Plato’s Wonder and Hydrology

By this point, it should be evident that this book serves as a systemic critique of “capital H” Hydrology. This version of Hydrology is a science intrinsically woven into the tapestry of historical, industrial, capitalistic, and technological institutions of its era. Hydrology, in this form, has a problem—or, given the devastating impact water-related issues can have on communities and ecosystems, one could argue that Hydrology has a crisis. This predicament is not unique to Hydrology; periods of upheaval are commonplace in academic disciplines. From linguistics to philosophy, fields of study often undergo transformative periods. These periods, albeit unpleasant, often stimulate reforms, rendering disciplines more robust and relevant. (In the case of the classics, the trend has been to eliminate departments, which makes it hard to imagine they will reemerge more robust and relevant.). The crisis in Hydrology has manifested more like a slow “percolation.” This could be because undergraduate degrees in this subject are relatively rare (and such degree programs are a relatively new phenomenon). Thus, while the challenges faced by Hydrology strain numerous aspects of society, they do not place immediate pressure on most academic departments or colleges. The relative novelty of Hydrology as a discipline may also influence the character of its crisis. Lacking as long a historical record of practice as other disciplines, it is less obvious when things go awry. Nevertheless, it is clear, that awry they have gone.