Ethan Kupferberg 9/4/19History of evolutionary thinking1. Origins of evolution2. Introducing Darwin3. Darwin’s followersCarolus Linnaeus 1707-1778Tried to understand the divine plan by seeking similarity among organisms- Binomial nomenclature- Hierarchical classificationJames Hutton (1726-1797)Fonder of modern geology - Natural processes shape rock formations- Believed the natural process of shape rock formation- Gradual change leads to a massive change through time - First major western contradiction of the young Earth hypothesisSedimentation: sediments deposited by water were compressed to form stoneGradualism- profound change is the cumulative product of slow but continuous processesHutton believed that geologic structures changed through time“We find no vestige of a beginning, no prospect of an end” James Hutton (1788)Adam smith (1723-1790)- Laissez-faire economics- Chaos governed by the invisible hand - The benefits of competitionJean-Baptiste Lamarck (1744-1829)- First truly complete the theory of evolution- Environmental forces shape adaptation- Use and disuse (later proven incorrect) because acquired traits are NOT passed on to offspringThomas Malthus (1766-1834)- An essay on the principle - Populations grow geometrically, while food supplies grow linearly- Outside forces ” rectify” this disparityGeorge Cuvier 1769-1832- Establishes comparative anatomy and paleontology- Verifies that extinction occurs- Proponent of catastrophismIt was still widely believed in the 1790s that no species had gone extinctCharles Lyell (1797-1875)- The processes that shape ancient geology are the same as those in modern times- Steady accumulation of the minute changes- Young Darwin’s reading material (Principles of Geology)Darwin’s theories about the formation of atolls supported Lyell’s theory of uniformitarianism.Charles Darwin 1809- 1882- Species evolve from common ancestors (common descent) - Mechanism of evolution is a natural selection- Turned to natural history and away from theology- Spent most of his time on the HMS Beagle voyage on the Galapagos islands- Galapagos fossil like the one found by Darwin- Believed in Transmutation-New species come from already existing speciesAlfred Russel Wallace (1823-1913)- Did much of his work on the Malay Archipelago - Summarized that there is a boundry between the eastern islands of the Archipelago and western islands- “The life of wild animals is a struggle for existence”-Alfred Russel WallaceIn 1859, Darwin publishes “on the origin of species” a book on natural selectionGregor Mendel 1822-1884 Father of geneticsTraits are inherited by predictable lawsJames Watson and Francis Crick 1928-present 1916-2004 Discovered structure of DNA Means for heritable information to be stored and passed
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