palinspastic
Jun. 19th, 2013 07:11 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
prettygoodwordpalinspastic (pa-lin-SPAS-tik) - adj., (geo.) (of a map) showing the previous location of geological features.
This could be old coastlines before erosion or before ocean levels rose, rock layers before being deformed or worn down, locations of land masses before drifting, and so on. A map that shows traces of the past (and so tangentially related to palimpsest, a reused manuscript). Coined in 1937 by geologist Marshall Kay from Latin roots palin-, again + -spasticus, drawn (as in pull, not as on the paper -- from Greek spastikos) -- so "redrawn." See also section restoration.
---L.
This could be old coastlines before erosion or before ocean levels rose, rock layers before being deformed or worn down, locations of land masses before drifting, and so on. A map that shows traces of the past (and so tangentially related to palimpsest, a reused manuscript). Coined in 1937 by geologist Marshall Kay from Latin roots palin-, again + -spasticus, drawn (as in pull, not as on the paper -- from Greek spastikos) -- so "redrawn." See also section restoration.
---L.
