Problem 4 Flashcards
What did Darwins evolutionary theory state ?
What are its 3 essential parts ?
INHERITANCE, VARIATION + SELECTION are key for evolution to take place
- The reproduced new generation, will resemble their parents
- Each generation will include new variations
- -> resemblance is close but not perfect - Due to new variations the new generation will be better able to survive + reproduce
=> small accumulative changes are the key to the origin of species
Natural selection (Darwin)
Refers to a process by which the environment results in the continuation + multiplication of organisms with favorable genetic features
–> hinders the reproduction of organisms with unfavorable genetic features
Survival of the fittest
Herbert Spencer
States that only organisms that fit within the environment + can produce viable offsprings will survive
–> describes the outcome of natural selection
The origin of species
Is a book by Charles Darwin in which he presented the evolutionary theory
–> he was 50 when he first published it
How did Darwins observations on cross fertilization impact his work on natural selection ?
He discovered that cross fertilization produced variation in the offspring that was
a) more vital
b) sometimes resulted in a creation of new flower
–> self fertilization resulted in less healthy offsprings
What was the “Dilution problem” ?
Darwin failed to explain how a signal new plant/animal could come to dominate the rest
–> Jenkin stated that a new feature placed amid a group of other features will dilute
ex.: a white mans features will never become dominant in group of black people, even if he has kids
What are common misunderstandings of the evolutionary theory ?
- Genes do not induce changes in a plant/animal so that it becomes more adapted to environment
–> this happens due to random alteration/mutation
- Organisms do not become better/stronger
–> they’re merely best adapted to their current environment in order to survive
Francis Galton
Cousin of Darwin
Was a british polymath + advocate of Darwins evolutionary theory
- -> his ultimate goal was to find evidence for the heredity of intelligence, wasn’t successful though
- -> initiator of IQ tests
Charles Darwins Brief summary of his life
- Born 1809 in Schrewsbury
- Son of a doctor of a upper class family
- 1 other brother + 3 elder sisters
- Was brought up in an intellectual, free thinking, scientific family atmosphere
Where did Darwin go to School ?
- Edinburgh medical school where he dropped out 2 years later
- Christs college to get an “ordinary” degree
- -> forced by his father who was against his passion for natural history
=> his later achievements can be summarized as a mix of both schools
Which impact did the “Plinian society” have on Darwins career ?
Its were he met Robert Grant, who urged him to read Lamarcks “System of Invertebrate animals”
John Stevens Henslow
Close professorial friend of Darwins who he met during his school years at Cambridge
–> offered Darwin a voyage around the world on the HMS Beagle
Why was Darwin still able to pursue his passions of Natural history when attending catholic school in Cambridge ?
His lecture schedule was undemanding, giving him time to attend natural history courses
–> especially the lectures of his closest friends Henslow + Sedgwick
Which impact did the 5-year voyage of the Beagle have on Darwins career ?
- Determined his whole career
- Made enormous collections of birds, invertebrates, fossils etc
- -> including many unusual + new species - Developed an intense understanding on the variations of the natural world
- Documented all the explored species + how they might change into other species
- -> “Transmutation notebooks”
Which impact did Charles Lyells “Principles of Geology” have on Darwins work ?
- He used Lyells geological ideas to explain the landforms he saw
- He used Lyells work as ground work to produce his own theories
