3/17/2016
Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection was his way of explaining adaptation and speciation. This theory gave a reason as to why species “change” over time and explained the process. This was a huge discovery for Darwin because now we know that species are not fixed and are changing. Ethology, the study of animals in their natural environments, also played a role in the development of Darwin’s theory. Konrad Lorenz’s geese imprinting experiment demonstrated that evolution has a way of helping species survive in their environment. Intelligence testing became huge in America after Lewis Terman revised and expanded the Stanford-Binet Intelligence scales. This test tested the I.Q. of an individual that …show more content…
Darwin’s theory, to put in simple terms, is a competition for the more fit species. For example, the peppered moth. The white moths could hide better from predators than the black moths against the lighter trees. The white moths are considered more fit than the black moths. When the trees started to be covered in black coal dust, the white moths were dying out because of the inability to hide from predators making the black moths the more fit species. Some misconceptions about natural selection is that it is random, and that evolution only occurs in the past. Both of these thoughts about natural selection are false. Natural selection is not random, there is a purpose for a change in a species. Also, evolution does not just happen in the past, it is on going even in today's …show more content…
In 1916, Lewis Terman published the first individual intelligence test to be used in the United States. This test is widely known as the Stanford-Binet Intelligence scales. This test was revised by Terman and was an expansion of the Binet-Simon intelligence test, which originated in France. Terman also introduced the term intelligence quotient, or I.Q. This concept, and the Stanford-Binet test, became very popular all around to measure the intelligence of individuals. This was the first test developed that could test a wide variety of individuals on the same scale. Terman believed that the academically gifted children needed to be recognized and needed the appropriate educational opportunities. This ties into natural selection because being able to measure the intelligence of an individual makes it easier to bread smarter