Revolutions in the Earth: James Hutton and the True Age of the World

by Stephen Baxter

In the eighteenth century, the received wisdom, following Ussher's careful biblical calculations, was that the Earth was just six thousand years old. James Hutton, a gentleman farmer with legal and medical training and a passion for rocks, knew that this could not be the case. Looking at the formation of irregular strata in the layers of the earth he deduced that a much deeper abyss of time would be required for the landscape he saw to have evolved. In the turbulent world of Enlightenment Scotland he set out to prove it. He could not have achieved this without his friends. Hutton's entourage in Edinburgh would turn out to be the leading thinkers of the age. His close circle consisted of such luminaries as Erasmus Darwin, Adam Smith, James Watt and David Hume. These brilliant men would work together to develop the nascent science of geology but would also make spectacular advances in agriculture, chemistry, philosophy, economy and engineering; as well as devising steam engines and military tactics. Hutton's geological theory of the Earth would cause a profound religious debate as well as provoking decades of criticism. His revelation, however, was ultimately one of the most extraordinary and essential moments in scientific history. This is the little-known story of a man who fought hard against orthodox beliefs to prove the antiquity of the earth and of the dedicated loyalty of an enlightened circle of friends.

Genres: Science, History, Geology, Nonfiction, Biography

Hardcover

First published August 1, 2004

About the author

Stephen Baxter is a trained engineer with degrees from Cambridge (mathematics) and Southampton Universities (doctorate in aeroengineering research). Baxter is the winner of the British Science Fiction Award and the Locus Award, as well as being a nominee for an Arthur C. Clarke Award, most recently for Manifold: Time. His novel Voyage won the Sidewise Award for Best Alternate History Novel of the Year; he also won the John W. Campbell Award and the Philip K. Dick Award for his novel The Time Ships. He is currently working on his next novel, a collaboration with Sir Arthur C. Clarke. Mr. Baxter lives in Prestwood, England.

Reviews

[John]

Stephen Baxter is best known as a science fiction author, and a damn good one at that. This is the second of his non-fiction works that I've read, and I must say that his fiction is his strength. "Revolutions in the Earth" is a fanboy history of James Hutton, an 18th-century intellectual who laid the groundwork for modern geology and, in the process, eventually banished the so-called "young Earth" theory from the halls of science. But Hutton's story was not nearly as straightforward as that. In leading us through the weeds, Baxter loses sight of the possibility that his reader may be less interested in the minutiae of Hutton's life and journey through the swamp of academia than Baxter himself is. In summary, this subject captivated Baxter's imagination and enthusiasm, without him considering its potential appeal to others. So I'm not saying that you won't like this book; I'm just saying that a substantial essay on the topic would have suited me fine.

It doesn't help that Hutton's life story is somewhat anti-climactic. He was a brilliant thinker but a muddled writer, unable to put his theories into concise enough language to capture the imagination of most contemporary readers in his lifetime. Because his prose was so impenetrable and poorly organized, many of those who did read it fundamentally misinterpreted it, including other scientists with their own axes to grind. Consider the following facts: He left his major work on the subject, which described his theories, field work, and a synthesis of experiments conducted by him and various colleagues, half-complete at the time of his death. In addition, the predominance of the so-called "Neptunist" theory of the origins of the Earth's geology that held sway at the time rendered Hutton a fringe figure within academia. Finally, much of his work in manuscript was either destroyed or lost (including his entire collection of geological specimens, collected over the course of a lifetime). Given these facts, it is not surprising that it took several more generations to fully recognize his central accomplishment—establishing a probable time scale for the age of our planet.

Does Hutton's story have interest and appeal? At times, yes, and this despite the fact that insights into his personal life are spotty at best. But all too often, Baxter draws us into tangential details about secondary figures in Hutton's tale, which often come off as mere padding on a subject for which insufficient primary source materials exist. Obviously, this would be a fascinating read for anyone with a direct interest in geology or earth sciences. For the rest of us, unless you're a Baxter completest (like me), you might want to stick to "Evolution" or "The Light of Other Days."