Alistair Sponsel
- Published in print:
- 2018
- Published Online:
- September 2018
- ISBN:
- 9780226523118
- eISBN:
- 9780226523255
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of Chicago Press
- DOI:
- 10.7208/chicago/9780226523255.003.0002
- Subject:
- History, History of Science, Technology, and Medicine
This chapter opens part 1 of the book, “Theorizing on the Move,” by examining three major contexts or sources for Darwin’s ambition as a prospective naturalist. First, it describes the existence of a ...
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This chapter opens part 1 of the book, “Theorizing on the Move,” by examining three major contexts or sources for Darwin’s ambition as a prospective naturalist. First, it describes the existence of a well-known and consequential scientific puzzle to which he would eventually offer a new answer: how were coral reefs formed? This question was of great practical significance to the British Admiralty and individual navigators, and it had important theoretical implications for geologists who were interested in the history of the earth. Second, the chapter explains the purpose of the 1831-1836 Royal Navy voyage of HMS Beagle and of Darwin’s presence aboard, emphasizing the role of Francis Beaufort in directing hydrographic surveyors to study coral reef formation in the South Seas. Third, it describes the range of intellectual and practical experiences Darwin brought to the voyage by examining his training at Edinburgh University and the University of Cambridge. This discussion calls attention to his expertise in the sciences of marine zoology and (terrestrial) geology, his early exposure to the work of Alexander von Humboldt, and the mentorship Darwin received from Robert Grant, John Stevens Henslow, and Adam Sedgwick.Less
This chapter opens part 1 of the book, “Theorizing on the Move,” by examining three major contexts or sources for Darwin’s ambition as a prospective naturalist. First, it describes the existence of a well-known and consequential scientific puzzle to which he would eventually offer a new answer: how were coral reefs formed? This question was of great practical significance to the British Admiralty and individual navigators, and it had important theoretical implications for geologists who were interested in the history of the earth. Second, the chapter explains the purpose of the 1831-1836 Royal Navy voyage of HMS Beagle and of Darwin’s presence aboard, emphasizing the role of Francis Beaufort in directing hydrographic surveyors to study coral reef formation in the South Seas. Third, it describes the range of intellectual and practical experiences Darwin brought to the voyage by examining his training at Edinburgh University and the University of Cambridge. This discussion calls attention to his expertise in the sciences of marine zoology and (terrestrial) geology, his early exposure to the work of Alexander von Humboldt, and the mentorship Darwin received from Robert Grant, John Stevens Henslow, and Adam Sedgwick.
Daniel B. Botkin
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- May 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780199913916
- eISBN:
- 9780190267919
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Discontinued
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:osobl/9780199913916.003.0009
- Subject:
- Biology, Ecology
This chapter examines the view that considers nature as a biosphere by focusing on the moose and their wilderness ecosystem at Isle Royale, an island of the Great Lakes, as well as their symbiotic ...
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This chapter examines the view that considers nature as a biosphere by focusing on the moose and their wilderness ecosystem at Isle Royale, an island of the Great Lakes, as well as their symbiotic relationship with bacteria. It first describes the moose's rumen as a miniature model of the biosphere before discussing some of the classic scientific arguments about the influence of life on the global environment. In particular, it looks at the views of Adam Sedgwick and Sir Charles Lyell. It then assesses the notion that life is an integral part of very long-term global geologic processes and explains how biological evolution has led to global changes in the environment. It also analyzes three schools of thought about a balance of nature at the global level: that the biosphere is in a steady state; that life acts as Earth's thermostat, requiring and creating constant conditions; and that the biosphere is always changing, and life is changing with it, beyond the ability of life to act as Earth's thermostat. The chapter concludes with some philosophical reflections about nature's hierarchies in space and time.Less
This chapter examines the view that considers nature as a biosphere by focusing on the moose and their wilderness ecosystem at Isle Royale, an island of the Great Lakes, as well as their symbiotic relationship with bacteria. It first describes the moose's rumen as a miniature model of the biosphere before discussing some of the classic scientific arguments about the influence of life on the global environment. In particular, it looks at the views of Adam Sedgwick and Sir Charles Lyell. It then assesses the notion that life is an integral part of very long-term global geologic processes and explains how biological evolution has led to global changes in the environment. It also analyzes three schools of thought about a balance of nature at the global level: that the biosphere is in a steady state; that life acts as Earth's thermostat, requiring and creating constant conditions; and that the biosphere is always changing, and life is changing with it, beyond the ability of life to act as Earth's thermostat. The chapter concludes with some philosophical reflections about nature's hierarchies in space and time.
