In Darwin’s Century, Loren Eiseley shows how a gradual accumulation of facts and concepts helped scientists to develop an explanation of evolutionary change. Evolution was in the air: others hinted at it, grasped part of the solution, or even articulated the same principle before Darwin; but no one else did the years of solid research that he brought in support of his explanation. Alfred Russell Wallace came close, with his years of experience and observations in the field as a collector in South America and Pacific islands.
This is appropriate for Darwin Day, Feb. 12th:
