19th

century had become the orthodox view. On the other hand, Thomas Henry Huxley sought to demonstrate a close anatomical relationship between humans and apes. In one famous incident, Huxley showed that Owen was mistaken in claiming that the brains of gorillas lacked a structure present in human brains. Huxley summarized his argument in his highly influential 1863 book Evidence as to Man's Place in Nature. Another viewpoint was advocated by Charles Lyell and Alfred Russel Wallace. They agreed that humans shared a common ancestor with apes, but questioned whether any purely materialistic mechanism could account for all the differences between humans and apes, especially some aspects of the human mind.[73] In 1871, Darwin published The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex, which contained his views on human evolution. Darwin argued that the differences between the human mind and the minds of the higher animals were a matter of degree rather than of kind. For example, he viewed morality as a natural outgrowth of instincts that were beneficial to animals living in social groups. He argued that all the differences between humans and apes were explained by a combination of the selective pressures that came from our ancestors moving from the trees to the plains, and sexual selection. The debate over human origins, and over the degree of human uniqueness continued well into the 20th century.[73] [edit] Alternatives to natural selection Main article: The eclipse of Darwinism

This photo from Henry Fairfield Osborn's 1918 book Origin and Evolution of Life shows models depicting the evolution of Titanothere horns over time, which Osborn claimed was an example of an orthogenic trend in evolution. The concept of evolution was widely accepted in scientific circles within a few years of the publication of Origin, but the acceptance of natural selection as its driving mechanism was much less widespread. The four major alternatives to natural selection in the late 19th century were theistic evolution, neo-Lamarckism, orthogenesis, and saltationism. Theistic evolution (a term promoted by Darwin's greatest American advocate Asa Gray) was the idea that God intervened in the process of evolution to guide it in such a way that the living world could still be considered to be designed. However, this idea gradually fell out of favor among scientists, as they became more and more committed to the idea of methodological naturalism and came to believe that direct appeals to supernatural involvement were scientifically unproductive. By 1900, theistic evolution had largely disappeared from professional scientific discussions, although it retained a strong popular following.[75][76]
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In the late 19th century, the term neoLamarckism came to be associated with the position of naturalists who viewed the inheritance of acquired characteristics as the most important evolutionary mechanism. Advocates of this position included the British writer and Darwin critic Samuel Butler, the German biologist Ernst Haeckel, and the American paleontologist Edward Drinker Cope. They considered Lamarckism to be philosophically superior to Darwin's idea of selection acting on random variation. Cope looked for, and thought he found, patterns of linear progression in the fossil record. Inheritance of acquired characteristics was part of Haeckel's recapitulation theory of evolution, which held that the embryological development of an organism repeats its evolutionary history.[75][76] Critics of neo-Lamarckism, such as the German biologist August Weismann and Alfred Russel Wallace, pointed out that no one had ever produced solid evidence for the inheritance of acquired characteristics. Despite these criticisms, neo-Lamarckism remained the most popular alternative to natural selection at the end of the 19th century, and would remain the position of some naturalists well into the 20th century.[75][76] Orthogenesis was the hypothesis that life has an innate tendency to change, in a unilinear fashion, towards ever-greater perfection. It had a significant following in the 19th century, and its proponents included the Russian biologist Leo Berg and the American paleontologist Henry Fairfield Osborn. Orthogenesis was popular among some paleontologists, who believed that the fossil record showed a gradual and constant unidirectional change. Saltationism was the idea that new species arise as a result of large mutations. It was seen as a much faster alternative to the Darwinian concept of a gradual process of small random variations being acted on
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by natural selection, and was popular with early geneticists such as Hugo de Vries, William Bateson, and early in his career, T. H. Morgan. It became the basis of the mutation theory of evolution.[75][76]

Diagram from T.H. Morgan's 1919 book The Physical Basis of Heredity, showing the sex-linked inheritance of the whiteeyed mutation in Drosophila melanogaster [edit] Mendelian genetics, biometrics, and mutation The so-called rediscovery of Gregor Mendel's laws of inheritance in 1900 ignited a fierce debate between two camps of biologists. In one camp were the Mendelians, who were focused on discrete variations and the laws of inheritance. They were led by William Bateson (who coined the word genetics) and Hugo de Vries (who coined the word mutation). Their opponents were the biometricians, who were interested in the continuous variation of characteristics within populations. Their leaders, Karl Pearson and Walter Frank Raphael Weldon, followed in the tradition of Francis Galton, who had focused on measurement and statistical analysis of variation within a population. The biometricians rejected Mendelian genetics on the basis that discrete units of heredity, such as genes, could not explain the continuous range of variation seen in real populations. Weldon's work with crabs and snails provided evidence that selection pressure

from the environment could shift the range of variation in wild populations, but the Mendelians maintained that the variations measured by biometricians were too insignificant to account for the evolution of new species.[77][78] When T. H. Morgan began experimenting with breeding the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster, he was a saltationist who hoped to demonstrate that a new species could be created in the lab by mutation alone. Instead, the work at his lab between 1910 and 1915 reconfirmed Mendelian genetics and provided solid experimental evidence linking it to chromosomal inheritance. His work also demonstrated that most mutations had relatively small effects, such as a change in eye color, and that rather than creating a new species in a single step, mutations served to increase variation within the existing population.[77]
[78]

Biston betularia f. carbonaria is the blackbodied form of the peppered moth. [edit] Population genetics The Mendelian and biometrician models were eventually reconciled with the development of population genetics. A key step was the work of the British biologist and statistician R.A. Fisher. In a series of papers starting in 1918 and culminating in his 1930 book The Genetical Theory of Natural Selection, Fisher showed that the continuous variation measured by the biometricians could be produced by the combined action of many discrete genes, and that natural selection could change gene frequencies in a population, resulting in evolution. In a series of papers beginning in 1924, another British geneticist, J.B.S. Haldane, applied statistical analysis to real-world examples of natural selection, such as the evolution of industrial melanism in peppered moths, and showed that natural selection worked at an even faster rate than Fisher assumed.
[79][80]

[edit] 1920s1940s See also: Modern evolutionary synthesis

Biston betularia f. typica is the whitebodied form of the peppered moth.

The American biologist Sewall Wright, who had a background in animal breeding experiments, focused on combinations of interacting genes, and the effects of inbreeding on small, relatively isolated populations that exhibited genetic drift. In 1932, Wright introduced the concept of an adaptive landscape and argued that genetic drift and inbreeding could drive a small, isolated sub-population away from an adaptive peak, allowing natural selection to drive it towards different adaptive peaks. The work of Fisher, Haldane and Wright founded the discipline of population genetics. This integrated natural selection with Mendelian genetics, which was the critical first step in developing a unified theory of how evolution worked.[79][80]

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[edit] Modern evolutionary synthesis In the first few decades of the 20th century, most field naturalists continued to believe that Lamarckian and orthogenic mechanisms of evolution provided the best explanation for the complexity they observed in the living world. But as the field of genetics continued to develop, those views became less tenable.[81] Theodosius Dobzhansky, a postdoctoral worker in T. H. Morgan's lab, had been influenced by the work on genetic diversity by Russian geneticists such as Sergei Chetverikov. He helped to bridge the divide between the foundations of microevolution developed by the population geneticists and the patterns of macroevolution observed by field biologists, with his 1937 book Genetics and the Origin of Species. Dobzhansky examined the genetic diversity of wild populations and showed that, contrary to the assumptions of the population geneticists, these populations had large amounts of genetic diversity, with marked differences between sub-populations. The book also took the highly mathematical work of the population geneticists and put it into a more accessible form. In Great Britain E.B. Ford, the pioneer of ecological genetics, continued throughout the 1930s and 1940s to demonstrate the power of selection due to ecological factors including the ability to maintain genetic diversity through genetic polymorphisms such as human blood types. Ford's work would contribute to a shift in emphasis during the course of the modern synthesis towards natural selection over genetic drift.
[79][80][82][83]

Evolutionary biologist Ernst Mayr was influenced by the work of the German biologist Bernhard Rensch showing the influence of local environmental factors on the geographic distribution of sub-species and closely related species. Mayr followed up on Dobzhansky's work with the 1942
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book Systematics and the Origin of Species, which emphasized the importance of allopatric speciation in the formation of new species. This form of speciation occurs when the geographical isolation of a sub-population is followed by the development of mechanisms for reproductive isolation. Mayr also formulated the biological species concept that defined a species as a group of interbreeding or potentially interbreeding populations that were reproductively isolated from all other populations.[79][80][84] In the 1944 book Tempo and Mode in Evolution, George Gaylord Simpson showed that the fossil record was consistent with the irregular nondirectional pattern predicted by the developing evolutionary synthesis, and that the linear trends that earlier paleontologists had claimed supported orthogenesis and neo-Lamarckism did not hold up to closer examination. In 1950, G. Ledyard Stebbins published Variation and Evolution in Plants, which helped to integrate botany into the synthesis. The emerging crossdisciplinary consensus on the workings of evolution would be known as the modern evolutionary synthesis. It received its name from the book Evolution: The Modern Synthesis by Julian Huxley.[79][80] The evolutionary synthesis provided a conceptual corein particular, natural selection and Mendelian population geneticsthat tied together many, but not all, biological disciplines. It helped establish the legitimacy of evolutionary biology, a primarily historical science, in a scientific climate that favored experimental methods over historical ones.[85] The synthesis also resulted in a considerable narrowing of the range of mainstream evolutionary thought (what Stephen Jay Gould called the "hardening of the synthesis"): by the 1950s, natural selection acting on genetic variation was virtually the only acceptable mechanism of

evolutionary change (panselectionism), and macroevolution was simply considered the result of extensive microevolution.[86][87] [edit] 1940s1960s: Molecular biology and evolution Main article: History of molecular evolution The middle decades of the 20th century saw the rise of molecular biology, and with it an understanding of the chemical nature of genes as sequences of DNA and their relationship, through the genetic code, to protein sequences. At the same time, increasingly powerful techniques for analyzing proteins, such as protein electrophoresis and sequencing, brought biochemical phenomena into realm of the synthetic theory of evolution. In the early 1960s, biochemists Linus Pauling and Emile Zuckerkandl proposed the molecular clock hypothesis: that sequence differences between homologous proteins could be used to calculate the time since two species diverged. By 1969, Motoo Kimura and others provided a theoretical basis for the molecular clock, arguing thatat the molecular level at leastmost genetic mutations are neither harmful nor helpful and that genetic drift, rather than natural selection, is responsible for a large portion of genetic change: the neutral theory of molecular evolution.[88] Studies of protein differences within species also brought molecular data to bear on population genetics by providing estimates of the level of heterozygosity in natural populations.[89] From the early 1960s, molecular biology was increasingly seen as a threat to the traditional core of evolutionary biology. Established evolutionary biologists particularly Ernst Mayr, Theodosius Dobzhansky and G. G. Simpson, three of the architects of the modern synthesis were extremely skeptical of molecular approaches, especially when it came to the connection (or lack thereof) to natural
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selection. The molecular clock hypothesis and the neutral theory were particularly controversial, spawning the neutralistselectionist debate over the relative importance of drift and selection, which continued into the 1980s without a clear resolution.[90][91] [edit] Late 20th century [edit] Gene-centered view In the mid-1960s, George C. Williams strongly critiqued explanations of adaptations worded in terms of "survival of the species" (group selection arguments). Such explanations were largely replaced by a gene-centered view of evolution, epitomized by the kin selection arguments of W. D. Hamilton, George R. Price and John Maynard Smith.[92] This viewpoint would be summarized and popularized in the influential 1976 book The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins.[93] Models of the period showed that group selection was severely limited in its strength; though newer models do admit the possibility of significant multi-level selection.[94] In 1973, Leigh Van Valen proposed the term "Red Queen", which he took from Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carroll, to describe a scenario where a species involved in one or more evolutionary arms races would have to constantly change just to keep pace with the species with which it was co-evolving. Hamilton, Williams and others suggested that this idea might explain the evolution of sexual reproduction: the increased genetic diversity caused by sexual reproduction would help maintain resistance against rapidly evolving parasites, thus making sexual reproduction common, despite the tremendous cost from the gene-centric point of view of a system where only half of an organism's genome is passed on during reproduction.[95][96] The gene-centric view has also led to an increased interest in Darwin's old idea of

sexual selection,[97] and more recently in topics such as sexual conflict and intragenomic conflict. [edit] Sociobiology W. D. Hamilton's work on kin selection contributed to the emergence of the discipline of sociobiology. The existence of altruistic behaviors has been a difficult problem for evolutionary theorists from the beginning.[98] Significant progress was made in 1964 when Hamilton formulated the inequality in kin selection known as Hamilton's rule, which showed how eusociality in insects (the existence of sterile worker classes) and many other examples of altruistic behavior could have evolved through kin selection. Other theories followed, some derived from game theory, such as reciprocal altruism.[99] In 1975, E.O. Wilson published the influential and highly controversial book Sociobiology: The New Synthesis which claimed evolutionary theory could help explain many aspects of animal, including human, behavior. Critics of sociobiology, including Stephen Jay Gould and Richard Lewontin, claimed that sociobiology greatly overstated the degree to which complex human behaviors could be determined by genetic factors. They also claimed that the theories of sociobiologists often reflected their own ideological biases. Despite these criticisms, work has continued in sociobiology and the related discipline of evolutionary psychology, including work on other aspects of the altruism problem.[100][101] A phylogenetic tree showing the threedomain system. Eukaryotes are colored red, Archaea green, and Bacteria blue. [edit] Evolutionary paths and processes One of the most prominent debates arising during the 1970s was over the theory of punctuated equilibrium. Niles Eldredge and Stephen Jay Gould proposed that there
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was a pattern of fossil species that remained largely unchanged for long periods (what they termed stasis), interspersed with relatively brief periods of rapid change during speciation.[102][103] Improvements in sequencing methods resulted in a large increase of sequenced genomes, allowing the testing and refining of evolutionary theories using this huge amount of genome data.[104] Comparisons between these genomes provide insights into the molecular mechanisms of speciation and adaptation.[105][106] These genomic analyses have produced fundamental changes in the understanding of the evolutionary history of life, such as the proposal of the three-domain system by Carl Woese.[107] Advances in computational hardware and software allow the testing and extrapolation of increasingly advanced evolutionary models and the development of the field of systems biology.[108] One of the results has been an exchange of ideas between theories of biological evolution and the field of computer science known as evolutionary computation, which attempts to mimic biological evolution for the purpose of developing new computer algorithms. Discoveries in biotechnology now allow the modification of entire genomes, advancing evolutionary studies to the level where future experiments may involve the creation of entirely synthetic organisms.[109] [edit] Microbiology, horizontal gene transfer, and endosymbiosis Main article: Horizontal gene transfer Microbiology was largely ignored by early evolutionary theory. This was due to the paucity of morphological traits and the lack of a species concept in microbiology, particularly amongst prokaryotes.[110] Now, evolutionary researchers are taking advantage of their improved understanding of microbial physiology and ecology, produced by the comparative ease of

microbial genomics, to explore the taxonomy and evolution of these organisms.[111] These studies are revealing unanticipated levels of diversity amongst microbes.[112][113] One particularly important outcome from studies on microbial evolution was the discovery in Japan of horizontal gene transfer in 1959.[114] This transfer of genetic material between different species of bacteria was first recognized because it played a major role in the spread of antibiotic resistance.[115] More recently, as knowledge of genomes has continued to expand, it has been suggested that lateral transfer of genetic material has played an important role in the evolution of all organisms.[116] These high levels of horizontal gene transfer have led to suggestions that the family tree of today's organisms, the so-called "tree of life", is more similar to an interconnected web or net.[117][118] Indeed, as part of the endosymbiotic theory for the origin of organelles, a form of horizontal gene transfer has been a critical step in the evolution of eukaryotes such as fungi, plants, and animals.[119][120] The endosymbiotic theory holds that organelles within the cells of eukorytes such as mitochondria and chloroplasts, had descended from independent bacteria that came to live symbiotically within other cells. It had been suggested in the late 19th century when similarities between mitochondria and bacteria were noted, but largely dismissed until it was revived and championed by Lynn Margulis in the 1960s and 70s; Margulis was able to make use of new evidence that such organelles had their own DNA that was inherited independently from that in the cell's nucleus.[121] [edit] Evolutionary developmental biology Main article: Evolutionary developmental biology
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In the 1980s and 1990s the tenets of the modern evolutionary synthesis came under increasing scrutiny. There was a renewal of structuralist themes in evolutionary biology in the work of biologists such as Brian Goodwin and Stuart Kauffman, which incorporated ideas from cybernetics and systems theory, and emphasized the self-organizing processes of development as factors directing the course of evolution. The evolutionary biologist Stephen Jay Gould revived earlier ideas of heterochrony, alterations in the relative rates of developmental processes over the course of evolution, to account for the generation of novel forms, and, with the evolutionary biologist Richard Lewontin, wrote an influential paper in 1979 suggesting that a change in one biological structure, or even a structural novelty, could arise incidentally as an accidental result of selection on another structure, rather than through direct selection for that particular adaptation. They called such incidental structural changes "spandrels" after an architectural feature.[122] Later, Gould and Vrba discussed the acquisition of new functions by novel structures arising in this fashion, calling them "exaptations".[123] Molecular data regarding the mechanisms underlying development accumulated rapidly during the 1980s and '90s. It became clear that the diversity of animal morphology was not the result of different sets of proteins regulating the development of different animals, but from changes in the deployment of a small set of proteins that were common to all animals.[124] These proteins became known as the "developmental toolkit".[125] Such perspectives influenced the disciplines of phylogenetics, paleontology and comparative developmental biology, and spawned the new discipline of evolutionary developmental biology.[126]

More recent work in this field by Mary Jane West-Eberhard has emphasized phenotypic and developmental plasticity. [127] It has been suggested, for example, that the rapid emergence of basic animal body plans in the Cambrian explosion was due in part to changes in the environment acting on inherent material properties of cell aggregates, such as differential cell adhesion and biochemical oscillation. The resulting forms were later stabilized by natural selection.[128] Experimental and theoretical research on these and related ideas have been presented in the multiauthored volume Origination of Organismal Form. [edit] 21st century [edit] Epigenetic inheritance Main article: Epigenetics Yet another area where developmental biology has led to the questioning of some tenets of the modern evolutionary synthesis is in the field of epigenetics, the study of the effect of environmental factors on the way genes express themselves during development. By the first decade of the 21st century it had become accepted that in some cases such environmental factors could affect the expression of genes in subsequent generations even though the offspring were not exposed to the same environmental factors, and there had been no genetic changes. This shows that in some cases non genetic changes to an organism can be inherited and it has been suggested that such inheritance can help with adaptation to local conditions and affect evolution.[129][130] Some have suggested that in some cases a form of Lamarckian evolution may occur.[131] [edit] Unconventional evolutionary theory [edit] Omega point Pierre Teilhard de Chardin's metaphysical Omega point theory describes the gradual
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development of the universe from subatomic particles to human society, which he viewed as its final stage and goal. [edit] Gaia hypothesis Teilhard de Chardin's ideas have been seen as being connected to the more specific Gaia theory by James Lovelock, who proposed that the living and nonliving parts of Earth can be viewed as a complex interacting system with similarities to a single organism.[132] The Gaia hypothesis has also been viewed by Lynn Margulis[133] and others as an extension of endosymbiosis and exosymbiosis.[134] This modified hypothesis postulates that all living things have a regulatory effect on the Earth's environment that promotes life overall. [edit] Transhumanism Futurists have often viewed scientific and technological progress as a continuation of biological evolution. Among these, transhumanists often view such technological evolution itself as a goal in their philosophy, possibly in the form of a technological singularity. Micropaleontology From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (Redirected from Microfossil) Jump to:navigation, search This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (November 2009)

Microfossils (about 1 mm).[citation needed] Micropaleontology (also sometimes spelled as micropalaeontology) is that branch of paleontology which studies microfossils. Contents [hide]

1 Microfossils 2 Areas of study 2.1 Calcareous microfossils 2.2 Phosphatic microfossils 2.3 Siliceous microfossils 2.4 Organic microfossils 3 Methods 4 Applications of micropaleontology 5 See also 6 References 7 External links

[edit] Microfossils Microfossils are fossils generally not larger than four millimeters, and commonly smaller than one millimeter, the study of which requires the use of light or electron microscopy. Fossils which can be studied with the naked eye or low-powered magnification, such as a hand lens, are referred to as macrofossils. Obviously, it can be hard to decide whether or not some
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organisms should be considered microfossils, and so there is no fixed size boundary. For example, some colonial organisms, such as bryozoa (especially the Cheilostomata) have relatively large colonies, but are classified on the basis of fine skeletal details of the tiny individuals of the colony. Most bryozoan specialists tend to consider themselves paleontologists, rather than micropaleontologists, but many micropaleontologists also study bryozoa. In another example, many fossil genera of Foraminifera, which are protists, are known from shells (called "tests") that were as big as coins, such as the genus Nummulites. Microfossils are a common feature of the geological record, from the Precambrian to the Holocene. They are most common in deposits of marine environments, but also occur in brackish water, fresh water and terrestrial sedimentary deposits. While every kingdom of life is represented in the microfossil record, the most abundant forms are protist skeletons or cysts from the Chrysophyta, Pyrrhophyta, Sarcodina, acritarchs and chitinozoans, together with pollen and spores from the vascular plants. [edit] Areas of study Micropaleontology can be roughly divided into four areas of study on the basis of microfossil composition: (a) calcareous, as in coccoliths and foraminifera, (b) phosphatic, as in the study of some vertebrates, (c) siliceous, as in diatoms and radiolaria, or (d) organic, as in the pollen and spores studied in palynology. This division reflects differences in the mineralogical and chemical composition of microfossil remains (and therefore in the methods of fossil recovery) rather than any strict taxonomic or ecological distinctions. Most researchers in this field, known as micropaleontologists, are typically

specialists in one or more taxonomic groups. [edit] Calcareous microfossils

Fossil nummulitid foraminiferans showing microspheric and megalospheric individuals; Eocene of the United Arab Emirates; scale in mm.[citation needed] Calcareous [CaCO3] microfossils include Coccoliths, Foraminifera, Calcareous dinoflagellates, and Ostracods (seed shrimp). [edit] Phosphatic microfossils Phosphatic microfossils include Conodonts (tiny oral structures of an extinct chordate group), some scolecodonts ("worm" jaws), Shark spines and teeth, and other Fish remains (collectively called "ichthyoliths"). [edit] Siliceous microfossils Siliceous microfossils include Diatoms, Radiolaria, Silicoflagellates, phytoliths, some scolecodonts ("worm" jaws), and spicules. [edit] Organic microfossils The study of organic microfossils is called palynology. Organic microfossils include pollen, spores, Chitinozoans (thought to be the egg cases of marine invertebrates), Scolecodonts ("worm" jaws), Acritarchs, Dinoflagellate cysts, and fungal remains. [edit] Methods
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Sediment or rock samples are collected from either cores or outcrops, and the microfossils they contain extracted by a variety of physical and chemical laboratory techniques, including sieving, density separation by centrifuge, and chemical digestion of the unwanted fraction. The resulting concentrated sample of microfossils is then mounted on a slide for analysis, usually by light microscope. Taxa are then identified and counted. The very large numbers of microfossils that a small sediment sample can often yield allows the collection of statistically robust datasets which can be subjected to multivariate analysis. A typical microfossil study will involve identification of a few hundred specimens from each of ten to a hundred samples. [edit] Applications of micropaleontology Microfossils are especially noteworthy for their importance in biostratigraphy. Since microfossils are often extremely abundant, widespread, and quick to appear and disappear from the stratigraphic record, they constitute ideal index fossils from a biostratigraphic perspective. In addition, the planktonic and nektonic habits of some microfossils gives them the added bonus of appearing across a wide range of facies or paleoenvironments, as well as having nearglobal distribution, making biostratigraphic correlation even more powerful and effective. Microfossils also provide some of the most important records of global environmental change on long-timescales, particularly from deep-sea sediments. Across vast areas of the ocean floor, the shells of planktonic micro-organisms sinking from surface waters provide the dominant source of sediment, and they continuously accumulate (typically at rates of 20-50 million per million years). Study of changes in assemblages of microfossils and of changes in their shell chemistry (e.g., oxygen isotope composition) are

fundamental to research on climate change in the geological past. In addition to providing an excellent tool for sedimentary rock-body dating and for paleoenvironmental reconstruction heavily used in both petroleum geology and paleoceanography micropaleontology has also found a number of less orthodox applications, such as its growing role in forensic police investigation or in determining the provenance of archaeological artefacts. Biostratigraphy From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to:navigation, search This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (April 2007) Biostratigraphy is the branch of stratigraphy which focuses on correlating and assigning relative ages of rock strata by using the fossil assemblages contained within them. Usually the aim is correlation, demonstrating that a particular horizon in one geological section represents the same period of time as another horizon at some other section. The fossils are useful because sediments of the same age can look completely different because of local variations in the sedimentary environment. For example, one section might have been made up of clays and marls while another has more chalky limestones, but if the fossil species recorded are similar, the two sediments are likely to have been laid down at the same time. Ammonites, graptolites and trilobites are index fossils that are widely used in biostratigraphy. Microfossils such as acritarchs, chitinozoans, conodonts,
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dinoflagellate cysts, pollen, spores and foraminiferans are also frequently used. Different fossils work well for sediments of different ages; trilobites, for example, are particularly useful for sediments of Cambrian age. To work well, the fossils used must be widespread geographically, so that they can occur in many different places. They must also be short lived as a species, so that the period of time during which they could be incorporated in the sediment is relatively narrow. The longer lived the species, the poorer the stratigraphic precision, so fossils that evolve rapidly, such as ammonites, are favoured over forms that evolve much more slowly, like nautiloids. Often biostratigraphic correlations are based on a fauna, not an individual species, as this allows greater precision. Further, if only one species is present in a sample, it can mean that (1) the strata were formed in the known fossil range of that organism; (2) that the fossil range of the organism was incompletely known, and the strata extend the known fossil range. For instance, the presence of the fossil Treptichnus pedum was used to define the base of the Cambrian period, but it has since been found in older strata.[1] Fossil assemblages were traditionally used to designate the duration of periods. Since a large change in fauna was required to make early stragtigraphers create a new period, most of the periods we recognise today are terminated by a major extinction event or faunal turnover. Contents [hide]

1 Fossils as a basis for stratigraphic subdivision 1.1 Concept of stage 1.2 Concept of zone 1.2.1 Index fossils

2 See also 3 References 4 External links

[edit] Fossils as a basis for stratigraphic subdivision [edit] Concept of stage Further information: faunal stage A stage is a major subdivision of strata, each systematically following the other each bearing a unique assemblage of fossils. Therefore, stages can be defined as a group of strata containing the same major fossil assemblages. French palaeontologist Alcide d'Orbigny is credited for the invention of this concept. He named stages after geographic localities with particularly good sections of rock strata that bear the characteristic fossils on which the stages are based. [edit] Concept of zone Further information: chronozone In 1856 German palaeontologist Albert Oppel introduced the concept of zone (also known as biozones or Oppel zone). A zone includes strata characterised by the overlapping range of fossils. They represent the time between the appearance of species chosen at the base of the zone and the appearance of other species chosen at the base of the next succeeding zone. Oppel's zones are named after a particular distinctive fossil species, called an index fossil. Index fossils are one of the species from the assemblage of species that characterise the zone. The zone is the fundamental biostratigraphic unit. Its thickness range from a few to hundreds of metres, and its extant range from local to worldwide. Biostratigraphic units are divided into six principal kinds of biozones:
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Taxon range biozone represent the known stratigraphic and geographic range of occurrence of a single taxon. Concurrent range biozone include the concurrent, coincident, or overlapping part of the range of two specified taxa. Interval biozone include the stata between two specific biostratigraphic surfaces. It can be based on lowest or highest occurrences. Lineage biozone are strata containing species representing a specific segment of an evolutionary lineage. Assemblage biozones are strata that contain a unique association of three or more taxa. Abundance biozone are strata in which the abundance of a particular taxon or group of taxa is significantly greater than in the adjacent part of the section.

[edit] Index fossils

Amplexograptus, a graptolite index fossil, from the Ordovician near Caney Springs, Tennessee. To be useful in stratigraphic correlation index fossils should be: Independent of their environment Geographically widespread (provincialism/isolation of species

should be avoided as much as possible) Rapidly evolving Abundant (easy to find in the rock record) Easy to preserve (Easier in lowenergy, non-oxidized environment) Easy to identify Tectonostratigraphy From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to:navigation, search In geology, tectonostratigraphy refers either to rock sequences in which largescale layering is caused by the stacking of thrust sheets or nappes in areas of thrust tectonics or the effects of tectonics on lithostratigraphy. Contents [hide]

1 Tectonically formed stratigraphy 2 Effects of active tectonics on lithostratigraphy 3 References 4 See also

sediments associated with the breakup of Rodinia Middle allochthon - also derived from the margin of the Baltic plate, Proterozoic basement and its psammitic cover Upper allochthon - thrust sheets including island arc and ophiolitic sequences Uppermost allochthon - thrust sheets containing sediments with fossil assemblages indicating an origin on the margin of the Laurentian plate This vertically stacked sequence thus represents the passive margins of Baltica and Laurentia and intervening island arcs and back-arc basins telescoped together and emplaced on top of the Baltic Shield, involving hundreds of km of shortening. Within this overall stratigraphy the individual layers have their own tectonostratigraphy of stacked thrust sheets.

[edit] Tectonically formed stratigraphy One example of such a tectonostratigraphy is the Scandinavian Caledonides.[1] Within the entire exposed 1800 km length of this orogenic belt the following sequence is recognised from the base upwards: Autochthon - undisturbed foreland of the Baltic plate Parautochthon - thrust sheets that have moved only a short distance (up to 10s of km) from their original position Lower allochthon - far travelled thrust sheets derived from the Baltic plate passive margin, mainly
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Generalised structural cross-section through the central part of the Gulf of Suez. PZ-LK = Paleozoic to lower Cretaceous Nubia (reservoir rock); UK-EO = Upper Cretaceous to Eocene pre-rift carbonate (source rock); N, R, K, and B = syn- and post-rift Nukhul, Rudeis, Kareem and Belayim formation (sources, reservoirs, seals and overburden); SG = South Gharib salt (seal and overburden); Z=Zeit (seals and overburden); and PP = Plio-Pleistocene (overburden)

[edit] Effects of active tectonics on lithostratigraphy Tectonic events are typically recorded in sediments being deposited at the same time. In the case of a rift, for instance, the sedimentary sequence is normally broken down into three parts:[2] The pre-rift includes a sequence deposited before the onset of rifting, recognised by the lack of thickness and sedimentary facies changes across the rift faults. The syn-rift includes a sequence deposited during active rifting, typically showing facies and thickness changes across the active faults, unconformities on the fault footwalls may pass laterally into continuous conformable sequences in the hanging walls. The post-rift includes a sequence deposited after the rifting has finished, it may still show thickness and facies changes around the rift faults due to the effects of differential compaction and remnant rift topography, particularly in the earliest part of the sequence. This relatively straightforward nomenclature may become difficult to use, however, in the case of multiphase rifting with the post-rift from one event being the pre-rift to a later event. Chronostratigraphy From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to:navigation, search Chronostratigraphy is the branch of stratigraphy that studies the age of rock strata in relation to time. The ultimate aim of chronostratigraphy is to arrange the sequence of deposition and the time of deposition of all rocks within a geological region, and eventually, the entire geologic record of the Earth.
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The standard stratigraphic nomenclature is a chronostratigraphic system based on palaeontological intervals of time defined by recognised fossil assemblages (biostratigraphy). The aim of chronostratigraphy is to give a meaningful age date to these fossil assemblage intervals and interfaces. Contents [hide]

1 Methodology 2 Units 3 Differences between chronostratigraphy and geochronology 4 See also 5 References

[edit] Methodology Chronostratigraphy relies heavily upon isotope geology and geochronology to derive hard dating of known and well defined rock units which contain the specific fossil assemblages defined by the stratigraphic system. However it is practically very difficult to isotopically date most fossils and sedimentary rocks directly, and thus inferences must be made in order to arrive at an age date which reflecs the beginning of the interval. The methodology used is derived from the law of superposition and the principles of cross-cutting relationships. Because igneous rocks occur at specific intervals in time and are essentially instantaneous on a geologic time scale, and because they contain mineral assemblage which may be dated more accurately and precisely by isotopic methods, the construction of a chronostratigraphic column will rely heavily on intrusive and extrusive igneous rocks.

Metamorphism, often associated with faulting, may also be used to bracket depositional intervals in a chronostratigraphic column. Metamorphic rocks can occasionally, be dated, and this may give some limits to the age at which a bed could be laid down. For example, if a bed containing graptolites overlies crystalline basement at some point, dating the crystalline basement will give a maximum age of that fossil assemblage. However, this process requires a considerable degree of effort and checking of field relationships and age dates. For instance, there may be many millions of years between a bed being laid down and an intrusive rock cutting it; the estimate of age must necessarily be between the oldest cross-cutting intrusive rock in the fossil assemblage and the youngest rock upon which the fossil assemblage rests. [edit] Units Chronostratigraphic units, with examples:
[1]

Chronostratigraphy is such an important branch of stratigraphy, because the age correlations derived are crucial to drawing accurate cross sections of the spatial organization of rocks and to prepare accurate paleogeographic reconstructions. Lithostratigraphy From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to:navigation, search This article does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (September 2007) Lithostratigraphy is a sub-discipline of stratigraphy, the geological science associated with the study of strata or rock layers. Major focuses include geochronology, comparative geology, and petrology. In general a stratum will be primarily igneous or sedimentary relating to how the rock was formed. Sedimentary layers are laid down by deposition of sediment associated with weathering processes, decaying organic matters (biogenic) or through chemical precipitation. These layers are distinguishable as having many fossils and are important for the study of biostratigraphy. Igneous layers are either plutonic or volcanic in character depending upon the cooling rate of the rock. These layers are generally devoid of fossils and represent intrusions and volcanic activity that occurred over the geologic history of the area. There are a number of principles that are used to explain the appearance of stratum. When an igneous rock cuts across a formation of sedimentary rock, then we can say that the igneous intrusion is younger than the sedimentary rock. The
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eonothem - Phanerozoic erathem - Paleozoic system - Ordovician series - Upper Ordovician stage - Ashgill [edit] Differences between chronostratigraphy and geochronology It is important not to confuse geochronologic and chronostratigraphic units.[2] Chronostratigraphic units are geological material, so it is correct to say that fossils of the species Tyrannosaurus rex have been found in the Upper Cretaceous Series.[3] Geochronological units are periods of time, and take the same name as standard stratigraphic units, but replacing the terms upper/lower with late/early. Thus it is also correct to say that Tyrannosaurus rex lived during the Late Cretaceous Epoch.[4]

principle of superposition states that a sedimentary rock layer in a tectonically undisturbed stratum is younger than the one beneath and older than the one above it. The principle of original horizontality states that the deposition of sediments occurs as essentially horizontal beds. Contents [hide]

lithologically distinctive stratigraphic unit that is large enough to be mappable and traceable. Hierarchy of terms: Supergroup Group Formation Member - Bed/Bed sets [edit] Stratigraphic relationship

1 Types of lithostratigraphic units 2 Stratigraphic relationship 3 Lithostratigraphic correlation 4 See also 5 External links

Diagrams showing stratigraphic relations: A: an angular unconformity; B: a disconformity; C: a nonconformity. Two types of contact: Conformable and Unconformable. Conformable: Unbroken deposition, no break or hiatus (break or interruption in the continuity of the geological record). The surface strata resulting is called a conformity. Two types of contact between conformable strata: Abrupt contacts ( Directly separate beds of distinctly different lithology, minor depositional break, called Diastems) Gradational contact (Gradual change in deposition, mixing zone). Unconformable: Period of erosion/nondeposition. The surface stratum resulting is called an unconformity. Four types of unconformity Angular unconformity Younger sediment lies upon an eroded surface of tilted or folded older rocks. The older rock dips at a different angle than the younger. Disconformity The contact between younger and older beds is marked by visible, irregular erosional surfaces. Paleosol might develop right above the disconformity surface because of the nondeposition setting. Paraconformity The bedding plans below and above the unconformity are parallel. A
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[edit] Types of lithostratigraphic units A lithostratigraphic unit conforms to the law of superposition, which state that in any succession of strata, not disturbed or overturned since deposition, younger rocks lies above older rocks. The law of horizontal continuity states that a set of bed extends and can be traceable over a large area. Lithostratigraphic units are recognized and defined on the basis of observable rock characteristics. The descriptions of strata based on physical appearance define facies. Lithostratigraphic units are only defined by lithic characteristics, and not by age. Stratotype : A designated type of unit consisting of accessible rocks that contain clear-cut characteristics that are characteristic for a particular lithostratigraphic unit. Lithosome: Masses of rock of essentially uniform character and having interchanging relationships with adjacent masses of different lithology. E.g.: Shale lithosome, limestone lithosome The fundamental Lithostratigraphic unit is the Formation. The formation is a

time gap is present but there is no erosion, just a non-deposition period. Nonconformity Relatively young sediments are deposited right above older Igneous or metamorphic rocks. [edit] Lithostratigraphic correlation This section may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. Please improve this section if you can. (September 2008) To correlate lithostratigraphic units, geologists define facies, and look for key beds or key sequences that can be used as a datum. Direct correlation: based on lithology, color, structure, thickness Indirect correlation: electric log correlation (gamma-ray, density, resistivity)

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