Lab activity: in the footsteps of Charles Darwin
Charles Darwin is considered to be the founding father of the theory of evolution… But do you really know his story? Do you know exactly what arguments he put forward? And do you know even a little bit about his history? Today, although his theory is indisputable, there unfortunately seems to be a backlash, with beliefs taking precedence over science. In this session, we are going to try to highlight, very modestly, a few aspects of the history of the most famous biologist: Charles Darwin, and we are going to try to put the spotlight back on some of his arguments.
I- a quiz to verify what you know
Connect your mobile or a computer to kahoot.it
Ready to go ?
enter the game pin given by your teacher.
Be careful you will only have 5 seconds for each question ! You know or you don’t. Are you a fan of Charles?
II- a summary of his life
Read the following text once
Charles Darwin (1809 – 1882).
Charles Darwin was born in Shrewsbury, England on 12 February 1809. He came from a wealthy and famous family. His mother’s father was the china manufacturer, Josiah Wedgwood.
In 1825 he went to Edinburgh University to study medicine and become a doctor like his father. However, the young Darwin did not enjoy his studies and at the end of his second year he left Edinburgh and moved to Cambridge University to study theology. While at university he became interested in collecting beetles and after completing his studies in 1831 was offered the opportunity to join a two-year long scientific expedition as a naturalist aboard the HMS Beagle. The voyage went to South America, the Galapagos Islands, Tahiti, Australia, South Africa then back to Brazil before heading home five years after leaving England. During the voyage Darwin collected many specimens and made lots of observations. In the
Galapagos Islands he noticed that each island had its own type of tortoise and finch that,
although similar, were different in some important ways. After returning to England he spent the next 20 years working on his ideas and, in 1859, he published On the Origin of Species by means of Natural Selection. In this book Darwin outlined a new theory about evolution which shook the world. At first his ideas were attacked, but, in the end, people came to realise that they were probably true. Darwin died on 19 April, 1882 and was buried in Westminster Abbey in London.
then answer these questions on the next page without rereading:
- 1. 1- What did Charles Darwin study at Edinburgh University?
- 2. 2- What was his father’s occupation?
- 3. 3- Why did he leave Edinburgh University?
- 4. 4- What was his hobby while he was at university?
- 5. 5- What did he observe in the Galapagos Islands?
- 6. 6- What was the name of his most famous book?
- 7. 7- How old was Darwin when he died?
Still too easy ?
III- The Evolution of … Evolution
Listen very carefully this podcast
(http://www.scientificamerican.com/podcast/episode/the-evolution-of-evolution-09-01-07/)
You can have the transcription with, and only after, answer these questions:
A. Answer the following questions:
Who was Charles Darwin?
Why is he still remembered?
What is the title of his most important publication?
Was he the first scientist to theorize about evolution?
Why was his insight a revolutionary one?
What did he do when he was 26 years old?
What is the relationship between Darwin and Galapagos finches?
Were his idea easily accepted? Why?
B. Explain in three lines the concept of natural selection.
C. Try to explain why evolutionism is usually opposed by religious people and creationists.
To know more :
http://www.scientificamerican.com/report/darwin/
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/darwins-living-legacy/
http://sandwalk.blogspot.it/2008/12/scientific-american-evolution-of.html
http://issuu.com/samuelsantos52/docs/scientific_american_2009_01_vol_300
The complete work of Darwin :