The geologist Charles Lyell (1797-1875) is most famous for his idea of uniformitarianism which was initially applied only to geology. Lyell proposed and successfully demonstrated that the earth’s current physical appearance was due to changes that occurred over time in the past and would continue to change the appearance of the earth in the future uniformly. He also emphasized that because of the slow change that occurred over time the earth would have to be at least millions of years old instead of the then believed thousands of years old. Refer to http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/evolution/library/02/4/l_024_01.html for more information on Lyell.
I believe that Lyell’s discovery contributed to Darwin's understanding that “Individuals do not evolve. Populations do.” Lyell’s theory of uniformitarianism and an earth aged over a million years, aided in supporting darwin’s belief that evolution happens over a gradual period of time, not immediately as suggested by Cuvier.
Darwin may have developed his theory of natural selection without Lyell’s discovery but he would have lacked support and evidence. In order for natural selection to take place, there would need to be different environments that have been developed over vast periods of time, relating to Lyell’s theory of an older earth. I do however believe that Lyell’s theory of uniformitarianism was directly applied to living organisms creating the basis for Darwin’s theory of Evolution.
There are a number of reasons for the postponed publication of Darwin’s “On the Origin of Species” the most notable reason was the opposition of the Church. Due to “The Reform Movement” many people associated any thoughts of Evolution with being an atheist and a radical supporter of the Movement. It was said that if these ideas were accepted “ the Church would crash, the moral fabric of society would be torn apart and civilized man would return to savagery”(Desmond and Moore, 1991 p.34). It was not until another scientist Wallace proposed the same ideas of evolution and natural selection as Darwin that he finally decided to go forth with publication.
Hi Rebecca, I agree that Lyell was an important part of the process of Darwin pushing forward his theory of natural selection, but not necessarily the most important influence. Like evolution itself, the scientific community at that time did not embrace change. While we may think of Darwin as a procrastinator (I do anyway), there were many factors standing in the way of the new ideas including the Church, and enough like minded scientists that supported his position. I think the lesser known Wallace, was a threat to Darwin's glory, but he also bolstered his claims by coming to the same conclusion as Darwin.
ReplyDeleteI agree that Lyell was not only important to Darwin's understanding of our earth, but to everyone and the future. If Lyell did not form these theories, we would have never really thought about how the aging of earth affects us. For instance, we would probably lack information about earthquakes and erosion.
ReplyDeleteBeautifully written and well-researched. I especially enjoyed your thorough explanation ofo Lyell's work and the affect of the church.
ReplyDeleteWell done.