The Earth's Shifting Crust by Charles Hapgood - wire of information

380
EARTH'S SHIFTING CRUST
that the icecap had entered Ohio only 25,000 years
Again
ago.
and again we have had experiences similar to this.
Campbell has, in fact, suggested that the theory may have
economic importance because of the fact that it may give
us a tool through which we may attain more reliable information
about the hidden structures of the earth's crust, and
thus be able to locate valuable minerals. It seems to me
quite possible that his hope will eventually be realized.
Our theory appears to have another kind of predictability.
It is possible that it can tell us something about the rela-
tively near future of the earth. The evidence appears to suggest
that displacements have occurred at short intervals.
Since what has happened in the past may be expected to happen
in the future, it is quite reasonable to ask when another
movement may be expected. There are a number of factors
that bear on this, and they are worth discussing even though,
when we get through, we may carry away the feeling that our
speculations may contain more imagination than substance.
It would appear from the evidence I have presented that
the intervals between the beginnings of the last three dis-
placements were about 40,000 years in length. It seems, also,
that the last movement began between 26,000 and 17,000
years ago. If these assumptions are correct, and if the average
of these movements holds for the future, it seems that the
next displacement of the crust should not be expected for
another 10,000 or 15,000 years. While this is a reassuring
thought, it should be kept in mind, however, that there are
a number of unknown factors in the situation, and that there
is no reason to believe that the average of the last three dis-
placements tells us anything about the limits of variation in
the periods between displacements. On the contrary, the
conclusion to be reached from the investigation completed in
this book is that the periods between displacements may
vary considerably.
A number of factors favor a movement somewhat sooner
than the time indicated by the average of the last three dis-
placements. Among these, I may mention the fact, empha-