“Water Flowing Uphill Is One of the Commonest Facts of Nature”: The Emergence of a Visual Language for Groundwater Geology

The First Potentiometric Map

“…Hence, in the second half of the 19th century, many European cities chose to develop water resources from groundwater. Brick (2013) mentioned that water table or potentiometric surfaces were originally represented explicitly in cross-sections from 1850 onwards (Clutterbuck 1850). Water table or potentiometric maps for unconfined and confined conditions were presented, first in Belgium by Gustave Dumont in 1856, followed by Delesse (1858Delesse ( , 1862 in France, Lucas (1874) in the UK (Mather et al 2004), Gümbel (1875) and Thiem (1876) in Germany, Veeren (1893) and Pennink (1904) in The Netherlands and King (1899) and Darton (1909) in the United States.…”

Geologic Mapping of Nebraska: Old Rocks, New Maps, Fresh Insights

“…Th e continued use of two-dimensional geologic maps on paper, the original form of the inclusive genre as well as its chief standard until recent memory, might easily be dismissed by some non-mappers as evidence for the static nature-or, worse yet, stagnation-of geologic mapping as a scientific endeavor. Some authors have declared that traditional geologic maps-and perhaps even those in digital format-are experiencing a decline in use and perceived relevance (e.g., Broome 2005), a problem that others attribute to the public's limited ability to decipher maps (Brick 2013). None of this predicament can be considered more the fault of geology or geologists than that of larger society.…”