Question

What did Lamarck get wrong?

Answer 1

1. Lamarck was one of the first scientists who attempted to explain the evolution of species.
2. He put forward his Theory of Acquired Traits which explained evolution as a series of events that led to organisms acquiring traits that allowed them to adapt to their changing environment.
3. He described that organisms would acquire traits over their lifetime that were favorable to their given environment and then pass these along to their offspring, which would then be more fit for survival.
4. This theory does not explain how life formed and became the way it is.
5. Lamarck’s theory fails to account for most observations made about life – one such instance is when he implied that as organisms become more complex, simpler organisms would disappear.