In 1795, a Scottish geologist named Charles Hutton suggested that Earth’s geologic features could be explained by gradual processes that were still operating. This was in direct contrast to other scientific thought at the time, which included well-accepted proposals that geologic layers were representative of catastrophic events caused by processes no longer operating in the present time. Hutton proposed geologic features as the result of slow and consistent change, such as valleys formed by riv

Biography of James Hutton, Founder of Modern Geology