History of the Theory

Who helped shape Darwin’s Theory of Evolution by Natural

Selection? (check your answers)

1700s

Carolus Linnaeus 1735 Developed a classification system for

organisms. This is still used today.

James Hutton 1785 Proposed that the Earth was shaped by

geological forces that took place over extremely long periods of time. This principle is called gradualism.

He estimated that Earth was millions NOT thousands of years old.

Erasmus Darwin: 1794 Proposed living things came from a

common ancestor. More complex forms came from less

complex forms.

Malthus 1798 Predicted that the human population would

grow faster than the space and food supplies that were needed to sustain it.

Proposed that war, famine, and disease limited the growth of human populations.

1800s

Lamarck 1809 Recognized that living things have changed over

time and that all species were descended from other species.

All organisms strived for perfection and complexity. Realized that organisms somehow adapted to their

environment. Proposed that by selective use OR disuse of

organs, organisms acquired or lost certain traits during their lifetime. These traits could then be passed on to their offspring. Over time, this process led to change in a species. This is called the inheritance of acquired traits.

Lyell 1833 Published The Principles of Geology in the

1830s. Lyell expanded Hutton’s theory of

gradualism into the theory of uniformitarianism: The processes that shape the earth are uniform throughout time.

Wallace 1858 Sent Darwin an unpublished paper of his

thoughts about evolution. His ideas were similar to Darwin’s.

Darwin 1859 Published On the Origin of Species 28

years after he first set sail on the Beagle.