By Than Htun (Myanmar Geosciences Society)
THE Myanmar Geosciences Society, with the kind supervision of the Ministry of Education as a focal Ministry, submitted the draft Myanmar Geoscience Council Bill in 2019 to the Pyidaungsu Hluttaw and Amyotha Hluttaw respectively. Regarding the term ‘Geoscience’, as it is relatively new term, there being a controversial between above two Hluttaws. The author would like to take the opportunity to clarify the concise account of the term ‘Geoscience’ and its critical needs for the twenty-first century.
“Geoscience” is a relatively new term for the Earth sciences and the debate about the name and character of the geosciences taught in schools is an ongoing one. The perceived need to change from a narrow ‘geology’ perspective to a broader approach was reflected by the change in name of the UK ‘Association of Teachers of Geology’ to the ‘Earth Science Teachers’ Association’ in 1989 and the change of the US ‘National Association of Geology Teachers’ to the ‘National Association of Geoscience Teachers’ in 1995 (Chris King, 2008).
Chris King provides five distinctive attributes of Geoscience;
1. Geoscience is ‘an interpretive and historical science’ involving a wide range of methodologies including those required for retrodictive thinking, for large-scale thinking and for integrating large and incomplete data sets.
2. Geoscience plays a crucial role in the development of holistic systems thinking, involving consideration of major Earth systems, such as the water and carbon cycles and their interactions and positive and negative feedback loops.
3. Geoscience requires high-level spatial ability thinking (three dimensional thinking).
4. In geoscience, the development of time perspectives is crucial, particularly those of geological time.
5. Geoscience fieldwork has particular strategies and methodologies that must be acquired. These strategies and methodologies involve development of all the attributes listed above, in field contexts.
The four Geosciences or Earth Sciences
Many different sciences are used to learn about the Earth; however, Hobart M. King classified the four basic areas of Earth science study such as geology, meteorology, oceanography, and astronomy. A brief explanation of these sciences is provided below.
Geology: Science of the Earth
Geology is the primary Earth science. The word means “study of the Earth”. Geology deals with the composition of earth materials, Earth structures, and Earth processes. It is also concerned with the organisms of the planet and how the planet has changed over time. Geologists search for fuels and minerals, study natural hazards, and work to protect Earth’s environment.
Meterology : Science of the Atmosphere
Meterology is the study of the atmosphere and how processes in the atmosphere determine Earth’s weather and climate. Meterology is very practical science because everyone is concerned about the weather. How climate changes over time in response to the actions of people is a topic of urgent worldwide concern. The study of meterology is of critical importance in protecting Earth’s environment.
Oceanography: Science of the Oceans
Oceanography is the study of Earth’s oceans- their composition, movement, organisms and processes. The oceans cover most of our planet and are important resources for food and other commodities. They are increasingly being used as an energy source. The oceans also have a major influence on the weather, and changes in the oceans can drive or moderate climate change. Oceanographers work to develop the oceans as a resource and protect it from human impact. The goal is to utilize the oceans while minimizing the effect of our actions.
Astronomy: Science of the Universe
Astronomy is the study of the universe. Here are some examples of why studying space beyond Earth is important: the moon drives the oceans' tidal system, asteroid impacts have repeatedly devastated Earth’s inhabitants, and energy from the sun drives our weather and climates. A knowledge of astronomy is essential to understanding the Earth. Astronomers can also use a knowledge of Earth’s materials, processes and history to understand other planets- even those outside of our own solar system.
The Role of the Geosciences
In 2012, AGI (American Geosciences Institute) indicated the eight critical needs of Geoscience as below:
1. Ensure reliable energy supplies
Energy is essential for economic growth, national security international relations, sustainable communities, food security, and overall quality of life. Energy resources must be cost-effective, reliable, efficient, and flexible. The offshore gas has filled this role for decades and expected to continue to be part of our energy portfolio for many more decades. The global climate is changing and these changes have significant effects on the environment.
2. Provide sufficient supplies of water
Clean water is essential for life and is our most precious commodity. Only about 2.5 percent of Earth’s water is freshwater, the rest is saltwater. Fresh water comes from lakes, rivers, streams and groundwater. Maintaining healthy ecosystems that support these sources is crucial. Besides providing drinking water, water is harnessed for agriculture, energy, flood control and navigation. Geoscientists working within and across societal and political entities are needed to understand and cooperatively manage water resources within watershed, aquifer, and ecosystem boundaries rather than within solely political boundaries.
3. Sustain ocean, atmosphere, and space resources
Earth is the “blue planet” in the Solar System because of the size of the oceans. About 71 percent of the Earth’s surface is covered by these saline water bodies. Oceans provide food, desalinated drinking water, and habitats plants and animals. The atmosphere couples with the solid Earth, oceans, and space. It affects water resources through precipitation, evaporation, and other parts of the water cycle, affects air quality as part of the carbon and nitrogen cycles, and moderate temperatures near the surface. The atmosphere shields us from harmful solar radiation and affects the weather.
Space is vast and mostly unknown, yet Earth orbit and the Sun to Earth interaction regions of space have been explored and monitored at a level that rivals oceanic and atmospheric exploration. Geoscientists, working with other scientists and engineers, observe and understand Earth and space processes to effectively utilize these vast resources.
4. Manage waste to provide a healthy environment
Each year the country requires more waste treatment and disposal. Wastewater, sewage, contaminated water, nuclear waste, landfills, brownfields, superfund sites, recyclable waste, and non-biodegradable waste must be managed with great care. Long term planning and responsible execution are needed to prevent toxic waste build-ups, additional contamination, reuse of certain waste materials for biologic or nuclear weapons, and release of hazardous materials. The challenge is to efficiently and securely treat and dispose of waste with a minimum impact on ecosystem and human health. Waste can be transformed into a useful resource with ingenuity, effective waste management, and innovation.
5. Mitigate risk and build resilience from natural and human-made hazards
Natural hazards such as earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides, tornadoes, hurricanes, severe storms, floods, heatwaves, and drought, exact a significant toll on society. Our goal as a nation should be to develop resilient communities where losses are limited recovery is holistic, intelligent, and rapid. Geoscientists, working in cooperation with emergency managers, developers, insurers, and others, are needed to understand the natural and human factors that may make Earth processes more hazardous and to help develop strategies to mitigate their risks.
6. Improve and build needed infrastructure that couples with and uses Earth resources while integrating new technologies
Infrastructure in all country faces increasing pressure from a growing, more mobile, more complex, and more interconnected population. Much of the infrastructure that provides critical lifelines is aging and in need of improvement while some are new technology that requires integration with existing systems. Infrastructure is affected by significant geologic processes beyond normal wear and tear, including climate change, weather, hazards, chemical corrosion, and mechanical erosion.
Much more work and funding are needed to understand problems with ground subsidence and soil conditions, the effects on ecosystems and the effects of water control on the health and maintenance of these systems. Geoscientists and geotechnical engineers play a critical role in the siting and design of the built environment to increase its resilience to natural hazards and minimize its impact on the natural environment.
7.Ensure reliable supplies of raw materials
Minerals help to sustain life in numerous ways. They are natural or added supplements in food and drink. Minerals are essential in just about any product used in daily life from calcite in toothpaste to silicon in computers and solar panels. The global demand for metals, such as aluminum, copper, gold, and platinum, has led to a steep rise in their commodity prices. Rare earth elements (REEs) are increasingly critical to evolving technologies for use in fuel-efficient vehicles, electronic devices, and many military applications. Geoscientists need to locate these materials, assess quantity and quality, cleanly efficiently manage their extraction or use in place, reduce byproducts or excessive waste, and assess strategic needs for low-supply critical materials that are in high demand or relate to national security.
8. Inform the public and train the geosciences workforce to understand Earth processes and address these critical needs
There is a critical need for an increased number of people in the geosciences-based workforce now and in future. A geosciences-based workforce includes technicians, professional geoscientists, professional engineers, research and development managers, exploration managers, data managers, applied researchers, basic researchers and educators at all levels. Such a workforce has or will need a knowledge and understanding of the Earth system and Earth processes, computational and analytical skills, a sense of discovery and adventure, and strong problem-solving traits. In addition, this workforce is critical for teaching the next generation for workers, based on their sound understanding of geosciences concepts and their work experience.
Furthermore, geoscientists have made significant progress in developing increasingly reliable prediction models and through major research achievements, they now understand most of the mechanisms and timing of larger and smaller to neon-scale processes in the Earth. When discussing the future of planet Earth, its geosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere and biosphere the results of such important studies cannot be ignored (Eduardo F.J.de Mulder et al.2015).
References: AGI (American Geosciences Institute, 2012. The Role of the Geoscience.
Christ J.H. King, 2008. Geoscience Education: An Overview.
EduardoF.J.de Mulder, 2015. Geosciences for Future Research.
Hobart M.King, . What is the Earth Science?
