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Charles Darwin is born
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Event 1. Voyage on HMS Beagle
The HMS Beagle was set to begin a five-year journey around, when an invitation was extended to Charles Darwin. During the voyage, he wrote notes on his observations made from a group of islands throughout the Pacific Ocean called the Galapagos Islands.He noted the many similarities and differences of the sizes and shapes of finches beaks between the islands vs. mainland of South America. These observations contributed to the development of his theory of evolution through natural selection. -
Galápagos Finches Paper
During Darwin's time on the Galapagos Islands he had collected different finch specimens which would end up playing a significant role in his future work. In January 1837, few months after the voyage of HMS Beagle, Charles presented his findings to the Zoological Society of London.To Darwin's knowledge the specimens were collected from three different birds. Instead, the specimens consisted of 12 species of finches. This further influenced his theory of evolution through natural selection. -
Event 3. Publication of "The Origin of Species"
Charles Darwin published On the "Origin of Species". Darwin began to lay the groundwork for his theory of evolution by natural selection. It was ultimately introduced in "On the Origin of Species". This was shortly after the HMS Beagle voyage ended. Key facts to his theory include: every species is capable of producing offspring that will survive long enough to reproduce causing a growth in population. This later influenced modern day thoughts. -
Event 4. Charles Darwin's Contribution to Philosophy of Science
Charles Darwin and the theory of evolution through natural selection has made a profound influence on many areas of study. The theory of evolution has impacted the philosophy of science in a way that philosophers have questioned their ideas of science vs non-science. Also, teaching philosophers on how to think in a scientific understanding and if their idea is scientific or not. Darwin's thoughts paved the way for scientists to further research branches of biology.