Charles Darwin was not the first to come up with some sort of theory for evolution. People before him had also wondered how animals had come to act and appear as they did. One theory was constructed by a french scientist,Jean-Babtiste de Lamarack believed animals evolved by individually adapting to their environments. An example Lamarack used was the giraffe. He believed that a short-necked giraffe stretched their neck to reach the leaves that were too high up. He thought that somehow, stretching altered the appearance of the giraffe, and that alteration was passed to the offspring of the giraffe. Because this theory had no scientific proof, it was dismissed quickly.
Darwin's theory was sparked mostly by a voyage on the Beagle from England to the Galapagos Islands. He noticed finches from neighboring Islands, though similar, had distinct differences. Why would animals in such close proximity, only separated by water, have these differences? Charles Darwin had to find out.
-Malthus's Influence-
In 1838, Darwin read Essay on the Principal of Population by Thomas Malthus. Malthus said that the rate of human population growth is much faster than the rate at which the necessary resources, such as food and clothing, are produced. Darwin realized that this theory would work not only for other animals, but for humans, too. Animals had had to evolve to survive against the odds, so humans had to, also. (See Selection)
Darwin's theory was sparked mostly by a voyage on the Beagle from England to the Galapagos Islands. He noticed finches from neighboring Islands, though similar, had distinct differences. Why would animals in such close proximity, only separated by water, have these differences? Charles Darwin had to find out.
-Malthus's Influence-
In 1838, Darwin read Essay on the Principal of Population by Thomas Malthus. Malthus said that the rate of human population growth is much faster than the rate at which the necessary resources, such as food and clothing, are produced. Darwin realized that this theory would work not only for other animals, but for humans, too. Animals had had to evolve to survive against the odds, so humans had to, also. (See Selection)
