Questions
The Lunar Society of Birmingham was an informal society of industrialists and philosophers that met on full moon nights because the moonlight made traveling easier. Members included Matthew Boulton, Erasmus Darwin, Joseph Priestley, James Watt, and Josiah Wedgwood. Erasmus Darwin was Charles Darwin’s father and the Lunar Society often met at his home. This exposed young Charles Darwin early on in life to creative scientific thinkers that surely influenced his studies in later years. .
What purpose did Linnaeus system of binomial nomenclature (also known as his binary system) serve?
Carl Linnaeus has been called “the Father of Taxonomy.” . The Linnaeus system of binomial nomenclature known as his binary system grouped together organisms by order of genus and species. Although the roots of this practice go back to Aristotle, Linnaeus brought in the innovation of the grouping of the genera into higher taxa. He introduced the groupings of genera, orders, classes and kingdoms. He created a standardized binomial system with a Latin name for the genus and an individual species name. Scientists still use this system although in a greatly evolved and changed form. This enhanced research and communication between biologists, and was particularly valuable in classifying the new American discoveries. The way Linnaeus set out his order of nature inspired later naturalists to investigate this further.
In Unit One, you read a brief outline of Thomas Kuhn's ideas about scientific revolutions. Given what you have read here about the contributions of Priestly and Lavoisier, do you think there was a chemical revolution in the late eighteenth century? If so, how would you characterize it? If not, how would you describe what happened?
Based on Thomas Kuhn's ideas about scientific revolutions there was a scientific revolution regarding chemical science in the eighteenth century.. In particular, Priestley’s discovery of what would come to be known as oxygen created a new line of experimentation that was taken up by other chemical scientists. From the time of Aristotle scientists believed there was only one kind of air. Priestly identified eight different gasses. He also wrote on The History of Electricity due to Benjamin Franklin’s encouragement. .
Lavoisier experimented with many substances as well as building upon Priestley’s experiments with air. With assistance from his wife, he maintained exacting records and made a systematic determination of the weights and measures involved in chemical reactions. . To further this he gave new names to these agents, many of which, like oxygen and hydrogen are still used today. One of his important contributions was that he created, a standardized a classification system that, like the binominal system in biology enhanced communications between scientists. He was also instrumental in establishing the metric system of weights and measures. .
Priestly and Lavoisier changed the earlier thinking that there were four elements that in some form, made up everything. Priestley’s investigations into the nature of gasses and Lavoisier’s identification of elements was part of it. Those discoveries alone would have created a radical shift due to their contributions. However they went further and devised nomenclature that encouraged collaboration in this field of study. They also met with other scientists of their time and provided the opportunities for younger chemists to study. For these reasons, according to Kuhn's ideas about scientific revolutions Joseph Priestly and Lavoisier created, or at least expedited the chemical revolution in the late eighteenth century. , .
How did Cuvier's work challenge the long-held notion of a chain of being?
Cuvier's work challenged the long-held notion of a hierarchal chain of being by establishing extinction as a fact and vertebrate paleontology as a scientific discipline. Cuvier’s anatomical reconstructions of large vertebrates made him famous. These anatomical led to his development of dividing the animal kingdom into four distinct body types he called embranchments. He termed these vertebrates, mollusks, articulates and radiates. Cuvier also recognized that the fossil evidence of these was often found grouped individually at different layers and locations. He noted that one layer might have many fossils of a particular type while the layer above it contained none. He reasoned that these revolutions were potential evidence of geological events that wiped out the organisms and thus became associated with catastrophism..
Question 13)
Who was Alexander von Humboldt, and why was he such an influence on the conduct of nineteenth century expedition science?
Charles Darwin described Alexander von Humboldt, as “the greatest scientific traveler who ever lived.” . Because geography, geology and the study of land forms is best done first hand at the locale he was a powerful influence on the conduct of nineteenth century expedition science. He was one of the first scientific explorers. Because he enjoyed success in both the manner of how his expeditions ere structured and planed and in the quality of research conducted, they became the foundation for other subsequent scientific explorers. His study of geography was not limited to just land forms; he discovered the oceanic Peruvian Current known as the Humboldt Current. While in service to the Tsar in Russia, he established the principle of continentality by demonstrating that large water masses serve to moderate weather conditions. .
Drawing on both your reading of the Origin as well as Larson, list three of the objections Darwin anticipates to his theory. From what you've read at least, how did he attempt to address them?
In Chapter 4 Darwin addresses the following objections to his theory:
Transitional forms implies that there are no gaps between known species. Darwin argued against the necessity for this in the situation of a branching divergent process that takes place through extermination of the less specialized forms.
Species with peculiar habits or structures also posed a potential objection. The transitional forms would not be well adapted to either their original habits or developed sufficiently to take advantage of the new physical structure they developed. Using the bat as an example, he shows how flying squirrels who glide rather than fly, provide an example of a potential transitional form.
Highly complex structures, like the human eye might have no surviving intervening states; however, nature provides examples of different degrees of complexity. He also admits that a complex organ with no conceivable intervening states would provide the grounds to reject his theory.
Useless characteristics are another problem if natural selection works only by seizing every opportunity to develop better adaptive capabilities. To counter this, Darwin argues that the potential usefulness of a particular structure could be underestimated. The tail on a giraffe serves no known purpose except for that of brushing away flies. Never the less, in the tropic regions where the giraffes live biting insects can represent a serious problem and having a useful appendage to repel them would create an advantage. In a like manner, other appendages with no apparent use could prove to be an advantage. .
Works Cited
Chemical Heritage Foundation. 2014. "Antoine-Laurent Lavoisier." Chemical Heritage Foundation. http://www.chemheritage.org/discover/online-resources/chemistry-in-history/themes/early-chemistry-and-gases/lavoisier.aspx.
—. 2014. "Joseph Priestley." Chemical Heritage Foundation. http://www.chemheritage.org/discover/online-resources/chemistry-in-history/themes/early-chemistry-and-gases/priestley.aspx.
Darwin, Charles. 1859. "THE ORIGIN OF SPECIES BY MEANS OF NATURAL SELECTION;." Gutenberg. http://www.gutenberg.org/files/2009/2009-h/2009-h.htm.
—. 1839. "The Voyage of the Beagle." The Gutenberg Project. Accessed 06 17, 2012. http://www.gutenberg.org/catalog/world/readfile?fk_files=2629009.
Ede, A, and L B Cormack. 2012. A History of Science in society: From Philosophy to Utility. 2nd.
—. n.d. "HIST 3905 EL 10, History of Science, course manual ,." A History of Science in society: From Philosophy to Utility. Laurentian UIniveristy.
Nickles, Thomas. 2013. "Scientific Revolutions." The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/scientific-revolutions/.
Safety Lamp. 2014. "Alexander von Humboldt." Safety Lamp. http://www3.telus.net/~pcain/Lamps/bios/vonbio.htm.
The Lunar Society. n.d. "The original Lunar Society ." The Lunar Society. http://www.lunarsociety.org.uk/about/the-original-lunar-society.
