Matt+King+-+Entry+4+(Due+Oct.+1)

Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution was revolutionary to modern science. According to the American Museum of Natural History, “transformed our understanding of the living world… Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection underlies all modern biology” (AMNH ,1). It is common knowledge that his theory (which is, for the most part, widely accepted today) is based on the idea that the life on earth as we know it is a direct result of “natural selection”; the idea that the strong and adapted will survive and reproduce, passing on their genes. The process of natural selection is actually simple enough to be broken down into five steps: variation, inheritance, selection, time, and adaptation. Darwin’s theory shook the whole world. Before Darwin’s theory, humans were not considered part of the natural world (AMNH,2). That is, humans were believed to be superior and placed here separately from the other forms of life on earth. Once Darwin’s theory became accepted, “the question was not, do organisms evolve, but rather does nature change by itself?” (Evolution, Whye 1). With this outlook on evolution, it is possible to scientifically understand the natural world, without having a blasphemous or atheist religious view; one can believe in evolution, but also belive that the process was created or is regulated by God or some other higher power, which possibly created such a process for the betterment of all forms of life on Earth.  Today, Darwin’s theory of natural evolution has been the base on which modern biology was built. We now can use DNA to provide evidence to the genetic similarities between species. For example, the human genome is 99% similar to the genome of the chimpanzee. Because of Darwin, we are able to understand the natural world, which allows us to “decipher our genes and fight viruses, and to understand Earth’s fossil record and rich biodiversity” (AMNH, 3).