Evolutionists: How do you explain the layers of earth?

Your world-wide flood hypothesis to account for all the strata of the Earth was proved wrong hundreds of years ago. In this day and age, with the current knowledge of Geology (the basis of the worlds economy), it is frankly ridiculous.

No layers are global in scope. Strata occupy 'basins' and have complex stacking patterns, complex erosion surfaces between layers, and nearly all but the most recent layers are tectonically tilted and faulted in some way, and then eroded flat across the angled layers and overlain again. The stratal geometries show that layers were deposited in stages, as the crust under the basin subsided (except in the case of ocean basins).

Sedimentary rocks contain many preserved features in them that are characteristic of the fluid dynamics which deposited them. Things like bedding patterns eg. 'cross-beds', sorting by grainsize and density, particle impact marks, ripple marks, etc. It is very easy to model particle behavior under different fluid conditions. But it is even easier to go to modern environments and see the patterns. The exact same patterns, to high precision, which occur in modern sand dunes, estuaries, every environment, can be seen in the rocks. You can walk along tilted strata and see the changes, eg. tidal flat to tidal channel to tidal flat to beach dunes to beach face etc etc.

Stacking patterns of strata, and environment changes, show many many oscillations in sea-level over time, NEVER covering the whole continents. Such 'sequence stratigraphic' is the basis for the multi-billion dollar oil exploration industry.

Rapid transitions come about when there isn't much of a transitional zone between adjacent environments, eg above - beach front, tidal flat, dunes. Or due to a period of non-deposition during sea-level change, eg. during sea-level rise, sediment transport channels are flooded, and during sea-level fall, erosion sets in. Or due to temporary sediment starvations eg. due to a switching delta-lobe or filling of regional 'accommodation space'.

A world-wide flood would produce a remarkably simple global strata pattern, with very predictable characteristics. Sorry, it doesn't exist.

Have you ever baked cookies? When you get them fresh out of the oven the outer layer has one consistencty, just beneath that there is another consistency and if they are not cooked all the way through they are still a bit gooey in the middle.

If a giant molten ball was hurling around in space, i would think that the outer edge might cool first and that as you get through to the gooey center, there could be many layers at different stages of cooling - say nothing of what the original material was in the first place.

I am not exactly an evolutionist - this just seems to make sense to me.

Peace!

PS - what would be the creationist's explanation of this, or intelligent design? Something beyond "that is how god wanted it" I would hope.

PPS - I will say that I can understand why you put it in the Religion and Spirituality section - I think. I think you want an answer that makes evolution more plausible or an answer that shows it for the utter nonsense that it is as a spiritual stance. I don't really think this sort of thing is here nor there in the grand scheme of things - but it is sometimes fun to think about and talk about.

Peace!

What really pisses me off is your attitude that the hundreds of thousands of geologists in the world are stupid. You are an utter nitwit, as your question so clearly demonstrates. No, nowhere in geology does it say that all rock layers took X years to form. Does lying make you feel good?? Many layers form relatively quickly, following a storm or a volcanic eruption. Btw, Mt St Helens is a VOLCANO. Similarly, 'stalactites' and fossils form in a variety of different chemical and physical conditions. Carbon dating has nothing to do with the age of the Earth. The age of the Earth is demonstrated by a variety of different radiometric methods, eg. uranium-lead and potassium-argon and a dozen others, all of which have different LOGARITHMIC decay curves, yet always produce the same age for the same rock. There is your mathematical proof. Think about it. Better yet, take an hour out of your life to actually open a book and get some clue about what you are talking about.

The level of the land has risen and fallen numerous times during the earth's history, and anytime a land mass goes under water, sediments can pile on, making a new kind of rock (with different fossils, many of marine creatures that show that the land was under water). Lots of this can be seen at the Grand Canyon. Movement of the magma beneath the earth's surface causes the continental plates to move, and if two collide, one will be forced under the other, and one will rise and the other will sink. The map of the world's land has changed remarkably over the last several billion years. As for biological evolution specifically, it is now a proven fact. (I have the proof if you are interested.)

Quite easily.

Its called stratigraphic layering.

The Earth is in constant motion. It spins around the sun and spins around its own axis. Theres also a moon that spins around it (and that spins around its axis). The inside of the earth is composed of magma that in turn also moves inside the earths crust.

All of this also means that the Earth's plates are moving which is what causes earthquakes and occasionally the punching through of magma into the stratosphere creating a volcano.

In turn, there is also weather effects. Such as wind and rain that also cause earth on our planet to move.

All these things conspire. The earth slowly erodes and moves. As it does so, it builds up in some places and lessens in others. It's why the Sahara desert has evidence of ancient seas and why you can see folds of the earth in the mountains (litterally folds of rock almost like you're looking at a folded blanket).

Stratigraphic layering is caused by all these effects. It's why you see things like sediment gathering at the bottom of the mouth of all rivers. And why you see obsidian in some places (only caused by volcanos) and not others.

Its also one of the means by which the age of bones found in the earth is determined. You can figure out which bones are older by looking at the stratigraphy of the earth.

Now that you have the absolute basics on the nature of this, go study geology and understand it better.

It's funny how this massive and chaotic flood of yours managed to perfectly and neatly arrange the fossil record with no mistakes.

Edit: Scientists have incorrectly fitted fossils from different species together; how does that create an inaccurate fossil record?

Answer: it doesn't. The fossil record creates a perfectly organized, chronological succession of fossils, starting with single-celled organisms, followed by layers of multi-celled organisms, soft-bodied organisms, fish, amphibeans, reptiles, mammals, apes, australopithecus, homo habilis, homo erectus and homo sapiens. No organism from a higher layer has ever been discovered in a lower layer.

Really, nothing you are saying debunks anything at all.

For the last time - biological evolution and geology are NOT the same subject. If you want to know the best answer to this, go ask it in the geology subforum. It's under 'science'. But don't address it to evolutionists or no one will read it because they'll assume you're in the wrong section.

Volcanos, astroit impact, raising and lowering of sea levels, earthquakes, raising and lowering of land masses and the fact that the earth is billions of years old and has gone through many changes.

Whether or not the layers of soil have different colors and what the cause is, this is not a question for an evolutionist, its a question for a geologist.

One obvious physical fact that die-hard evolutionists are in denial about is the world-wide stratification that shows definite deposition from a flood.