Video: Darwin's Theory of Natural Selection | Overview & Principles ~

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65K views Instructor Laurie Smith Darwin's Theory of Natural Selection


Charles Darwin's theory of natural selection transformed our comprehension of how species adapt and evolve according to environmental pressures. The theory states that the conditions of the habitat naturally select characteristics that help an organism survive better and reproduce more. The role of adaptability is crucial in making species succeed, thus making a principle that distinguishes it from artificial selection, where traits are deliberately chosen through breeding. According to Darwin, a species consists of individuals belonging to a particular group that exhibit general physical characteristics that breed and give rise to fertile offspring. This is a feature absent in the case of breeding between different species.


Some of the key elements within the theory as forwarded by Darwin comprise variation arising due to nature within a population. Other important considerations are heritability, which explains how the variation of genes could contribute to an effect that emerges or demonstrates phenotypic traits. Population dynamics further explain the concept that the offspring greatly outnumber those that might possibly survive. With more individuals competing over the few existing resources, some of them struggle for survival. This is because the random diversity between the species accelerates their process of living, which makes others live longer with more likelihood of reproducing.


The works of Darwin are based on data collection with much meticulousness, as he was aboard the HMS Beagle during his voyage. In more than five years, he was able to gather much information about flora and fauna worldwide, and the results formed the basis of his great work, On the Origin of Species. In 1859, the book was published and became a hot item of debate within philosophical and theological circles. Since the theory of genetics has supported and elaborated upon the work of Darwin, further explaining such things as genotype and phenotype and bringing it to practical fields such as neuroscience.<


It is the misapplications by Herbert Spencer that led Darwin's ideas to be misused and became known as social Darwinism. This theory posits that species fitness was translated to human societies for comparison without considering that financial success cannot be related to nature as those are human-created systems. Misapplications of the theory do not negate his work as the cornerstone of modern biological science, hence showing a profound knowledge in evolution and adaptability. Read Darwin's Theory of Natural Selection | Overview & Principles Lesson