GHAPTER 1 CHARLES DARWIN he theory of evolution by natural selec tion that was developed by Charles Darwin revolutionized the study of living things In his Origin of Species 1859 he pro vided a scientific explanation of how the diverse species of plants and animals have descended over time from common ances tors His theory remains central to the foundations of modern biology EARLY LIFE AND WORK Charles Robert Darwin was born in Shrewsbury England on Feb 12 1809 An indifferent student he had no interest in the classical languages and ancient history taught in school Instead he liked to collect shells birds eggs and coins He also watched birds and insects and helped his brother make chemical experiments at home At age 16 Darwin began to study medi cine at the University of Edinburgh There too he found the courses dull and watch ing operations made him ill In 1828 he I2
CHARLES DARWIN S a A watercolor depicts Charles Darwin in the 1830s Photos com Jupiterimages 13
PIONEERS OF THE GREEN MOVEMENT ENVIRONMENTAL SOLUTIONS transferred to Cambridge intending to become a clergyman Instead he devoted most of his time to studying plants and ani mals and later to geology He received his bachelor s degree in 1831 Then came the event that shaped his life an appointment as unpaid naturalist on the exploring ship Beagle The vessel left England in December 1831 to chart the southern coasts of South America and sail around the world The voyage with many side trips on land lasted until October 1836 During those five years Darwin examined geologic forma tions collected fossils and studied plants and animals He saw evidence of the many geo logic changes that have been occurring over the course of eons such as the land gradually rising in some places and falling in others He also considered the great diversity of living things and thought about how the fossils he collected suggested that some kinds of mam mals had become extinct He returned home filled with questions HIS GREAT THEORY Darwin settled in London and quietly began work on what would become his 14
CHARLES DARWIN theory of evolution developed largely from 1837 to 1839 At the time the nearly universally accepted view was that God had created all species of living things in their current forms and that their attri butes were the result of God s design Nevertheless Darwin was not the first to suggest that living things might change over time Since ancient times people had proposed other ways that plants and animals could have developed The first broad theory of evolution was pro posed in the early 19th century by French naturalist Jean Baptiste Lamarck who had maintained that plants and animals evolved because of an inborn tendency to progress from simple to complex forms Environment however modified this pro gression as did use or disuse of parts He thought that giraffes for example devel oped long necks by straining to reach the leaves of trees while snakes lost their legs due to crawling Lamarck s theory of evolution wasn't new to Darwin whose grandfather had published several books expounding similar ideas Darwin felt however that early writ ers on the subject had speculated too much 15
