In this lecture, we review the history of thought about biological evolution, as surveyed by Mitchell (2009, Chapter 5). We start with Lamarck's ideas and discuss their appeal to Darwin. We then move to Darwin and note the influence of Lyell, Lamarck, Mathus, and (Adam) Smith on Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection. We describe Darwin's finches on the Galapagos Island chain as evidence for natural selection. We then pivot to Mendel to discuss particulate inheritance and point out the difficulties with integrating this with natural selection. We close with an introduction to population genetics (Fisher, Haldane, and Wright) that resolves the conflict between Darwinism and Mendelism, providing the foundations for The Modern Synthesis.
Whiteboard notes for this lecture can be found at: https://www.dropbox.com/s/5fsaefbep03ddq0/SOS220-LectureG1-2023-03-21-Evolution_of_Evolution.pdf?dl=0
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