In 1908, two scientists, Godfrey H.

Hardy, an English mathematician, and

Wilhelm Weinberg, a German physician, independently developed the Hardy-
Weinberg principle, a key notion in population genetics. The Hardy-Weinberg
principle, also known as the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, model, theorem, or rule
in population genetics, holds that in the absence of additional evolutionary
factors, allele and genotype frequencies in a population would remain constant
from generation to generation.

The Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium is a principle stating that the genetic

variation in a population will remain constant from one generation to the
next in the absence of disturbing factors. However, this equilibrium can be
disturbed by a number of forces, such as mutations, natural selection,
nonrandom mating, genetic drift, and gene flow. These forces can disrupt
the equilibrium of allele frequencies by introducing new alleles into a
population, while natural selection and nonrandom mating can result in
changes in gene frequencies. Genetic drift, which occurs when allele
frequencies grow higher or lower by chance and typically takes place in
small populations, can also alter the equilibrium. However, the equilibrium
rarely applies in reality, so genetic variations in nature can be measured as
changes from this equilibrium state.

Charles Darwin developed the idea of natural selection after a five-

year voyage to study plants, animals, and fossils in South America and on
islands in the Pacific. Natural selection is the process through which
populations of living organisms adapt and change. It is one of the
processes that drives evolution and helps to explain the diversity of life on
Earth. Natural selection can lead to speciation, where one species gives
rise to a new and distinctly different species. Darwin chose the name
natural selection to contrast with "artificial selection," or selective breeding
that is controlled by humans. He pointed to the pastime of pigeon breeding
as an example of artificial selection. Darwin and other scientists of his day
argued that natural selection explained how a wide variety of life forms
developed over time from a single common ancestor. Mutations are
changes in the structure of the molecules that make up genes, called DNA,
and are an important source of genetic variation within a population.
Mutations can be harmful, neutral, or helpful, resulting in a new,
advantageous trait. If the environment changes rapidly, some species may
not be able to adapt fast enough through natural selection. Extinctions are
occurring at a much faster rate today than they did in the past, as shown in
the fossil record. Human actions such as overhunting and the destruction of
habitats are the main cause of extinctions.