Catastrophism, however, was more easily correlated with religious doctrines (e.g., the Mosaic account of the Flood) and remained for some time the interpretation of the earth's history accepted by the great majority of geologists. It was systematized and defended by the Frenchman Georges Cuvier, whose position as the greatest geologist of his day easily overbore all opposition. In the 19th cent., it was attacked by George Poulett Scrope and especially by Sir Charles Lyell, under whose influence the contrary doctrine gradually became more popular. Recent theories of meteorite, asteroid, or comet impacts triggering mass extinctions can be interpreted as a revival of catastrophism.
See R. Huggett, Catastrophism: Asteroids, Comets, and Other Dynamic Events in Earth History (1998); T. Palmer, Controversy: Catastrophism and Evolution: The Ongoing Debate (1999).
The Columbia Encyclopedia. Copyright © 2001-09 Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.
-
tsunami
Tsunami, series of catastrophic ocean waves generated by submarine movements, which may be caused by earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, landslides beneath the ocean, or an asteroid striking the ...
- Boucher de Crèvecœur de Perthes, Jacques
Boucher de Crèvecœur de Perthes, Jacques, 1788–1868, French writer and archaeologist. He was the first to provide evidence that humans had existed in the Pleistocene epoch, thereby disputing t...
- Laomedon
Laomedon, in Greek mythology, king of Troy. When Laomedon failed to pay Poseidon, Apollo, and King Aeacus for building the walls of Troy, Poseidon sent a sea monster to ravage the land. Total ...
- stellar evolution
Stellar evolution, life history of a star, beginning with its condensation out of the interstellar gas (see interstellar matter) and ending, sometimes catastrophically, when the star has exhau...
- Duun, Olav
Duun, Olav, 1876–1939, Norwegian novelist. He taught in public schools until 1927. His monumental series of six novels, The People of Juvik (1918–23, tr. 1930–35), is a saga of a Norwegian far...
- Kountché, Seyni
Kountché, Seyni, 1931–87, president of Niger (1974–87). He was army chief of staff when he ousted Hamani Diori, Niger's first president, in a military coup. He suspended the constitution, diss...
- Long Valley
Long Valley, caldera, c.10 by 20 mi (15 by 30 km), Mono co., E Calif., at the eastern edge of the Sierra Nevada. Formed by a catastrophic eruption c.730,000 years ago, Long Valley and nearby a...
- Deluc, Jean André
Deluc, Jean André, 1727–1817, Swiss geologist. During the first half of his life he was engaged mainly in business in Switzerland. He also made scientific excursions in the Alps on whose natur...
- Varus
Varus (Publius Quinctilius Varus), d. A.D. 9, Roman general. In 13 B.C. he was consul with Tiberius Claudius Nero (later emperor as Tiberius) and later was governor of Syria. Although unsuited...
- International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War
International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW), worldwide organization of medical groups dedicated to eliminating nuclear weapons and preventing nuclear war, est. 1980. Bas...
