ch. 6: evolving mind: Darwin and his psychological legacy

Question 1

Darwin (1800s) traveled to..

Answer 1

the Galapagos Islands in the 1830s which guide him toward developing the theory of evolution by natural selection

evolution theory influenced all life sciences

Question 2

natural selection

Answer 2

organisms best adapted for a particular environment will survive and propagate, thus passing on their characteristics through the generations

Question 3

Charles Lyell (1790s)

Answer 3

English geologist whose book promoted the theory of uniformitarianism, which influenced Darwin

Question 4

uniformitarianism

Answer 4

strong promoted by Lyell
earths major features resulted from gradual processes occurring over vast stretches of time, rather than the alternative theory of catastrophism

Question 5

catastrophism

Answer 5

19th century theory that the geological features of the natural world could be attributed to sudden and massive cataclysms such as Noah’s flood

Question 6

William Paley (1740s)

Answer 6

pre-darwin

argument from design as an objection to theories of gradual evolution

Question 7

Jean Baptists Lamarck

Answer 7

proposed that species evolve and change owing the inheritance of bodily changes produced by the voluntary exercise or disuse of particular organs

Question 8

Thomas Malthus (1760s)

Answer 8

writings on population growth influenced Charles Darwin’s development of the theory of adaptation by natural selection

Question 9

Alfred Wallace (1820s)

Answer 9

independently conceived a theory of evolution by natural selection

prompted Darwin to publish The Origin of Species

Question 10

Thomas Huxley (1820s)

Answer 10

expert on primate anatomy

supported Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection

defended the theory publicly

Question 11

Darwin’s major works towards psychology

Answer 11

the descendent of man, and selection in relation to sex

the expression of the emotions in man and animals

a biographical sketch of an infant

Question 12

polygenesis

Answer 12

victorian era theory suggesting that non-europeans “savage” peoples were a distinctly different species of being

Question 13

monogenesis

Answer 13

a victorian-era theory suggesting that all human races shared a common ancestry

Question 14

sexual selection

Answer 14

specific variant of Darwin’s natural selection that suggests that quality of mate selection plays a role in the passing down of characteristics favorable for survival