Charles Lyell

You mentioned him, I think, recently about the dinosaur narrative.

Charles Lyell was a big one on geology.

It all comes out of the Royal Societies in the 1800s.

These people, you can either look at them as... scientists that wanted to better mankind, or you can look at them in maybe a little bit of a darker light, which is how I look at them, is that there is something nefarious going on here to deceive us.

Language, however, which he was subsequently able to retract.

the new geology perhaps the most stubborn obstacle which lamarckian theories had to meet was the current prejudice as to the age or youth of the earth contemporary geologists were by no means prepared to grant lamarck the illimitable periods of time which his transformation processes seem to require consequently it is not surprising that the new theories perhaps for the first time received a measure of justice at the hands of one who himself became responsible for a revolution in the science of geology i devoured lamarck en voyage writes charles lyell describing a journey from oxford in eighteen twenty seven his theories delighted me more than any novel i ever read and much in the same way for they addressed themselves to the imagination that the earth is quite as old as he supposes has long been my creed in spite of the fascination of these theories however lyell was not carried away by them and it was not for some years that he estimated them at their true value meanwhile the new geology made its appearance with the publication of the three volumes of his own principles of geology between eighteen twenty nine and eighteen thirty three the significance of the book for biological speculation for theories of the origin of species lay in its thesis that the present condition of the earth is a product of geological processes incalculably long hitherto the catastrophic theory had been dominant the notion that a series of immense catastrophic events like the deluge had been responsible for the present condition of the earth's surface for this lyell substituted his evolutionary theory according to which the almost invisibly slow geological processes which we may now see operating around us are typical of the behaviour of the crust of this planet for incalculable periods of time for even the slowest changes if sufficient time is allowed them are capable of producing the most stupendous results lyell may be said to have extended the age of the earth ad infinitum just as galileo removed all barriers of space lyell removed those of time their joint achievement was to present to humanity a universe infinite both in space and time a staggering conception results of lyell's theory though lyell's baldness disturbed a good many of his contemporaries those biologists who were engaged upon seeking the origin of species were thankful to one who had removed the chief obstacle to the solution of their difficulties they were now relieved of one embarrassment lyell gave them the power to draw on the bank of time to any extent bankruptcy was no longer possible footnote as a matter of fact biologists soon demanded more than even lyell's geology could give them recent discoveries about the nature of matter have however further extended the possible age of our planet Indeed, Lyell seems himself to have been convinced of the evolutionary origin of species, though its mode of operation still remained a mystery for him no less than for the biologists themselves.

In fact, it became quite evident that the idea of continuity which the principles of geology had established in the inorganic world must be equally applicable to the organic world.

darwin the theory of a common descent of species had occurred as early as eighteen thirty seven to an enthusiastic student of lyell's writings who was also a personal friend charles darwin had collected much geological botanical and zoological matter on his voyage with the beagle round the world and continued for twenty years to accumulate an immense volume of data to substantiate a theory which had first suddenly suggested itself to him in eighteen thirty eight as the result of reading for amusement malthus's essay on the principle of population This celebrated book, first published in 1798, had attempted to describe the forces which ensure the multiplication or check the increase of population.

Two forces are seen everywhere in conflict.

a the luxuriant powers of reproduction possessed by and exercised by each species b the difficulties and obstacles by which the species tend to be eliminated the contest between the powers of reproduction and those of elimination this over-production and crowding out is what was afterwards termed the struggle for existence natural selection darwin's momentous theory was that this struggle proceeding for untold ages had resulted in the continual formation of new species granted that the numerous offspring of any individual member of a species tend to vary those variations survive which happen to be best fitted to cope with the environment these in their turn leave offspring the variations and the selections are repeated and so on ad infinitum and the result is that entirely new species are formed by a long process of insignificant changes this briefly put is the celebrated theory of natural selection the habit of scientific caution was characteristic of darwin who at first would not write down even the briefest sketch of his hypothesis but devoted nearly twenty years to the accumulation of evidential data his friends continually warned him that he would be forestalled and this actually occurred as is well known in eighteen fifty eight when the book which was to give the new theory to the world was already half written the naturalist alfred russell wallace on a collecting expedition to the east indies in a flash of insight while sick with fever found the same solution of the mystery that had puzzled biologists so long wallace's letter to darwin containing the abstract of his theory came like a bolt from the blue The behavior of the two men was worthy of the highest traditions of scientific research.

The matter was put into the hands of Lyell, and Wallace's paper, together with certain extracts from Darwin's unpublished notes, were read before the Linnaean Society, and the preparation of Darwin's book was hurried on.

In November 1859, The Origin of Species was published.