Charles Darwin's views

Charles Darwin, believed in evolution in a time when it was a radical and ludicrous in the view of the larger population. But Charles Darwin’s theory exists by the support of substantial evidence that he gathered over the years. While the idea of evolution was not a completely new concept, Charles Darwin was pressured by his peers to deliver a book with a unique take on the idea. It explained Charles Darwin’s belief of natural selection and it sent shock waves through the entire world. Over one hundred years later, the theory is still used to explain nature in modern science.

Many of Charles Darwin’s colleagues believed that it was necessary for him to publish a complete book about his thoughts on evolution and natural selection. He had published smaller essays in the past, including an abstract about natural selection, but his peers noticed the similarities of Charles Darwin’s thoughts and those of others in the field. Charles Darwin, with the encouragement of his peers, struggled to write a large abstract pertaining to evolution and natural selection. What eventually came out of this was On the Origin of Species. Although it was a popular book that detailed ideas behind natural selection, it avoided the then controversial term “evolution”.

1. Overview of the ideas presented in the book:

In a given population, stronger and faster animals, whom are better fit to survive will be naturally selected and live on their replication of its species. Over millions of years to come, the descendants of that species will continue to develop and grow stronger and will continue to adapt to its environment over time.

2. The term “Natural Selection” as defined by Charles Darwin:

Different animals within a certain species may have different traits. Animals may have different fur color, longer necks, bigger tails, shorter horn sizes, etc. Based on the conditions of their environment, if an animal is better suited to survive in that environment, it will grow to reproduce and pass on those superior genes to its descendants. For example, a giraffe has a long neck because of the benefits that come along with having it. Giraffes millions of years ago that had short necks could not reach vegetation to eat and flourish. The ones with the big necks did survive and only giraffes with long necks exist today.

3. The species as a whole:

In the same case as individual animals, entire species may be “naturally selected” to survive or perish over millions of years. Animal species that are extinct today could not adapt to their environment and their numbers grew weaker and weaker because they were not fit to be selected.

4. Evolution:

Although the term “evolution” is never used in the book, as it was a highly controversial word with lots of negative views attached to it, Charles Darwin does use many ideas that it presents to make a case. Evolution is the concept of natural selection, but looked at in the perspective of millions of years. It expresses what changes a species has gone through over the years; which needless traits of the species were phased out and which traits survived and grew stronger. Eventually, the theory of evolution proves that new species are sometimes created from others.

Pseudoscience

There are many different practices and fields that claim to be science. These fields may take elements from science, to disguise themselves as an actual science. These fields are called pseudoscience’s. The prefix “pseudo” means fake. The reason why pseudoscience’s disguise themselves as real science is to better establish their ideals and beliefs as true and common knowledge. Intelligent design, the belief that the earth and all of its inhabitants were created from a higher being such as God is a pseudoscience that infiltrated its way into many scientific textbooks in schools. Pseudoscience’s never do scientific research to prove facts.

Many examples of pseudoscience’s and beliefs stemming from pseudoscience’s include astrology, ESP, ghosts, intelligent design, and psychics. All of these hold ideas that are untested and have never been proven true in any standardized scientific way. They sometimes take some scientific facts and merge them with untrue knowledge in order to further establish false foundation of integrity. Listed below are the main differences between science and pseudoscience.

1. Pseudoscience, unlike science, displays unreferenced claims by expressing bogus “facts” without scientific research:

The bogus facts are usually centralized around the claim made by the pseudoscience and are never backed up by reputable sources.

2. Pseudoscience as opposed to science, does not meet guidelines when conducting so-called scientific research:

Newspaper clippings, hearsay, and citations of other pseudoscience books are all used to further their spread of false information without scientific research. They rarely or never make an independent investigation to ensure the integrity of their sources.

3. Pseudoscience creates a hypothesis just like a science in so called scientific research, but only identifies facts that back up that hypothesis.

A hypothesis usually created by pseudoscience’s for scientific research are usually tied to sensitive emotional beliefs. Therefore, conflicts that contradict it are often ignored and overlooked. Alternative possibilities for scientific research are never considered either and they always appeal to widespread misconceptions.

4. Pseudoscience relies on “subjective validation” in scientific research:

A person experiences chronic back pain every day, and one night his or her pain is greatly reduced. It just so happens that this night, the moon was full. A pseudoscience would come to the conclusion that the full moon alleviated his or her pain. Science, on the other hand, would come up with a more direct reasoning for the reduction of pain through scientific research, and not based on coincidences or circumstance.

5. Pseudoscience relies heavily on conventions of human culture, rather than the universal regularities of nature:

An example of this notion is that astrology relies heavily on months, a man-made measurement of time, to determine one’s personality, likes, and dislikes. Also, it depends on the names given to planets and stars, etc. Astronomy would not depend on names, but rather the characteristics of the planets and stars themselves for scientific research.

6. Pseudoscience always avoids applying claims to substantial tests:

Pseudo scientists never create or test their beliefs in experiments and they never follow up either. If one pseudo scientist claims to have performed an experiment to solidify his or her beliefs, another one will never test his or her conclusions in another experiment. In science, experiments are repeated over and over all over the world. Scientists are encouraged to test other scientists’ claims as well.

Scientist

If you are thinking about becoming a scientist, there are many things that you should know and code that you should follow to be considered a “good” scientist. Science follows a set of specific rules and there is always a fine line between real science and pseudoscience. Pseudoscience is a theory, methodology, or practice that is considered to be without scientific foundation. Remember, that if you are coming to conclusions based on belief rather than hard and concrete evidence, then you are a pseudo scientist.

Scientists should become a scientists for the right reasons. They believe that it is important to make decisions and come to conclusions beneficial for science for the advancement and betterment of health, technology, and mankind. So what are the qualities and characteristics that are consistent with a good scientist that practices ethical and proper science?

1. Curiosity:

If a person is thinking about going into science, he or she should be very curious about the world. They should not be satisfied in seeing things happen, but rather, he or she should want to find out why things happen the way that they do for science. If Galileo looked up at the sky and thought that the lights in the sky were pretty and thought nothing more of it, would we have made the great science and technological advancements in astronomy that we did for science? Galileo hungered for knowledge and better understanding of why things exist and why they are the way they are. He used science and creative thinking to study the moon, sun, stars, and planets in the sky.

2. Logic:

Remember that in a field such as science, where reason, logic, and systematic processes are carried out, a scientist should think in a similar manner. Scientist should use systematic experimentation to take notes and observe for science purposes. If no discoveries are made, he or she should use his notes to move on to the next step in the process. Science is also a field that requires a lot of patience. A process in science should not have any shortcut. Also, information in science should be concise and accurate.

3. Open-Minded:

In science, there are no sides taken. A hypothesis is made before an experiment is conducted, but science does not expect a scientist to “look” for truth in the hypothesis, but rather observe what he or she sees and compare those findings to the hypothesis. A scientist should not be afraid of throwing out a hypothesis if it is proved to be untrue. This is beneficial for science and helps advance it forward.

4. Honesty

It is unethical for science conclusions to be made in a dishonest fashion. In order to maintain morals and integrity for science, a scientist should be completely accurate and honest about his or her observations, reports, and conclusions. Scientists should take great pride in being honest and fair in the science field.

5. Creative

Science, especially when it comes to experiment creation, is thought of as an art form. Scientists should be creative and think outside of the box when approaching a problem for science. Many great discoveries for science have been made because scientists look at the problem from a different perspective.

Science Books

When studying science either at a school, for personal knowledge, or for work, it can sometimes be overwhelming with the amount of information and concepts that it provides. Reading a science book is one thing, but you should make sure that the information that you read is understood and retained. There are two components of science books that should be noted and emphasized– terminology and concepts. These tips will help you get the A on the big exam, gain and retain science knowledge to help you in further learning, and creating the best work possible on the job.

1. What you should know about scientific terminology in science books

As the case in any class, let alone science classes, it is always a good idea to scan the chapters contained in science books so that you have a firm understanding about what you are going to learn, even if you do not fully understand it as of yet.

You should ask yourself: How do I learn best? Am I a visual learner or an auditor learner?

Visual learners benefit from seeing and writing down information. Auditory listeners may find it easier to hear a word as a professor or teacher may define something in class. You may want to consider reading the book aloud in this case.

No matter if you are a visual or auditory learner, you may benefit by using both techniques. If you are studying science books, you should read the book, then copy down terms and definitions. Finally, you should read these terms and definitions to yourself to develop a firm understanding about what they mean.

Learning root words in science will allow you to better understand terminology that you encounter later. Science is a field with many root words that are organized in logical ways. The root word “bio” means life, therefore you should have a firm understanding what biology is the study of and what biologists do. This will ensure that you will not be overwhelmed with diving head first into science books.

2. What you should know about studying concepts in science books and textbooks.

Having a good imagination is key in understanding how science works. You should use your imagination to picture a description in your science books of cellular mitosis and you will better understand it and retain that information.

When you are studying science books, use the illustrations that they contain to your advantage. Refer back to illustrations as science concepts are described in the book. Make sure that you have a firm understanding of how the descriptions and illustrations interweave to provide you with the fullest understanding of science concepts.

If you believe that science books do not provide enough visual information, try creating your own sketches using descriptions that you read in the science text. Remember, that science is as highly visual as it is abstract. Try to use both techniques to your advantage to gain a further knowledge.

Scientific Research

Scientific research is extremely important for the advancement of technology, general health and medicine, and learning how the world works. Gaining grants for scientific research can often be quite difficult, even for companies that provide services in science, and especially for individuals. There are many steps that you can take to find out what grants are available and to gain knowledge about what the best ways are to obtain these grants for your scientific research. Once you know the ways in which they work, they will also be easier to obtain grants in the future. In the name of science, you should ask yourself:

1. Where do I find scientific research foundations and how can they be useful to my scientific research?

A great deal of science foundations offer grants for scientific research. A lot of foundations are for general science research, but some of the foundations focus more specifically for certain science causes and scientific research. Before you contact a certain science foundation, make sure that you research what they do, what they offer, and what their goals are. An example of a science foundation is the US Civilian Research and Development Foundation. This science foundation offers grants for a wide variety of purposes, including studying forms of life and entrepreneurship. Whitehall Foundation Grant Programs is another science foundation that focuses on the scientific research of individuals and provides them with the grants that they need. There are a lot of others, and you should not limit your list of possible foundations to just a couple.

2. Where do I gather more information about science foundations?

A useful magazine to read is Science Careers Magazine. You can visit their website at http://sciencecareers.sciencemag.org. This website constantly updates with a fresh listing of grants that are available and will let science researchers know immediately when they are available. This website also offers detailed descriptions of the grants and general information about research and what to do to get started. Creating an account with the website can also be extremely useful as it will keep track of your history and provide personalized information based on the science grants you are looking for.

3. How can Grants.gov be useful?

Finding scientific research grants is very easy when you use this government service website. It is always up to date and there is a search available on the website that will make it easy to find what science grants you are looking for. The details for applying for these grants are also contained on this website, making it a complete source for all your needs when you want to conduct scientific research.

4. What are research grant providers?

Grant providers give science grants to companies and individuals. You can research what science grants were handed out and to who. This will give you some information about what grant panels want when a proposed grant is established. You can receive different techniques about how to make your application stand out from the rest.

5. What should I know when applying for the grant?

Your job is to convince the grant panel that your scientific research should be done and you have to prove why you deserve the money to conduct it.

Evolution Evidence

There is a wide range of evidence throughout the world. Everything from fossils dug up from the earth, to evidence for evolution within animals and humans. This evidence for evolution provides us with a lot of information on the natural processes by with the earth’s inhabitants have changed over time.

Fossils are some of the most important pieces of evidence for evolution that scientists have to work with but since they are very scarce and rare, they only provide sparse records evidence for evolution. More recently, the genetic composition of species living on earth reveal a lot of evidence for evolution and where species have descended from. Certain recently uncovered evidence, such as dormant DNA in animals that are no longer active but relate to a certain species of animals, help further strengthen evidence for evolution.

1. The importance of genetics in the strengthening of the evidence for evolution

Although in its infant stages, genetic research has helped make great strides for scientists that support the evolution theory. There are a lot of comparative research being done to compare DNA sequences of related species that support the notion that all species have a common descent. DNA research also helps scientists understand DNA mutations and why they occur. Mutations are a sudden change in the characteristics of DNA that occurs in organisms, sometimes without warning, that aid in the developmental changes of species. They have been theorized as playing a large role in evolution.

2. What does paleontology and evidence for evolution have in common?

Fossils are physical evidence of the remains of organisms that are preserved in the earth and excavated by Paleontologists. When ancient organisms are preserved, they provide scientists a lot of information about what organisms were like thousands and sometimes millions of years ago and what part they played in evolution.

In order to aide in the research evolution theory, determining the age of fossils is important. Fossils are usually created when sediments fill into the pores of an organism’s bones and harden into stone. Scientists can usually determine the age of fossils by determining the layer of sediment that the fossil is found in. Then, when age is determined, a better picture of the evolution of life can be painted by scientists.

Unfortunately, while fossils provide a great tool to estimate evidence for evolution, they are not the best source of information for evolution scientists. The reason for this is the probability of fossil creation is low, a lot of species are more prone to become fossilized, many fossils have been tampered with and destroyed by natural erosion, and fossils do not divulge much information about how an organism functioned.

3. What is comparative anatomy, and how does it support evidence for evolution?

Comparing the anatomy of similar animals is a very common way for scientists to study the evolution theory. There are three key ideas that scientist assumes when using comparative anatomy for supporting the theory of evolution:

• Evolution scientists believe that groups with less similar features may have diverged from a common ancestor much earlier than groups with many similar features.
• In decided related features, evolution scientists look for structures that are fundamentally similar, even though they serve different functions.
• In the above case, it may be necessary to trace their embryonic development. A similar developmental origin suggests they were likely derived from a common ancestor.

Charles Darwin

Charles Darwin was a popular scientific celebrity during his time and a legend a century after his death. Darwin is the scientist who popularized the preexisting idea of evolution through powerful evidence and research. He is responsible for coining the term “natural selection”, the micro-process of how the theory of Darwin evolution works. He professed that humans and animals evolved over millions of years as nature “selected” stronger individuals in species to live on based on characteristics they use for survival.

One hundred years after his death, Charles Darwin has been noted for his contributions to the scientific community. Eventually, Darwinism was created to identified various movements or concepts related to ideas of Darwin evolution, natural selection, and transmutation of species (theory describing the altering of one species to another). There are even ideas in Darwinism that extend beyond Darwin evolution theories and further into ideas that were never researched by him. Darwinism also sometimes has different meanings depending on which country you travel to. For example, in the United States, the term is widely used by creationists as a negative term to describe Darwin evolution. In the United Kingdom, the term has no negative connotations and is freely used to describe the Darwin evolution theory.

1. Origin of Darwinism:

Darwinism is a term that was first used in Thomas Henry Huxley’s review of Charles Darwin’s 1859 book On the Origin of Species in the Westminster Review. He gave the book a positive review and described it as “a veritable Whitworth gun in the armory of liberalism”. He praised the book for promoting scientific naturalism over theology, and he liked the usefulness of Darwin’s ideas.

2. How was the term Darwinism used in the 19th century to describe Darwin evolution?

Darwinism soon became a common term to describe any range of Darwin evolution concepts or theories. It even describes some philosophies about both biology and society. Advocates of Darwinism use the phrase “survival of the fittest” often when practicing Darwinism, even though this was a term by the philosopher Herbert Spencer, whose work predated Darwin’s work.

When society is implemented into terms of Darwinism, it is called “Social Darwinism”. This concept has to do with the “struggle” principles to society. It basically means that competition between individuals, groups, nations, and ideas is the key factor in what drives social evolution in human societies.

During his time however, Darwinism did not have a concrete meaning. Proponents and opponents of Darwin used it to their liking to state their case and beliefs, either to contradict Darwin’s writing, praise it, or attack it.

3. Uses of Darwinism today:

Promoters of creationism in the United States, people who believe that the earth and all of its inhabitants were intelligently designed, use the term Darwinism to attack ideas of Darwin evolution. Their reasoning behind using the term “Darwinism” is to negatively imply that the only person that holds the beliefs of Darwin evolution to be true are Darwin himself.

Darwinism is also used to positively describe the differences between the Darwin evolution theory and modern theories of evolution in the scientific community. Darwinism may also describe the theory of “natural selection” to compare it with modern theories such as “gene flow”.

Human Evolution

As millions of years have past, human evolution has put humans through many changes, both mentally and physically. Scientists have outlined the various stages of human evolution based on the evolution evidence that has been presented to us through physical and material evidence. Although researchers of human evolution cannot agree on the prime origins, evolution evidence shows universally that life resembling humans closely started about 2.5 million years ago.

The three underlying stages of human evolution are the Neanderthal stage, the Cro-Magnon stage, and the Homo sapien stage. Using these three categories, understanding the development stages of human evolution can be a lot of easier to understand.

1. Homo Habilis

There is a lot of evolution evidence that humans first appeared 2.5 million years ago in the continent of Africa and these early humans were ape-like in appearance. This first stage of human evolution is called homo habilis. Evolution evidence suggests they had a skull half the size of modern humans and according to fossil evidence, had very long arms.

2. Homo Erectus

The homo erectus chain of human evolution, according to evolution evidence, began during the same time as homo habilis. Evolution evidence suggests that the homo erectus showed the first signs of humans using tools created from stones. This signified the start of the Paleolithic era, which in a significant stage in human evolution, also led to the migration of humans from Africa to other continents.

3. Homo Georgicus

Humans during this era of human evolution had many modern characteristics. Evolution evidence suggests that during this stage, the homo antecessor existed, the earliest known link between Neanderthal and modern humans.

4. Neanderthal

According evolution evidence, Neanderthals started about 600,000 years ago in Europe. In this stage of human evolution, the Neanderthals started to create more complex tools using stones as well as the use of other materials such as wood to make tools. The Neanderthal stage even showed evidence of the first use of musical instruments. According to fossil evolution evidence, they seemed to have died out about 30,000 years ago, as no Neanderthal fossils have been found any younger than that.

5. Cro-Magnum

The cro-magnum is a grouping of humans in later human evolution stages whose time period overlapped with Neanderthal. There is a wide debate about the role they played in human evolution. Some believe that cro-magnum and modern humans show similar enough characterists that they should not be separately classified, however some evolution evidence shows enough difference that they should be identified as a separate group the bridges Neanderthals and modern humans.

Cro-magnums were shorter in stature than modern humans. They are also accredited in human evolution in taking technology of tools to a whole new level. They discovered burial methods, they began religious views and organized religion, and even created social systems around 60,000 years ago. Although it is hard to pinpoint, cro-magnum gave birth to modern humans about 30,000 years ago.

Evolution

The conflicting beliefs of the theory of creationism and the evolution theory has been a constant debate that has been going on for hundreds of years. It is a battle between scientists under the beliefs of Darwin who use the evolution theory first presented by Charles Darwin; belief in the evolution theory. Those that believe that creationism, or intelligent design is the reason why humans and animals have the characteristics and traits that they do. So what are cases, criticisms, and arguments presented by advocates of both creationism and the Darwin evolution theory?

What is creationism?

Creationism or intelligent design theory is the belief that God is responsible for every life form on earth for the way that they are today; the reason why humans have five fingers on each hand, two eyes, an upright stance, etc. is because we were designed to be that way by a higher entity. Every bird, dog, cheetah, and porcupine was designed to be the way that they are.

What is evolution?

The Darwin evolution theory, a concept that has been around for hundreds of years but was popularized by Charles Darwin, states that characteristics and traits that humans and animals have were the result of natural selection. The Darwin evolution theory claims that weaker animals that are not fit to survive will not survive, and over time, the stronger animals with the most dominant characteristics still exist today. The evolution theory is based on the micro-concept of natural selection, a term coined by Darwin. An animal is “selected naturally” when it is able to survive the harsh conditions of its environment. Polar bears of thick skin and fur and still exist today because of their ability to use their traits to their advantage.

Attacks on evolution:

Creationists attest that the Darwin evolution theory is just what it is– a theory. Since it is not fact, it should not be thought of as reasoning behind the origins of earth. Another attack on Darwin’s evolution theory is that life and everything on earth is far too perfect to have just have come into existence by “accident”. Advocates of the evolution theory defend evolution by retorting that the earth is over four billion years old and it took a great deal of time for species to be shaped by their environment. In fact, two thirds of all species that have ever existed on earth are now extinct. It took mother nature many years of trial and error before arriving where it has today.

The evolution theory is sometimes dismissed because of the natural of theory’s randomness. Creationists and humans by nature like to take comfort in knowing that they have a purpose and a reason for existing. The evolution theory, while supported by scientific facts and research, does not provide comfort that humans desire and therefore the Darwin evolution theory rejected by a lot of people.

Attacks on creationism:

Most creationists try to prove the credit of creationism as an actual science. Many advocates of it have won cases to take the evolution theory out of school textbooks and even put creationism and intelligent design theories into science textbooks.

Creationists attack the evolution theory by stating that evolution is not a science because it cannot be backed up by evidence. They also claim that there have been no evidence that older species have slowly turned into other species based on observations of fossils.