Task 4 - evolutionary Theory Flashcards
Darwin - medical school Edinburgh
- got introduced to geology, history of earth and fossils
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Darwin - college Cambridge
- courses of Mathematics, classics, theology
- botany lectures! ( from Henslow)
Main findings - Darwins voyage
1) fossils in Patagonia
2) Geographical distribution patterns of South American rhea
3) animal life of Galapagos
Charles Lyell
- reaction of biblical authority as source of geological explanation
- earths surface shows no evidence of stages
- constant changes
- earth had no beginning/ending
-> inspired Darwin: he believed in the power of small and gradual changes
3 main parts in Darwins theory
1) Inheritance -> gleicher vorfahre
2) variation
3) Selection -> link between new variations and chances to survive (zufällig)
- > SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST
Gaps in Darwins theory
- wasn’t understood what origin of life was
- no idea how variations in characteristics were passed down to generations
Reactions to evolutionary theory
- many accepted evolution but not mechanisms he proposed
- speculation about duration of natural selection & time necessary for species to change
- basis for social Darwinism
Evidence for evolution - then
- diversity of living things
- variation within single species
- appearance and disappearance of species
- comparing fossils!
- comparing embryos
- distribution of species in many lands
- variations in species dependent on how long they were separated
Allopathic speciation
-new species due to long-term physical separation
Sympatric speciation
-same geographic region
Darwins role in Psychology
- stated that humans & animals have a lot in common -> comparative psychology
- lead to research in individual differences
- evolutionary psychology informs all fields of psychology
- breaks down barriers between traditional sub disciples of psychology
Eugenics (positive, negative)
- set of beliefs and practices that aim to improve the genetic quality of human population
- negative eugenic: discourage reproduction by those with undesirable traits
- positive eugenics: encourage reproduction by those with desirable traits
-controlling reproduction
Social Darwinism
- Darwins theory used to justify certain political, social and economic views
- emerged in America, mid 1940s
- used to justify Laisser-faire behavior at home & colonalisation in rets of world
Misunderstandings with Evolutionary theory
1) There is NO DIRECTION in genetic changes
- > genetic material has no knowledge of the environment, cannot change in desirable direction
2) Organisms do NOT become BETTER or stronger
Francis Galton ( 1822-1911)
- influenced by Darwin
- searched to find evidence for inheritance of features -> especially mental qualities
- founder of modern eugenics
- wanted to show heredity of intelligences -> basis for intelligence tests
Lamarck (1744-1829)
- organisms acquire new characteristics as a result of active adaptation to their environment
- minimized role of selection
- new variations come to existence because organism are ACTIVELY and PURPOSEFULLY striving to better themselves
- > then pass characteristics down to next generation
-theory of use and disuse
Herbert Spencer (1820-) not complete yet!
-Neo-Lamarckian
-prefers theory of Lamarck
- survival of the fittest -> Darwin borrowed this term
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Jenkins Dilution problem
- when organism with new feature is placed among group
- > new feature will not expand but dilute in pool of preexisting features
Darwins response:
->evolution only possible when change in environment favores a whole group at the same time
James McKeen Castell (1860-1944)
- American psychologist
- first professor of psychology in the US
- psychology was regarded as lessers science/pseudoscience
- helped establishing psychology as a legitimate science
- visited Germany, met Wilhelm Wundt -> assistant of him
- role in introducing experimental technique and importance of methodology in America
- research on intelligence
- founded several major psychology journals
James McKeen Cattell - Connection Darwin
- believed in eugenics
- inspired by Darwin to study the psychology of individual differences
- he encountered that men of science were likely to have fathers who were clergymen or professors
- inherited ability but environment also plays an important role in development
Thomas Malthus
- inspired Darwin
- food increases linearly
- population exponentially
- > more children than can survive -> selection
