Uniformity

The Theory of Uniformity connects the past, present, and future. This philosophical and scientific proposal maintains that the natural processes that have taken place throughout the evolution of the Earth have been uniform, constant and repeatable.

In other words, the factors that caused these processes in the past are identical today. They even occur with equal intensity. Therefore, scientists study these processes to understand the passage of time.

Principles of Uniformity

• The processes have occurred with constant frequency throughout natural history and continue to do so today.
• Geological processes, such as erosion, deposition, or compaction are constant, although they occur at extremely slow speeds so humans cannot perceive them.
• The present helps us understand the past and the future. Events occur at the same speed now that they always have. This will always continue to happen.
• The forces and processes on the Earth’s surface mirror those that shaped the terrestrial landscape throughout natural history.

Discovery of Uniformity

James Hutton was a geologist and naturalist, best known as the father of modern geology for first proposing the theory of uniformitarianism in the 18th century.

Hutton described and cataloged the rocks that he encountered during his trips to the shores of the British Isles. He created the concept of deep time and was the first to decipher the mystery of sedimentation.

In 1785, he published his work “The Theory of the Earth” which compiled all the information of his investigations. Here, he proposes the theoretical principles based on his collected evidence which suggest and give scientific value to uniformity.

Using his observations, Hutton concluded that the planet Earth had not been shaped by violent and fast events, but by slow, constant, and gradual processes. The same processes seen in today’s world shaped the Earth about 4.5 billion years ago. These processes were replicable in the wind, tides, sediment, and weather.

Uniformity was widely debated during the 18th and 19th centuries because it offered a new way of understanding the long natural and geological history of the Earth. Uniformity implied constant, gradual change as a normal part of various natural processes, which caused pushback amongst various religious orders. 

Although it was never explicitly stated by the scientific community, uniformity proved that there could be other ways to understand the world beyond the rigid interpretation of the Bible, Vedas, and other religious texts.

The Importance of the Theory

The discovery of Uniformity provided advancement in many fields of science. Geologists could now read the history of the Earth through its rocks. Previously, this was unfathomable. However, scientists now study, understand, and predict the factors that cause floods, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions.

Mysteries of nature instantly dissolved into scientific advancement. Thus, the key to understanding the Universe did not lie amongst dark energy or the supernatural. Phenomena could now be rationalized and fit into the patterns of Uniformity.

We still have a lot to learn about the Earth and its origin. However, we know the baseline consists of a series of repetitive patterns. One needs only to study these patterns to see them present in geometry, geology, and the Twelve Meridians. 

Uniformity Within the Scientific Community

Today, Uniformity has become less concrete. Scientists discovered that the postulates may not apply when considering windows of time severely longer than those proposed by Hutton. We can use this information to observe and identify other patterns that occur over longer periods of time, which seemingly predate Earth and perhaps the Solar System.

So, we now know that the geological processes that occurred millions of years ago are the same as those that occur today. However, this likely has not always been the case. Gaps or intervals in some fossil records seem to have short duration periods while others seem to last much longer.

This is explained due to the apparently harsh and chaotic dynamics of the Earth’s interior. The planet’s tectonic plates have been destroyed in such a way that they collide, provoking geological faults, mountain ranges, volcanic eruptions, and earthquakes.

Similarly, historical records in the rings of tree trunks show periods of high volcanic activity that happen in a seemingly random way. With differing time intervals, this seems to go against uniformity.

Currently, it is nearly impossible to predict some events such as earthquakes or volcanic eruptions. However, geologists continue to learn more about warning behaviors, which sometimes occur a few days after an event. 

Conclusion

Uniformity closely relates to other theories, such as actualism. These theories share the hypothesis that past phenomena occur on the basis that their causes were the same as those operating today.

Additionally, catastrophism is another counterpart of uniformitarianism. Catastrophism maintains that the Earth arose in a totally sudden and catastrophic way, without any order, meaning, or reason. It is also worth mentioning that a large part of the scientific community accepts the latter as fact.

The modern interpretation of uniformitarianism remains the same as 100 years ago although there have been many changes throughout history. For example, geologists today agree that the forces of nature work just as they have for millions of years. However, they agree that the intensity of these forces has varied significantly and is seemingly the opposite of something uniform.

In addition, the speed of natural processes is also entirely variable. Patterns exist everywhere throughout the Universe and the planet. They always have and always will. Regardless, even today it is impossible to accurately predict some natural phenomena.