1. Chapter 16.2 (Pgs 454-458): Ideas That Shaped Darwin’s Thinking

2. James Hutton
Hypothesized that geological forces shaped the earth slowly over time
Gradualism
Deep Time: Earth is much older than a thousand years

3. Charles Lyell Hypothesized that laws of nature are constant over time
Forces that shape Earth today must be the same ones that have always done so
Uniformitarianism

4. Jean-Baptiste Lamarck
Proposed that all organisms have an inborn urge to become more complex and perfect
Organisms could change during their lifetime by selectively using or not using different body parts
Individuals could pass these acquired traits on to their offspring

6. Was Lamarck Correct? NO
Organisms do not have an inner desire to become perfect
Evolution does not progress in a pre- determined way
Larmack was one of the first to suggest that species are not fixed and they are linked to their environment

7. Thomas Malthus’s View on Population Growth
Hypothesized that if human population grew unchecked there wouldn’t be enough space and food for everyone
Only those able to get food survive
Darwin applied this idea to other organisms
Some species produce millions of offspring every year
Why do only some survive?

8. Artificial Selection
Darwin noticed that farmers would breed animals and plants to get characteristics they wanted
Nature provides variation in traits, and humans select those they find useful
This process is called Artificial Selection