Darwin’s explanation and why acceptance took time
| English | 中文 | Pinyin |
|---|---|---|
| acquired characteristic/əˈkwaɪəd ˌkærɪktəˈrɪstɪk/ | 后天获得的性状 | hòu tiān huò dé de xìng zhuàng |
| scientific theory/saɪənˈtɪfɪk ˈθɪəri/ | 科学理论 | kē xué lǐ lùn |
What would explain this observation?
- A theory can unite observations before every underlying mechanism is known. Darwin’s account of selection developed from years of evidence and discussion.
- Start with a prediction. State the quantities or features you would compare, then decide what evidence could distinguish two explanations.
Build the model
- Darwin drew on observations during a round-the-world voyage, later experiments, discussions and developing knowledge of geology and fossils. His account linked variation within a species to better survival and breeding by individuals suited to their environment. Their inherited characteristics could become more common in later generations. He published On the Origin of Species in 1859.
- acquired characteristic 后天获得的性状: A feature developed during an organism’s lifetime rather than inherited as a genetic variant; scientific theory 科学理论: An explanatory account supported and tested using evidence.
Which explains one historical reason for gradual acceptance?
Acceptance was gradual. The ideas challenged widespread beliefs about separate creation, available evidence was initially insufficient to convince many scientists, and the inheritance mechanism was not yet understood. Lamarck’s explanation relied mainly on changes acquired during an organism’s lifetime being inherited; this is not how inheritance operates in the vast majority of the specified examples. A study of creationism is not required.
Match each technical term to its precise meaning.
Use the definitions to distinguish related quantities and processes.
Choose evidence that can test it
- Acceptance was gradual. The ideas challenged widespread beliefs about separate creation, available evidence was initially insufficient to convince many scientists, and the inheritance mechanism was not yet understood. Lamarck’s explanation relied mainly on changes acquired during an organism’s lifetime being inherited; this is not how inheritance operates in the vast majority of the specified examples. A study of creationism is not required.
- Compare two fictional explanations of a population changing: one says individuals developed a feature by use and passed it on; the other says inherited variants differed in reproductive success. Identify the mechanism rather than choosing by the scientist’s name alone. Place publication and later inheritance evidence on a timeline.
Which two habits make the investigation or model in this case more defensible?
Compare two fictional explanations of a population changing: one says individuals developed a feature by use and passed it on; the other says inherited variants differed in reproductive success. Identify the mechanism rather than choosing by the scientist’s name alone. Place publication and later inheritance evidence on a timeline.
Work from known quantities
- State the known values and their units. Choose the relation because its assumptions fit this case, then rearrange before substitution.
- Known: a classroom timeline marks 1859 publication and a supplied later evidence date of 1909. Interval = 1909−1859 = 50 years. The arithmetic illustrates the stated interval; it does not claim that one discovery on one day resolved every inheritance question.
A supplied historical comparison uses dates 1859 and 1909. Find the interval. Use the same sequence: known quantities → model → relation → substitution → unit and interpretation.
A supplied historical comparison uses dates 1859 and 1909. Find the interval.
The result is 50 years. Known: a classroom timeline marks 1859 publication and a supplied later evidence date of 1909. Interval = 1909−1859 = 50 years. The arithmetic illustrates the stated interval; it does not claim that one discovery on one day resolved every inheritance question.
Check the conclusion and its limits
- Darwin did not know the modern molecular DNA mechanism. Missing that mechanism at publication does not erase later supporting evidence. Do not describe natural selection as organisms deliberately improving themselves or treat a historical controversy as current scientific uncertainty about every aspect of evolution.
- Return to the original observation. Explain what the result supports, which conditions it assumes, and one way to test a competing explanation.
Darwin explained selection using the modern structure of DNA. This claim is false: Darwin did not know the modern molecular DNA mechanism. Missing that mechanism at publication does not erase later supporting evidence. Do not describe natural selection as organisms deliberately improving themselves or treat a historical controversy as current scientific uncertainty about every aspect of evolution.
Darwin’s explanation and why acceptance took time: Acceptance was gradual. The ideas challenged widespread beliefs about separate creation, available evidence was initially insufficient to convince many scientists, and the inheritance mechanism was not yet understood. Lamarck’s explanation relied mainly on changes acquired during an organism’s lifetime being inherited; this is not how inheritance operates in the vast majority of the specified examples. A study of creationism is not required.
Darwin explained selection using the modern structure of DNA.
Darwin did not know the modern molecular DNA mechanism. Missing that mechanism at publication does not erase later supporting evidence. Do not describe natural selection as organisms deliberately improving themselves or treat a historical controversy as current scientific uncertainty about every aspect of evolution.
A feature developed during an organism’s lifetime rather than inherited as a genetic variant: write the technical term.
acquired characteristic means A feature developed during an organism’s lifetime rather than inherited as a genetic variant.