What is uniformtarianism?

Answer 1

Typically quoted along with "the past is the key to the present" (or visa versa), this concept is the idea that geologic processes occuring now have always occurred throughout earths history (although NOT always at the same rate or intensity).

Some examples: we see volcanoes erupting now, so there must have been volcanoes erupting in the past. We see animals go extinct now, so therefore animals must have gone extinct in the past. We see erosion causing sand along a beach now, so therefore sand in the geologic record must have formed at beaches. We see climate change now, so climate must have changed in the past. And so on.

Answer 2

Uniformitarianism is a principle in geology that states that the same natural processes that operate in the present have always operated in the past at a relatively constant rate. This principle helps geologists interpret ancient Earth processes by studying modern-day processes. It is a fundamental concept in the field of historical geology.

Answer 3

the processes that act on the earth's surface today are the same as the processes that have acted on the earth's surface in the past

"the present is the key to the past"

proposed by James hutton