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Aristotle
studied the natural world and published several volumes on animals based on systematic observations
History of Animals
one of the first zoological taxonomies ever created
Animals were placed in a hierarchy
based on their abilities and modes of reproduction
Scala Naturae
The chain of being - had god at that top of the chain of command and minerals at the bottom
Aristotle’s works
Rediscovered by Islamic scholars in the ninth century and translated into Arabic, Syriac, Persian - his work influenced others for years to come
Al-Jahiz
author of over 200 books who’s most well known work is the Book of Animals - he described over 350 species in zoological detail - introduced the idea and mechanisms of biological evolution 1000 years before Darwin
Ibn al-Haytham
A 10th-century Islamic scholar - came up with using experiments to verify theory - similar to modern scientific method
Scientific method
A method of procedure that has characterized natural science since the 17th century
Francis Bacon
founder of empiricism and namer of the scientific method
Empiricism
The idea that all learning and knowledge derives from experience and observation
John Ray
An English parson and naturalist - first person to publish a biological definition of species in his Historia Plantarum
Species
A group of similar organisms capable of producing fertile offspring
Carl von Linne
Established the system of binomial nomenclature
Binomial nomenclature
A system of classification consisting of two terms: the first identifies the genus to which it belongs, and the second identifies the species
Comte de Buffon
came up with a technique of comparing similar structures across different species - comparative anatomy
Georges Cuvier
A paleontologist that found that some species had become extinct through analyses of large fossil quadrupeds
Extinction
interpreted as implying imperfection - suggesting God’s work was flawed (due to the bible)
Cuvier
famous for his ability to reconstruct what an extinct animal looked like from fragmentary remains
Catastrophism
The theory that the Earth’s geology has largely been shaped by sudden, short-lived, violent events, possibly worldwide in scope - compare to uniformitarianism
James Hutton
“Father of Geology.” Publishes Theory of the Earth and introduces idea of Deep Time
Uniformitarianism
The theoretical perspective that the geologic processes observed today are the same as the processes operating in the past
Charles Lyell
Establishes geology as a science based on observation
Jean-Baptiste Lamarck
Publishes theory of the Inheritance of acquired characteristics
Lamarck’s theory involved a three-step process
1. An animal experiencing a radical change in its environment
2. The animal (either individual or species) responding with a new kind of behaviour
3. How the behavioural change results in morphological (meaning physical) changes to the animal that are successfully passed on to subsequent generations
August Weismann
Publishes the results of an experiment involving mice - disproving the inheritance of acquired characteristics (Lamarck’s theory)
August Weismann’s Book
The Germ Plasm - early idea of inheritance through sexual reproduction
Thomas Malthus
Economist and “Father of Statistics”- publishes An Essay on Population - inspires Darwin’s idea of “natural selection”
Carrying capacity
The amount of organisms that an environment can reliably support
Charles Darwin
Publishes On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection
Fixity of Species
The idea that a species, once created, remains unchanged over time
Evolution
A descent with modification - species share a common ancestor yet change over time, giving rise to new species
Artificial Selection
Identifying desirable traits in plants and animals - enhancing and perpetuating those traits in future generations
Gregor Mendel
Publishes experiments in plant hybridization - outlining the fundamentals of genetic inheritance (pea plants)
Phenotypes
The detectable or visible expression of an organism’s genotype
Genes
A sequence of DNA that provides coding information for the construction of proteins
Gene flow
The introduction of new genetic material into a population through interbreeding between two distinct populations
Genetic drift
Random changes in allele frequencies within a population from one generation to the next
Gene pool
The entire collection of genetic material in a breeding community that can be passed from one generation to the next
Microevolution
Changes in gene frequencies between generations within a population
Macroevolution
Longer-term changes in a population that can eventually result in speciation - individuals from different populations are no longer able to successfully interbreed and produce viable offspring
Modern Synthesis
The mid-20th century merging of Mendelian genetics with Darwinian evolution that resulted in a unified theory of evolution
Theodosius Dobzhansky
One of the founders of the Modern Synthesis of biology and genetics
Publishes Genetics and the Origin of Species
Documents a genetic model of speciation through reproductive isolation
Speciation
The process by which new genetically distinct species evolve from
Urban sprawl
shrinking the availability of wilderness habitats for animals - some animals have adapted to these new environments
Fitness
An individual’s ability to survive and reproduce viable offspring who also survive and reproduce
Creationism
The belief that the universe and all living organisms originate from specific acts of divine creation
Intelligent design
A pseudoscientific set of beliefs based on the notion that life on earth is so complex - can only have been designed by a supernatural entity
