BIO FACTS

1. Georges Cuvier
1796
- That year, Georges Cuvier started his mark on the development of the evolutionary
thought by providing some of the earliest evidences showing that there were
organisms that have existed before which no longer existed during his time, or in
short, those that have gone extinct.

- He proved it by collecting fossils (specifically elephant fossils), analyzing them , and

discovered that those fossils had no living equivalent.

1825
- After proving that there were really species that had gone extinct, Cuvier investigated
the reason for their extinction. Specifically in 1825, he published his book A
Discourse on the Revolutions of the Surface of the Globe which proposed that series
of catastrophes led to the extinction of those organisms and the repopulation was
made happen by the survivors of the said catastrophes.

2. Thomas Malthus
1798
- Thomas Malthus, in 1798, published An Essay on the Principle of Population as It
Affects the Future Improvement of Society, with Remarks on the Speculations of Mr.
Godwin, M. Condorcet, and Other Writers. In this piece, he explained that if the
population growth won’t be controlled, the resources will eventually run out. This will
lead to competition among the limited resources which is why he also linked
population growth to famine war and disease. This work was eventually read by
Charles Darwin and made him realize things that will contribute to his theory of
evolution.

3. Jean-Baptiste Lamarck
1809
- In 1809, Jean Baptiste Lamarck published his book Philosophie Zoologiqu which he
explained his own theory of evolution which is known as the theory of inheritance of
acquired characteristics which is also called Lamarckism. In this theory, he explained
that changes happening in an organism happens because of the characteristics that
it inherited from the lifetime worth of changes that happened to its parent.
Eventually, this theory will be rejected by Charles Darwin in his own evolution theory.

4. Charles Lyell
1830
- In 1830, Charles Lyell published the book entitled Principles of Geology, he
explained his theory of uniformity which states that the Earth was shaped by the
same gradual changes brought forth by natural forces that was still happening in the
present and he also believed that the Earth was some millions of years old already.
This is in contrast with Cuvier’s Catastrophism that believed that changes were
 brought by sudden catastrophic events and holds to the belief that the earth was
some thousands of years old only. This work by Lyell will eventually be influencing
Charles Darwin in his own theory of evolution and will even be credited by him in his
future work.

5. Charles Darwin
1831-1835
- In 1831, Charles Darwin participated in the Beagle Voyage as a naturalist. His main
job here was to collect fossils and gather specimens. In this journey, as he gathered
different fossils and specimens from different the different parts of the coast of South
America. In here, he appreciated nature but many questions were also raised as he
stumbles new discoveries along the way. One popular part of this voyage was the
arrival in the Galapagos island in 1935. In here, the specimen of birds he collected
from the island, upon analysis, can’t be found in the mainland but still bear some
resemblance to the species in the mainland.

- After the voyage, Darwin continued his research about the concept of natural
selection; a concept that will later be the core of his own Theory of Evolution.

1859
- In 1859, Charles Darwin officially published his book entitled On the Origin of
Species which officially presented his theory of evolution by natural selection. Natural
selection as he explains, is the process in which organisms adapt and change based
on the environment they are in. In addition to it, those individuals that has an
advantageous trait will have more chance of survival and he that advantageous trait
will eventually be passed to their offspring until it reaches a point that it will already
be common to the population.

6. Alfred Wallace
1855
- In 1955, Alfred Wallace, through his voyages, had concluded that species do evolve
but he still don’t know why.

1858

- Finally, while on a trip in Southeast Asia, Wallace realized that species change
through adaptation to its environment. With that, he wrote a letter to Charles Darwin,
which he already knew was also venturing on a research of the same nature as his.
From then on, the two collaborated and shared their own sets of evidences that will
prove the concept of natural selection

Sources:
Pics
https://www.biography.com/scientist/charles-darwin
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Georges-Cuvier
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean-Baptiste_Lamarck
https://www.onthisday.com/people/charles-lyell
https://www.econlib.org/library/Enc/bios/Malthus.html
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2017/jul/14/tired-of-medals-new-letters-reveal-how-alfred-
russel-wallace-shunned-darwins-fame
https://www.freepik.com/free-vector/male-monkey-walking-upright-primate-prehistoric-stone-
age-hunter-with-primitive-tool-
weapon_4758686.htm#query=evolution&position=1&from_view=search

Content
General Biology 2 by Luisito T. Evangelista © 2018
https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/alfred-wallace/
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Thomas-Malthus
https://embryo.asu.edu/pages/georges-cuvier-1769-1832
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean-Baptiste_Lamarck#Lamarckian_evolution
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Lyell
https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/natural-selection/
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Alfred-Russel-Wallace
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Charles-Darwin/On-the-Origin-of-Species