Charles Darwin was a very brilliant naturalist who changed the way many people think about the worlds of biology and science. Sometimes he is even called the Father of Modern Biology for his work and observations about animal life. Always curious to find something new, hardly a day went by that Darwin wouldn’t be on an adventure of some sort. Here are some interesting facts about this scientist.
1. He Ate an Iguana
Darwin loved animals, partly because of they way they tasted when they were eaten. Whenever he saw a strange animal that hadn’t been seen before, one of his first thoughts was to wonder what it would taste like. Some animals he tried eating weren’t that great. Darwin ate an owl once and it just about put him off his curiosity for good. Then there was the time he went to the Galapagos Islands to study the effects of evolution and he loved the taste of the animals there so much that he caught 4 dozen of them to eat on the way home.
2. His Nose Got in the Way
That journey to the Galapagos Islands almost never happened. There’s a philosophy of thought from a man named Lavater that says a person can be judged solely by the shape and size of their nose. The captain of the Beagle, the ship that took Darwin out there, was a disciple of this thought and doubted that Darwin had the stamina for a long voyage because his nose said so. After meeting him, however, the captain was convinced that Darwin’s nose bore a false testimony and all became well again.
3. It Wasn’t For Survival
Interestingly enough, the primary phrase that is associated with Darwin, “survival of the fittest,” isn’t a concept that is included in his publication Origin of Species. It’s actually a phrase that was coined by a man named Herbert Spencer after reading Darwin’s work. It is actually Spencer who adapted Darwin’s theories of evolution into other areas of life, including ethics and economics. It wasn’t until the 5th edition of Origins that Darwin used the phrase… and he credited Spencer when he did use it.
4. Religion Was Important
Many people today see Darwin’s work as an effort to eliminate God from the equation of science, but Darwin himself was actually quite a religious man. He was actually planning on attending seminary before being called to go out on the journey on the Beagle. Darwin’s father actually opposed the journey because it would interfere with his religious studies. When Darwin was thinking about marrying his first cousin, he also made many mentions of being able to please God.
5. He Was Strangely Sick
Most unique about Darwin was the fact that he had an illness that plagued him his entire life. There would be times that he couldn’t get out of bed and more than 20 doctors didn’t have a clue as to what it was. We still don’t know what it was. In adapting to this illness, Darwin developed a routine that would help him manage his symptoms. One of those habits was playing backgammon for 30 minutes before bed every night.
Charles Darwin was a unique man who changed the way the world looks at science. These interesting facts are just a small sampling of who this man really was.
