BLG 144 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte De Buffon, Carl Linnaeus, James Hutton
27 Apr 2018
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CHAPTER 24 – NATURAL SELECTION
- Before darwins time it was largely based on religious beliefs
Life evolution and theology
- Plato (427-337BC) – philosophy of idealism
- Aritotle(384-322 BC) – believed species were fixed
- Judeo-Christian Culture – account of creation ( all species were individually designed and
permanent)
- Carl Linnaeus(1707-1778 AD) – deeloped lassifiatio to reeal God’s Pla
Aristotle and the Great Chain of Being
- Ordered types of organisms into a linear scheme called the great chain of being
- Organized by fixed sequence based on increasing size and complexity, with humans at the top
- Aristotles ideas ere popular i the ’s i sietifi ad religious irles. His lais ere:
- Species are fixed types
- Some species are higher- in the sense of being more complex than others
How did Evolutionary Thought Evolve?
- The theory of evolution predates Darwin
- Evidence came from: Species diversity, fossils, and geology
Origins of Evolutionary Thought
- 1760: Georges Louis Leclerc(Comte de Buffon)
- In similar environments, different regions have specific plants and animals. This is the
first principle of Biogeography
- Said species improved and degenerated after dispersing from a center of creation
- Considered a transformist and said the worlds quadrupeds had developed from an
original set of 38 quadrupeds
- Said climate change caused the worldwide spread of species from their centers of origin
- 1795: James Hutton(geologist)
- Pulished Theory of the Earth here he ade his theory of gradualis
- Recognized change occurred, but it was a gradual culmination of slow processes over a
long time
- 1798: Thomas Robert Malthus(political economist)
- Argued that growth in population will always outrun its ability to feed itself and that
there was a built-in agony to human existence
- Wrote a essay o the priiple of populatio as it affets the future iproeet of
soiety
- He focussed on humans as groups instead of by individuals and subjected them to the
same basic laws of behaviour. Used same principles an ecologist nowadays would use to
study plants and animal populations
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Document Summary
Before darwins time it was largely based on religious beliefs. Aritotle(384-322 bc) believed species were fixed. Judeo-christian culture account of creation ( all species were individually designed and permanent) Carl linnaeus(1707-1778 ad) de(cid:448)eloped (cid:272)lassifi(cid:272)atio(cid:374) to re(cid:448)eal god"s pla(cid:374) Ordered types of organisms into a linear scheme called the great chain of being. Organized by fixed sequence based on increasing size and complexity, with humans at the top. Aristotles ideas (cid:449)ere popular i(cid:374) the (cid:1005)(cid:1011)(cid:1004)(cid:1004)"s i(cid:374) s(cid:272)ie(cid:374)tifi(cid:272) a(cid:374)d religious (cid:272)ir(cid:272)les. Some species are higher- in the sense of being more complex than others. Evidence came from: species diversity, fossils, and geology. In similar environments, different regions have specific plants and animals. Said species improved and degenerated after dispersing from a center of creation. Considered a transformist and said the worlds quadrupeds had developed from an original set of 38 quadrupeds. Said climate change caused the worldwide spread of species from their centers of origin.
