Test your knowledge of the world's most famous evolutionary biologist, Charles Darwin!
Which of these animals did Darwin study extensively during his voyage?
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Finches
What is the name of the house where Charles Darwin lived and conducted much of his research?
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Down House
What was the name of Charles Darwin's wife?
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Emma Wedgwood
In which year did Charles Darwin pass away?
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1882
What was Charles Darwin's occupation before he became a naturalist?
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Medical student
Which university did Charles Darwin attend?
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University of Cambridge
What was the profession of Charles Darwin's father?
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Physician
Which of the following is a famous quote attributed to Charles Darwin?
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It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent; it is the one most adaptable to change.
What is the term used to describe the process by which species evolve over time?
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Natural selection
Which of the following is NOT one of the Galápagos finches that Darwin studied?
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Blue-footed booby
What was the name of the British biologist who helped popularize Charles Darwin's ideas through his writings and debates?
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Thomas Henry Huxley
What was the name of the British painter who illustrated Charles Darwin's books and corresponded with him?
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John Gould
What was the name of Charles Darwin's grandfather, who was also a prominent scientist?
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Erasmus Darwin
In which year was Charles Darwin born?
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1809
Where was Charles Darwin born?
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Shrewsbury, England
What was the name of the disease that Charles Darwin suffered from for most of his adult life?
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Chronic fatigue syndrome
What was the occupation of Charles Darwin's grandfather, Erasmus Darwin?
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Physician
What is the title of Charles Darwin's most famous book?
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On the Origin of Species
How many children did Charles Darwin have?
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10
What was the name of the economist whose ideas about population growth influenced Charles Darwin's thinking?
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Thomas Malthus
What was the name of the British statistician who developed the concept of regression to the mean, which was later used by Francis Galton and influenced Charles Darwin's thinking about heredity?
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Francis Galton
Where is Charles Darwin buried?
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Westminster Abbey
Which scientist independently developed a similar theory of natural selection as Darwin?
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Alfred Russel Wallace
What was Charles Darwin's full name?
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Charles Robert Darwin
In which year was 'On the Origin of Species' published?
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1859
What was the name of the captain of HMS Beagle during Darwin's voyage?
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Robert FitzRoy
What was the name of the British biologist who developed the concept of altruism?
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J.B.S. Haldane
Which group of islands greatly influenced Darwin's theory of evolution?
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Galápagos Islands
What is the name of the theory that Charles Darwin is most famous for?
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Evolution by Natural Selection
Which of the following books by Charles Darwin focused on human evolution and sexual selection?
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The Descent of Man
What was the name of the 2009 film about Charles Darwin starring Paul Bettany?
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Creation
What was the name of the American biologist who developed the concept of sociobiology?
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E.O. Wilson
What was the name of the British astronomer who discovered Uranus and influenced Charles Darwin's thinking about astronomy?
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William Herschel
What was the name of the island chain where Charles Darwin made many of his observations on evolution?
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Galapagos Islands
Where did Charles Darwin study theology?
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University of Cambridge
What is the name of the island where Charles Darwin observed many unique species of finches?
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Galapagos Islands
What was the name of the British statistician who developed the concept of correlation?
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Francis Galton
What was the name of Charles Darwin's famous book?
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On the Origin of Species
How long did Darwin's famous voyage last?
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5 years
What was the name of the British philosopher who wrote An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding and influenced Charles Darwin's thinking about empiricism?
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David Hume
Which of the following organisms did Darwin study to understand the formation of coral reefs?
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Polyps
What was the primary focus of Darwin's studies before he shifted towards biology?
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Geology
What was the name of the British physicist who discovered electromagnetic induction and influenced Charles Darwin's thinking about physics?
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Michael Faraday
What type of plant did Darwin study to understand the process of cross-pollination?
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Orchids
What was the name of the German naturalist who developed the concept of ecology?
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Ernst Haeckel
What was the name of the bird that Charles Darwin famously observed on the Galapagos Islands?
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Finch
What was the name of the American paleontologist who discovered the first dinosaur fossils in North America and corresponded with Charles Darwin?
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Joseph Leidy
Which of the following awards is named in honor of Charles Darwin?
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Darwin Medal
Which of the following was NOT an influence on Darwin's development of the theory of natural selection?
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Gregor Mendel's laws of inheritance
What was the name of the scientist who discovered DNA?
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Francis Crick
What was Charles Darwin's religious affiliation?
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Unitarian
What was the name of the British economist who wrote An Essay on the Principle of Population and influenced Charles Darwin's thinking about population growth?
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Thomas Malthus
What was the name of the Austrian monk who conducted experiments on pea plants and discovered the laws of inheritance, which were later cited by Charles Darwin?
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Gregor Mendel
What was the name of the German biologist who proposed the idea of embryonic recapitulation, which was later criticized by Charles Darwin?
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Ernst Haeckel
What was the name of the Russian geneticist who developed the theory of mutationism, which was later rejected by most biologists including Charles Darwin?
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Hugo de Vries
What was the name of the philosopher who coined the term 'survival of the fittest'?
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Herbert Spencer
Which famous geologist influenced Darwin's early career?
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Charles Lyell
What was the name of the French naturalist who developed the concept of homology?
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Georges Cuvier
What was the name of the scientist who influenced Charles Darwin's thinking about evolution?
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Charles Lyell
What was the name of the American naturalist who wrote 'On the Origin of Species...by Means of Natural Selection' before Charles Darwin?
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Alfred Russel Wallace
What was the name of the ship on which Darwin embarked for his famous voyage?
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HMS Beagle
What was the name of the disease that Charles Darwin suffered from throughout his life?
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Chagas Disease
What was the name of Charles Darwin's grandfather who was also a naturalist and poet?
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Erasmus Darwin
Which island in the Galápagos has a research station named after Charles Darwin?
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Santa Cruz Island
Where did Charles Darwin die?
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Down House, Kent, England
Which branch of Darwin's family tree included prominent abolitionists?
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Wedgwood
What was the name of the British anthropologist who studied human evolution and corresponded with Charles Darwin?
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Edward Burnett Tylor
What is the name of the ship that Charles Darwin sailed on during his five-year voyage around the world?
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HMS Beagle
What was the name of the publication in which Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace jointly presented their theories on natural selection?
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Journal of the Proceedings of the Linnean Society of London
What was the name of the French naturalist who proposed the idea of inheritance of acquired characteristics, which was later rejected by Charles Darwin?
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Jean-Baptiste Lamarck
What was the name of the ship that Charles Darwin sailed on during his voyage around the world?
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HMS Beagle
What was the name of the Scottish geologist who influenced Charles Darwin's thinking about geological processes?
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Charles Lyell
What was the name of the religious institution that Charles Darwin attended as a child?
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Church of England
What was the name of the scientist who independently developed the theory of evolution by natural selection at the same time as Charles Darwin?
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Alfred Russel Wallace
What was the name of the illness that forced Charles Darwin to drop out of medical school?
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Sea Sickness
What was the name of the geologist who first proposed the idea of continental drift?
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Alfred Wegener
Which group of animals did Charles Darwin study extensively during his travels?
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Finches
What was the name of the English economist who coined the term 'survival of the fittest' and influenced Charles Darwin's thinking about competition among organisms?
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Herbert Spencer
What was the name of the British statistician who developed the concept of regression?
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Francis Galton
What was the name of the British naturalist who developed the concept of niche?
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Charles Elton
What was the name of the university that Charles Darwin attended?
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University of Edinburgh
What was the name of Charles Darwin's wife?
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Emma Wedgwood
What was the name of the British explorer who led expeditions to Africa and influenced Charles Darwin's thinking about race and colonialism?
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David Livingstone
What was the name of the British abolitionist who wrote The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano and influenced Charles Darwin's thinking about slavery?
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Olaudah Equiano
What was the name of the British physician who discovered the smallpox vaccine and influenced Charles Darwin's thinking about immunology?
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Edward Jenner
What was the name of the British poet who wrote The Rime of the Ancient Mariner and influenced Charles Darwin's thinking about nature?
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Samuel Taylor Coleridge
What was the name of the British novelist who wrote Frankenstein and corresponded with Charles Darwin?
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Mary Shelley
What was the name of the British engineer who designed the steam engine and influenced Charles Darwin's thinking about industrialization?
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James Watt
What was the name of the British naturalist who was one of Charles Darwin's main scientific rivals?
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Richard Owen
What was the name of the British composer who wrote The Planets and corresponded with Charles Darwin?
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Gustav Holst
What was the name of the ship that Charles Darwin took on his voyage around the world?
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HMS Beagle
What was the name of Charles Darwin's famous book published in 1859?
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On the Origin of Species
What was the name of the Austrian monk who discovered the laws of heredity?
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Gregor Mendel
What was the name of the British philosopher who wrote On Liberty and influenced Charles Darwin's thinking about individual freedom?
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John Stuart Mill
What was the name of the British paleontologist who developed the concept of punctuated equilibrium?
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Niles Eldredge
What was the name of the Scottish naturalist who independently came up with a similar theory to Charles Darwin's?
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Alfred Russel Wallace
What was the name of the American geneticist who discovered transposable elements?
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Barbara McClintock
What was the name of the biologist who proposed the idea of inheritance of acquired characteristics?