Nczv Hypothesis of Earth-Origin. — fairchild. 115 
of life on the earth may thus be thrown far back in time, and 
the slow processes of biologic evolution are given far greater 
duration for their outworking. The limits of geologic time 
fixed by the physicists on the premise of a cooling globe have 
no application whatever under the new hypothesis, and the biol- 
ogists and geologists arc released from any time restrictions 
hitherto imposed. 
Co}tclusion. 
The mathematical and physical speculations based on the 
conception of a cooling globe arc unreliable and misleading. 
The recognition of this truth will release geology from its 
undue deference to authority. Geologists have not had suf- 
ficient confidence in the inductions of their own science, but 
have deferred too much to the philosophic deductions and 
speculations of the physicists and mathematicians. Scientific 
men in general, seem to have an almost superstitious regard 
for mathematical results. The geologists have not properly 
realized that all such conclusions relating to geophysical prob- 
lems if based on assumed data and unknown conditions are 
not entitled to any respect when they contradict observable phe- 
nomena or even sound geologic theory. For illustration : in the 
face of the abundant geologic evidence or argument for ex- 
treme age of the earth, geologists pare down their estimates 
because mathematical authorities figure out from hypothetical 
conditions and assumed data, based on the nebular hypothesis, 
that only a certain number of years can be allowed for the 
geologic history of the earth. Another example: geologists 
neglect the formulation of a sound theory of the hydrocarbons 
because the prevailing ideas of earth origin require that they 
should be meteoric and organic. Geologists have been too gen- 
erous in allowing other people to make their philosophy for 
them. 
One of the characteristics of the new geology will be the 
greater and proper confidence with which its devotees will stand 
on the basis of their own observation and induction and de- 
cline to entertain hypotheses at variance with their own science. 
Another quality will be insistance on satisfactory theories for 
observed phenomena, instead of resting in old conceptions 
which do not explain, or even may be in opposition to the facts. 
A difficulty in the past has been that physical geology has de- 
