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Quote by John Burroughs

“The rocks are not so close akin to us as the soil; they are one more remove from us; but they lie back of all, and are the final source of all. ... Time, geologic time, looks out at us from the rocks as from no other objects in the landscape.”

Book:Under the apple trees

Work

Under the apple trees

This book is a contemplative narrative that delves into the lives of individuals living under the shade of apple trees, reflecting on their personal histories and the evolving dynamics of their community. more

Author

John Burroughs

John Burroughs (April 3, 1837 – March 29, 1921) was an American essayist and naturalist, widely regarded as the father of American nature writing. Born in Roxbury, New York, he worked as a teacher and journalist before dedicating himself to observing and writing about nature. His works, such as Wake-Robin and Winter Sunshine, are celebrated for their vivid descriptions and philosophical depth. A close friend of poet Walt Whitman, Burroughs emphasized the spiritual connection between humans and the natural world. His writings influenced early conservation movements and continue to inspire readers today. more

“The surface of the earth is not simply a stage on which the thousands of present and past inhabitants played their parts in turn. There are much more intimate relations between the earth and the living organisms which populated it, and it may even be demonstrated that the earth was developed because of them.”

May Earth Past Science Turns Stage Relation Surface Intimate Organisms Geology Living Organisms

Author:Louis Agassiz

“The world is the geologist's great puzzle-box; he stands before it like the child to whom the separate pieces of his puzzle remain a mystery till he detects their relation and sees where they fit, and then his fragments grow at once into a connected picture beneath his hand.”

World Children Hands Earth Science Grows Pieces Mystery Fit Relation Boxes Connected Puzzles Fragments Geology Geologist

Book:Geological Sketches

Source: Geological Sketches

“There is no foundation in geological facts, for the popular theory of the successive development of the animal and vegetable world, from the simplest to the most perfect forms.”

World Facts Form Science Perfect Animal Theory Development Foundation Vegetables Simplest Geology

Book:Principles of Geology: Being an Attempt to Explain the Former Changes of the Earth's Surface, by Reference to Causes Now in Operation

Source: Principles of Geology: Being an Attempt to Explain the Former Changes of the Earth's Surface, by Reference to Causes Now in Operation

“We cannot take one step in geology without drawing upon the fathomless stores of by-gone time.”

Science Time Steps Gone Stores Drawing Geology Gone Time

Book:A complete guide to the Lakes, comprising minute directions for the tourist, with mr. Wordsworth's Description of the scenery of the country, &c. and Three letters upon the geology of the Lake district, by prof. Sedgwick

Source: A complete guide to the Lakes, comprising minute directions for the tourist, with mr. Wordsworth's Description of the scenery of the country, &c. and Three letters upon the geology of the Lake district, by prof. Sedgwick

“We may confidently come to the conclusion, that the forces which slowly and by little starts uplift continents, and that those which at successive periods pour forth volcanic matter from open orifices, are identical.”

May Littles Matter Science Force Periods Conclusion Uplifting Continents Identical Geology

Book:The Voyage of the Beagle: the Evolution

Source: The Voyage of the Beagle: the Evolution

“[Vestiges begins] from principles which are at variance with all sober inductive truth. The sober facts of geology shuffled, so as to play a rogue's game; phrenology (that sinkhole of human folly and prating coxcombry); spontaneous generation; transmutation of species; and I know not what; all to be swallowed, without tasting and trying, like so much horse-physic!! Gross credulity and rank infidelity joined in unlawful marriage, and breeding a deformed progeny of unnatural conclusions!”