Charles Darwin‘s fascination with insects began early in life. While studying at Cambridge University, his interest continued with earnest sending James Francis Stephens, his professor of entomology (insects), specimens, and descriptions of the critters.
At the time, discussing the evolution of insect genetics would have been as relevant as discussing moon landings. Just months before setting sail on the HMS Beagle in 1831, Stevens published his recognition of Darwin’s work on insects (pictured right) in his widely popular Illustrations of British Entomology.
The European eel illustrates exactly why Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution has continued to be on the wrong side of science. Darwin once argued that
“By the theory of natural selection, all living species have been connected… So that the number of intermediate and transitional links, between all living and extinct species, must have been inconceivably great.”
Since the publication of The Origin of Species in 1859, Darwin’s “inconceivably great” number of evolutionary transitional links in the fossil record over the past 150 years remains missing despite the vast discovery of fossils.
The genetic mutation plus natural selection equation emerged as the most popular theory of biological evolution during the twentieth century.
However, with advances in biotechnology, evolutionary scientists have since increasingly challenged the credibility of this theory, popularly known as neo-Darwinism or the Modern Synthesis theory.
A recent study published in the journal Science by a Harvard research group undermines the theory that genetic mutations plus natural selection equals evolution in an experimental evolution model using the yeast microbe Saccharomyces cerevisiae species.
New high-resolution CT scans of the Taung Child skull (pictured left) by an international research team led by Ralph L. Holloway of Columbia University in New York raise renewed questions about the institute’s inane Smithsonian evolution storytelling practices.
Discovered in 1924 in South Africa, models of the skull have long since been duplicated for natural history museums worldwide, including the Smithsonian, as evidence for human evolution. Found near Taung, South Africa, the lynchpin skull was tagged with the common name of Taung Child because of the fossil’s estimated age of 3 years. It was later named Australopithecus africanus, meaning the “southern ape from Africa.” However, Hollow’s new high-resolution CT scan images undermine the long-held pre-Homo fossil status of the skull.
Two new research studies, one on Himalayan songbirds and one on Brazilian ants, arrive at conflicting conclusions on speciation. The songbird research study was published in the prestigious British journal Nature, while the ant research study was published in the American journal Current Biology.
Trevor D. Price of the University of Chicago led the songbird study, and Christian Rabeling of the University of Rochester led the Brazilian ant study, both highly respected international teams.
While the findings in the Himalayan songbird study support Charles Darwin’s speciation theory of geographical isolation, the Brazilian ant’s findings undermine his theory. Speciation, an evolution term intended to explain how new species might have developed from existing species, is in trouble once again.
Darwin, Then and Now, the Most Amazing Story in the History of Science, chronicles Darwin's life, how he developed his hypothesis, specifically what he said, and what scientists have discovered since the publication of The Origin of Species in 1859.
The book traces the rise and fall of evolution's popularity as a scientifically valid theory. With over 1,000 references from Darwin and scientists, Darwin Then and Now retraces developments in the most amazing story in the history of science.
Darwin Then and Now is an educational resource focusing on understanding the intersection of evolution and science to develop basic skills for analyzing and assessing the theory of biological evolution.
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Two new research studies, one on Himalayan songbirds and one on Brazilian ants, arrive at conflicting conclusions on speciation. The songbird research study was published in the prestigious British journal Nature, while the ant research study was published in the American journal 