"Darwin's Untimely Burial"

Paper Summary:

This paper explains that, ever since Charles Darwin proposed his theory of evolution, individuals involved with science and religion, such as British philosopher Tom Bethell, have tried to negate his thesis; others, such as scientist Jay Gould, recognize Darwin as one of the most brilliant people in history. The author points out that Gould responds that "survival of the fittest" is not a tautology, as claimed by Bethell. The paper relates that Gould concludes that unabated popularity must have something to do with its success in explaining the admittedly imperfect information we now possess about evolution.

From the Paper:

"Bethell says he does not support Darwin's theory of evolution and natural selection because: "Darwin made a mistake sufficiently serious to undermine his theory. And that mistake has only recently been recognized as such....At one point in his argument, Darwin was mislead." In the first place, Bethell has a problem with the idea of "survival of the fittest." This term normally means no more than "differential reproductive success"-the production of more surviving offspring than other competing members of the population-which is a needless repetition of the same meaning."

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