Final answer:
The discovery of prehistoric mammal remains at Big Bone Lick challenged the deistic worldview of the Enlightenment by providing evidence that the world was not static but dynamic and constantly changing over time. This contributed to a deeper understanding of geological time and evolution.
Step-by-step explanation:
The discovery of prehistoric mammal remains at Big Bone Lick in Kentucky provided evidence that challenged the deistic worldview of the Enlightenment—a perspective that saw the world as orderly and unchanging since its creation. During the Enlightenment period, many people believed in a form of Deism, which posited that while a creator might have set the universe in motion, it operated thereafter on natural laws in an ongoing, static state. However, the finding of ancient mammal bones in a region far from where similar species were known to exist raised new questions about geological and biological changes over time.
This evidence, coupled with Nicolas Steno's law of superposition and Robert Hooke's observations about the nature of fossils, suggested a much more dynamic and evolving natural world. The implication that species could have once existed and then become extinct was in direct contradiction to the idea that creation was perfect and unalterable. These discoveries were pivotal in advancing our understanding of geological time and the process of evolution, leading to the gradual acceptance of a world view that acknowledged the Earth's deep history and constant change.