The Deep Present

In the public's mind, geology is all about the deep past. But geologists wherever they go, even at home, live in what I call the deep present. It's an awareness that today's landscape is in a state of equilibrium, or near-equilibrium, with conditions over the most recent several thousand years. It's an awareness that a nice day today, or even whole peaceful centuries, don't mark the landscape as much as rare catastrophic events like superstorms, megadroughts or great earthquakes. Few other people live in this mental space, but those who do include urban planners, emergency responders and reinsurance specialists. More of us should become acquainted with the deep present, and in this article I'm starting with you.