Abstract
ANALYTICAL methods of experimental psychology applied to observations of geological data reveal that what geologists perceive in, and remember of, rocks is not necessarily the same as what is actually there. For example, when observing folds, professionals give more attention to antiforms than synforms and tend to remember cleavage fans as they ought to be rather than as they are.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Ramsay, J. G., Folding and fracturing of rocks (McGraw Hill, New York, 1967).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
CHADWICK, P. A psychological analysis of observation in geology. Nature 256, 570–573 (1975). https://doi.org/10.1038/256570a0
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/256570a0
This article is cited by
-
Spatial analysis of extension fracture systems: A process modeling approach
Journal of the International Association for Mathematical Geology (1985)
-
Visual illusions in geology
Nature (1976)
Comments
By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.