Biology 1001A Chapter Notes - Chapter 17.1-17.2: Uniformitarianism, James Ussher, Biogeography
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Evolution means gradual change but biological evolution refers to the gradual change of populations or organisms over time and is measured in generations (not years) Ongoing evolution explains variation within a species. Not all gradual change is biological change (i. e. aging or seasons) 17. 2 pre-darwin knowledge of the natural world. Aristotle believed that inanimate objects and living organisms had fixed characteristics and created a classification system that was followed for almost 2 years. For years" biological research was dominated by natural theology, which aimed to name and catalogue all of god"s creations in the great chain of being (scala naturae) Sir francis bacon (1561-1626) established the importance of observation, experimentation, and finding evidence to support proposals and theories. Copernicus, galileo, descartes, and newton helped to create biogeography, comparative morphology, and geology. Biogeography stems from the beginning of global explorations where new species were encountered. Biogeography is the study of the world distribution of plants and animals.
