Lynn Margulis Biography

The study of science is defined as that which deals with the workings of the physical world we are able to observe and measure. The origin of life, however, is a topic that science has long grappled with, despite the impossibility of observing or proving any origins theory in a strictly scientific manner. Today, the widely accepted theory of life’s beginning is the theory of Evolution by mutation and natural selection, or Neo-Darwinism. Most people in our modern society accept this theory at face value because it is popular with the majority of scientists, but it must always be taken into account that our origins cannot be proven scientifically and that, in fact, the theory of Evolution is not the only or even the most logical theory

The 19th century was one of the most revolutionized eras in the history of the world. It is in this time period that the power shift was on a constant stir; empires falling, empires rising, and important discoveries that would change the world forever. Many Significant theories and belief systems were established, as well as the rise of some of the potent people in history. One person that is remembered for his work and celebrated for his theories is English biologist and scientist Charles Darwin. He is the sole theorists who conjured up the idea of human evolution, commonly known today as “Darwinism”. In effort to ensure this is recognized this paper continues on into the life of Charles Darwin, his story, his achievements,

Although Darwin’s (1809-1882) work in evolutionary observation might appear radically different from those focused on other areas, the theories he developed from these observation lead to such groundbreaking publishing’s as The Origin of Species. These intern caused an upset within the then accepted norms of philosophy and religion, had a profound impact on the academia, and further

Darwin’s Theory of Natural Selection, a scientific theory that supported the belief of evolution, was manipulated and applied to different areas of life, and thus it became the shaping force in European thought in the last half of the nineteenth century. Darwin, through observation of organisms, determined that a system of natural selection controlled the evolution of species. He found that the organisms that were most fit and assimilated to the environment would survive. They would also reproduce so that over time they would eventually dominate in numbers over the organisms with weaker characteristics. This new theory was radical and interesting to the scientific world but its effects reach far beyond this small institution of

Born and raised in northeastern Pennsylvania, DeAngelis finished a three-year registered nurse program at the Scranton State General Hospital School of Nursing in 1960 and worked at the Columbia University Medical Center. But her bigger ambition was to become a medical doctor. She was able to reach her dream by working as a nurse while attending Wilkes University. Working in the field of immunology, she then transferred to the University

The late Stephen Jay Gould, a noted paleontologist who once described himself as an “agnostic leaning towards atheism,” wrote the classic treatise Evolution as Fact and Theory for Discover magazine back in 1981. His distinguished career and scientific achievements did earn him respect amongst his peers, but to the general public he is best known for his popular science writings and, to smaller circles, as a champion of evolution. As his treatise was written for a non-academic, science themed magazine, a basic understanding of science, and specifically evolutionary mechanics, was assumed of his audience. The treatise itself is on the often overlapping distinction between “theory” and “fact”; two words, he asserts, that creationists

Contemporary science has assimilated the bigotry views that it hoped to fend off. The scientific community, their ideas and perceptions, account for the accepted scientific beliefs rather than the perpetual, and actual scientific theories. Gould and Lewontin's essay "The Spandrels of San Marco" is about an adaptationist programme and how it has taken over evolutionary belief in England and the United States during the past forty years. The people believe in the power of natural selection as a key mechanism of evolution. The writers don’t see eye to eye with this thought and are trying to reassert a competing theory that organisms must be seen as integrated wholes. Gould and Lewontin show their explanations for a pluralistic perspective of

"New standards pointed out about that discrepancies in a molecular evidence has challenged the evolutionary theory of common ancestry of all living things and that whether microevolution can be extrapolated to explain macro evolutionary changes is controversial".(LeBeau, 2007)

Stephen was born September 10, 1941 in New York, New York (“World Biography”). His mother’s name was Eleanor and she was an artist (“World Biography”). His father’s name was Leonard (“World Biography”). He was a court reporter and an unpaid naturalist on the side (“World Biography”). As a child, Stephen’s mother and three elementary school teachers supported his desire to learn about evolution. When he was eleven, he was well on his way to reading multiple books on the theory of evolution and Darwin’s beliefs (“World Biography”). This passion for science and the understanding of life followed him to high school. He was faced with the need to defend his belief of evolution when creationists challenged him (“World Biography”).

Loretta Lynn was born Loretta Webb on April 14, 1932, in Butcher Hollow, Kentucky. Lynn grew up in a small poor Appalachian coal-mining community and was the second of eight children. Loretta’s career began when she started singing in church as a child. When she was 16, she married Oliver Lynn. The couple soon moved to Custer, Washington. During their first four years in Washington Lynn has four children, Betty Sue, Jack Benny, Ernest Ray and Clara Marie. Lynn was still passionate about music and began to play at local venues. By 1960, she had released her first single, “I’m a Honky Tonk Girl.” She moved to Nashville, where she continued to perform and promote her music. Moving to Nashville was arguably one of Lynn’s best decisions. That is where she met one of her best friends and role models, Patsy Cline, as well as find fame and recognition there. During her career Lynn has garnered an impressive release of more than 160 songs, 60 albums, a total sale of 45 million records, ten Number 1 albums and sixteen Number 1 singles on the country charts, and was the first women to win the the CMA’s Entertainer of The Year.

Charles Darwin and Alfred Wallace like so many of their predecessors made observations of natural phenomena that inspired proposals of how life on earth evolved, unlike others these men formed plausible explanations of how the changes in populations occurred without having any knowledge of Mendelian genetics which was presented in 1868, and provided the micro-mechanism for evolution that Darwin could never explain with his theory of Pangenesis. Rather, based solely on the observations each made over time observing different species of populations around the world, both men were able to pen the ideals that would serve as the foundation of the modern theory of evolution.

Many scientists believe variations are caused by environmental factors, such as food availability, weather and more; and that species evolve when environmental conditions change to increase the species survival. Darwin censures this idea; he believed that the main cause of variation is due to reproduction (Chapter I). Darwin suggested that parents pass down specific characteristics to their offspring, and those variations are continued on in the following generations. The problem with Darwin’s theory of reproduction is that Darwin did not comprehend how or why some characteristics are perennial and how others are not. Darwin’s inferences on variations also conflict with the idea that God created species independently, which was widely understood by many people in a time where religion was prominent (Chapter II).

The article, “A Matter of Scale,” urges the audience to observe the small and extraordinary components of the biosphere and acknowledge its genetic variations as explained by Darwin’s theory of evolution. However, Kelly’s essay, “Evolution: An Article of Faith,” considers Darwin’s theory as a “false religion” suppressing God’s ability to create the “work of intelligence.” (Evolution) The heated debate over the credibility of Darwin’s theory of evolution has led to the division of scientific and religious groups. Devoted, religious people discover two major flaws with Darwin’s theory of evolution regarding the inaccuracies of the fossil record and the contradicting phrase “survival of the fittest” that has passed on harmful mutations to next

Jean-Baptiste Lamarck (1755-1829) is one of the best-known early evolutionists, holding a belief that evolution was a continuous development and strived toward greater complexity and perfection. Through which, his theory of evolution was that living organisms evolved in a unceasingly up ward direction, from dead matter, through simple to more complex forms and towards human “perfection” (Nesci.edu, 2015). From his theories of Inheritance of Acquired Characteristics; where organisms adapt to their environments and those changes were passed onto their off springs (Corbis, 2001), to his theories of Use and Disuse, where organisms that are not used progressively disappear (Evolution.berkeley.edu, 2015). Lamarck was the first biologist to publish

The theory of evolution is significant as repeated testing that explains “an observable, verifiable truth – that life on this plant has changed over time.” (Fuentes, 22) It is the well-supported history of where all life came from on this planet.