"I love fools' experiments. I am always making them."
English naturalist and biologist, Darwin demonstrated that all species of life have
evolved over time from common ancestors through the process he called natural
selection. The fact that evolution occurs became accepted by the scientific community
and the general public in his lifetime, while his theory of natural selection came to be
widely seen as the primary explanation of the process of evolution in the 1930s, and
now forms the basis of modern evolutionary theory. In modified form, Darwin's scientific
discovery remains the foundation of biology, as it provides a unifying logical explanation
for the diversity of life. His 1859 book On the Origin of Species established evolution by
common descent as the dominant scientific explanation of diversification in nature. He
also examined human evolution and sexual selection in The Descent of Man, and
Selection in Relation to Sex, followed by The Expression of the Emotions in Man and
Animals. In recognition of Darwin's pre-eminence, he was one of only five 19th century
UK non-royal personages to be honored by a state funeral.