The geology texts used in my primary schools ('50s and '60s) either never mentioned plate tectonics or continental drift, or devoted a single derisive paragraph to it. My first real exposure to plate tectonics was in the popular press, in the early '60s – during the period when the plate tectonics theories were being fleshed out and convincing evidence to support them was just being found. It was still, back then, a revolutionary theory – becoming mainstream, but not quite there yet. A little earlier than my own experience, the notion of continental drift was considered pseudoscience. Nowadays, of course, it is as close to “settled science” as anything else is.
The emergence and acceptance of plate tectonics was the first time I personally witnessed science (in any field) evolving. I was fascinated by the way the heroes of plate tectonics metaphorically fought their way through platoons of doubters to win out in the end. Years later, after much more reading on the topic, I realized just how heroic some of those folks actually were – having your career dashed on the altar of truth can't be very much fun...
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