The Man Who Found Time: James Hutton and the Discovery of Earth's Antiquity

by Jack Repcheck

Book Overview

There are three men whose contributions helped free science from the straitjacket of theology. Two of the three-Nicolaus Copernicus and Charles Darwin-are widely known and heralded for their... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 073820692X
• ISBN13: 9780738206929
• Release Date: May 2003
• Publisher: Basic Books
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 0.11 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.6" x 7.8"

Customer Reviews

The Man Who Found Time

I have spent most of the afternoon and evening reading "The Man Who Found Time." I simply could not put it down. The writing/research skills and fount of knowledge reflected in this exceptional book are greatly admired -- and maybe a little envied -- by this retired newspaperman. Roddy Stinson, San Antonio Express-News columnist (1974 - 2007)

Geology and the Scottish Enlightenment

I found this book to be an interesting new perspective for me on the Scottish Enlightenment--the role of science. The central focus is James Hutton (1726-1797), a Scottish geologist whose pioneering work would disprove the then (and perhaps still) current assertion that the world was not more than 6,000 years old. No less a figure than Newton himself had made this influential calculation. Hutton's theory was based upon his study of the effects of erosion in conjunction with the dynamic movements of the earth's surface generated by intense subsurface heat. He spent much time simply studying various cliffs in Scotland, which convinced him of the ancient nature of the Earth. The author well sets the stage, with introductory chapters on the religious perspective, Hutton's early life, the political context in 18th century Scotland, the role of Edinburgh ("the Athens of the North") as a catalyst for Enlightenment intellectual and scientific development, and the evolution of a scientific study of geology. A chapter is included on Charles Lyell, an influential geologist and author who did much to spread knowledge of Hutton's findings and theories, including being influential on Darwin who read his "Principles of Geology" while on the Beagle voyage. And of course, Hutton's theory was of critical assistance to Darwin, because it indicated that the earth had been in existence for millions of years, during which the slow processes of evolution would have had an opportunity to develop. This is another of the new breed of fairly short books (228 pages) that are just excellent in rich in content, putting some of their longer counterparts to shame. An excellent appendix deals with key geologic terms and some current views of Hutton; a valuable extensive bibliography is also included. Just a most pleasant read about a novel topic.

The Father of Modern Geology Finally Gets His Due

The book "The Man Who Found Time," by J. Repcheck is about James Hutton, the eighteenth century Scottish geologist who deserves to stand shoulder to shoulder with the likes of Newton, Darwin, and Einstein in the pantheon of History's greatest and most important scientists. Unlike these other great men who are rightly famous, Hutton is little known outside of the Earth sciences community. I first learned of Hutton's work many years ago when I was a student of geology and sadly, have seldom heard his name mentioned since then. Hutton's theory of the Earth is a truly remarkable accomplishment. His rare ability to free himself from many of the religious and dogmatic fetters of his day and his sheer brilliance and perspicacity made it possible for him to formulate the first viable and more-or-less correct theory of how the Earth works. His discovery of "Deep Time" was crucial to later advances in geology and of great importance to many of those made in biology and astronomy as well.In his book, Mr. Repcheck attempts to rescue the father of geology from the unfortunate and undeserved obscurity in which he has languished for more than two centuries. A book such as this is long over due and I hope that it is widely read so that this great scientist and exemplar of the Scottish Enlightenment will finally get the recognition that he deserves.As a previous reviewer pointed out, Repcheck is on occasion rather loose with his history and perhaps not as objective as he should be. He probably should have made it more clear, as other authors have, that Hutton was not a modern empiricist, that he relied heavily on the works of earlier natural philosophers, and that he got some things wrong. But when viewed within the context of his time, Hutton's evident shortcomings are quite forgivable and do not change the fact that modern geology is the direct descendant of Hutton's geology.I am a little disappointed that Repcheck does not mention the fact that Hutton posited an idea of organic evolution through natural selection (although he did not call it that) decades before Darwin independently formulated his magnificent theory. I also think that Repcheck's argument would be more effective had he presented his explanation of why Hutton is so important early on in the book rather than relegating it to the later chapters.I do not agree with Repcheck and many others that Hutton was overlooked by history largely because of his inarticulate and turgid writing style. I have read some of Hutton's original works and do not find his writings to be "impenetrable" as compared to those of other eighteenth century authors. Perhaps Hutton was rejected in his own day and later nearly forgotten because he was simply too far ahead of his time. His contemporaries could neither let go of biblical creation myths nor countenance the notion that the Earth is many millions of years old and powered by an, at that time, inexplicable subterranean heat source.In spite of these few min

Cross-Cutting Relationships

Jack Repcheck's The Man Who Found Time elevates James Hutton to a mountain high enough so that folks not of the geologic persuasion can see Hutton's importance to history. Hutton did his thinking and geologizing during the Scottish Enlightenment, the period during the 1700's when much of the modern world arguably got its start. The title of the book is a reference to Hutton's greatest discovery - the great age of the Earth [or as John McPhee put it, "deep time"] - and the book does an excellent job at leading the reader through the events in Hutton's life and in Scotland's history that led to that discovery. This well-written story of controversy and characters is well worth a read. As a student of geology, we were not asked to read Hutton [or Playfair, Hutton's Boswell] in any detail, so I feel a little inadequate to comment on some of the detailed criticisms of The Man Who Found Time, but Repcheck's telling jives with everything I learned about Hutton in college and everything I've read since. I found no obvious historical errors in the book, especially ones that would warrant a 1-star review. My one complaint [and it may be unfounded given that this book was written for the layperson and not the geologist] is that Repcheck never really delves into the simple principle - usually referred to as the principle of cross-cutting relationships - that underlies the evidence Hutton used to support the claim for the antiquity of the Earth. Simply put, something can't cut something that isn't there first. This applies equally well to the granites intruding into [cutting] the older rocks at Glen Tilt and the flat rocks deposited on top of [cutting] the older, angled rocks at Siccar Point. I highly recommend this book to readers interested in geology, history, Scotland and the Scottish Enlightenment.

unearths a forgotten heroic scientific giant

This books makes a powerfully convincing case that James Hutton was a revolutionary scientist who literally gave us our modern conception of the world. The planet earth is over 4 billion years old and it is Hutton who first rigorously refuted the dogma that the world was created a mere 6,000 years ago. More importantly, he saw that currently active physical processes were responsible for the world's present shape and history, that these processes acted slowly but over vast periods of time. To understand our world is to see it as James Hutton did.Repcheck beautifully presents the social context in which Hutton lived, with a lively and fascinating account of the Scottish Enlightenment and Hutton's relations with the leading figures of his day, a remarkable period of human intellectual development. The social history is the greatest strength of the book. But one also walks away with an appreciation for the enormity of Hutton's contribution and a great fondness for this loveable and remarkable man.