In 1831, a 22-year-old English biologist called Charles Darwin boarded the HMS Beagle in Plymouth and set off on an incredible voyage. His aim was to observe the natural world in places
HMS Beagle’s mission was to map the harbours of South America. Darwin was invited along
What is Darwin 200’s mission? The Darwin200 ship
The Darwin 200 team will travel in a 50-metre-long Dutch sailing ship called Oosterschelde, which
The ship is due to reach the Galapagos Islands in April 2025
4 . Charles Robert Darwin was born on 12 February 1809 in Shropshire, England. Darwin’s childhood passion was science, and his interest in chemistry, however, was clear; he was even nicknamed ‘Gas’ by his classmates.
In 1825, his father sent him to study medicine at Edinburgh University, where he learned how to classify plants. Darwin became passionate about natural history and this became his focus while he studied at Cambridge. Darwin went on a voyage together with Robert Fitzroy, the captain of HMS Beagle, to South America to facilitate British trade in Patagonia. The journey was life-changing. Darwin spent much of the trip on land collecting samples of plants, animals and rocks, which helped him to develop an understanding of the processes that shape the Earth’s surface. Darwin’s analysis of the plants and animals that he gathered led him to express doubts on former explanations about how species formed and evolved over time.
Darwin’s work convinced him that natural selection was key to understanding the development of the natural world. The theory of natural selection says that individuals of a species are more likely to survive when they inherit (经遗传获得) characteristics best suited for that specific environment. These features then become more widespread and can lead eventually to the development of a new species. With natural selection, Darwin argued how a wide variety of life forms developed over time from a single common ancestor.
Darwin married his cousin, Emma Wedgwood, in 1839. When Darwin’s eldest daughter, Annie, died from a sudden illness in 1851, he lost his belief in God. His tenth and final child, Charles Waring Darwin, was born in 1856. Significantly for Darwin, this baby was disabled, altering how Darwin thought about the human species. Darwin had previously thought that species remained adapted until the environment changed; he now believed that every new variation was imperfect and that a struggle to survive was what drove species to adapt.
Though rejected at the beginning, Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection is nowadays well accepted by the scientific community as the best evidence-based explanation for the diversity and complexity of life on Earth. The Natural History Museum’s library alone has 478 editions of his On the Origin of Species in 38 languages.
1. What made Darwin reconsider the origin and development of species?A.Examining plants and animals collected. |
B.His desire for a voyage to different continents. |
C.Classifying samples in a journey to South America. |
D.His passion for natural history at Edinburgh University. |
A.used natural selection to develop new species |
B.enjoyed being called nicknames related to science |
C.learned some knowledge about plants when studying medicine |
D.argued with others over the diversity of life forms for a long period |
A.That he had ten children in all. | B.His youngest son’s being disabled. |
C.That he lost his eldest daughter. | D.His marriage with Emma Wedgwood. |
A.Darwin’s passion for medical science | B.Darwin’s theory and experiments |
C.Charles Darwin’s changing interest | D.Charles Darwin’s life and work |
Number of Steps a Day It Takes to Cut Risk of Early Death
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They found walking up to 10,000 steps a day reduces these risks. The lowest risk of early death was
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A study, published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, analysed data from 72,174 people
Julie Ward, a senior nurse in the U.K., said, “We encourage people to stay active for
A. backfire B. compensate C. extend D. impressive E. meaningful F. measure G. needle H. overall I. perceive J. punishment K. typically |
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Studies
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The History of Snacks
Hamburgers, sandwiches and pizza are some of the worlds’ favourite snacks, but have you ever wondered
The hamburger started life as small pieces of raw beef
People say that it was John Montague, the Fourth Earl of Sandwich,
In 1889, Queen Margherita of Italy invited chef Rafaelle Esposito from his pizzaria to visit the royal palace and