Charles Robert Darwin, born February 12, 1809 in Shrewsbury, England, is best known for his work as a naturalist, founding a theory of evolution to explain biological change and for his book The Origin of Species. Darwin greatly influenced the world we live in today. No matter a person’s religious or scientific stance, the process of evolution cannot be denied. Archaeological investigations have proven that species evolve over time, but the unanswered questions are “How?” and “Why?” The answer lies in Darwin’s theory of evolution. He changed the way people view the universe. He is the father of evolutionary thinking. Darwin profoundly influenced the way modern men and women view the phenomena of inanimate nature.
Darwin came from a long line of scientists. His father, Dr. R.W. Darwin, was a medical doctor, and his grandfather, Dr. Erasmus Darwin, was a renowned botanist. Darwin’s mother, Susanna, died when he was only 8 years old. Darwin was a child of affluence and privilege who loved to delve into nature. Darwin attended the University of Edinburgh, Cambridge alongside his brother Erasmus. After attending that University for two years, he enrolled at Christ’s College in Cambridge. Darwin’s father longed for him to follow in his
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The idea of natural selection is better known by the phrase “survival of the fittest”, meaning that some members of a population are better fit for survival and reproduction than others in that population. This idea was revolutionary because, for the first time in history, it provided a mechanistic explanation for how living organisms develop the characteristics that suit them so well to their environment. It was an explanation based on clear and well understood physical and biological processes. It was so clear that many people were astounded that it had not been thought of earlier. For the first time in the history of the world, the natural world made