I need some infos on Charles Darwin...like his background and his works?

Question

I am doing a presentation on Charles Darwin...
What i would need to include is a brief background of him
His most significant work and how has it contributed to the study of genetics?

And most imptly, What application or work has it contributed in today's world??

Thanks!!

Answer 1

http://darwin-online.org.uk/

goodluck!

Answer 2

I had read a book a few years back. A great book about Charles Darwin.... Some of the highlights. Charles Darwin himself was actually a creationist and believed in God. The evolution...was just a "Theory". He gave a lot of money to the Missionaries and their families. (Believing in God.)
You see in evolution, mutations aren't usually good. Therefore have a hard time reproducing many of the same thing that is for a functional reason. You will never get a cow from a pig, only deformed or different kinds of pigs. The peppered moth idea is survival of the fittest. The white moth on a tree will get eaten before a peppered moth will. They are all from the same family of moths, it's what's in their genetic make-up. That is the key it's what's in their genetic make-up. You may find more bold or red tomatoes, or lighter tomatoes, but you won't see them growing legs because it's not in their genetic make-up. Hope this helps.

Answer 3

I also recommend the wikipedia site as a good starting place. But like any encylopedia, it should just be a starting place. You need to go to Google and type "Charles Darwin" and skim through a few sites until you find one that gives you the information you need in the format that works best for you.

Here's a great educational video, designed for High School students:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/evolution/library/11/2/e_s_2.html

As for your last question: "What application or work has it contributed in today's world?"

There is a famous quote by a biologist name Dobzhansky, that pretty much sums it up: "Nothing in Biology Makes Sense Except in the Light of Evolution"

In other words, Darwin provided the key piece (the theory of natural selection) that grounded evolution and made it the backbone for all of modern biology. Everything from genetics, to understanding how viruses and bacteria work, or how pests gain resistance to pesticides, to many advances in medicine, all make sense because of evolution.

For example, the very ability of scientists to create a new flu vaccine every year is because they understand evolution and natural selection (Darwin's theory). Viruses evolve. They evolve immunity to last year's flu vaccine. But based on understanding of how this works, scientists can make predictions of what strains are more likely to have spread enough to mutate, where these new strains will come from, when they will come, and what patterns in hospitals around the world to look out for.

In short, knowledge of evolution saves lives.

Answer 4

Try wikipedia, but this is from my notes

- Born 1809, Shrewsbury England and then studied medicine then theology at Uni.
- His interest in natural history led him to a five-year cruise as official naturalist aboard the Beagle and publication of his journal of the voyage made him famous as a popular author
- Died in Downe, Kent, England, on 19 April 1882, given a state funeral and buried in Westminster Abbey,

- Puzzled by the geographical distribution of wildlife and fossils he collected on the voyage, began his theory of natural selection in 1838. Carefully noted a rich variety of geological features, fossils and living organisms, and methodically collected an enormous number of specimens.
- Had suspicions about 17 species of finches he had found, and wrote that if his growing suspicions about the mockingbirds (finches) and tortoises were correct, "such facts undermine the stability of Species"
- Consulted animal husbanders and carried out many experiments.

-His 1859 book, On the Origin of Species, established evolution by common descent as the dominant scientific explanation of diversification in nature. Intro and theory is;

‘As many more individuals of each species are born than can possibly survive; and as, consequently, there is a frequently recurring struggle for existence, it follows that any being, if it vary however slightly in any manner profitable to itself, under the complex and sometimes varying conditions of life, will have a better chance of surviving, and thus be naturally selected. From the strong principle of inheritance, any selected variety will tend to propagate its new and modified form’

- There was wide public interest and controversy
- The Church of England scientific establishment reacted against the book
- Friends took part in scientific debates, overturning the dominance of clergymen for a new generation of scientists
- Translated into many languages becoming a staple scientific text accessible to the middle class.

Answer 5

Darwin was a great naturalist in addition to giving us his theory of evolution by natural selection.

He had no idea how genetics really worked, though.

Answer 6

Decent of Man.
it started the debate on evolution. (according to popular opinion. the idea was floating around before him. just not put as well)
you could go into the human genome project. i.e. decoding DNA
those two events are concidered the most ground breaking in the study of human beings.

Answer 7

You can start here. Do not use Wikipedia as a single source.