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Birth Day
Charles Darwin was born in the small town of Shrewsbury, England.
His father was a scientist by the name of DR R.W Darwin and His Mother Susanna Darwin. -
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Education at University of Edinburg
Charles Darwin would go on to study medicine at the University of Edinburg at the age of 16, by the demands of his father to follow in his footsteps of becoming doctor. 2 years later Charles Darwin would drop out of college at the University of Edinburg. -
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Education at Christ's college of Cambrige
After dropping out of the University of Edinburg, Charles Darwin would enroll in Christ College for his education in theology to become a clergyman. Charles Darwin didn't have a degree in biology but was seen as a naturalist which would help him during his time at Christ's college. -
HMS Beagle
During his time at Christ college, Darwin befriended a botanist and mineralogist by the name of John Henslow who was one of Darwin's professors. Henslow recommended Darwin to a Captain by the name of Robert Fitzroy who would invite Darwin on a five-year journey. HMS beagle would set sail from Plymouth, England for a trip mostly spent around South America's coastline. -
First Discovery
At a location called Punta Alta, near the settlement of Bahía Blanca, it was here that Darwin came across fossils that resembled that of giant sloths, an extinct kind of horse, and a big beast that resembled an armadillo. It was here he had a match between fossil and living species was close but not identical. -
Second discovery
A month later and 30 miles up the coast of Punta Alta, a location called Monte Hermoso. Darwin discovered another fossil-rich area. There he unearthed the stony remains of several gnawing creatures, which variously put him in mind of an agouti, a capybara, and a smaller South American rodent, the tuco-tuco, except that again, in each case, the match between fossil and living species was close but not identical. -
Third Discovery
Farther down the coast of Argentina, Darwin excavated the third set of mammal bones, which, to an anatomist who eventually examined them, suggested an extinct form of a camel. That creature became known as Macrauchenia. The camel family includes two wild South American species, the guanaco and the vicua, as well as their domesticated forms, the llama and the alpaca. -
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Galapagos Island
On the return route across the Pacific, the Beagle arrived in the Galapagos Islands. Darwin would visit the following islands while observing three different species of mocking birds and different species of tortoises. San Cristóbal (September 17-22), Floreana (September 24-27), Isabela (September 29-October 2), and Santiago (October 8-17). Here Darwin would observe the different beaks of birds among the different Islands. -
HMS Beagle Return
After five years at sea, the HMS Beagle would return back home to the port of Falmouth England. -
Origin of Species
After years of scientific investigation, Darwin publicly introduced his revolutionary theory of evolution. On November 24, 1859, he published a detailed explanation of his theory in his best-known work, On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection. -
The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex
Another book was published by Charles Darwin in regard to human genetics. His book applies evolutionary theory to human evolution, and details his theory of sexual selection, a form of biological adaptation distinct from, yet interconnected with, natural selection. -
Charles Darwin's Death
Charles Darwin died at his family home, Down House, in London, on April 19, 1882. -
Educational video
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Citations
Citations:
Darwin, Charles, and Leonard Kebler. On the origin of species by means of natural selection, or, The preservation of favored races in the struggle for life. London: J. Murray, 1859. Darwin, Charles, Leonard Kebler, and Joseph Meredith Toner Collection. The Descent of Man,: And Selection in Relation to Sex . London: J. Murray, 1871. -
Summary
Darwin changed the way we look at and understand the world. Darwin's books focused on the mutations of species and explained, the mechanism that underlies evolutionary change. Darwin's theory wasn't well accepted when first published but would later create a paradigm shift on how biology would be looked at. -
Summary
In On the Origin of Species, Darwin backed his theory by presenting observations on the number of species found on his journey, the close interrelatedness of these species, and the absence of some groups of species. Proving to other philosophers that evolution is a thing and nothing is a fixed species. -
Summary
While Descent of Man argued that human beings shared a recent common ancestor with the great African apes. Darwin as the same as his earlier piece of work, the origin of species, was able to prove that even humans shared a common ancestor and have evolved and was not a fixed species but instead adapted to the enviroment.