Moderate

_ hypothesized that organisms evolved through the inheritance of acquired characteristics:

Correct answer: B. Lamarck

  • A. Darwin
  • B. Lamarck
  • C. Aristotle
  • D. Wallace

Explanation

Lamarck believed that characteristics that individuals acquired during their lifetime were passed on to the offspring of that individual. Such characteristics are called acquired characteristics which often emerge from the use or disuse of organs. According to Lamarck through several generations, these acquired characters are continuously inherited and accumulated. Gradually a group of organisms would be produced that would be better able to "cope" with the environment due to inherited acquired characteristics. Evolution, in other words, would occur.

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About Evolution

Evolution describes heritable change in populations over generations through variation, natural selection and adaptation. Lamarckism explains inheritance of acquired characteristics, while Darwinism explains selection of favourable inherited variations; these historical explanations must not be confused with the modern genetic account of evolutionary change.

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