The contribution that Thomas Malthus made to Darwin ’s
Theory was of the most important. It is what got him Darwin and Wallace to
expand their mind on a theory as to how evolution can occur. He published a
book called Essay on the Principle of Population which got the ball
rolling on Darwin ’s concept of
evolution theory. The article states
that his book “warned fellow Englishmen that most policies designed to help the
poor were doomed because of the relentless pressure of population growth. A nation could easily double its population
in a few decades leading to famine and misery for all.” Darwin
believed this could be related to animals and plants. But as humans, and animals and plants
included, we are not reproducing at unmanageable rate because the environment
does not allow us to “reproduce to our full potential.” “…The world is not overrun with them (bugs),
or any other species, because they cannot reproduce to their full potential. Many die before they become adults. They are vulnerable to droughts and cold
winters and other environmental assaults.
And their food supply, like that of a nation, is not infinite. Individuals must compete…for what little food
there is”.
Malthus helped answer questions such as: Do all organisms
have the potential of reproducing exponentially? What is preventing organisms
from reproducing at their potential? Do limited resources affect organisms and
their environment? Will organisms with better access to resources be more
successful in their reproductive efforts?
- He states that in a perfect world where resources were limited and there was no outside force of survival instinct then this could be true, but naturally no animal, human, or plant has that potential.
- The limited amount of resources food, water and environment, Malthus explained, was what limited organism from producing because they did not have the resources that they needed to survive.
- Yes, the previous two statements answer this question in depth.
- Yes, with more accesses to resources the better chance at successful reproduction is possible.
The churches had much influence, especially scientists, over
society when their comments or actions stepped outside the boundaries of
religion. Because of this scientists had
a difficult time speaking out about their thoughts, theories, and discoveries
in fear of being ridiculed or worse. Because of Malthus’ book Essay on the
Principle of Population it allowed Darwin and Wallace to develop the theory
of natural selection with proof and evidence. This gave him the backing of his
theories for evolution and natural selection and thus Darwin ’s
Theory was developed along with his book The Origin of Species.
Good job on this posting. Since Thomas Malthus made Darwin expand his knowledge on evolution, then he was pretty important. He had a big influence on Darwin's theory. I think Wallace was trying to steal Darwin's ideas, since both their ideas were very similar.
ReplyDeleteYou did a great job of walking your reader down the path from Malthus' work to Darwin's. Good selection of bullet points. Every one of them is on point. Well done.
ReplyDeleteIt is rare that I argue that scientists couldn't have come up with ideas independently or under different circumstances, but in this case, Malthus may have been indispensable to Darwin's theory, and that may be supported by the fact that Malthus not only influenced Darwin but also Wallace.
In your final section, your answer doesn't really explain why Darwin did actually delay publication for over 20 years. Yes, he had plenty of support, but until Wallace wrote to him with his own paper outlining the mechanism of natural selection, Darwin was well on his way to never being satisfied with his evidence enough to actually publish his work. Was Darwin just afraid of ridicule or were his concerns more than this?
Otherwise, great post.