Evolution and Biogeography: Leading Students in Darwin’s and Wallace’s Footsteps

Joshua Rosenau

doi:10.1007/s12052-012-0459-1

Abstract

Abstract Exploring life’s diversity and geography’s effect on it was central to Darwin and Wallace’s parallel discoveries of evolution. Those discoveries required the two to overcome their own misconceptions about species and biology. By helping students to see the world through the eyes of explorers and placing life’s diversity into a geographic context, teachers can help students overcome those same barriers to the acceptance of evolution and deepen students’ appreciation of biodiversity.

Highlights

“I shd. like to take some one family, to study thoroughly—principally with a view to the theory of the origin of species” (Raby 2001, p. 28). His desire to travel was spurred in part by tales of an earlier generation of naturalists, men like Charles Darwin, whose journey around the world from 1831 to 1836 had earned him scientific fame, and by the explorers who had earlier inspired Darwin, especially Alexander von Humboldt and Joseph Banks (Holmes 2008; O’Brian 1997)
Rosenau (*) National Center for Science Education, Oakland, CA, USA e-mail: rosenau@ncse.com was Charles Darwin, who was secretly developing his theory on the origin of species
“If there is the slightest foundation for these remarks the zoology of Archipelagoes will be well worth examining; for such facts would undermine the stability of Species” (Keynes 2000)

Summary

Introduction

His desire to travel was spurred in part by tales of an earlier generation of naturalists, men like Charles Darwin, whose journey around the world from 1831 to 1836 had earned him scientific fame, and by the explorers who had earlier inspired Darwin, especially Alexander von Humboldt and Joseph Banks (Holmes 2008; O’Brian 1997). Wallace traveled on to collect in the Indo-Australian Archipelago, selling specimens to many scientists. J. Rosenau (*) National Center for Science Education, Oakland, CA, USA e-mail: rosenau@ncse.com was Charles Darwin, who was secretly developing his theory on the origin of species.

Results

Conclusion