Читать книгу The Handy Psychology Answer Book - Lisa J. Cohen - Страница 184

Charles Darwin (1809–1882) is easily one of the most influential figures in modern science. His theory of evolution has influenced every scientific discipline involved with living organisms.

Darwin was not the first proponent of a theory of evolution. In fact, his grandfather Erasmus Darwin (1731–1802) contributed to early work on the subject. What was missing in Darwin’s day was an exact explanation of the mechanism of evolution and appropriate supporting evidence. Darwin gathered evidence for his theory on his famous sea voyage on the H.M.S. Beagle in 1831, in which he traveled from England to the coast of Africa, to the southern tip of South America and back. It took him almost thirty years, though, to publish his observations as a coherent theory.

By the time Darwin published his famous essay On the Origins of Species by Means of Natural Selection in 1859, the scientific community was ready to receive it. It was an immediate sensation. Darwin’s theory of genetics, however, was not well developed. The monk Gregor Mendel did not publish his study of pea plants until 1866 and Darwin’s work was not appreciated until the beginning of the twentieth century. The current view of evolution reflects a synthesis of Darwin’s theory of natural selection and modern genetics, which have their foundation in Mendel’s research.

Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution provides the theoretical foundation for all of biological science. Evolutionary theory also contributes to our understanding of human psychology.