Charles Darwin
On February 12, 1809, in Shrewsbury, England, the greatest individual in history was born, Charles Darwin. Charles Darwin’s early life was not very good. He was kicked out of school in Shrewsbury because he was doing very poorly. He also dropped out of a medical course at Endinburgh University because he was revolted by working on bodies. After this however, his life improved greatly. He really became interested in natural history after being at Cambrige, preparing to go into a life in the church. However, he did not go into that life. He came up with the Theory of Evolution by Natural Selection. The Theory of Evolution was a theory that Darwin came up with where he theorized that humans evolved from another animal. He theorized that they evolved from primates. He came up with this theory in 1859. This theory also stated that all life is related and evolved from a common ancestor. Natural Selection is how animals with certain genetic advantages caused by a mutation or something else, survive and thrive over those without that advantage. For example, if a member of a species somehow develops an advantagious trait, such as wings or a beak, that trait will stay with the species as they reproduce. The ones without the trait will die off because they are less equipped than those with it. He came up with this theory by traveling the world on his boat the Beagle for five years. In 1831, after he graduated from the University of Cambrige, he sailed on this boat alongside other natualists studying and investigating the geology and natual selection. Probably the most famous investigation he did was in the Galapagos Island. He compared finches and Mockingbirds with ones in Chile and he found evidence to support his theory of natural selection. Charles Darwin also wrote a book, Origin of Species. In this book, he first made his theories known. With these new theories he came up with, Charles Darwin taght us humans alot about our past. His theories went against everyones beliefs which was that God had created everyone. His Theory of Evolution was widely accepted by many including scientiest and churches. His theory of natural selection was even accepted by the liberal Angicans, who interpreted it as a way God designed different species. The Church oof England, however, reacted against the theory. There was also a mixed reaction in the scientific community. There were many public debates on his book and his theories. His book and theories also infuenced many other publications of books. For example, Evidence as to Man’s Place in Nature by Thomas Huxley, which showed that anatomically, humans were apes. Also, The Naturalist on the River Amazon by Henry Walter Bates, showed even more evidence about Darwin’s theory of natural selection. Darwin’s thoery of natural selection is very important also because it affected and influenced science and religion. In the field of science, Darwin’s theory pretty much founded the field of biology and evolution. In religion, Darwin’s theory pretty much eliminated the need for a central creator of man, like God. Charles Darwin’s theory has also influenced and impacted society. Because of Darwin’s theory of natural selection, the idea of “social darwinism”, or survival of the fittest. This idea of social darwinism is known as “the survival of the fittest”, which means that the one who is adapted the best to survive, will survive and the others will die off. This is like the theory which says that the member of a species with the genetic advantage will thrive, while the others without it won’t. The idea of social darwinism is widely used by the whole world to explain many things. For example, some people used it negatively in racism. They tried to prove that thier race is superior to others and that they will survive over others because of that. This can also explain how Adolf Hitler thought, in my opinion. Although this term was used in racism and slavery, Charles Darwin was strongly against slavery and did not share the idea of racism that most people had back then. Charles Darwin’s theory of natural selection and social Darwinism was also widely used by people to explain different ideologies such as warfare, imperialism, and laissez-faire. Charles Darwin is the greatest individual in history because his studies and theories greatly influenced the whole world in many ways. Everything from religion to science to society was impacted by Darwin’s theory of evolution and natural selection.
June 8th, 2009 at 2:57 pm
Very good, interesting, and informative. The picture at the top of the page (with Darwin looking to the left) adds to the effect of Darwin being a very powerful and influencial individual. However, there are no links/hypertexted words, so I can’t research further, and check some of the questions I have about Darwin. Also, I don’t know if this is only my computer, but four pictures (one at the top, and three at the bottom) will not show up. However, this is a very good project in Darwin!
June 8th, 2009 at 3:05 pm
on*
June 9th, 2009 at 10:42 am
Good information and the picture at the top is very eye catching. However it seems very wordy and I think you would benefit from splitting up the post into paragraphs, or at least add a picture in the middle.
But all in all good post.
June 9th, 2009 at 8:32 pm
It seems a lot of well-praised intellectuals from history were bad students. Doesn’t really seem to mean much in the long run, does it? I love Darwin, his research and Theory of Evolution have not only been beneficial to science but have sparked so much controversy that it brings up other issues and questions that can’t be ignored. All-inclusive
June 16th, 2009 at 5:39 pm
God blog. Detailed information. One good picture. Can you break up the text and add hyperlinks?