On the Origin of Species (with an Introduction by Charles W. Eliot) - Softcover

Darwin, Charles

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1420953125 ISBN 13: 9781420953121

Publisher: Digireads.com, 2016

Synopsis

English naturalist Charles Darwin is among one of the most influential figures in the history of science. Inspired by evidence that he collected during his expedition on the ‘HMS Beagle’ and his research regarding selective breeding, Darwin theorized that all species descended from a common ancestor. In his groundbreaking work of evolutionary biology, “On the Origin of Species,” he details the scientific theory of evolution, which posits that species evolve over a period of many generations through a process of natural selection. Considered controversial even to this day because of its contradicting position to creationist theory, Darwin's theories have been widely embraced by the scientific community as fact. Darwin’s discoveries laid the foundation for a unifying theory of life sciences which explains the rich diversity in the natural world and would lead to other major important advancements in the field of biology and related fields. “On the Origin of Species” is arguably one of the most important scientific treatises ever written. This edition includes a brief introduction by Charles W. Eliot and is printed on premium acid-free paper.

About this title

About the Author:

Charles Robert Darwin, (12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist and geologist, best known for his contributions to evolutionary theory. He established that all species of life have descended over time from common ancestors, and in a joint publication with Alfred Russel Wallace introduced his scientific theory that this branching pattern of evolution resulted from a process that he called natural selection, in which the struggle for existence has a similar effect to the artificial selection involved in selective breeding. Darwin published his theory of evolution with compelling evidence in his 1859 book On the Origin of Species, overcoming scientific rejection of earlier concepts of transmutation of species. By the 1870s the scientific community and much of the general public had accepted evolution as a fact. However, many favoured competing explanations and it was not until the emergence of the modern evolutionary synthesis from the 1930s to the 1950s that a broad consensus developed in which natural selection was the basic mechanism of evolution. In modified form, Darwin's scientific discovery is the unifying theory of the life sciences, explaining the diversity of life. Darwin's early interest in nature led him to neglect his medical education at the University of Edinburgh; instead, he helped to investigate marine invertebrates. Studies at the University of Cambridge encouraged his passion for natural science. His five-year voyage on HMS Beagle established him as an eminent geologist whose observations and theories supported Charles Lyell's uniformitarian ideas, and publication of his journal of the voyage made him famous as a popular author.

About this edition

• Publisher: Digireads.com
• Publication date: 2016
• ISBN 10: 1420953125
• ISBN 13: 9781420953121
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 418