Charles Darwin

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INTRODUCTION

Second semester of my freshman year here at Public University, I took the Honors section of Botany 180. The class dealt primarily with the evolution of man and the study of evolution throughout history. A few of the many names we encountered in the course were Mendel, Huxley, Lyell, and Darwin. However, Charles Darwin and his theories were the primary focus of our discussions. This is when I was first exposed in-depth to Darwinism. The ideas we studied and the concepts we explored laid the foundation for my thinking on the whole subject of evolution and how man ìcame to be.î Major points about Darwin that impressed me the most were his devotion to the study of his environment, the depth of his writings, and the influence he had on his peers and consequently, the whole scientific world. Furthermore, I was impressed at the fact that over one hundred years after his death, his theories still lay the foundation for scientific thought and evolutionary exploration.

The second Honors class I have taken at Miami is EDP 380, Creative Frames of Mind. When Professor Sherman first asked for ìother intelligencesî when we mapped our own strengths and weaknesses in Gardnerís seven intelligences, my idea was environmental intelligence. Darwin immediately came to my mind for this ìotherî intelligence, but also for the logical intelligence. My freshman class in evolution explored Darwinís theories, but we only skirted along the subject of his personal life and the depth of his creative intelligence. Does Charles Darwin fit Gardnerís model of intelligence? Does Darwin display an eighth intelligence, perhaps overlooked by Gardner?

To explore Darwinís place in the model, Gardnerís criteria must be followed. First, does Darwin di...

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...This intelligence in itself is quite a creative accomplishment.

Darwin journeyed, and he searched through trial and error for an understanding of the order of nature. His creativity and willingness to rise above the scientific views of his day made his journey all the more worthwhile.

WORKS CITED

Brent, Peter. Charles Darwin. Harper & Row, Publishers: New York, 1981.

Clark, Ronald W. The Survival of Charles Darwin. Random House: New York, 1984.

Gruber, Howard E. Darwin on Man: A Psychological Study of Scientific Creativity. The University of Chicago Press: Chicago, 1974.

Huxley, Julian. Charles Darwin and His World. The Viking Press: New York, 1965.

Manier, Edward. The Young Darwin and His Cultural Circle. D. Reidel Publishing Company, 1965.

http://www.lib.virginia.edu/science/parshall/darwin.html

http://www.nobunaga.domon.co.uk/htm/darwin.htm

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